What size power station do I need for Starlink?

Starlink is an easy load for a power station. It has no motor, so there's no start-up surge. The only question is how many hours you want to stay online.

How much power does Starlink use?

Straight from Starlink's own spec sheets:

Starlink kit	Average power use	How it's powered
Standard	75–100 W	AC power supply (100–240 V)
Mini	25–40 W	12–48 V DC input (60 W rating), or USB-C PD at 100 W (20 V / 5 A) with Starlink's USB-C cable

These are averages, so plan on the high end of each range.

How long will a power station run Starlink?

Hours = station Wh × 0.85 ÷ Starlink watts

The 0.85 allows for energy lost in the station's AC inverter. For a Mini on USB-C or DC, you lose less, so the times below are a little on the safe side.

Power station	Standard (75–100 W)	Mini (25–40 W)
500 Wh	about 4 to 6 hours	about 11 to 17 hours
1,000 Wh	about 8.5 to 11 hours	about 21 to 34 hours
2,000 Wh	about 17 to 23 hours	about 43 to 68 hours

Worked example

You have a Standard kit drawing 90 W and a 1,070 Wh station.

• Usable energy: 1,070 × 0.85 = 910 Wh
• Run time: 910 ÷ 90 = about 10 hours

Add a laptop (about 60 W while charging) and you're at 150 W. Now it's about 6 hours. The calculator above starts at 90 W on 1,000 Wh.

Worked example: a remote workday

You run a Mini at 40 W, a laptop at about 60 W and a phone charger at about 10 W, for 9 hours.

• Total draw: 40 + 60 + 10 = 110 W
• Energy: 110 × 9 = 990 Wh
• Plus AC losses: 990 ÷ 0.85 = about 1,165 Wh

A 1,000 Wh station falls a little short on AC. Run the Mini and laptop from USB-C instead, and losses drop, so it may just make it. A 2,000 Wh station covers the day with plenty to spare. A Standard kit at 100 W instead of the Mini adds about 600 Wh to the same day.

What size power station for Starlink?

You want	Standard	Mini
An evening online (5 hours)	about 600 Wh	about 250 Wh
A full day (12 hours)	about 1,400 Wh	about 560 Wh
24 hours nonstop	about 2,800 Wh	about 1,100 Wh

These use the top of Starlink's ranges (100 W and 40 W) and divide by 0.85. Round up for phones, laptops and a margin.

Mini: use USB-C or DC to stretch the battery

Starlink says Mini can run from a USB-C Power Delivery source of at least 100 W (20 V / 5 A), using Starlink's USB-C to barrel jack cable. Many power stations have a 100 W USB-C port. For example, EcoFlow lists 100 W on the RIVER 2 Max 500, and Jackery lists one 100 W USB-C port on the Explorer 1000 v2.

Why bother? It skips the AC inverter, so less energy is wasted. You can also leave the station's AC side switched off.

Before you rely on it:

• Check the port says 100 W (not 60 W or 30 W). A weaker port may not keep Mini running.
• Use Starlink's own cable for the USB-C connection.
• Test it at home for a few hours first.

Standard: plug the power supply into AC

The Standard kit uses its own AC power supply. Plug that into the station's AC outlet. Any station with pure sine wave output and more than about 100 W continuous will do. Every station on our list clears that easily.

Staying online for days

A battery alone won't keep Starlink up for a week. You'll need to refill it.

• Solar. A Standard kit uses about 2.4 kWh in 24 hours at 100 W. A Mini uses about 1 kWh at 40 W. A panel gives less than its label in real sun. EcoFlow's own figure (a 400 W panel fills a 2,048 Wh DELTA 3 Max Plus in about 6.4 hours) works out to about 80%. At 70% to 80%, a 400 W panel gives about 1,400 to 1,600 Wh over 5 good sun hours. That covers a Mini all day with room to spare. See how long it takes to charge a power station.
• A car. A 12 V car socket refills slowly. EcoFlow, for example, lists 100 W max car input on the RIVER 2 Max 500.
• A generator. Charge the station by day from a generator outdoors, then run Starlink quietly from the battery.

Tips

• Switch off the station's AC output when only Mini on USB-C is in use.
• Keep the station out of the sun and rain. The dish goes outside; the battery doesn't have to.
• Unplug Starlink when you don't need it, and you save the whole draw.

If you recharge from a gas generator, run it outdoors only, 20+ feet from the house, away from windows and doors. Read our carbon monoxide guide.