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Starlink speed test

Test your Starlink connection and see whether your dish is delivering what the service is capable of in South Africa.

Starlink speed swings with satellite position, weather and obstructions. Run the test two or three times a few minutes apart and use the middle result.

What speed is normal on Starlink?

Starlink delivers internet from low-earth-orbit satellites, so it works anywhere the dish can see the sky. Speed depends on how many users share the satellites over your area, how clear the view of the sky is, and the plan you are on. Check Starlink’s availability page for the current status in South Africa; many users here run kits on roaming plans.

Starlink situation	Typical download	Typical ping	Good for
Clear sky, standard plan	50–200 Mbps down, 10–30 Mbps up	25–60 ms	Streaming, working from home, calls
Partly obstructed view	20–100 Mbps with dropouts	30–80 ms	Browsing, streaming with occasional buffering
Roaming / mobile plan	Similar to standard, may be deprioritised at peak	30–70 ms	Travel, remote sites
Heavy rain or storm	Reduced or intermittent	Higher	Expect interruptions

Starlink upload is much lower than download by design, and ping is higher than fibre but far lower than older satellite services.

Rule of thumb: daytime download of 50 Mbps or more with a clear sky is healthy. Frequent dropouts point to obstructions, not the plan.

Why your Starlink speed is slow, and what to do about it

Most Starlink speed problems are about the dish, not the network.

Run the obstruction check in the Starlink appThe app maps what the dish can see. Even a small tree branch or roofline in its field of view causes dropouts. Move the dish to a spot with a fully clear view of the sky.
Mount the dish higher and away from wallsGround-level placement next to a house is the most common cause of poor results. A roof or pole mount with clear sky in all directions makes a large difference.
Test on a cable, not WiFiPlug a laptop into the router with an Ethernet cable and test again. If the cable result is much higher than WiFi, the problem is inside your home, not with your provider. Move closer to the router, switch to the 5 GHz WiFi band, or add a mesh unit.
Check for a plan deprioritisationRoaming and mobile plans can be deprioritised behind residential users at peak. If your speed collapses only in the evening, that is likely the cause.
Test again a few minutes laterSatellites hand over every few minutes and speed varies between them. Judge on three tests, not one.
Reboot the dish and routerPower-cycle both. The dish will re-acquire satellites, which often clears a slow session.
Contact Starlink with your numbersIf daytime speeds on a cable are still far below your plan, open a support ticket in the Starlink app. Send the download, upload and ping numbers, the time of day and whether you were on cable or WiFi. That gets you past the first-line “restart your router” reply.

Starlink vs fibre and 5G in South Africa

Where fibre is available it will beat Starlink on price, upload speed and ping. Starlink earns its place on farms, in small towns and at remote sites where neither fibre nor a good 5G signal exists. If you are on Starlink in a city because fibre is not on your street yet, it is worth checking the fibre operators’ coverage maps every few months.

Load-shedding

The dish and router need power, and the dish draws more than a fibre ONT. Budget for an inverter or a larger UPS if you want to stay online through a two-hour outage.

Common questions

What speed should Starlink give me in South Africa?

Typically 50–200 Mbps download and 10–30 Mbps upload with a clear sky, and 25–60 ms ping. Results vary with satellite position and local demand.

Why does my Starlink keep dropping?

Almost always obstructions. Run the obstruction check in the app and move the dish to a fully clear spot.

Is Starlink officially available in South Africa?

Availability has changed over time. Check the Starlink availability map for the current status; many South African users operate kits on roaming plans.

Is Starlink good for gaming?

Playable, but ping is higher and less stable than fibre. Competitive gamers with a fibre option should choose fibre.

Test by provider

Guides: WiFi speed test Fibre speed test Ping test