$0 hardware · USA
$0 Starlink hardware: every real path, and the strings attached
There are real ways to pay $0 for Starlink hardware in the US. All of them are rentals or plan extras, none of them is everywhere, and the monthly plan always applies. Here is each one with its date and its catch.
Yes, at some addresses: the rental activation can be $0, and the Starlink V5 rental kit is listed at $349 and adjusted to $0. You still pay the monthly plan, and a rented kit stays Starlink’s.
Residential Max adds a third: a rented Mini with no monthly charge. No US route makes the service itself cost nothing, and which paths you see depends on the address you type on starlink.com.
Every real $0 hardware path
Each row is something Starlink’s own order list or help center shows. “What is $0” is the exact part that costs nothing up front; the catch column is the rest.
| Path | What is $0 | The catch | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent a Standard 4 X or Standard 4 at the $0 activation | The one-time rental activation | Only at some addresses and plans; others pay $99 or $199, with professional installation included. The dish returns to Starlink within 30 days of cancelling, and any monthly rental fee appears at checkout. | Nov 4, 2026 |
| Rent the Starlink V5 | The kit: listed at $349, adjusted to $0 | Only where your address is offered the V5. It’s a rental, with the same return rule. | Nov 4, 2026 |
| Residential Max: a Mini rental | The Mini rental’s monthly fee | Max is the priciest home plan ($143/mo on the Nov 4, 2026 national list). Not in every location, one per customer, subject to change. Cancel Max or pause it and the Mini goes back. | Nov 3, 2026 |
Where it applies, the $0 rental activation shows up on the kit line at checkout, in place of the $99 and $199 levels that include professional installation. The Starlink V5 rental shows a $349 list price that is adjusted down to $0. Leave that standing adjustment aside and the US order lists carried no promotional price on Nov 4, 2026.
What’s gone, or was never a US offer
These are the routes people still ask about, and where each one stands today.
| Route people ask about | Where it stands | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| A kit at no up-front cost with a 12-month commitment | The old 12-month commitment plan that bundled a free kit no longer takes new activations | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Regional Savings | Starlink’s “Regional Savings” article names Mexico as the only eligible area, so the US isn’t covered | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Military, veteran, student or senior pricing | Starlink’s Special Offers and US order lists showed us no military, veteran, student or senior pricing (our reading) | Nov 3, 2026 |
| A public promotion or code | None. Every promo end date on Starlink’s no-address US price lists was blank, apart from the standing $0 adjustment on the V5 rental | Nov 4, 2026 |
A store kit is never a $0 route. Starlink’s retailer page names 16 US chains that stock its kits, Walmart and Amazon among them, and a kit from any of them earns no referral reward. The cheapest kit page compares every hardware route, stores included.
Is Residential Max’s Mini worth it?
A Residential Max household can add a rented Mini with no monthly charge and pay half price on eligible Roam plans (subject to change, not offered everywhere, one per customer). Starlink’s Max card promises “Up to 400+ Mbps”, unlimited data, free pro installation and a bonus Starlink Mini kit.
It’s only a bargain if you’d pick Max anyway. On the Nov 4, 2026 national list, Max cost $93.50 a month more than Residential 100 Mbps, or $1,122 a year (our math), against $149 to buy a Mini outright. Where Residential 100 Mbps isn’t offered, that gap doesn’t apply. Max gets top priority among the home plans, which can matter more in a busy area than any extra kit.
Two strings come with it. Drop the home plan or move it to Standby and the Mini has to go back, or Starlink bills its retail price. And Starlink’s offer document bars stacking the Max extras with other offers, and it doesn’t say whether a referral counts as one.
The monthly bill still applies
A $0 kit doesn’t make the plan cheaper. Below are the home levels on the price list starlink.com loads before any address is typed; it shows no home price for a real address until you enter one, and yours may differ.
| Plan | Offered | Nov 4, 2026 | Oct 29, 2026 | Year one, $0 kit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential 100 Mbps | Some areas only | $49.50/mo | $44 or $49.50 | $594 |
| Residential 200 Mbps | Some areas only | $76.50/mo | $68 or $76.50 | $918 |
| Residential Max | Everywhere Residential is sold | $143/mo | $104, $117, $143 or $156 | $1,716 |
Residential Max showed at $143 on Nov 4, 2026 and at $104, $117, $143 or $156 on Oct 29. For the cheapest plan overall, see cheapest plan; to check whether renting or buying wins at your address, see rent or buy. The calculator puts kit and plan together.
What a $0 kit still costs you
- The plan, every month. No $0 path covers service.
- A monthly rental fee, if any. Starlink shows it at checkout. RV Mobile Internet reported a $10/mo rental fee on new Residential orders in June 2026; SatelliteInternet.com reported the monthly rental fee removed for new Residential orders in July 2026.
- The return. Rental hardware has to reach Starlink in good shape no more than 30 days after you cancel, or you pay the kit’s full retail price.
- A demand surcharge at some addresses. Busy cells can add a one-time demand surcharge when you buy or activate, set by address and plan.
- The referral reward. Starlink’s referral terms require buying the kit and the service on starlink.com itself, and nothing in the terms or the help center settles whether a rental-kit order qualifies. We never show a $0 rental as earning it.
Skip the order for now if…
- you’re looking for Starlink at no cost at all: every $0 path here still comes with a monthly plan bill
- you may not manage to ship a rented dish back undamaged within a month of cancelling: missing that costs the kit’s full retail price
- you’re counting on the referral credit with a $0 rental: the terms want the kit bought on starlink.com and are silent on rentals
- you want it for a month or a single trip: the referral terms are written for customers who stay
- you have, or once had, a Starlink account: the credit is for first-time customers only
What budget buyers ask
Can I get a Starlink kit for $0?
At some addresses, yes. The rental activation can be $0, and the Starlink V5 rental shows a $349 list price that is adjusted down to $0. Both are rentals: Starlink keeps ownership and wants the dish returned no later than 30 days after you cancel. The monthly plan is still due.
Does Starlink still include the kit with a 12-month commitment?
No. The old 12-month commitment plan that bundled a free kit no longer takes new activations.
Is a Starlink Mini included with Residential Max?
As a rental. A Residential Max household can add a rented Mini with no monthly charge and pay half price on eligible Roam plans (subject to change, not offered everywhere, one per customer). Drop the home plan or move it to Standby and the Mini has to go back, or Starlink bills its retail price.
Does Starlink have a military or student discount in the US?
Starlink’s Special Offers and US order lists showed us no military, veteran, student or senior pricing (our reading, Nov 3, 2026). Starlink’s “Regional Savings” article names Mexico as the only eligible area, so the US isn’t covered.
Is there a monthly fee for a rented Starlink kit?
Starlink says any monthly rental fee appears at checkout and is billed each month alongside the plan. RV Mobile Internet reported a $10/mo rental fee on new Residential orders in June 2026; SatelliteInternet.com reported the monthly rental fee removed for new Residential orders in July 2026.
What if a rented Starlink kit never goes back?
Rental hardware has to reach Starlink in good shape no more than 30 days after you cancel, or you pay the kit’s full retail price.
Does a $0 rental earn the $100 referral credit?
Unknown. Starlink’s referral terms require buying the kit and the service on starlink.com itself, and nothing in the terms or the help center settles whether a rental-kit order qualifies. So no page here shows a rental as earning it.
Where these numbers come from
- Starlink order data, US Residential (no address) · read 2026-11-04
- Starlink order data, US Roam · read 2026-11-04
- Starlink US special-offer terms · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: travel Mini with Max · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: the old 12-month commitment plan · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: Regional Savings · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: Residential plan lineup · read 2026-11-03
- starlink.com US interface text · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: kit rentals · read 2026-11-03
- RV Mobile Internet on the $10 rental fee (Jun 16, 2026) · read 2026-11-03
- SatelliteInternet.com on the rental fee (Jul 20, 2026) · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: returning a kit · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: demand surcharge · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink US referral terms (DOC-1882-84808-83) · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: US retailers · read 2026-11-03
- Starlink support: referral program FAQ · read 2026-11-03
The checking rules behind every figure: editorial policy. Fixed mistakes are logged on the corrections page.