How we make money
One source of income keeps Starlink by State running: a Starlink referral link that sits behind the Starlink buttons on some pages. No provider, co-op or government office pays us, and no one can buy a mention, a ranking or a place on a state guide.
| Who it's for | Anyone who has never had a Starlink account, ordering kit and plan on starlink.com for a US service address, with a Residential or Roam subscription |
|---|---|
| What you get | $100, once per order, as a credit on your Starlink bill unless you pick cash where Starlink offers it |
| What we get | A reward of the same size, for each order Starlink accepts as a referral |
| When it lands | The referral terms apply it to the second monthly bill for your subscription; Starlink's help pages put the earliest arrival around day 60 after you activate |
| What you type | Nothing. The referral travels inside the link, so there's no code box at checkout |
Starlink's conditions, in plain words
- Whether an order counts is Starlink's call, and Starlink can change the program at any time.
- Returning customers, kits bought in a shop or second-hand, and Business, Enterprise or Priority accounts don't qualify.
- You need to stay on a regular plan through two full billing cycles; Standby Mode doesn't count.
- A referral can't be attached after an order is placed.
- In our reading of starlink.com's page code (October 29, 2026), the referral is held only by the tab that link opens. Starlink doesn't publish that as a rule; to be safe, finish the order without switching tabs.
- Full wording: Starlink referral terms, US (version of Oct 7, 2026) and Starlink help: the referral program.
Where the link appears, and where it never does
On guide pages it sits in the header button and in a one-time corner note. Inline buttons go only where low-orbit satellite can be the right long-term answer: after a "who should wait" box on state guides and on the ranking, satellite, fixed wireless, address-check and Starlink guides, and inside the finder's satellite result, which only shows once the fiber, season and sky questions pass. The link stays off the BEAD guide, the finder's "wait for fiber", seasonal and blocked-sky results, and every policy page, this one included.
Why it doesn't steer the advice
Fiber, cable, fixed wireless and 5G home internet earn us nothing, and the finder and guides still rank them first whenever they reach your address. If a funded fiber build is due within about a year, we say wait. Ranking by payout would cost readers money and cost this site its point.
Independence
Starlink by State has no business tie to SpaceX or Starlink and isn't endorsed by them, the FCC, NTIA, any state broadband office or any provider named on these pages.