Starlink replaces free pause with a $5 Standby Mode that keeps 500 Kbps data

What changed

DISHYtech reported on 2025-08-13 that Starlink was replacing its free pause option with Standby Mode at $5 a month. Unlike a pause, Standby keeps unlimited low-speed data, capped at 500 Kbps, that works anywhere with coverage. SatelliteInternet.com and Drive Tesla Canada put the switch on 2025-09-13. Standby also opened to Residential plans for the first time.

DISHYtech quotes Starlink’s caution: “Pausing with Standby Mode does not reserve your spot on a Residential plan.” If your area is full when you come back, you may not get your Residential plan again. The fee later doubled to $10 in June 2026.

Who it affects

Owners of seasonal sites: a summer pasture house, a hunting camp, a dish you power up for the busy season. Before this change you paid nothing to pause. After it, you pay to keep a slow connection.

What it means for your setup

A 500 Kbps link is enough for a camera’s motion alerts, a gate sensor or a text. It isn’t enough for live video. If you want a slow but always-on link at a seasonal building for alerts, Standby is now an option. Our CGNAT camera guide covers how remote viewing works through Starlink.

The Residential warning matters on farms in busy areas. If you pause a Residential line for the winter, you may not get it back in spring.

DISHYtech also reported that the $10 Roam 10GB plan, which some people used as a cheap backup, disappeared from the plan choices at the same time. Customers already on it could keep it, the report said, until they canceled or switched to Standby. For a farm that kept a dish as a cheap backup for the house, Standby became the replacement: slower, but with no data cap. At 500 Kbps that is enough for email and messages during an outage of the main feed, not for work video calls.

What to do now

• If you pause a Residential line seasonally, check availability in your area first. Coming back isn’t guaranteed.
• Test whether your camera app works at 500 Kbps before counting on Standby for alerts.

What stays the same

• Canceling and reactivating is still possible, with the risks above.
• Business plans can’t use Standby Mode, per reports.

What we don’t know yet

• This is background. Since then, the fee rose to $10 and rented Residential kits lost Standby. See our May and June 2026 posts.