SpaceX is raising prices for Starlink, including the price for the hardware kit itself, as well as the monthly fee for service. The price of the kit is increasing even for existing deposit holders, but it’s jumping more for any new orders.
Starlink hardware will cost existing deposit holders and extra $50, with the price increasing from $499 to $549, and those who haven’t yet reserved an order will now be paying $599 for the kit, which includes the Starlink receiver dish, modem and router. Monthly prices are going up by $11, from $99 to $110. All prices mentioned here reflect US rates, but global customers are also getting an equivalent hike.
SpaceX cites inflation as the only reason behind the new pricing structure: “The sole purpose of these adjustments is to keep pace with rising inflation,” it wrote in an email to existing customers. The company also offered a partial refund of $200 on cancellations with hardware returns if a customer has been on the service for less than a year, or a full refund if it’s been less than 30 days.
The email also points out that Starlink has expanded its infrastructure considerably since launch, tripling how many satellites it has on orbit and quadrupling the number of ground stations in place to relay connectivity.
SpaceX isn’t the first company to increase pricing even for reservation holders on a product due to changing economic conditions: Rivian made a much more dramatic move with its R1T and R1S electric vehicles before walking it back for pre-orders earlier this month.
