Starlink Posts Stunning 600 Mbps Download Speed & Shocks In Multiple Tests

SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet constellation continues to deliver stunning download speeds in Germany. The network, comprised of thousands of satellites, became well known all over for its remarkable download speeds soon after it was opened for public participation. However, the hype around Starlink, the world's first commercially successful low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet, led to millions of users signing up for SpaceX's service - faster than SpaceX could add capacity. This led to performance downgrades across areas of high demand, particularly in several regions of America. However, now and then, Starlink reminds everyone of its true potential, and that's the case with today's internet tests.

Starlink Crosses 500 Mbps In Multiple Download Speed Tests

Today's test comes courtesy of a Reddit user who recently received their Starlink user terminal after moving to rural Germany. Starlink tests in the European country have often produced remarkable results, owning partly due to lesser congestion as well as the placement of satellites. SpaceX is gradually building out its constellation, which eventually aims to be made of thousands of satellites. This leads to unevenly spread out satellites that benefit some areas in the form of higher speeds.

Starlink download speeds sitting north of 500 Mbps in Germany aren't new, with several users having reported similar data in the past. One of the first reports came in 2021 when a user in Kassel shared the results on Reddit. This came in the form of three download speed tests, all of which had speeds higher than 500 Mbps - with the best run seeing speeds of 560 Mbps.

These tests were followed by another German user reporting a download speed of 250Mbps in the form of a test that took place during midday when more users are online and the network is congested. However, these tests would dwarf, in comparison to, a speed run that surfaced just a month later. This time around, a user from Munich - one of Germany's more populous cities - shared on Twitter that their download speeds had stood at 649 Mbps for some of the highest results that we have seen so far.

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Today's results nearly match the best results from the Munich download speed test. Reddit user DankSquared2 shared the results over the weekend after moving to rural Germany. The first test saw Starlink post a whopping 562 Mbps in download, higher than what most users are likely to see. To ensure that this was not a one time occurrence, the user ran the test again, only to see the download speed ratchet up significantly. The second run, shared above, shows that Starlink nearly met the two years ago results from Munich by posting 638 Mbps in download speed.

However, the upload speed dropped the second time around. For the first run, they stood at 208 Mbps and while the second run increased the download speed, the upload speed was reduced to 177 Mbps.

Due to the positioning of Starlink satellites, it appears that Germany is particularly great for Starlink performance. Yet, the speeds in today's tests are unlikely to be experienced by most users. Download test data from Ookla shows that the median (the majority) of download speeds in Germany is roughly 94Mbps as of Q4 2022. These results show the effects of congestion as the speeds have dropped by 13% annually, according to Ookla.

Written by Ramish Zafar