Starlink vs Viasat

Starlink vs Viasat side by side

The same questions for both, answered from each provider’s own pages and one independent speed source.

Why Starlink’s lag is so much lower than Viasat’s

Viasat’s satellites are geostationary: each one hangs over a fixed point above the equator, about 22,236 miles up. Starlink’s fly roughly 340 to 570 km (about 210 to 355 miles) up, depending on the orbital shell. Every click and every reply has to make that trip up and back down, so the height difference turns straight into delay.

In daily use, Viasat’s 750 ms median is three-quarters of a second before anything starts to happen. You notice it on video calls (people talk over each other), in online games, on remote work logins and on pages that load many small pieces. Starlink’s 39 ms median is low enough for all of those. The physics, in plain English

Speed: what Viasat advertises and what tests show

Viasat advertises baseline speeds of 80 Mbps with bursts up to 150 Mbps (Essentials), 180 Mbps (Unleashed) or 200 Mbps (Unleashed Max). It isn’t consistent about its cheapest plan, though. Viasat gives two different speeds for Essentials: an 80 Mbps baseline with 150 Mbps bursts on its plans page, but “Up to 50 Mbps” in its Unlimited Data Policy. Starlink's Specifications expect 80–100 Mbps download on Residential 100 and 80–200 Mbps on Residential 200, 15–35 Mbps upload on both, and send you to the coverage map for Residential Max.

Ookla’s medians are the fairest yardstick we have because they measure both services the same way, across many US homes, plans and Wi-Fi setups. They aren’t a promise for your address. One thing they can’t show yet: Viasat's ViaSat-3 F2 satellite entered service over the Americas on Sept 17, 2026, after Ookla’s Q1 2026 measurements. If Viasat speeds improve in newer data, we’ll update this page. Until then, the only test that settles it for your home is your own, on several busy evenings.

Data: Viasat’s thresholds vs Starlink’s unlimited

Neither company calls its limit a “cap”, but they work differently. Viasat gives each plan a line; past it, your traffic can wait behind other customers’ when the network is busy. Starlink’s home plans have no line at all, but everyone on them can slow down at peak hours.

Unleashed Max is Viasat’s roomiest plan: unlimited data with higher priority; the 'typical usage' line is under 840 GB per 30 days. On Starlink, the plan you pick changes how early you feel busy hours rather than how much you can use. What “unlimited” means on Starlink

Price: what each one costs a month

Viasat publishes its prices. The first year is cheapest: Essentials from $39.99/mo, Unleashed $69.99/mo and Unleashed Max $109.99/mo. Regular prices: $69.99 (Essentials), $99.99 (Unleashed) or $179.99 (Unleashed Max) a month after the first 12 months, plus the $15 monthly lease.

Starlink sets home prices by address: US Residential prices vary by region. You see yours only after typing your address on starlink.com. The screenshot shows the plan cards for one test address in Broken Bow, Nebraska; with no address entered, Starlink’s US national order list showed Residential 100 Mbps at $49.50, 200 Mbps at $76.50 and Max at $143 a month on Nov 3, 2026; prices vary by address, and starlink.com shows yours once you enter it, and yours can be higher or lower. Buying the kit costs $349; renting, where Starlink offers it, starts with a one-time $0, $99 or $199 set by address and plan (the $99 adds professional installation; the $199 is a rental kit that includes it).

starlink.com

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To compare fairly, add up two years of each: monthly price, lease or kit, and any fee for leaving your current plan. What switching really costs

Sky, setup and phone service

• Sky. Viasat’s dish aims at one satellite, so it only needs a clear line to the south. Starlink’s dish uses satellites all across the sky, so trees to the north or east can matter even if Viasat never had a problem. Check your spot with the Starlink app before you order. Will Starlink work where your dish is?
• Setup. Pick a spot with open sky, plug in, and the dish finds satellites in a few minutes; current kits don't point themselves, so you rotate the dish the way the Starlink app's alignment screen tells you. Viasat sends a technician to install its dish.
• Phone. Viasat sells Voice, a home phone add-on, for $35 a month plus taxes and 911 fees. No Starlink Residential plan includes home phone or voice service; Starlink sells internet service, so a home number needs a mobile or VoIP service. Move the number before you cancel Viasat. How to keep your number

Who should pick Starlink

• Anyone who video-calls, works from home, games online or uploads photos and video. Lag and upload are where the gap is widest.
• Households that hit Viasat’s data line every month and slow to a crawl in the evening.
• Homes with open sky around the dish spot, as the Starlink app shows it.
• Viasat customers on Unleashed (no term) or near the end of an Essentials term, where leaving costs little or nothing.

Switching from Viasat?

The whole move, in order, is in our Viasat to Starlink guide: checking your term, the sky test, setting up Starlink beside Viasat, moving your phone number, the cancel call and the equipment return. Work out the fee first with the fee calculator, and read how to cancel Viasat before you call.

Checking method: each price, fee and rule here links to the provider’s or regulator’s own page, dated the day we read it. No internet provider pays for a place on this site; the only income is the Starlink referral explained on our money page. Our fact-checking · How we make money · Corrections