Anyone who has cruised, especially on the Great Loop, can attest that getting internet access can be challenging. With more people working remotely and relying on internet-based weather, navigation tools, and streaming TV services, having reliable internet access aboard is necessary for many. How else would you keep up with the latest articles on The Clever Boater?
Past Options
In the past, internet access options were typically limited to marina WiFi, cellular hotspots, or mobile phone pairing. None of these options was ideal.
Marina Wifi
Marina WiFi is marginal at best. Some marinas using the Onspot WiFi network have multiple access points and sufficient bandwidth for regular email and web browsing. However, streaming video can be troublesome, and even regular web browsing can slow down to a crawl during peak periods. If you anchor out frequently, then marina-based Wi-Fi is not an option for your access. Also, the farther you are from the access point, the slower your connection will be. Most marinas stick transients out at the end of docks, especially at smaller marinas where the access point may be in the office; even with a wifi booster, you may have difficulty maintaining a reliable connection.
Cellular Hotspots
Cellular hotspots or phone pairing has also been a popular choice for internet access, especially as the 5G networks have become more available. This is typically an economical choice as you can bundle it with your mobile phone plan. In well-covered areas, you can expect high speeds sufficient for streaming video and normal browsing and internet use. In remote areas and outside of the US, you may encounter issues connecting to a cell network or having your usage capped to small amounts of data in Canada or the Bahamas.
Enter Starlink
Starlink, SpaceX’s ambitious satellite internet venture, has emerged as a powerful alternative, providing high-speed internet access even in the most remote locations. Here’s an in-depth exploration of using Starlink on a boat, covering the various available plans, satellite dishes, and expected performance.
Starlink Plans (Note: Prices and plans are current as of March 2025, check Starlink for current offerings)
For boaters, there are several Starlink plans to choose from depending on where you plan to cruise and how much data you will use.
- Starlink Residential plan requires that you be in a fixed location. If you are a permanent live-aboard and don’t plan to move or only move every few months, this plan may be an option for you—currently $120 per month. You must contact Starlink if you relocate, and there are limits on how often you can change location.
- Starlink Roam plan is built for Boaters and RVers. This plan allows you to use your Starlink system nationwide, in Canada and in the Bahamas. This includes “Coastal Coverage,” which Starlink defines as up to 12 nautical miles off the coast, and you can use your system while in motion. This is enough for most cruisers, including the Great Loop. The only place we lost coverage (and got a notice from Starlink) was crossing the Gulf of America (Mexico) and going from Marco Island, Florida, to Marathon. Also, crossing to the Bahamas would put you outside the 12-mile limit for a while.
With the ROAM plan, if you want to use your Starlink Off-Shore, you can turn on Mobile Priority, which will allow use beyond the 12-mile limit and give you faster data speeds. This is an additional $2 per GB and can be turned on and off at will, so if you turn it on, don’t forget to turn it back off!
There are two Starlink Roam service levels available. An Unlimited plan at $165/mo and a 50GB plan at $50/mo. Unless you stream TV and movies continuously, 50GB is probably sufficient for most people. If you exceed 50GB, you will be charged per gig.
Starlink allows you to pause your service under the ROAM plans so if you only use your boat occasionally, you can pause your service on a month-to-month basis. - Starlink Maritime plan is for heavy offshore users and requires a special, more expensive satellite dish. This gives you full-time off-shore access and network priority. There are three levels of service under the Maratime plan: 50GB at $374/mo, 1TB at $1,486/mo, and 5TB at $7,433/mo. Unless you are a cruise ship or do a lot of deep-sea fishing past 12 miles out, these plans are probably not a good value for you.
Starlink Satellite Dish Varieties
Starlink currently offers three dishes: Mini, Standard (Gen 3), and Maritime. The older Gen 2 flat face dishes with the servo motors are still available on the used market and can also be used for the Roam services.
- Starlink Mini is the latest addition to the Starlink line. At 10.2″ wide x 11.75″ long x 1.5″ inches thick, it’s very portable. It is designed for 12-volt DC power and is perfect for use on a boat, as you can power it from your 12-volt battery system without any modification. Mounting kits are available for semi-permanent insulation. With the Starlink Mini, you will experience slower speeds, typically under 120 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload. You must pay more attention to the dish’s orientation for optimal usage. Also, it is more susceptible to interference from trees, rigging, or weather. You can find the Starlink Mini kits for between $350 and $500.
- Starlink Gen 3 is the current main Starlink dish. At 15″ wide x 23″ long x 1.5″ thick, it is about 3 times the size of the mini. There are a large variety of mounting options available for semi-permanent installation. The Gen 3 dish runs on 110v A/C power and includes an external router and power supply. There are third-party 12-volt converters that will power the dish if you use your own router, making it easier to use when at anchor or underway and 110v power is unavailable. These dishes will provide your best speeds on the Roam plan, with download speeds usually in excess of 200 Mbps and 20 Mbps upload speeds. Due to its larger size, it is also less susceptible to interference from trees, rigging, and weather. Like the mini, the Gen 3 dish requires that you orient it to receive maximum bandwidth. Our dish is fixed in our installation, and we have not seen a significant difference in speed based on the direction we are pointing. It’s important if you are swinging at anchor! Starlink Gen 3 kits run about the same as the mini at $350 to $500.
- Starlink Marine/Enterprise antennas are a specialized version of its satellite dish for maritime use. This dish features enhancements that make it fit for the challenges of marine environments, including resistance to saltwater corrosion and the ability to function efficiently despite the constant movement of the vessel. The High Performance Marine/Enterprise dishes are available in a flat mount and actuated version.
The maritime Starlink dish is slightly larger than the home versions at 26″ wide x 28″ long x 9″ thick and retails for $2,500. - Starlink Actuated V2 antennas are still available. These antennas have servo motors that automatically adjust to the best angle and direction for maximum satellite reception. They are slightly smaller than the newer Gen 3 dishes at 12″ wide x 21.5″ long x 1″ thick and come with a pole attached for mounting. Some people prefer the Gen 2 dish due to its automatic direction finding. However, many people have had issues with the servo motors failing. We know of one person who went through 3 antennas. The performance of the Gen 2 antenna is similar to that of the Gen 3 antenna. Starlink no longer sells the Gen 2. However, they are available on the secondary market from $150 to $500.
Speed and Performance
Starlink’s Roam service is designed to provide reliable speeds that cater to diverse internet needs. Depending on your dish (Gen3 or Mini), users can expect download speeds from 50 Mbps to 200 Mbps and upload speeds from 3 Mbps to 30 Mbps. Such speeds enable seamless video streaming, gaming, video conferencing, or performing multiple data-heavy tasks simultaneously.
However, speeds can vary due to a range of factors, including the geographical location of the boat, weather conditions, and network congestion. If you are at anchor in a bay away from the city with a clear sky view and no cloud cover, you will usually see the top end of the speed scale. Starlink will degrade your speed to accommodate network demand when in populated areas. Commercial and Marine packages (the expensive ones) get network priority, so they are less likely to see a degradation in speed. The fixed residential users are next on the pecking order, and the Gen 3 Roam and Mini users are last. So when in an area with lots of Starlinks you could see much slower speeds.
Interestingly, we have found that we had less competition for bandwidth in large cities like Baltimore, Fort Lauderdale, and New York because most residential users have cable or fiber internet and not Starlink. In other areas like Mobile, Alabama, and Troy, New York, we had slowdowns, and we theorize that it’s because there are more residential Starlink users in the area.
Weather also can be an issue. We have noticed a slowdown in heavy cloud cover, and during periods of heavy rain, we’ve lost signal altogether. We used to have a KVM M5 satellite TV system before Starlink, which was much more susceptible to outages. Normally Starlink is only down for a few minutes during the heaviest rain.
Canada and the Bahamas
For boaters exploring the coastal areas of Canada or the sunlit waters of the Bahamas, Starlink provides a steadfast solution. The expansive Canadian coastlines are often underserved by traditional internet services, leaving remote areas with limited options. Starlink fills this gap with its satellite coverage.
In the Bahamas, where island hopping might mean transitioning from well-connected tourist hubs to isolated cays, Starlink’s reach offers uninterrupted connectivity crucial for both leisure travelers and those who rely on the internet for business purposes.
One consideration when using Starlink internationally is the ground station you are connecting to. When we were in Canada, we typically were connected to a ground station in New York or Chicago, so our streaming TV service worked just fine as it thought we were in the US. Starlink only has one ground station in Canada, and that is in Newfoundland. In the Bahamas, they currently appear to use ground stations in Miami, so your US-based streaming services should work just fine.
This was an issue when we used a WiFi network or a cellular hotspot in Canada and had to connect through a VPN to “appear” like we were in the US to use Netflix and YouTube TV.
Streaming Services
More and more people are switching from cable television to streaming entertainment services like Netflix and Apple TV. Having access to our local TV stations is important to us, and we tried several streaming services like Hulu, Sling, and DirecTV. After trying several of them, we found that YouTube TV offers the best range of channels, including your local home network channels or local network channels from where you are currently located.
Is it worth the expense?
If you need internet connectivity on your boat so that you can work while cruising, then for most people, Starlink is a game-changer. Fast and reliable. If you use the internet to check email, watch cat videos, binge-watch your favorite TV Series, or keep up with America’s Got Talent, the cost of Starlink and your streaming service may not be worth it. Cruising purists will say that being on a boat is a chance to disconnect, relax, and read a book with pages and even a smartphone is too much.
Ultimately, it’s up to your needs and budget. When traveling, we budget $255 monthly for internet and entertainment ($165 for Starlink and $90 for Youtube TV). I use it to post and manage The Clever Boater, and Brenda keeps up with Dancing With The Stars!
You can check out the current Starlink offerings at Starlink.com!
Are you using Starlink on your boat? If not, what is your internet solution?
Let us know in the comments below! 
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