Starlink, Elon Musk’s internet service provider, has raised the price of its hardware by 112% in Nigeria.
The Starlink internet router, previously priced at N378,000, is now selling for N800,000. Despite the price hike, the monthly subscription for the internet service remains unchanged at N38,000.
While Starlink has not provided a reason for the increase, it is speculated that the depreciation of the naira against the dollar may have played a role.
The Nigerian currency has experienced a steady decline since the beginning of the year, dropping from N907 to a dollar in December 2023 to N1,602 to a dollar as of March 7, 2024, in the official market.
Despite its higher costs compared to local ISPs, Starlink, which announced its presence in Nigeria in January 2023, has generated significant interest among Nigerians eager to change their service providers.
The ubiquitous status of its satellite service is particularly attractive to individuals in areas with poor internet networks, prompting them to opt for Starlink.
According to data released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Starlink has emerged as one of the leading ISPs in Nigeria in terms of customer numbers.
As of Q3 2023, Starlink Nigeria’s customer base stood at 11,207.
This substantial customer base positions Starlink ahead of many local ISPs that have been operating in Nigeria for several years but currently have fewer customers.
Although Starlink officially announced its presence in Nigeria in January last year, Nigerians have been pre-ordering its hardware since 2022.
Initially, the company quoted its prices in dollars at $600 for the hardware and $43 for the subscription. However, upon its official announcement, Starlink changed its pricing to naira.
At that time, Starlink’s hardware and monthly subscription costs were N268,584 and N19,260, respectively, based on the official dollar exchange rate of around N450/$1.
However, with the unification of the exchange rate, the prices of hardware and subscriptions increased to N378,000 and N38,000 as the Naira value continued to decline.
Between October and November last year, Starlink reduced its hardware costs by 21% in a bid to capture a larger share of the Nigerian ISP market. With the price reduction, Starlink’s hardware was sold for N299,500. However, it reverted to the original price of N378,000 on November 16.
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