Elon Musk’s Starlink goes live in UAE with plans from Dh230 a month
SpaceX-backed service adds home, roaming and business connectivity choices
DUBAI – Starlink, the satellite internet service developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, is now officially available in the UAE, opening up a new connectivity option for residents and businesses across the country.
The launch was reflected on the company’s official availability map and subscription platform, where UAE users can now view plans, order hardware and sign up for service.
The rollout marks Starlink’s terrestrial entry into the UAE market after the service had already made inroads into the country’s aviation sector. It also places the UAE among a growing list of Gulf markets where the low-Earth orbit satellite network is now active, underlining the region’s widening push towards more diversified digital infrastructure.
Plans available in UAE
According to Starlink’s UAE listings, residential users can subscribe to the “Residential Lite” package for Dh230 per month, while the standard Residential plan is priced at Dh300 per month. The company is also offering roaming options, with a 100GB roaming plan starting at Dh190 per month and an unlimited roaming package priced at Dh370 per month.
For home internet, users are required to purchase hardware separately. Starlink’s standard kit in the UAE is listed at Dh1,099, while some listings have also shown full residential kit pricing at Dh1,545 including shipping, depending on package configuration and delivery. Delivery for the standard setup is estimated at around one to two weeks.
Separate options are also available for business and enterprise users. Reports on the UAE launch indicate business-focused plans beginning from about Dh248 per month, although pricing may vary depending on service type, performance requirements and hardware selection.
How Starlink works
Unlike traditional broadband services that depend on fibre networks, underground cables or mobile towers, Starlink delivers internet through a constellation of satellites orbiting much closer to Earth. While traditional satellites usually orbit at distances ranging from about 20,000km to 35,000km, Starlink satellites operate at roughly 550km above Earth.
That difference has practical implications for users. Lower-altitude satellites can cut the time it takes for data to travel back and forth, helping deliver lower latency and supporting activities such as video calls, streaming and online gaming more efficiently than older satellite internet systems. Starlink also says its service is designed to be resilient in different weather conditions and offers high network availability.
The company’s standard antenna devices, used to connect homes and premises to the network, weigh less than 3kg and contain no moving parts. The equipment is also designed to withstand strong winds, making it suitable for fixed installation in a variety of settings.
Starlink in Middle East
Starlink is already available in more than 150 countries, territories and other markets worldwide, making it one of the most widely deployed satellite internet services in operation today. In the Middle East, the service is already active in several markets including Qatar, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan and Israel, and has also recently expanded elsewhere in the Gulf.
The UAE launch follows regulatory movement that signalled the company’s path into the market. A licence document published by the UAE’s Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority showed that Starlink Satellite Communications Services was granted a 10-year satellite internet services licence effective from June 12, 2024 to June 11, 2034. A later administrative decision approved an amendment to include aero satellite internet services.
That regulatory backdrop helps explain how Starlink first gained visibility in the UAE through aviation. In November 2025, Emirates announced it would begin deploying Starlink Wi-Fi across its entire in-service fleet, starting with Boeing 777 aircraft and aiming to complete the rollout by mid-2027. Around the same time, flydubai also announced Starlink as its inflight connectivity partner for its Boeing 737 fleet, with installation on 100 aircraft set to begin in 2026.