Starlink sold out in your area? How the waitlist deposit works

Sold out and at capacity, in Starlink's words

Starlink's help page How do I reactivate service?, checked November 2026, says "We are constantly adding capacity and working toward eliminating sold-out regions entirely. For example, there are currently no sold-out regions in the United States, meaning US-based customers can resume Residential service without delay." Its help page How do I activate my Starlink?, checked the same month, says "If the area you’re trying to activate in is at capacity, you can place a deposit when placing an order."

"Sold out" is how people search for it. Starlink's other pages below say what happens at capacity, and each names the place in its own word: a region, a location, an address or an area.

• Section 2.1 of the Terms of Service, in the version published August 2026: "If Starlink Services are currently unavailable in your region and you are placing a deposit payment rather than completing the Order for Services, then Section 2 applies to you."
• Additional FAQs - Account, under "What does Reservation or Deposit Mean?": "If you attempt to place your order at a location that no longer has capacity, the system will redirect you to place a deposit."
• Starlink Kit Deposit Charge: "If ordering in a location that is at capacity, you can make a deposit."
• Deposit/Pre-Order - Status and how to confirm my order when it's my turn: "If your pre-order is still not confirmed, it means you are still on the waitlist, and we are unable to provide service to your address at this time."
• Additional FAQs - Service Plans, answering "I am unable to update my address.", which is about moving existing service: "If you are trying to update your service address and are unable to, it could be because that area is currently at capacity. You can verify if an area is at capacity by using the map." and "If your area is at capacity, you can place a deposit to reserve your spot on the waitlist and receive a notification as soon as service becomes available again."

All of these pages were checked in November 2026.

Starlink's pages send you to its map, which Additional FAQs - Account calls an availability map that takes your service address. This page asks for no address and checks none. The same help page gives the map's two colors: "Light blue regions indicate that service is immediately available (you can order now)." and "Navy blue regions indicate that service will soon be available in that location (coming soon)." The Service Plan Descriptions, section 5.3, in the version published October 2026, say "Starlink does not guarantee when or where Services will be available. Find a list of authorized territories (marked “Available or Waitlist”) on Starlink map: starlink.com/map."

Plans differ by address too. Starlink's help page What are the Residential plans? says "Residential plan availability depends on your region and may vary by address. If an offer does not appear in your account or when you enter your address, it means it is not currently available for your location." and "Some plans are only available in select areas." For a kit bought from a dealer, Additional FAQs - Account says "When a kit is purchased from an authorized dealer, it is important to confirm in advance whether service is available in your area."

If you already have service, Starlink's pages say capacity can still decide what happens next:

• Moving: Starlink's help page How do I change my service address?, under "If the Address Change Is Unsuccessful", says "The requested location may be at capacity or not yet active for service. You may review availability on the Starlink coverage map at starlink.com/map." What a move changes, and the two routes when it fails, are on the moving page.
• Resuming after a pause: its pausing page says "If your area is at capacity when you try to resume, you may not be able to reactivate your previous Residential plan. However, you'll be able to resume service immediately on any plan available in your area." The Standby Mode page has the rest.
• Coming back after cancelling: its help page How do I cancel service? says "By canceling service, you may not be able to reactivate immediately. Reactivation is dependent on service availability and capacity in your area."
• After a pause or cancelling: its reactivation page says "The ability to reactivate Residential service after cancelling or using Standby Mode is dependent on capacity in the area.", that "there are currently no sold-out regions in the United States, meaning US-based customers can resume Residential service without delay", and "If there is no capacity in your region for Residential service, there will be the option to reactivate with a Roam or Priority service plan."
• Changing plans: its help page How do I change my service plan? says "Customers in "Sold Out" regions, that do not have other service plans available to them, may not be able to change their service plan." (checked November 2026; who may not be able to change plans)

The deposit and the waitlist, in Starlink's terms

Section 2 of the Terms of Service sets the deposit's rules. In order:

• The deposit "grants you priority within your region for securing Starlink Services when available", it is "exclusive of any sales and use or other taxes", and Starlink applies it "to the amount due on the Starlink Kit if and when the Starlink Kit and Services become available" (2.2).
• "Prior to Starlink shipping your Kit, your Deposit Payment is fully refundable and can be requested at any time via your Starlink account. If you seek and obtain a refund, you will forfeit your priority position." (2.3)
• Paying one "does not obligate Starlink to provide you with the Starlink Kit and Services and does not guarantee that the Starlink Kit and Services will be available to you", and the prices shown when you pay it are "subject to change to the prices in effect at the time of Order" (2.4).
• Also in 2.4: "Enrollment limits may apply based on network availability." Starlink "will not hold your Deposit Payment separately, for example in an escrow account or trust fund, or pay any interest on your Deposit Payment", and "The Service availability dates are estimates only and subject to change."

Starlink's help pages on the deposit add what happens around it:

• Starlink Kit Deposit Charge: "Upon completing your order, you will be charged a one-time deposit cost. This cost is later subtracted from the total due for the Starlink hardware cost." It goes against the kit only: "The deposit cost is only applied to the total Starlink hardware cost. It is not applied to the first month service cost."
• The pre-order status page: "Once it is available and you are next in line on the waitlist, you will receive an email indicating that your deposit will be converted to an order." From the confirmation email's date you have 7 days to confirm, and "If you do not confirm your order within the allotted timeframe, your deposit will be automatically cancelled and fully refunded." On timing, it says "At this time, we do not have a specific date for when we are able to provide service to your address."
• How do I cancel my deposit?: "The refund will be processed instantly but may take up to 10- 15 business days" to reach your bank, and "Please note that this action is irreversible and canceling your deposit will cause you to lose your place in line."

The deposit's amount isn't on any of these pages. Starlink's US help center, searched in November 2026 for deposit, waitlist, capacity and reservation, returned no page that states it, and this page enters no address.

The demand surcharge

Starlink's help page What is a demand surcharge?, checked November 2026, says "In certain locations where network demand is high, a one-time demand surcharge may apply when purchasing or activating Starlink service." Your service address and the plan you select set it, and the page lists four cases where it applies: buying new service, activating a new plan in a high-demand area, changing your service address to a high-demand area, and moving between service addresses. "Demand surcharges are applied per service line, not per account."

On an address change, the page gives three cases:

• Between two high-demand areas, "The demand surcharge will be prorated", and what you already paid on that service line counts toward the new location's.
• Into an area that isn't high-demand: "No additional surcharge will apply at the time of the move."
• Into a high-demand area from one that isn't: "A new demand surcharge may be required based on current network capacity."

Pausing doesn't clear it: "Standby Mode does not remove or waive demand surcharges." The Standby Mode page gives both of the help page's cases. A kit replaced through Starlink Support "does not create a new service line and typically avoids triggering a demand surcharge", while a new kit bought at retail starts a new service line, and then "you will be subject to the demand surcharge if your service address is in a high-demand area at the time of activation". The page ends: "Pricing, availability, and surcharge amounts may change based on network capacity and regional demand." It gives no amount.

The Terms of Service name one more factor than the help page does, the kit. Their Demand Surcharge clause says an order "may be subject to a one-time additional charge depending on the location of your Service address, the Service Plan you choose, and the Starlink Kit model you select", and that after a later change of address or plan, "you may be required to pay the Demand Surcharge" again. Other charges that can follow a change of address or plan are listed on the activation fee page.

On a return of the kit within 30 days, the help page says "If you are not satisfied with Starlink and return your hardware within the 30-day return window, any eligible demand surcharge will be refunded.", and section 6.3 of the terms lists "the Demand Surcharge" among what a timely return refunds. The 30-day trial page covers the return.

People also search for it as a congestion charge. The help page and the Terms of Service call it a demand surcharge.

Roam, for service away from your address

Starlink's address-change help page, under "If the Address Change Is Unsuccessful", also says "If you require service outside your designated service address, you may consider switching to a Roam plan." That sentence is about moving existing service.

The Service Plan Descriptions say Residential plans are "designed for personal, family, or household use at a fixed land-based location" (sections 1.1 and 1.4), and Roam Unlimited is "designed for low demand, land-based use, such as travel, camping or nomadic living" (2.1). Roam 100GB and Roam 300GB "may only be used in your registered country" (2.2 and 2.3). Roam Unlimited's terms also have a clause for use "in an area with high network congestion for longer than 60 consecutive days", which the data caps page quotes in full.

Starlink's referral help page lists eight eligible plans, each a Residential or Roam plan, and no Priority plan (October 2026); Roam with 50 GB of data is not among them.

The opposite case: regional savings

Starlink's help page What are regional savings?, checked November 2026, says "In select markets, new Residential orders in certain regions are eligible for a one-time savings in areas where Starlink has abundant network availability." Its list of eligible areas, read the same month, names no area in the United States. Starlink's US offers are on the offers page.

What this page doesn't cover

• Whether service is available at any address. This page asks for none; Starlink's map takes one.
• Capacity outside the United States.
• Business and Priority plans.
• Outages, which are a different problem from capacity.
• Kits in stock at stores and dealers.
• When an area will open: the pre-order status page says Starlink doesn't have a date.