Rural internet
Starlink for rural homes: where wired internet falls short, state by state
Only 1.4% of North Dakota's rural residential units lack a wired 100/20 line; in Alaska, 64.2% do. See the gap in every state, and what SpaceX reports for Starlink in rural areas.
By Pablo Mendoza, Guide author · Reviewed by George Olfson
Published · Updated · Facts checked
How we check availability · Editorial standards
Advertising disclosure: some links on this page lead to shopping pages, including pages on related sites such as Konecteaze, and we may earn a commission if you order. That never changes the facts or sources here. How we earn money
Where does Starlink offer home internet?
SpaceX reports Starlink at 100/20 Mbps or faster at 99.63% of rural US residential units in the FCC National Broadband Map (data as of Dec 31, 2025). No wired line is reported at that speed at 23.4% of rural residential units.
Counting fixed wireless, 12.84% of rural residential units have neither at that speed. The wired gap is widest in Alaska, Idaho, Wyoming and New Mexico. It is smallest in North Dakota.
Rural connection types at the FCC's 100/20 benchmark
The FCC counts 36,759,642 rural residential units (Census definition). That is 22.6% of the national total. Its broadband benchmark is 100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up. The FCC adopted it on Mar 14, 2024, raising it from 25/3.
| Connection type | Rural residential units | Urban residential units | What it needs at the home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wired at 100/20 or faster | 76.6% | 97.5% | A cable, fiber or copper line to the house |
| Fiber, any speed | 48.9% | 57.89% | A fiber line to the house |
| Cable, any speed | 47.24% | 93.61% | A cable line to the house |
| Licensed fixed wireless at 100/20 | 37.14% | 55.36% | A receiver that reaches a nearby tower |
| Low-orbit satellite (SpaceX) at 100/20 | 99.63%FCC-reported | 99.72% | A dish with a clear view of the sky |
| Geostationary satellite at 100/20 | 0% | 0% | A dish with a clear view of the sky |
Cable is where the countryside falls furthest behind. Providers report it at 47.24% of rural residential units against 93.61% of urban residential units. Fiber is much closer, at 48.9% against 57.89%.
How rural households actually connect
The Census Bureau asks a sample of homes what kind of internet they have. Rural homes lean on satellite and phone data plans more than city homes. A tenth of rural households have no internet access at all.
| Subscription | Rural households | Urban households |
|---|---|---|
| Satellite (any) | 11.3% | 5.5% |
| Satellite only | 1.06% | 0.23% |
| Cellular data plan only | 14.4% | 10.7% |
| Cable, fiber or DSL | 63.7% | 78.6% |
| No internet access | 10.1% | 5.6% |
Satellite is about twice as common in rural homes. Yet only 1.06% of rural households have it as their only subscription. About nine in ten rural homes with satellite have another one too.
One rural home in ten is offline, and one in seven has only a phone data plan. Before you buy or rent a rural place, read how to check internet service before moving. To weigh a Starlink tier against a phone data plan, start with the household internet needs tool.
States where rural homes are most and least likely to lack wired 100/20
In Alaska, 64.2% of rural residential units have no wired 100/20 service. Even counting fixed wireless, 43.7% have no option at that speed. Before you settle on satellite there, compare every provider in Alaska on Konecteaze.
In 21 states, more than a quarter of rural residential units have no wired 100/20 service.
| State | Rural residential units | Rural share of all residential units | No wired 100/20 | No wired or fixed wireless 100/20 | Fiber, any speed | Low-orbit satellite at 100/20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 155,898 | 40.6% | 64.2%FCC-reported | 43.7%FCC-reported | 18.44% | 100% |
| Idaho | 329,463 | 35.9% | 55.2%FCC-reported | 15.4% | 29.38% | 100% |
| Wyoming | 128,776 | 41.4% | 51.9%FCC-reported | 21% | 33.81% | 100% |
| New Mexico | 311,440 | 28.8% | 50.5%FCC-reported | 25% | 27.62% | 99.74% |
| Arizona | 479,263 | 13.3% | 48.7%FCC-reported | 20.7% | 30.98% | 99.99% |
| California | 1,117,741 | 6.9% | 47.9%FCC-reported | 16.7% | 21.36% | 99.68% |
| Colorado | 506,796 | 17.5% | 45%FCC-reported | 21.1% | 35.97% | 99.98% |
| Washington | 671,463 | 18.2% | 43%FCC-reported | 29.7% | 22.55% | 99.94% |
| Montana | 307,597 | 49.9% | 40%FCC-reported | 24.1% | 45.15% | 100% |
| Nevada | 113,967 | 7.8% | 37.7%FCC-reported | 8.9% | 39.2% | 100% |
| Illinois | 944,582 | 15.6% | 37.6% | 13.2% | 43.07% | 99.98% |
| Missouri | 1,027,588 | 32.7% | 35.5% | 11% | 49.29% | 99.96% |
| Oregon | 443,827 | 21.4% | 32.4% | 21% | 39.65% | 99.99% |
| Texas | 2,790,748 | 20% | 32.2% | 9.9% | 52.89% | 99.97% |
| Utah | 213,964 | 15.2% | 31.8% | 13.2% | 54.23% | 100% |
| Oklahoma | 797,967 | 38.8% | 30.6% | 9.8% | 56.79% | 99.97% |
| West Virginia | 568,806 | 57.1% | 29% | 26% | 34.22% | 99.54% |
| Wisconsin | 1,183,192 | 37.5% | 27.8% | 16.5% | 45.27% | 99.97% |
| Louisiana | 688,543 | 29.2% | 27.7% | 23% | 40.28% | 99.98% |
| Nebraska | 330,709 | 33.1% | 27.2% | 9.3% | 59.47% | 99.99% |
| Kansas | 460,927 | 31% | 27% | 10% | 63% | 99.98% |
| Michigan | 1,533,206 | 30.3% | 24.2% | 15.7% | 36.32% | 99.94% |
| Ohio | 1,386,524 | 23.8% | 23.1% | 12.1% | 36.96% | 99.96% |
| Arkansas | 745,369 | 46.3% | 22.6% | 17.5% | 62.48% | 99.98% |
| Mississippi | 876,629 | 54.4% | 21.7% | 8.7% | 66.86% | 99.99% |
| Alabama | 1,161,293 | 43.3% | 21.5% | 18.5% | 54.8% | 100% |
| Virginia | 1,130,228 | 27.7% | 21.5% | 17.7% | 45.71% | 99.94% |
| Florida | 1,148,482 | 10% | 21.4% | 16.1% | 44.15% | 99.97% |
| Indiana | 991,255 | 29.8% | 21.1% | 9.7% | 59.42% | 99.97% |
| Kentucky | 985,921 | 43.3% | 19% | 16% | 56.59% | 99.98% |
| Iowa | 673,972 | 40.6% | 18.5% | 6.6% | 69.64% | 99.49% |
| Minnesota | 949,932 | 33.3% | 18% | 7.5% | 62.32% | 99.99% |
| Pennsylvania | 1,614,322 | 25.4% | 16.4% | 10.9% | 33.65% | 95% |
| Vermont | 253,576 | 67.7% | 13.1% | 11.7% | 59.57% | 99.94% |
| North Carolina | 1,958,575 | 35.4% | 13% | 11.4% | 47.71% | 99.98% |
| Rhode Island | 49,853 | 9.4% | 11.6% | 9.2% | 74.84% | 100% |
| Georgia | 1,394,598 | 27.5% | 11.3% | 9.6% | 61.49% | 99.99% |
| Hawaii | 100,485 | 16.7% | 11.2% | 10.9% | 62.55% | 99.9% |
| Maine | 516,821 | 63.3% | 10.5% | 9.8% | 52.3% | 100% |
| South Dakota | 240,108 | 48.2% | 10% | 7.3% | 80.36% | 100% |
| New York | 1,382,575 | 14.9% | 9.2% | 7.8% | 38.51% | 99.99% |
| Delaware | 91,129 | 17.8% | 8.7% | 5.6% | 31.92% | 99.98% |
| Maryland | 430,677 | 15.6% | 8.2% | 6.1% | 43.61% | 94.02% |
| Tennessee | 1,215,858 | 34.5% | 6.5% | 5.5% | 75.82% | 99.99% |
| South Carolina | 913,889 | 32.9% | 5.3% | 4.4% | 68.66% | 100% |
| New Jersey | 276,541 | 6.7% | 5.2%FCC-reported | 4.1% | 41.47% | 100% |
| New Hampshire | 317,387 | 44.2% | 4.4%FCC-reported | 3.4% | 70.09% | 97.71% |
| Massachusetts | 296,791 | 8.9% | 3%FCC-reported | 2.7% | 33.93% | 98.16% |
| Connecticut | 231,669 | 13.9% | 2.2%FCC-reported | 1.9% | 72.2% | 100% |
| North Dakota | 197,067 | 43.5% | 1.4%FCC-reported | 0.4% | 91.33%FCC-reported | 99.99% |
North Dakota runs the other way. 43.5% of its residential units are rural, a larger share than in 41 other states. Yet only 1.4% of those rural residential units lack wired 100/20 service. Providers report fiber at 91.33% of them.
For providers in the wide-gap states, see Kinetic in New Mexico, Verizon 5G Home in Arizona and Verizon 5G Home in Colorado. There are also guides to Optimum in Idaho and Optimum in California. At the small-gap end, see Optimum in New Jersey, Verizon Fios in Massachusetts and Optimum in Connecticut. New Mexico is fourth-widest in the table. Konecteaze has a page for it too, where you can compare every provider in New Mexico.
How to check a rural address
The last column of the state table describes rural residential units only. SpaceX's share of all locations in each state is on Starlink's footprint in every state.
The FCC says extreme weather can disrupt satellite service. If the dish will be your only line, plan backup internet and power before you rely on it.
- Run the address for wired service first.
- If no wired option comes back, check your exact address on Starlink's map.
- Check the dish spot for trees or buildings in the way. The FCC says satellite needs a clear line of sight to the satellite.
How sure is each claim on this page?
- L1: ZIP estimate. A ZIP code covers many streets. We do not publish ZIP pages.
- L2: FCC-reported (used on this page). Providers report the technology at each location to the FCC National Broadband Map.
- L3: Provider-coverage. Starlink names the place on its own locations page (shown as "Listed by Starlink").
- L4: Provider-confirmed address. Only the address check reaches this level. It returns the offer for your street address and unit.
- L5: User-confirmed orderable. We never claim this level. You confirm it when you place the order.
Which satellite companies report rural service
| Fact | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Rural residential units at 100/20 or faster | 99.63%FCC-reported | FCC map, Dec 31, 2025 |
Geostationary satellite service is sold under names like HughesNet and Viasat. It is reported at 25/3 Mbps at 99.88% of rural residential units, and at 100/20 at 0%. SpaceX is the only low-orbit filer. In the FCC data, that makes Starlink the only satellite service at the benchmark.
If fiber or cable reaches your road later, see switching from satellite to a wired line. For the dish itself, see what the three Residential tiers include.
Common questions
How many rural homes have no wired internet at 100/20 Mbps?
In the FCC National Broadband Map, 23.4% of rural US residential units have no wired service, meaning cable, fiber or copper, reported at 100/20 Mbps. Counting fixed wireless as well, licensed and unlicensed, 12.84% have neither at that speed (data as of Dec 31, 2025). The FCC counts 36,759,642 rural residential units in all.
Which states have the largest rural wired gap?
Alaska (64.2%), Idaho (55.2%), Wyoming (51.9%) and New Mexico (50.5%) have the largest rural wired gaps in the FCC map (data as of Dec 31, 2025). Each figure is the share of that state's rural residential units with no wired service reported at 100/20 Mbps. North Dakota has the smallest gap, at 1.4%.
Do rural households use satellite internet more than city households?
Yes, about twice as often. In the Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey, 11.3% of rural US households have a satellite internet subscription. The urban share is 5.5%. Only 1.06% of rural households have satellite as their only subscription. Most rural satellite households have another kind of internet too.
Is Starlink good for rural areas?
Starlink is the only satellite service reported to meet the FCC's 100/20 Mbps benchmark in rural areas. SpaceX reports it at 100/20 or faster at 99.63% of rural US residential units (FCC map, data as of Dec 31, 2025). Geostationary service, including HughesNet and Viasat, is reported at 0% at that speed. Check for a wired line first.
Is rural fiber rare everywhere?
No. In North Dakota, providers report fiber at 91.33% of rural residential units, and only 1.4% lack wired 100/20 service (FCC map, data as of Dec 31, 2025). Nationally, providers report fiber at 48.9% of rural residential units, not far below the 57.89% reported for urban residential units. The wider gap is cable, at 47.24% of rural residential units against 93.61% of urban residential units.
Sources and scope
- Federal Communications Commission — National Broadband Map data: fixed broadband availability Checked · Data as of Dec 31, 2025 (released 2026) · Supports: technology shares, provider counts and provider-reported technologies
- Federal Communications Commission — FCC Increases Broadband Speed Benchmark (news release) Checked · Data as of Mar 14, 2024 · Supports: the 100/20 Mbps benchmark
- Federal Communications Commission — Getting Broadband Q&A Checked · Supports: line of sight and weather for satellite service
- U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey 5-year estimates: internet subscriptions in household (B28002) Checked · Data as of 2020-2024 ACS 5-year estimates · Supports: households, broadband subscriptions and households without a subscription
- Starlink (SpaceX) — Starlink residential installation Checked · Supports: where to place the dish
- Starlink (SpaceX) — Starlink availability map Checked · Supports: map layers and address search