Starlink returns, refunds and warranty

The gist: under Starlink’s terms, starlink.com purchases come with a 30-day window, starting on the Payment Due Date, to return an undamaged kit for a full refund. Keep in mind that shipping and handling are charged on every order and stay unrefunded even when the kit comes back. With a rented kit you get back the activation price, not a kit price, and Starlink’s rent article sets a shorter deadline. After that, the kit has a limited warranty of 12 months against defects.

The 30-day return

Starlink’s Terms of Service give every kit bought on starlink.com a 30-day return: starlink.com purchases come with a 30-day window, starting on the Payment Due Date, to return an undamaged kit for a full refund. The reason doesn’t matter: the 30-day return is open for any reason, including a dish that can’t get service because its view of the sky is blocked.

The 30 days don’t start on the day you order. Starlink’s terms start them on the “Payment Due Date”, meaning your first service charge: billing starts on whichever comes first: activation, a week past delivery, or day 30 after shipment if no delivery date is recorded. If the dish sits in its box for a week after delivery, the clock has already started.

A kit from a store sits outside these terms; that store’s own return policy applies.

What you get back, and what you don’t

• Refunded: on a return inside the 30 days, Starlink refunds the kit price if you bought the kit (only the activation price if you rented it), plus the first month’s service or rental fee, the “Monthly Kit Access Fee” and any demand surcharge.
• Also refunded: the one-time activation charge is refunded when the kit goes back inside the 30-day return window.
• Not refunded: shipping and handling are charged on every order and stay unrefunded even when the kit comes back.
• After the 30 days: you can cancel in your Starlink account at any time (unless you agreed to a 12- or 24-month commitment); cancel before the next invoice is generated to avoid that month’s charge; outside the 30-day return, payments aren’t refunded.

The demand surcharge is the one-time charge some buyers see: where demand runs high, checkout can add a demand surcharge, charged once, with the amount set by address and plan. It’s on the refund list above. The terms don’t define the “Monthly Kit Access Fee”; we quote the name as Starlink writes it.

If you rented the kit

Rented kits are common on home plans right now: your address decides whether the home kit is a rental or a purchase; on Nov 4, 2026 every Residential entry on the national list was a rental. Three things work differently.

• What comes back to you: on a timely return you get the activation price, not a kit price, plus the first month’s fees (the refund list above).
• The deadline: Starlink’s rent help article allows 7 days from delivery to send back, in good condition, a rental you decide against, or it bills the full kit price.
• The kit isn’t yours: a rented kit stays Starlink’s property, may be new or refurbished, and Starlink sends a return shipping label when it has to go back.

Later on, if you cancel a rental, the rules are strict: an account can hold one rental, it can’t be paused, and after you cancel it has to be back with Starlink inside 30 days or the full kit price is billed.

How to send a kit back

1. 1

   Start in your Starlink account

   Sign in to your Starlink account and open its Return Policy instructions. That’s where Starlink’s terms send every return.

2. 2

   Pack every part

   The refund covers an undamaged, untampered and unmodified kit and any accessories bought with it. Send back the dish, router, cables and mount you received.

3. 3

   Ship it with Starlink’s instructions

   Use the shipping steps Starlink gives you. For a rented kit, Starlink sends a return shipping label.

4. 4

   Keep the tracking number

   Hold on to it until the refund shows on your payment method. If it doesn’t, contact Starlink support with your order details.

Where these steps come from: Starlink’s terms say returns start from the Return Policy instructions in your Starlink account, and that a rented kit stays Starlink’s property, may be new or refurbished, and Starlink sends a return shipping label when it has to go back.

The 12-month limited warranty

Starlink warrants that the kit is free from defects in material and workmanship and generally meets the performance goals in its Specifications. How long depends on the kit and where you are: outside the EU and UK, Standard and Mini kits and separately bought accessories are covered for 12 months from purchase, on starlink.com or at a retailer; Performance kits get 24 or 36 months depending on generation.

How a claim works: you file a claim describing the failure in Starlink’s support portal; if it’s approved, Starlink replaces the device within 30 days of receiving the claim, you send the faulty one back (or pay for the replacement), and the replacement is covered for 3 months or the rest of the original period, whichever is longer.

What the warranty doesn’t cover

Starlink lists its exclusions plainly: the warranty leaves out obstructions between the dish and the sky or anything covering the dish, in-motion use with a kit not designated for it, problems with your power or network equipment, repairs, paint or other changes not made by Starlink, weather and other acts of nature, spills, misuse or accident, or normal wear and tear.

Cancelling later

Outside the 30 days: you can cancel in your Starlink account at any time (unless you agreed to a 12- or 24-month commitment); cancel before the next invoice is generated to avoid that month’s charge; outside the 30-day return, payments aren’t refunded. Starlink’s Terms of Service describe optional 12- and 24-month commitments that come with a free kit, with a $249 or $325 fee to change them; whether new US orders are offered one is unverified.

We don’t sell or support Starlink and can’t see anyone’s account. For a return, a warranty claim or a cancellation, go to Starlink support in the Starlink app or on starlink.com.