Beyond Starlink: 5 Satellite Internet Services to Know

Starlink dominates the conversation around satellite internet, and the numbers explain why. SpaceX has over 9,600 satellites in orbit and more than 11 million subscribers worldwide. But Starlink isn't the only option, and depending on where you live and what you need, it may not even be the best one.

This guide covers five real Starlink alternatives you should know about in 2026, what each one actually does well, and who should consider it instead of Starlink.

1. Amazon Leo: The Closest Thing to a Direct Starlink Rival

Amazon Leo, renamed from Project Kuiper in November 2025, is the satellite service most likely to compete with Starlink head-on. It entered enterprise beta in April 2026, with a commercial launch planned for mid-2026. As of this writing, Amazon has roughly 240 satellites in orbit, well short of its planned 3,236-satellite constellation and behind the 1,618-satellite threshold US regulators required by July 2026, a shortfall Amazon has asked for more time to address.

Amazon has previewed compact user terminals around 30 centimeters wide, targeting a manufacturing cost near $400, aiming to undercut the price of Starlink's hardware. Projected speeds are expected to exceed 100 Mbps, with latency in the 20 to 40 millisecond range, comparable to Starlink's residential service. Amazon's biggest advantage isn't hardware. It's integration: Leo traffic can connect directly into AWS regions and edge locations, which matters most for businesses already running on Amazon's cloud.

Best for: Early adopters willing to wait through a rollout, and AWS-based businesses wanting tighter cloud integration.

2. Eutelsat OneWeb: Built for Enterprise, Not Your Living Room

Eutelsat OneWeb is the largest operational LEO alternative to Starlink today, with around 650 satellites already in orbit. But it isn't chasing Starlink's residential customers. OneWeb focuses on enterprise, government, aviation, and telecom backhaul, delivering connectivity through business partners and integrators rather than a simple dish you order online.

Its satellites orbit higher than Starlink's, which brings slightly more latency, generally 30 to 70 milliseconds, but also means fewer satellites are needed to cover the planet. Following its 2023 merger with Eutelsat, the combined company can now offer both LEO and geostationary service, letting business customers mix technologies depending on the job. If you're a typical home user searching for a Starlink alternative, OneWeb isn't the option for you. If you're a telecom, airline, or government agency evaluating satellite backhaul, it's one of the most established choices available.

Best for: Enterprises, telecoms, and government contracts, not individual home internet.

3. Viasat: The Established GEO Alternative

Viasat represents an older but still relevant category: geostationary (GEO) satellite internet. Its satellites orbit much farther from Earth than Starlink's, at roughly 22,236 miles compared to about 340 miles, which pushes latency far higher, often around 600 milliseconds. That's a real drawback for video calls, gaming, or anything requiring quick back-and-forth response.

What Viasat offers in return is a mature, widely available network and, according to comparison guides, a softer data policy than some rivals for households that use a lot of bandwidth. Viasat continues investing in its next-generation ViaSat-3 satellites to expand capacity. For rural households that don't need low-latency performance and want a well-established provider with nationwide coverage, Viasat remains a practical, currently available option, not a future promise.

Best for: Rural households prioritizing availability and data allowances over low latency.

4. HughesNet: The Budget-Friendly Option

HughesNet is another established GEO provider, and its main pitch is price. Its Gen 3 satellite service starts at roughly $49.99 a month, a meaningfully lower entry point than Starlink's standard residential pricing. Like Viasat, HughesNet inherits the latency drawbacks of geostationary orbit, so it isn't the right fit for competitive gaming or latency-sensitive video work.

Where HughesNet earns its place on this list is straightforward affordability and availability in areas that still lack any LEO coverage at all. For basic browsing, email, and streaming in a budget-conscious household, it remains one of the most accessible satellite internet providers on the market.

Best for: Budget-conscious households that mainly need email, browsing, and standard streaming.

5. AST SpaceMobile: Satellite Internet Without a Dish

AST SpaceMobile takes a fundamentally different approach from every other company on this list. Instead of requiring a dish or user terminal, it aims to connect directly to your existing smartphone, no special hardware required. The company is scaling its satellite network in 2026, and it's already working with mobile carriers in markets including Nigeria, Kenya, and Senegal to integrate this direct-to-phone connectivity.

This model matters most in regions with weak or nonexistent terrestrial cell coverage, since it turns satellite connectivity into an extension of your regular phone plan rather than a separate internet service you set up at home. Starlink is pursuing a similar direct-to-cell approach through a partnership with T-Mobile, but AST SpaceMobile has built its entire business around this model rather than treating it as an add-on.

Best for: Mobile users in areas with poor cell coverage who want satellite connectivity through their existing phone rather than new equipment.

Starlink vs. Satellite Internet Alternatives: Quick Comparison

• Amazon Leo: LEO, AWS integration, still ramping up toward commercial availability
• Eutelsat OneWeb: LEO, enterprise and government focus, not sold directly to consumers
• Viasat: GEO, wide availability, higher latency, generous data plans
• HughesNet: GEO, lowest starting price, higher latency
• AST SpaceMobile: Direct-to-phone, no dish required, strongest where cell coverage is weak

How to Choose the Right Satellite Internet Provider

Start with what actually matters for your situation. If low latency for video calls or gaming is essential, a LEO option like Starlink or, eventually, Amazon Leo will serve you far better than a GEO provider like Viasat or HughesNet. If budget is your biggest constraint and you mainly browse and stream, HughesNet's lower starting price is worth considering despite the latency tradeoff. If you're a business evaluating backhaul or enterprise connectivity rather than home internet, OneWeb deserves a serious look. And if you live somewhere with unreliable cell service rather than unreliable home internet, AST SpaceMobile's phone-based approach solves a different problem entirely.

The Bottom Line

Starlink earned its dominant position with an early start and a massive satellite fleet, but "Starlink or nothing" hasn't been true in the satellite internet market for a while. Amazon Leo is the closest thing to a true head-to-head consumer rival, OneWeb owns the enterprise lane, Viasat and HughesNet remain dependable choices for budget-minded or data-heavy rural households, and AST SpaceMobile is solving an entirely different problem by skipping the dish altogether. The right choice depends less on which company is "winning" the satellite race and more on which one actually fits how and where you need to get online.