Satellite internet that actually works offshore has changed what it means to cruise. But Starlink’s plan lineup shifted dramatically in 2026 — Global Roam is gone, Ocean Mode just got three times more expensive, and a new Personal Maritime plan landed for small boats. Here’s what each option actually means for boaters heading to the Bahamas and beyond.
These are the questions that keep boaters up at night — plan changes, offshore coverage limits, hardware choices, and what happened to Global Roam. Answered plainly, without the runaround.
Starlink ended Global Roam for all new and existing customers in August 2026. Service stopped on August 17 and no new signups were accepted after July 15. If you were relying on Global Roam for extended international passages, you now have two paths: the new Personal Maritime plan at $185/month (for vessels under 40 feet, non-commercial use), which removes the 30-day international cap entirely and works in territorial waters worldwide; or the commercial Global Priority plan starting at $250/month for 50 GB, which covers open-ocean use at a significant cost premium. For boaters who cruised the Bahamas and Caribbean on Global Roam, Personal Maritime is the designed replacement — and it costs only $10 more per month than Roam Unlimited did.
Coverage throughout the Bahamas and surrounding Caribbean waters is excellent for plans that include it — this has been repeatedly confirmed by sailors doing the East Coast-to-Bahamas run. At anchor in Nassau, the Exumas, or the Abacos, you can expect download speeds of 80–150 Mbps with latency of 25–55 ms, which is comparable to rural land service. Performance in popular anchorages during peak winter cruising season can be more variable due to cell congestion when many boats cluster. The crossing between Florida and the Bahamas is the tricky part: once you go beyond 12 nautical miles offshore, standard Roam data no longer applies — you’re in Ocean Mode territory, which now costs $6 per GB. A 4-hour crossing with normal use can add up fast. Personal Maritime handles this more cleanly because territorial-water coverage is unlimited and continuous around both countries, with Ocean Mode only needed in true open-ocean passages.
Ocean Mode is the feature that extends Starlink connectivity beyond 12 nautical miles from shore — it’s activated manually in the Starlink app and charges per gigabyte consumed while it’s on. Prior to September 27, that rate was $2/GB, which was expensive but manageable for brief offshore legs. On September 27, 2026, Starlink raised the rate to $6/GB for all plans — including Roam Unlimited and Personal Maritime. The math shifts significantly: a modest offshore crossing with weather checking, messaging, and one video call could consume 10–15 GB, costing $60–$90 in a single day at sea. Boaters who do extended ocean passages — Bahamas to Bermuda, for example — should budget Ocean Mode carefully. The break-even point is roughly 11–13 GB of offshore data, at which point you’ve spent more than a full month of the $250 Global Priority plan, which includes 50 GB of ocean-capable coverage and no per-GB charges.
It comes down to how far offshore you regularly go and whether you cross international borders. Coastal-only boaters who stay within U.S. waters: Roam 100 GB at $55/month is sufficient for weekend and day trips; Roam Unlimited at $165/month if you’re aboard frequently or stream regularly. Bahamas and Caribbean cruisers on boats under 40 feet: Personal Maritime at $185/month eliminates the 30-day international limit, includes unlimited territorial-water data in both countries, and avoids juggling plan restrictions. Offshore passage-makers or large yachts: Global Priority starting at $250/month for 50 GB offers dedicated ocean coverage with no per-GB charge within the plan’s data bucket. For most recreational sailors and powerboaters doing the Bahamas run on vessels under 40 feet, Personal Maritime hits the sweet spot. For liveaboards who primarily use Starlink at anchor and only briefly cross open water, Personal Maritime plus careful Ocean Mode budgeting is workable.
Yes and no, depending on the dish. The Starlink Mini and Standard Gen 3 dishes are designed for stationary use — they work exceptionally well at anchor but performance drops significantly while underway because they can’t track satellites in motion the way a motorized system does. Many cruisers mount them and find they work adequately at low speeds in calm conditions, but degradation increases with boat speed and wave action. For reliable connectivity while actively sailing or motoring, the Performance (High Performance) dish with a proper maritime mount is the engineered solution — it includes motorized satellite tracking and is built for in-motion use, but costs significantly more. Most sailors’ practical approach: use Starlink at anchor for everything, download offline content (charts, weather, podcasts, Netflix downloads) before departure, and rely on a cellular or satellite phone backup while actively underway. This workflow covers 95% of real-world cruising needs without paying for performance hardware.
The Mini is the power-efficient choice for smaller boats with limited solar or battery capacity. Real-world testing on cruising boats shows the Mini draws an average of 20–40 watts, with idle as low as 15 watts — compared to 65–110 watts for the Standard Gen 3 dish. Critically, the Mini runs on DC power natively (12–48V or USB-C 100W), so no inverter is needed. The Standard dish requires AC power, adding 15–20 watts of inverter loss on top of the dish’s own draw. A boat with 200 Ah of lithium battery capacity and 200–300 watts of solar panels can comfortably run the Mini full time. Running the Mini 24 hours a day consumes roughly the energy equivalent of keeping a small LED refrigerator running — manageable by most modern cruising setups. The trade-off: the Mini averages around 100 Mbps download versus ~160 Mbps for the Standard Gen 3, and lacks the Gen 3’s external WiFi 6 antenna — but for streaming, weather, video calls, and email, the Mini’s speeds are entirely sufficient.
Possibly, according to the plan’s current terms. Starlink launched Personal Maritime with an explicit restriction to non-commercial vessels under 40 feet — excluding yachts, commercial fishing vessels, and ferries by design. If your vessel is over 40 feet, you currently fall outside the Personal Maritime terms. Your options are Roam Unlimited at $165/month with the 30-day international restriction (workable for shorter Bahamas runs but problematic for extended cruising), or Global Priority starting at $250/month for 50 GB of ocean-capable data. The 40-foot cutoff has generated significant debate in the cruising community — it’s worth monitoring whether Starlink adjusts the limit, as they made the Personal Maritime plan in direct response to community pressure in the first place. For now, larger-vessel owners should budget for the Global Priority tier or factor in the limitations of Roam Unlimited for international itineraries.
Starlink is a primary internet solution, not a safety communication system. It doesn’t replace dedicated maritime safety equipment, and it can fail — especially in heavy weather when keeping an antenna aimed at the sky is difficult. Every offshore passage-maker should maintain an independent backup regardless of Starlink plan: an Iridium satellite communicator (handheld units like the Iridium GO! or a personal locator beacon) covers safety communication when nothing else works, at global coverage with no dependence on Starlink’s constellation or Ocean Mode pricing. For coastwise and Bahamas runs, a cellular plan with an LTE antenna and booster provides solid redundancy out to 20–30 miles offshore in the Florida-Bahamas corridor — and can substitute for Starlink entirely for boaters who stay within range. Treat Starlink as the comfortable internet layer and maintain a separate, independent safety layer underneath it. Those are two different things, and mixing them up is a dangerous assumption at sea.
Starlink’s plan lineup changed substantially in 2026. Global Roam ended. Personal Maritime launched. Ocean Mode pricing tripled. Here’s what each relevant plan means for a boater, in plain terms — no marketing language.
Launched in late August 2026, Personal Maritime is Starlink’s direct response to backlash after Global Roam ended and Roam Unlimited’s 30-day international restriction left long-range cruisers without a workable option. At $185/month — just $10 more than Roam Unlimited — the plan removes the 30-day travel limit entirely, allowing full-time international cruising without being forced back to your home country. Coverage is unlimited within territorial waters worldwide, meaning you’re covered continuously from Florida through the Bahamas and Caribbean without any restriction, as long as you’re within 12 nautical miles of shore. Ocean Mode is available beyond 12 nautical miles at $6/GB. The plan is restricted to non-commercial private vessels under 40 feet. Hardware requirement: any Starlink dish compatible with Roam plans — the Mini and Standard Gen 3 both work. If you’re a full-time cruiser on a vessel under 40 feet doing the Bahamas circuit or longer Caribbean passages, this is currently the most sensible plan available.
Roam Unlimited remains the plan most U.S. boaters actually use — it’s unlimited data anywhere in the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada, and extends to international destinations (including the Bahamas) for up to 30 consecutive days before the international restriction kicks in. For Florida boaters making seasonal Bahamas runs of 2–4 weeks, the 30-day window is often enough. For longer stays or extended island-hopping, the restriction becomes a real operational headache that Personal Maritime resolves. Hardware: Mini ($249) or Standard Gen 3 ($349). In-motion use is supported up to 100 mph, which covers sailboats and powerboats underway at normal speeds. During congestion on popular anchorages, Roam Unlimited is deprioritized behind residential subscribers — this is noticeable during peak evenings in Bahamian hubs like the Exumas in February and March. The plan can be paused via the Standby Mode feature at $10/month, useful for boats that winter in a marina and resume cruising in spring.
For weekend boaters, day cruisers, and anyone who stays within U.S. coastal waters, Roam 100 GB at $55/month is the most cost-effective entry point. You get 100 GB of priority data per month before speeds are deprioritized — enough for checking weather, emails, charts, some video calls, and occasional streaming if used sensibly. After 100 GB, speeds drop to roughly 1 Mbps during congestion; you’re still connected, just slower. As of January 2026, the plan’s included data was upgraded from 50 GB to 100 GB at no extra cost. A 300 GB tier at $80/month was added in May 2026 for users who found 100 GB tight but didn’t need unlimited. Both capped tiers are domestic-only — for international travel including the Bahamas, you’d need Personal Maritime or Roam Unlimited. Hardware: Mini ($249) or Standard Gen 3 ($349).
Global Priority is the commercial-tier maritime plan that replaced Global Roam for extended international ocean use. It has no vessel-size restriction, works worldwide including true open-ocean passages, and includes a dedicated block of priority data with no per-GB Ocean Mode charges within the included amount. The tiers go $250/month for 50 GB, $650/month for 500 GB, $1,150/month for 1 TB, and $2,150/month for 2 TB. Hardware starts at $1,999 for the Performance terminal designed for in-motion maritime use. This is a commercial-class product priced accordingly — charter yachts, commercial fishing operations, and large private yachts are the target market. For a recreational sailor on a 38-foot sloop, it’s almost certainly more expensive than the use case justifies. The break-even point against Personal Maritime plus Ocean Mode charges comes at roughly 11–13 GB of offshore data per month — anyone doing that much true open-ocean transit might legitimately consider Global Priority instead.
Every current Starlink option relevant to recreational boating and maritime use, in one place. Use this to identify which matches your cruising style, then read the full plan section above for contact details and what to watch for.
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Data | International? | Vessel Limit | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Maritime | $185/mo | Unlimited (in territorial waters) | ✓ No 30-day limit | Under 40 ft · non-commercial | Full-time cruisers · Bahamas & Caribbean |
| Roam Unlimited | $165/mo | Unlimited (deprioritized offshore) | Up to 30 days abroad | Any vessel size | U.S. coastal + short Bahamas runs |
| Roam 300 GB | $80/mo | 300 GB then deprioritized | Domestic only | Any vessel size | Regular coastal boaters · U.S. only |
| Roam 100 GB | $55/mo | 100 GB then deprioritized | Domestic only | Any vessel size | Weekend / day boaters · light users |
| Global Priority 50 GB | $250/mo | 50 GB priority (ocean-capable) | ✓ Full ocean coverage | Any vessel size | Large yachts · offshore passages |
| Global Priority 500 GB | $650/mo | 500 GB priority (ocean-capable) | ✓ Full ocean coverage | Any vessel size | Charter yachts · commercial ops |
The dish you put on your boat matters more than most people realize. Power draw, mount options, and whether the thing can track satellites while you’re underway are all fundamentally different between the Mini and the Standard Gen 3 — and the wrong choice creates real operational headaches.
The Mini has become the default choice for recreational and cruising boaters for good reasons. It draws 20–40 watts on average, runs natively on 12V–48V DC without an inverter, weighs around 2.56 pounds, and fits in a standard backpack. Most cruising boats with 200 Ah of lithium and 200+ watts of solar can run the Mini full time without strain. Setup takes minutes — no tools required for a temporary mount, and marine rail mounts are widely available for permanent installations. Speed averages around 100 Mbps download, which handles streaming, video calls, weather downloads, and remote work without complaint. The tradeoff: the Mini has no motorized satellite tracking, which means performance degrades significantly while underway compared to stationary use at anchor. It also uses internal WiFi 5 rather than the Gen 3’s external WiFi 6 antenna, so onboard WiFi range is slightly more limited — relevant on larger boats. For most sailors at anchor in the Bahamas, neither limitation matters much.
The Standard Gen 3 offers higher throughput — typically 160 Mbps download average and better performance in heavy rain — and its external WiFi 6 antenna provides superior onboard WiFi range, which matters on a 40-foot or larger vessel where the router might be below decks. The downside for boats: it draws 65–110 watts and requires AC power, meaning you need an inverter (adding another 15–20 watts of conversion loss). On a boat with 400+ Ah lithium and 400+ watts of solar, this is manageable. On a smaller sailboat with modest electrical systems, it’s a constant drain. A third-party 12V DC adapter is available and reduces power draw significantly while eliminating inverter losses — running the Gen 3 this way averages around 45–65 watts DC, making it more viable on mid-sized electrical systems. The Gen 3 is the right call for catamarans and larger powerboats where electrical capacity isn’t a limiting factor, and where the wider WiFi coverage across a larger boat footprint earns its keep.
The Performance dish is the only Starlink hardware designed for reliable connectivity while actively underway — it includes motorized phased-array tracking that maintains satellite lock through boat motion and wave action. This is what commercial maritime operators, large charter yachts, and serious offshore passage-makers need. It’s also the hardware required for Ocean Mode certification beyond 12 nautical miles on plans that include it. Power draw is high — 45–50 watts at rest, considerably more under load — and it requires AC power or a dedicated high-capacity inverter. Hardware costs $1,999 and pairs with Global Priority plans at $250/month and up. For the recreational sailor doing the Bahamas circuit on a 35-foot sailboat, it’s almost certainly more than the use case warrants. The right buyer is someone running a 50-foot-plus yacht who needs reliable internet while sailing, manages a charter operation, or regularly crosses open ocean with significant data needs.
Coverage maps tell part of the story. What cruisers actually experience in the Bahamas tells the rest. Here’s the real picture.
Coverage throughout the Bahamas — Nassau, the Exumas, the Abacos, Eleuthera, the Berry Islands — is rated excellent by cruisers who’ve done the circuit. Download speeds of 80–150 Mbps with latency of 25–55 milliseconds are typical at anchor with an unobstructed sky view. This is comparable to what rural U.S. Starlink users experience on shore. The Bahamas is specifically covered on Personal Maritime and Roam Unlimited plans without any special configuration. From Florida to the Bahamas, you’re covered continuously in territorial waters on both sides — the tricky stretch is the open-water crossing itself, which goes beyond 12 nautical miles and enters Ocean Mode territory at $6/GB. A typical Florida-to-Nassau crossing of 50–60 nautical miles takes 8–12 hours; modest internet use during that crossing costs less than most people expect if you’re just running weather apps and messaging. A video call or large download offshore, though, adds up quickly at the new rate.
Three things hurt performance in popular Bahamian anchorages. First, cell congestion during peak winter season — February and March bring hundreds of boats into popular Exuma and Abaco anchorages, and Roam users are deprioritized when cells fill up. Priority-plan users see this less. Second, obstruction from rigging — masts, booms, and spreaders block satellite acquisition on sailboats, especially when the boat swings at anchor. Placement matters enormously; running the obstruction check in the Starlink app before finalizing a mount location is strongly recommended. Third, heavy rain and squalls, which affect all satellite internet to some degree — a passing squall in the Bahamas can drop speeds or briefly drop connection. The Mini is more susceptible than the Performance dish in rain fade. None of these make Starlink unusable — they just mean your 150 Mbps anchorage connection may drop to 40 Mbps during a February evening in the Exumas. Still very usable, just not peak performance.
Coverage extends well through the Caribbean for Personal Maritime and Global Priority plan users — Cuba is excluded due to sanctions, and a handful of smaller territories require checking the current Starlink coverage map, which is updated at starlink.com. Popular cruising destinations including the Turks and Caicos, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, the USVI, BVI, and the Windward and Leeward Islands are covered. For cruisers on Roam Unlimited with the 30-day international restriction, a passage that takes you through multiple island nations over several months will hit the limit — which is precisely why Personal Maritime was created. If your planned itinerary takes you out of U.S. waters for more than 30 consecutive days, Roam Unlimited creates a compliance problem. Personal Maritime resolves it with a $10/month price increase.
Marine installation is not the same as putting a dish on a roof. Salt air, UV, vibration, and a boat that swings at anchor all create conditions that destroy inadequate mounts. These are the rules that matter.
Never use a suction cup or adhesive mount on a boat. Neither survives saltwater, UV exposure, or wave action for more than a season — and a dish in the water is both a safety hazard and a very expensive loss. Every marine Starlink mount should use mechanical attachment: rail clamps, bolted deck mounts, or pole mounts with locking stainless hardware. The most practical locations on most sailboats are the stern rail (pushpit), the stern arch on boats that have one, or a dedicated pole mount on the transom. On powerboats, the T-top and hardtop arch are common. Key positioning rules from Starlink’s own installation guide: mount connectors facing downward or sideways to prevent water ingress; use removable thread-locker (Loctite 222 is specifically mentioned) on all fasteners to prevent loosening from vibration; maintain a minimum 5cm cable bend radius. Run the obstruction check in the Starlink app before committing to a final location — a mast shadow that seems minor can cause consistent dropout as the boat swings.
Do the math before you install. The Mini averages 25–40 watts; running it 24 hours daily consumes 600–960 watt-hours per day. The Standard Gen 3 averages 65–110 watts — 1,560–2,640 watt-hours daily. Compare that to your solar input and battery bank. If your Starlink daily consumption exceeds 30% of your usable battery capacity, you’ll run into problems on overcast days or at anchor without generator support. A practical baseline for comfortable Mini use: 200 Ah lithium battery bank plus 200–300 watts of solar. For the Gen 3: 300 Ah lithium and 400+ watts of solar, or a reliable generator. Using a third-party 12V DC adapter for the Gen 3 eliminates inverter conversion loss and can reduce real power draw by 15–20%. For the Mini, a 100W USB-C power delivery adapter lets you run it directly from your DC panel without an inverter — which is the cleanest, most efficient setup on a small sailboat. Always protect the router and dish with a marine-grade surge protector or UPS, as boat electrical systems experience voltage spikes that can damage sensitive electronics.
Several things that don’t make it into official documentation but matter in real-world use:
- Download before you leave. Netflix downloads, charts (Navionics, Garmin ActiveCaptain), weather routing files, and podcasts can all be pre-loaded at anchor on good signal. Your internet need underway is actually minimal if you prepare before departure.
- Turn Ocean Mode off when you don’t need it. Once Ocean Mode is active, every gigabyte counts at $6. Enable it only for active offshore passages and disable it the moment you’re back in territorial waters.
- Stow the Mini when anchoring in surge. In exposed anchorages where the boat moves significantly, a rail-mounted Mini may get spray exposure beyond its rating. A quick-release mount that lets you stow the dish below in rough conditions is worth adding to the budget.
- Check the obstruction app on multiple points of sail. At anchor, the boat swings with the wind. A location that seems clear when you first set it up may have significant mast or boom interference on other headings. Check it throughout a wind shift before calling the placement final.
- Pair Starlink with a marina booster when at the dock. Shore-based marina WiFi offloads your Starlink data consumption while plugged in — a smart router that automatically switches to the stronger signal preserves your monthly data for when you’re actually offshore and away from alternatives.
You don’t need anything more than Roam 100 GB at $55/month. It covers any U.S. coastal water, any lake or river, and handles weather, messaging, music, and occasional streaming without touching the cap. If you find yourself hitting 100 GB regularly (heavy streamers on longer cruises), the Roam 300 GB at $80/month is the right upgrade — added in May 2026 specifically for this gap. Hardware: the Starlink Mini at $249 is the right call for a weekend boat — lightweight, low-power, easy to stow when not in use, no inverter needed. Rail-mount it when you arrive at anchor, stow it before getting underway. Simple, affordable, effective.
Roam Unlimited at $165/month covers your itinerary if your Bahamas stay is under 30 consecutive days. Many Florida boaters run the Bahamas for 3–4 weeks in winter and are back home before the clock runs out. If that’s your pattern, Roam Unlimited is more cost-effective than Personal Maritime and the 30-day limit won’t bite you. If your Bahamas season stretches longer than a month — which it easily does for liveaboards who leave in December and return in April — Personal Maritime at $185/month is the right call. That $20/month difference pays for itself the moment you’d otherwise need to cut a cruise short or deal with plan restriction headaches. Your Ocean Mode exposure on the crossing itself is modest; budget $20–$40 per trip for offshore data and you’re covered.
Personal Maritime at $185/month is your plan if your boat is under 40 feet. No 30-day limit, unlimited territorial-water coverage through the Bahamas, Caribbean, and wherever else Starlink is licensed — and you never have to play the “will I run out of international days” game. Budget your Ocean Mode use carefully for ocean passages at $6/GB; longer crossings (Bahamas to Turks, Turks to Dominican Republic) are the ones that add up. If your boat is over 40 feet, you’re forced to choose between Roam Unlimited’s 30-day restriction and Global Priority’s pricing — there’s no clean middle option right now, which is a legitimate complaint in the cruising community. Use Roam Unlimited and return to U.S. waters before the 30-day clock expires, or budget for Global Priority during your offshore seasons.
Global Priority is your tier. The 40-foot cutoff on Personal Maritime excludes most serious yachts by design — Global Priority has no vessel-size restriction and provides the priority data allocation that a busy vessel with guests, crew, and commercial obligations needs. The Performance hardware at $1,999 is the right dish — it tracks satellites while underway, which matters on a vessel that might be running 8–12 hours of passages regularly. Factor in 30–60% below private-practice rates that a commercial operation spends on connectivity versus what competitors using older VSAT technology pay; Starlink, even at $650/month for 500 GB, is dramatically cheaper than what preceded it. Annual connectivity costs that ran $50,000–$150,000 on legacy maritime satellite systems routinely run under $10,000 on comparable Starlink plans.
This is the hardest use case to solve cheaply, and Starlink doesn’t fully solve it affordably. For passages that spend days or weeks in true open ocean beyond 12 nautical miles — Bermuda runs, transatlantic passages, Pacific crossings — your options are Ocean Mode at $6/GB (expensive for any meaningful use), Global Priority (expensive but clean with dedicated ocean data), or accepting that Starlink is not your offshore internet solution and carrying a dedicated ocean satellite communicator (Iridium, Inmarsat) for those legs. Most bluewater sailors use Starlink heavily at anchor and in coastal hops, plan carefully around Ocean Mode costs for offshore legs, and maintain an Iridium GO! or similar device as their actual offshore safety and weather communication tool. That layered approach — Starlink for comfort, Iridium for safety — covers the full offshore use case without paying Global Priority rates unless your data needs genuinely justify it.
This guide is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to purchase any specific product or plan. Starlink plan pricing, data allowances, hardware costs, coverage areas, Ocean Mode rates, vessel eligibility terms, international travel restrictions, and plan availability change frequently and vary by location. All pricing and plan details reflect reported U.S. rates as of September 2026 — always verify current terms at starlink.com before purchasing. Speed figures cited reflect real-world cruiser reports and are not guaranteed minimums. This content is entirely original and fact-checked. This guide is not affiliated with SpaceX or Starlink.