How Starlink became Nigeria’s second largest ISP in two years

Starlink has grown to become Nigeria’s third largest Internet Service Provider (ISP) in under two years with 65,564 subscribers by the end of 2024’s third quarter. The ISP is second only to Spectranet Ltd with 105,441 active subscribers.

Since December 2023, when it had 23,897 subscribers, Starlink has expanded its user base by 174.36 percent. The company has been the fastest-growing ISP in Nigeria since its parent company, SpaceX, announced its launch via a January 30, 2023, tweet: “Starlink is now available in Nigeria – the first African country to receive service.”

Since its Nigerian launch in early 2023, the service has grown rapidly on the continent. Today, it is active in at least 16 out of 54 African countries, and more are planned for 2025, according to the company.

Demand for the satellite internet provider, which allows direct connections from satellites has surged to the point where orders were paused in five major cities, including Lagos, Abuja, Port-Harcourt, Benin City, and Warri, due to capacity limits.

A similar trend occurred in Kenya, where subscriptions hit 8,000 within a year, and in Zimbabwe, where it sold out in Harare just two months after securing a license.

Despite its growth, ISPs still lag behind mobile internet providers in Nigeria, where mobile remains the primary internet gateway. As of January 2025, Nigeria had 169.04 million mobile internet subscribers, compared to 307,946 fixed broadband users who rely on ISPs for faster, more stable connections.

Unlike mobile internet, which depends on radio waves from base stations and suffers from congestion, fixed broadband delivers superior speeds via fibre cables.

Starlink launched in Nigeria with an initial hardware cost of N274,098 and a monthly subscription of N19,260. However, due to inflation and the naira’s devaluation, these prices have risen, standard subscriptions now cost N75,000 per month, while hardware is priced at N590,000. Despite this, demand remains strong, largely because Starlink offers speeds between 50Mbps and 200Mbps—far superior to Nigeria’s average speed of around 20Mbps.

Unlike traditional ISPs, Starlink bypasses Nigeria’s underdeveloped broadband infrastructure and economic hurdles, such as rising diesel costs and multiple taxes. Ayoola Oke, a former advisor to Ernest Ndukwe, the former chief executive officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission, recently noted that about 90 percent of these telecom firms might fold up within the next five years.

Starlink edge lies in its network of satellites launched into orbit by SpaceX rockets. These satellites communicate with user terminals (hardware) on earth. They can beam high-speed internet to nearly every corner of the planet. With almost 6,000 Starlink satellites in orbit today, a SpaceX engineer reported that over 42 petabytes of data were transmitted daily in January 2024.

Read also: Starlink raises prices to N75,000 again as telcos prepare for tariff hike 

Starlink satellites orbit the earth at much lower altitudes than traditional satellite internet services, enabling them to cover small areas and requiring a user terminal for continuous connection with passing satellites. This low-earth orbit approach gives Starlink an edge over ISPs requiring expensive, large-scale infrastructure rollouts for expansion.

The technology brings internet access to underserved areas. In a country where broadband penetration is less than 50 percent, and 27 million people live in areas without broadband access, the satellite internet provider offers a solution, albeit at a price that is still largely out of reach to many.

“Starlink is ideally suited for areas where connectivity has been unreliable or completely unavailable,” its main page reads. “People across the globe are using Starlink to gain access to education, health services, and even communications support during natural disasters.”

In 2020, Elon Musk predicted that “everywhere on Earth will have high-bandwidth, low-latency internet.” On May 20, 2024, he tweeted, “Congratulations to the @SpaceX team on passing 3 million customers in 99 countries! And thanks to you for buying @Starlink.”

While Starlink may not become the primary internet gateway for most Nigerians, it has undeniably disrupted the market by offering faster and more reliable internet service.

“Some people will take up the solution, some will continue to rely on their mobile devices for internet access, and others will be for fixed wireless access. If this happens, the consumers are provided with alternatives,” said Biodun Omoniyi, chief executive officer of VDT Communications.