Mini, Standard, or Maritime. Choosing the right Starlink setup for your boat.
Three kits. One decision. The right choice depends on your boat's size, how far offshore you actually go, and what you want to spend. Here is how Helm helps Connecticut owners choose — and why most of them land on Standard.
Of every decision in a marine Starlink project, the kit choice is the one that matters most. It sets the hardware cost, the monthly plan you'll live with, the antenna footprint on the boat, and the real-world performance you'll feel from the salon. It also has the most expensive failure mode: the wrong kit costs you twice — once when you buy it, and again when you replace it.
The short answer, for the boats we install on most weeks of the year: Starlink Standard is the right kit for roughly nine out of ten Connecticut powerboats in the 35 to 60 foot range. Mini is for tenders and small protected-water boats. Maritime is for boats that genuinely run offshore or operate commercially. The longer answer, with the trade-offs and the numbers, is below.
"We reserve Maritime for boats that genuinely need it. Most owners are better served — and better priced — on Standard. That recommendation is part of the quote, not an upsell."
Mini, Standard, and Maritime — what each kit is for.
Starlink ships three kits relevant to recreational boats. Each is engineered for a different envelope of vessel size, sea state, and use pattern.
- Starlink Mini.The compact kit. Small antenna, low power draw, simple deck or arch mount. Built for tenders, center consoles, and small protected-water boats. Real-world speeds run 40 to 100 Mbps in good conditions.
- Starlink Standard.The Flat High Performance antenna. Engineered for in-motion use, tolerates real-world heel and chop, and pairs with the Mobile Priority data plan that fits coastal cruising. Real-world speeds typically run 100 to 200 plus Mbps.
- Starlink Maritime.The offshore-grade hardware. Most ruggedized antenna in the lineup, designed for blue-water passages, commercial vessels, and operations that need global priority data. Real-world speeds match Standard inshore but hold up under heavier load and harsher conditions.
The headline numbers — speed, latency, throughput — are closer than the marketing implies. The differences that matter live in antenna durability, sea-state tolerance, plan availability, and total cost. That's where the decision actually gets made.
Starlink Mini. Compact, low-power, for small boats in protected waters.
Mini is the smallest, lightest, and least expensive Starlink kit. The antenna is roughly the size of a laptop and integrates the router, which keeps the install simple. For the right boat, that simplicity is the entire selling point.
Where it fits:
- Boat profile.Center consoles, tenders, day boats, and small cruisers — typically under 30 feet.
- Use pattern.Day trips, harbor hopping, weekend use in protected water. Light streaming, weather, messaging, occasional video calls.
- Power.Low draw — roughly 50 to 75 watts in typical use, verified at install. Manageable on smaller house banks.
- Cost.Hardware sourced through Helm at $699 all-in. The Mini kit alone runs around $220 plus tax on Starlink's site; Helm's total bundles the marine-grade mount sized to your specific boat and the sourcing work to make sure the right hardware shows up on the right deck. Helm install at our Mini tier: $1,395 labor, with a clean deck or arch mount, hidden cabling, and full network handoff.
Where it doesn't fit. Mini is more sensitive to motion and heel than Standard. It's not the right kit for boats that regularly punch out into the Sound in chop, run offshore, or expect heavy concurrent device load. If you're considering Mini for anything north of a 30-foot center console, the conversation usually ends with Standard.
Starlink Standard. The right kit for most Connecticut powerboats.
Standard, paired with the Flat High Performance antenna, is the kit we recommend most. It is the sweet spot for the boats we see week after week — the 35 to 60 foot powerboats running out of Stamford, Norwalk, Westport, Branford, and Mystic.
Where it fits:
- Boat profile.35 to 60 foot powerboats. Express cruisers, flybridge boats, sportfish, motor yachts.
- Use pattern.Weekend runs, week-long cruising, anchoring out, working from the boat. Streaming, video calls, multiple devices, owner and guest use simultaneously.
- Sea state.Built for in-motion use across typical Long Island Sound conditions. The flat antenna has no moving parts and handles real chop without losing lock.
- Power.Roughly 75 to 110 watts at peak, verified at install. Comfortable on the house banks our typical install finds onboard.
- Cost.Hardware sourced through Helm at $949 all-in. The Standard kit alone runs around $369 plus tax on Starlink's site; Helm's total bundles the marine-grade mount sized to your specific boat and the sourcing work to match the right hardware to the install. Helm install at our Standard tier: $1,595 labor — site survey, marine-grade mount, hidden cable routing, multi-WAN integration with cellular failover, end-to-end testing, owner walkthrough.
Real numbers from a recent install. On the 60-foot Azimut we installed in Stamford, post-handoff measurements in the slip read 187 Mbps down, 18 Mbps up, and 42 ms latency. Those are healthy numbers — well inside Starlink's design envelope — and they are the result you should expect from a clean Standard install. Underway in chop, expect modestly lower throughput and slightly higher jitter; that is normal and not a fault.
"Nine out of ten Connecticut boats we survey should be on Standard. Not Maritime, not Mini. Standard."
Starlink Maritime. For boats that genuinely run offshore.
Maritime is the offshore-grade kit. The antenna is the most ruggedized hardware in the Starlink lineup, the data plans extend to global priority coverage, and the install tolerates heavier sea state and longer passages than Standard is engineered for. It is also the most expensive kit in every dimension — hardware, plan, and install.
Where it fits:
- Boat profile.61 to 80 plus foot motor yachts, sportfish, expedition vessels, and commercial boats.
- Use pattern.Long offshore passages, blue-water runs, charter operations, fleets, and any vessel where downtime has a real cost. Crew Wi-Fi loads. Owners who want top-tier hardware regardless of strict need.
- Sea state.Engineered for sustained heavier conditions and global coverage — including ocean regions where Standard's plan availability is thinner.
- Power.Roughly 110 to 150 watts depending on antenna selection, verified at install.
- Cost.Hardware sourced through Helm at $3,395 all-in. The Maritime kit alone runs around $2,100 on Starlink's site (with tax and shipping); Helm's total bundles the offshore-grade marine mount sized to your specific boat and the sourcing work to match the right hardware to the install. Monthly Maritime service starts at $250 and scales with data tier. Helm install at our Maritime tier: $2,795 labor — same six-step process as Standard, with additional cable routing, power integration, and redundancy planning that the hardware demands.
The honest test. If you don't routinely run more than 20 to 30 nautical miles offshore, don't operate commercially, and don't need global priority data, Standard delivers the same usable performance at meaningfully lower cost. Maritime is the right answer when the boat genuinely lives in conditions Standard wasn't built for. We will tell you that on the call.
A quick way to map your boat to the right kit.
Three questions, in order. Answer them honestly and the kit usually picks itself.
- How big is the boat, and how is it used?Under 30 feet, protected water, light use — Mini. 35 to 60 feet, coastal cruising, real onboard use — Standard. 61 plus feet, offshore, commercial, or fleet — Maritime.
- How far offshore do you actually go?Weekend trips on the Sound, runs to Block, Newport, the Vineyard — Standard. Long blue-water passages, Bermuda runs, deliveries, charter — Maritime.
- What does the load on the boat actually look like?One or two people, occasional streaming — Mini may cover it. Family, guests, working from the boat, multiple devices on at once — Standard. Crew operations, charter guests, redundancy critical — Maritime.
For the boats Helm installs on most weeks of the year — 35 to 60 foot Connecticut powerboats — every one of those questions points the same direction. That is why our default recommendation is Standard, and why the survey usually confirms it.
The mistakes we watch owners almost make.
After hundreds of conversations with Connecticut owners, two patterns repeat.
- Oversizing to Maritime.The most common mistake. Owners assume Maritime must be better because it costs more. For coastal cruising on Long Island Sound, Standard delivers the same speeds, the same latency, and the same in-motion reliability — at a fraction of the hardware and monthly cost. Maritime's premium pays off when you genuinely need its data plan and ruggedization. Most boats don't.
- Undersizing to Mini on a 40-foot boat.Less common, but expensive. Mini on a 35 to 60 foot powerboat compromises speed under load, struggles with concurrent device use, and frustrates the owner within the first season. By the time you replace it with Standard, you've paid for two kits and two installs.
Our quote process exists to prevent both. We survey first. We recommend the kit your boat actually needs — not the biggest one available, and not the cheapest one that might work. The recommendation is part of the quote, not an upsell.
What each kit costs.
Three line items, every time. Hardware is one-time and sourced through Helm. Monthly service is SpaceX, not Helm. Installation is fixed and transparent — published on our pricing section.
- Mini.Hardware $699. Helm install $1,395. Roam service plans start at $50/month.
- Standard.Hardware $949. Helm install $1,595. Roam service plans start at $50/month for at-anchor and inshore use; Mobile Priority data plans (required for in-motion offshore use) start at $250/month.
- Maritime.Hardware $3,395. Helm install $2,795. Maritime service plans start at $250/month and scale up with data tier.
This is why kit selection matters before anything else. Maritime hardware and service together cost meaningfully more than Standard. When Standard is the right call, picking it saves real money — without giving up any of the performance you'd actually feel from the salon.
The scope you get on Mini, Standard, and Maritime.
The kit changes. The standard of the install does not. Every Helm installation — Mini, Standard, or Maritime — includes the same six-step scope:
- Site survey.We board the boat before we cut a single hole. Mount location, cable path, power source, network topology — all confirmed onboard.
- Marine-grade mount.316 stainless hardware engineered for saltwater, vibration, and motion. Sized to the kit, located for clear sky view, structurally sound.
- Hidden cable routing.Marine-rated cable, hidden runs, color-matched ties at consistent intervals. No visible runs from any seat on the boat.
- Power integration.A correctly fused DC circuit on its own breaker, sized to the kit's verified draw.
- Network integration.Starlink configured as primary WAN, cellular kept as failover backup. Full coverage tested across the vessel before handoff.
- Owner walkthrough.App, network, failover, and post-install support. The job isn't done until you're comfortable.
That scope is the same whether you're spending $1,395 on Mini or $2,795 on Maritime. The only thing that changes between tiers is the complexity the boat and the kit demand — not the standard we hold the install to.
Frequently asked questions.
Which Starlink kit is right for a 40 to 60 foot powerboat?
For roughly nine out of ten Connecticut powerboats in this range, Starlink Standard with the Flat High Performance antenna is the right kit. It handles coastal sea state, supports in-motion use, and pairs with a Mobile Priority data plan that fits typical weekend and week-long cruising.
Is Starlink Maritime overkill for Long Island Sound?
For most Connecticut boaters cruising the Sound and the southern New England coast, yes. Maritime is built for offshore-heavy use and global priority data. Standard delivers the same real-world speeds inshore at a meaningfully lower hardware and monthly cost.
Can I upgrade from Mini to Standard later?
Yes. The hardware is different, but the network integration, mounting plan, and cable runs we install are designed to accommodate an upgrade. We swap the antenna, re-terminate the cable run if needed, and reconfigure the router to point at the new kit.
How much power does each kit draw?
Mini draws roughly 50 to 75 watts in typical use. Standard runs around 75 to 110 watts at peak. Maritime ranges from about 110 to 150 watts depending on antenna selection. These are working ranges; we verify exact draw at install and confirm your house bank can support it at anchor.
What real-world speeds should I expect?
On Standard, we routinely measure 100 to 200 plus Mbps down, 10 to 25 Mbps up, and 25 to 60 ms latency. On the Azimut 60 we installed in Stamford, post-handoff measurements in the slip read 187 down, 18 up, and 42 ms. Underway in chop, expect modestly lower throughput and slightly higher jitter — that is normal and not a fault.
Does the kit choice change the install scope?
The standard of the install doesn't change. The complexity does. Mini installs are simpler — smaller antenna, lighter mount, shorter runs. Standard is the most common scope and what our $1,595 tier is built around. Maritime adds cable routing, power integration, and redundancy planning, which is why it sits at $2,795.
Do I have to buy the Starlink hardware myself?
You can, but you don't have to. Helm can source the correct kit for your vessel and itemize it on the same quote as the install.
So which Starlink setup is right for your boat?
Mini for tenders, small center consoles, and protected-water boats. Standard for almost every Connecticut powerboat in the 35 to 60 foot range. Maritime for boats that genuinely run offshore or operate commercially. That is the rule that holds across nearly every survey we run.
The reason it holds is simple. Standard delivers the same real-world speeds as Maritime in the conditions our boats actually live in, at meaningfully lower hardware and monthly cost. The premium Maritime carries pays off when the boat needs what Maritime is built for. Most don't.
Helm publishes transparent pricing, quotes the same day you inquire, surveys the boat before we cut a single hole, and recommends the kit your boat actually needs. The recommendation is part of the quote, not an upsell. Precision is our standard.
Tell us about your boat and book your Starlink installation.