Starlink is offering a new line of service, called Best Effort, to a limited number of people on the Residential waitlist. If selected for Best Effort, pre-order deposit holders will have a chance to get Starlink now, with an automatic upgrade to Residential later on when capacity expands.
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What is Best Effort?
Starlink Best Effort is a service plan from Starlink that allows people in waitlisted areas to get Starlink service immediately, before their address is available for full Residential service. It’s exactly as the name implies, a “better than nothing” type of service. Like Starlink Roam, Best Effort customers are deprioritized on the network, meaning they will experience slower speeds compared to Residential users. Also like Roam, Best Effort customers will be able to pause and resume service at any time.
The big advantage over Starlink Roam is the price. Best Effort is $120/month, which is less than the $150/month that Starlink Roam customers pay.
For a full explanation of the types of Starlink service, check out our Starlink Internet Plans Explained article.
Who is eligible?
Customers who have made a pre-order deposit for the Residential waitlist are eligible, but only select customers are getting the offer. We have received reports from several people across the US, so it doesn’t appear to be limited to one specific region.
We also know it’s not being offered to every pre-order customer at this moment. Perhaps Starlink is rolling this option out in phases, depending on the capacity issues in each specific region.
There is no way to request Best Effort. It’s an offer that Starlink will extend to eligible customers. Be sure to check your email inbox for communications from Starlink. You can also check your Starlink.com account portal periodically to see if the Best Effort offer pops up.
Will I keep my spot on the waitlist?
Yes, customers who opt for the Best Effort service will maintain their place on the waitlist for Residential service. Your account will automatically convert to Residential service when capacity opens in your area. That makes this service a much better deal than Starlink Roam for people who don’t need a portable dish to use at multiple locations.
What does Best Effort cost?
The Best Effort hardware will cost you $599, and you’ll pay $120 per month for the service. There are no contracts, and a 30 day return period if you aren’t satisfied.
Is the hardware the same as Residential?
Yes, the Starlink equipment you receive with Best Effort is identical to the equipment sold with Residential. When you are eligible to upgrade to Residential, you won’t have to buy new hardware, your Best Effort dish, mounts, etc. will all work the same with Residential service.
What speeds will I get with Best Effort?
Starlink Best Effort speeds range from 5 to 50 mbps down, and 2-10 mbps up. Best Effort and Roam users are deprioritized on the network, which means they will experience degraded performance when there are many users on the Starlink network in a specific cell.
Here are the official Best Effort speed specifications:
| Download Speed | Upload Speed | Latency | Data Caps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5-50 mbps | 2-10 mbps | 25-50 ms | No |
For more about speeds, check out our full article on Starlink speeds.
How can I tell if I have Best Effort?
One common question I get is how to tell if you are on Best Effort or not. If you have accepted the Best Effort offer, and are wondering if you have been upgraded to Residential, there is an easy way to tell:
- Log in to your account on Starlink.com
- Click the Manage button next to your Starlink plan
- If you see the option to pause service, you have Best Effort. If you don’t have the option to pause service, you have Residential
Also, Starlink will send you an email when your service plan has been upgraded from Best Effort to Residential. The timeline for when to expect to be upgraded varies based on location, number of Starlink subscribers in your area, and how many satellites Starlink has deployed.
Conclusion
Starlink Best Effort is Starlink’s latest attempt to serve more users with limited network capacity. The demand for Starlink is much higher than the network has the capacity for. As the satellite constellation is deployed over time, capacity will increase.
Starlink believes many customers will accept degraded performance over not having internet at all. With the success of Starlink Roam, it was only a matter of time before Starlink realized many people were ordering Roam just to have internet at home. This new Best Effort service gives those people a better option.
Did you get the email? Do you plan to subscribe to Best Effort? Let us know what you think in the comments!
Got my best effort dish in 10 days although said due to demand 2-4 weeks. Being installed Wednesday. I live in a forest but the installler said he has seen worse and had no call backs.
Are people experiencing a delay in getting their equipment once they have paid for Best Effort? I can not afford to spend $615 only to be put on standby with no way to confirm if my equipment has been shipped or when they will ship it. Are people reporting that they paid for Best Effort and not getting their equipment or any internet service?
I haven’t heard reports of long delays. It typically takes a week or two to receive the dish.
Mine came in 4 days
I have best effort; my neighbor is on the wait list for starlink and would like to get the best effort. How can I assist her in getting it? -email address removed by admin–
We aren’t Starlink so we can’t help get her Best Effort, but she can log in to her account dashboard to check if the offer is available. Otherwise, it’s just a waiting game.
A lot depends how long you have been waiting. I signed up 18 months ago and just got my best effort.
I am currently in the “expected mid-2023” group and I got the email for Best Effort. When I go to my account to opt-in, there is a date of Dec. 30, 2023. There is no info on what this date refers to. Is that when I will receive equipment for Best Effort? Or is it when residential service can be expected? That’s almost a year away, I guess I took the “urgent connectivity needs” to mean it would be received sooner? I work from home and it is urgently needed 😕
I’ve been seeing that on some Starlink forums, but no idea what it is supposed to mean. It’s my understanding that Best Effort means your unit will ship out now. You won’t have to wait on Best Effort. My best guess would be that is when Starlink expects Residential to be available for your address, or when the Best Effort offer expires.
Hi I ordered my Starlink 4 weeks ago, havent heard anything, we purchashed a house in Florida, and I can not get internet service in my area, I work from home, and have not been able to get settled in, without internet, were rural. I am having a hard time trying to get Best Efforts as well, Could you help us , Please?
Did you just put down the $99 pre-order deposit 4 weeks ago? If so, people wait months or even years, depending on the area and how much demand for Starlink there is. Starlink selects which accounts can get Best Effort, so it’s not something you can request. They will send you an email, and the offer will show up in your Starlink.com account dashboard if you have been selected.
My advice, if you can spare the extra money, is to just buy a Starlink RV unit. Like I said, you could be waiting months or a year. With RV you can get it immediately, just with some downsides like reduced speeds, inability to transfer or convert to Residential, etc.
Hi, is there a way to reach Starlink. My account still shows that I should expect service in my area by Mid 2022 even though we are bow in 2023. I accepted best effort but am yet to see it any movement on my account. Any ideas?
If you bought Best Effort you should be able to create a support ticket with Starlink:
https://www.starlinkhardware.com/how-to-contact-starlink-customer-support/
Thank you, sir.
So I am clueless about speeds of uploads/downloads etc. I am currently on Viasat and our internet speeds aren’t fast enough to even stream a movie on Netflix if another person on an iPad or phone. I pay over $200/month for 100mps of data and we use it up every month before the month is over. I was offered best effort… do you think those speeds would be better then what I currently deal with? Thanks!!
Yes, Best Effort will be better than Viasat for sure.
I had ViaSat with the same package. I have the RV Starlink now and can work from home and stream anything. Even with the deprioritized times. I didn’t take the Best Efforts so I can take the RV places when needed. I just worry about my acct telling me to confirm Best Efforts and if I don’t do I remain on the waiting list?
Yes, you’ll remain on the waitlist as long as you don’t cancel your account and deny the Best Effort. Just leave the offer there if you don’t want it.
I signed up for and received best effort. I checked my account today, and it says “residential”. Does this mean I’ve been switched to residential service, or do all best effort accounts say residential?
All Best Effort accounts will say Residential. You can double check by seeing if you can pause service. If you have the option to pause, it’s Best Effort.
How long did it take you to get your equipment once you signed up for best effort?
Are people experiencing a delay in getting their equipment once they pay for Best Effort? I can not afford to spend $615 only to be put on standby with no way to confirm if my equipment has been shipped or when they will ship it. Are people reporting that they paid for Best Effort and have gone months without getting their equipment or any internet service?
I guess this is bad news for me. My order status that once showed pending for both shipping and tracking are now showing blank. I opted for best effort on 9/27/2022. On my starlink website page, it says coverage for me is mid 2022. Deposit lists as 99.00. Finally, it days I am signed up gorgeous Best effort. This happened over the weekend. Did anyone experience this?
I recently set up my Best Effort service. My speeds range from 5-160 mb/sec. Obviously slower at peak hrs. I’m a residential customer and don’t need blinding speed, 5 mb/ sec works just fine for streaming. In contrast I was using Hughes net with speeds ranging from 0 – 15mb/ sec that was very unreliable, typically with speeds under 4mb/sec. I was paying $185/ month for Hughes. Deciding to go with Best Effort for $110/ month was a no brainer. The Starlink equipment will pay for itself in savings after 7 months.
Yep even at it’s worst, Starlink is often better than other satellite internet at their best! It is really a game changer for rural internet.