Starlink RV review: should you buy Starlink Roam for your campervan?

Space X’s satellite internet service, Starlink, released Starlink RV, a satellite dish for campervans in June 2022. In May 2023, Space X rebranded this to ‘Starlink Roam‘ and ‘Starlink Mobility‘. Below, we explain the differences and what each service covers. Additionally, in August 2024, Starlink released the ‘Starlink Mini’ dish, a portable, DC powered dish, much more suited to campervans and RV’s.

We personally used Starlink Roam for the whole of our Pan American road trip, so we’ll give you our review on whether it’s worth investing in a Starlink for your RV or campervan.

Our Starlink helps us get online in remote spots in the US without any cell coverage

What is Starlink RV?

SpaceX, Elon Musk’s private spaceflight company, has been building a network of satellites in earth’s orbit since May 2019. Starlink proposes to supply low-latency (faster) worldwide internet using a large array of satellites in low earth orbit. As of May 2023, more than 4,000 Starlink satellites orbit the earth at around 550 km from its surface.

The at-home Starlink service has been available since 2021. But in 2022, SpaceX released Starlink RV, marketed as being a solution for those in need of high speed, reliable internet whilst on the road.

When Starlink RV was first released, it was essentially the same as residential Starlink with the Portability add-on. Starlink with Portability gave you internet at home and on a roaming basis, where the at-home internet speeds were be prioritised, and roaming speeds were a ‘best effort’ service. Starlink RV only provided the ‘best effort’ roaming service, but for the same initial and monthly price.

Additionally, it wasn’t possible to use Starlink RV outside of your registered country for more than two months, and you weren’t able to use it in a different continent.

Since then, SpaceX have split their offering into different categories, with a lot more options for functionality. Starlink RV has now been rebranded as Starlink Roam.

What is Starlink Roam?

Starlink Roam is portable satellite internet that provides a user with “unlimited high-speed, low-latency internet on an as-needed basis all over the world”.

It comes as a kit with a WiFi router and a Starlink satellite dish. This needs to be set up outside with a clear view of the sky.

As of October 2024, the upfront cost for the hardware is:

Standard Starlink dish:

• UK: £299
• Europe: €349
• US: $349

Starlink Mini dish:

• UK: £399
• Europe: €399
• US: $599

Starlink Roam is different to the standard Starlink you would have at a residential address, in that it can be used whilst in motion up to 100 mph (160 kmph) with all of the Roam service plans. There are two hardware choices available with Starlink Roam, the standard Starlink satellite or the new and improved Starlink Mini. Starlink Mini is a small, portable kit that fits conveniently in a backpack, offering high-speed, low-latency internet access wherever you go. It features an integrated WiFi router, lower power usage, DC power input, and supports download speeds exceeding 100 Mbps.

With either model you are provided with a dish and stand with the option of adding additional accessories and mounts.

Whilst Starlink RV had limitations based on the service address, Starlink Roam is not limited in the same way. There are a couple of service options available.

Roam 50GB

The Starlink Roam 50GB service option gives you up to 50GB of countrywide coverage within country of account address as well as international travel in available markets for up to 2 months per trip.

As of October 2024, the costs for the Roam 50GB service plan are:

• UK: £50 / month
• Europe: €40 / month
• US: $50 / month

So, if you’re a Brit or European travelling within Europe, or an American or Canadian travelling within North America, this option will be suitable for you.

Roam Unlimited

The Starlink Roam Unlimited service option gives you unlimited countrywide coverage within the country of your account address, as well as international travel in available markets for up to 2 months per trip.

As of October 2024, the costs for the Roam Unlimited service plan are:

• UK: £96 / month
• Europe: €72 / month
• US: $165 / month

Mobile – Global

The Global Starlink Roam service option gives you unlimited data anywhere on the planet. 

As of June 2023, the costs for the global service plan are:

• UK: £200 / month
• Europe: €230 / month
• US: $200 / month

Conversely, if you’re planning a worldwide trip, this is the right option for you. It’s possible to swap between the two service options.

For example, in April 2023 we set out on a year long Pan American road trip, from Canada to the tip of South America. So, whilst we were in the US and Mexico, we use the Regional Starlink Roam service package (as we purchased our Starlink in the US). Once we travelled down to South America, we needed to switch to the Global service package.

No matter where you are, you can get online with Starlink as long as your dish has a clear view of the sky. How many Starlinks can you see?

The Starlink app

The Starlink app lets you manage your router and Starlink dish. From here, you can:

• Manage your network name and password
• Filter content
• Reboot your router
• Reboot the Starlink dish
• Turn on the ‘snow melt’ functionality
• Check your ‘uptime’ statistics
• Check the sky for obstructions
• Set the sleep schedule

Where can you use Starlink RV?

Starlink Roam and Starlink Mobility internet are already available all of the UK and the European Union, and the US and Canada. Additionally, it’s available in most of Central and South America, Australia, and some of Africa. However, they have stated that some areas, marked as ‘waiting list’ will experience slower speeds during peak usage times.

Some countries will become available in 2025, such as Bolivia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakstan, Kyrgystan and Tajikistan. However, many of the remaining countries that don’t currently have access to Starlink are “pending regulatory approval”, so it’s unclear how long it might be before this is granted.

You can use their map to check availability in areas you want to travel.

Image source: Starlink RV

Starlink RV internet speed 

Starlink is proposing an internet service which will be much quicker than current services with the use of an array of low-orbit satellites, but in reality, their satellite numbers are still limited. Here’s the speeds they advertise for the Starlink for RVs:

Latency: 20-40ms

Expected download: 50-250Mbps in normal usage, 5-100Mbps in congested areas at peak times.

Expected upload: 10-20Mbps in normal usage, 1-10Mbps in congested areas at peak times.

For comparison, the average broadband speed in the UK is 79Mbps (as of March 2021).  Typical real-world download speeds for 4G internet is 5-10Mbps, and 5G internet can provide speeds of around 150-250Mbps. Average fibre broadband speeds are around 30-70Mbps, and can reach up to 1000Mbps.

Below are some screenshots from our Starlink in a spot in rural Idaho. On the left, the basic speed test shows maximum potential download speed. On the right, the advanced speed test shows the potential speed between your device and the router. This can help you determine if your router is situated somewhere sensible, or if you need to reposition it to secure a better speed.

You should take these numbers with a big pinch of salt – because they only show the potential speeds, not the actual speeds. For comparison, we’ve included a screenshot below of the actual speed obtained in the same spot.

So, the actual download speed is more than 4 times less than the potential speed. 

The other thing worth noting is that 29.9Mbps is still more than enough to stream videos in 4K, have multiple devices on the internet, video call, etc.

So although the download speed figures in the Starlink app are misleading, the actual speed is still sufficient to do most things.

Is Starlink for RVs a good option for campervans?

The standard Starlink RV dish

The standard Starlink RV dish you receive if you purchase Starlink Roam is the same as the Starlink in-home dish. It hasn’t been purpose built for a campervan, and Starlink doesn’t offer a mount for securing the dish to your campervan. So, you’ll have to build your own mount, or set it up outside every time you park up.

The kit comes with a Starlink dish and a 4-legged base.

Whilst driving across the US, we saw a lot of people fashion DIY mounts for their campers and RVs, or screw the provided mount directly into their van’s roof.

We’ve opted to just place our Starlink dish outside each time we park up. This gives us the flexibility of moving it somewhere with a clearer view of the sky if we’re parked in an area with a lot of trees.

Left: Using Starlink in the wilderness in Colorado, US. Right: Starlink keeping us connected parked up at 4000m below Chimborazo volcano, the closest point on earth to the sun!

If you purchase Starlink Mobility, you’ll receive a Starlink dish that’s been custom made to fit straight to the roof of your RV or camper. You’ll just be paying a hefty premium for the privilege. 

The Starlink Mini dish

The Starlink Mini dish was released in the UK in August 2024, and is much more compact and lightweight than the standard dish. It’s described as: “A compact, portable kit that can easily fit in a backpack, designed to provide high-speed, low-latency internet on the go.”

The Starlink Mini dish includes a built-in WiFi router, and has a DC power input. This means that in theory, the dish can be powered by a 12V power source, and doesn’t require an inverter. In practice, Starlink haven’t yet released the 12V power cable for the dish, so it still comes with a transformer to connect it to a 230V power supply. See the full Starlink Mini specifications here.

The new Starlink Mini dish is more compact and portable than the original dish.

Power usage

Standard Starlink dish

Both kits come with a WiFi router and an ethernet/power cable.

The maximum power usage of both the dish and the router is 168W. So, it needs a 230V power supply, but you can use a low wattage inverter such as the Victron 250VA Phoenix inverter.

The dish and router combined have an average power consumption of 23-46W, so will use on average 2.9A per hour.

You can run the ‘snow melt’ functionality if you’re doing winter van life. This heats up the Starlink dish to melt any snow which has built up, which would otherwise obstruct your service. The snow melt function uses 69-93W, so on average this will use 6.8A per hour.

Starlink Mini dish

As the Starlink Mini has a built-in WiFi router, it’s just supplied with a power cable.

In comparison to the standard dish, the Mini has a maximum draw of 60W. Once Starlink release the 12V supply cable, it will be possible to power it directly from a DC power source. Until then, you will need to use an inverter to power it.

The dish has an average power consumption of 25-40W during typical usage. So, on average it will use 3A per hour. Once the 12V cable is available, this will decrease the average power usage.

Limitations

There are a few limitations with Starlink RV that we thought were worth highlighting.

Cost: If you don’t need reliable internet anywhere, you might not be able to justify the £85 / $150 per month. If you’re roaming outside your home region, that amount jumps significantly to £247 / $250. This will be a blocker for a lot of people, and it means you’re only going to invest if you really need to.

Trees: One of the major drawbacks of satellite internet is that your dish needs a clear view of the sky. If the view is obstructed by trees, then your dish may struggle to pick up constant signal. If the edge of the view is obstructed, then you can experience regular outages. For example, when parked in a wooded area, we’ve had a notification saying that we’ll experience an outage every 5 minutes.

The starlink dish is supplied with a 15m / 50ft cable, so you can place it further away from your camper. This allows you to pick a spot that has the clearest view of the sky.

Driving: A big drawback of Starlink Roam is that you can only use it when you’re stationary. When on long drives, one of us will often work in the passenger seat while the other drives. This isn’t possible with Starlink. Additionally, you can’t use it to run Google Maps, so you’ll need to download maps offline if you don’t have regular 4G.

Of course, this isn’t an issue if you pay for Starlink Mobility, but this is much more expensive than Starlink Roam.

Buggy app: The Starlink app is pretty buggy. We use the ‘stow’ function to stow our Starlink when we’re moving between spots. However, if you don’t turn off the router, the Starlink dish will often unstow itself randomly. The app will think the dish is still stowed when it’s not, and the only option is to reboot the dish.

Conclusion – our review of Starlink Roam

So, should you invest in Starlink RV for your campervan?

Personally, we think that if you’re working nomadically in the Americas, Starlink is 100% worth the investment. After spending only a couple of weeks in the US, we were surprised at how often we didn’t pick up any cell signal. Additionally, data plans are very expensive – we paid $90 / month for 100GB of data. We use around 4x this on average per month, so things started getting very expensive very quickly!

For us, running a business remotely from our campervan, we need a reliable and affordable source of internet. This meant that despite all the limitations, Starlink was a no brainer for us.

If you sign up to Starlink using our referral link, you’ll get your first month free:

On the other hand, if you are in Europe, it might make more sense to opt for a SIM card and WiFi router. This is what we used to do when we were travelling in Europe, and it worked well. The assurance of signal with Starlink is great, but it does come at a premium. If you’re on more of a budget, you’ll find that you can still get decent signal in most park ups in Europe. And worst case, you should only need to drive a short distance to find somewhere with 4G.

There are already lots of easy, budget-friendly and effective ways to get WiFi in your campervan. In Europe, these may well work out as more cost effective than Starlink, as it’s much easier to get an affordable SIM card or data plan. We never struggled to pick up mobile phone signal in Europe or the UK. ConnectPls offer a European SIM for £59 / month, or a global device for £99 / month. You can get 35% off these prices by using our discount code: NOHMA35

In Europe, we found a simple WiFi dongle and EU SIM such as the one from ConnectPls was sufficient