Starlink is planning to retire its little‑known “GPS‑like” service.

Starlink is shutting down its built‑in navigation service

*The internet provider Starlink, owned by SpaceX, announced the deactivation of its satellite navigation (PNT) feature on May 20. This capability, similar to GPS, was available to most customers, but many likely did not even know it existed.*

What happened
- Notification to users

On April 21 the company sent emails to all Starlink clients announcing the shutdown of the navigation service. The reasons for the decision were not specified in the messages.

- Public acknowledgment by SpaceX

In a letter addressed to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in May 2025, SpaceX officially stated that Starlink could provide positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services.

Why it matters
- Benefits as a GNSS backup system

According to Todd Humphries, director of the Wireless Networks & Communications Group (WNCG) and the Radio Navigation Laboratory at the University of Texas in Austin, Starlink differs from traditional systems:

- frequencies are 10‑times higher;
- bandwidth is 10–100 times wider;
- signal power is 100–1 000 times greater;
- number of satellites is 100‑times larger.

- How navigation worked

In the Starlink mobile app there was a “Debug Data” section where users could obtain precise coordinates (latitude, longitude, altitude) of their antenna without authentication. This was possible thanks to built‑in GPS receivers in the antennas themselves, which determined their location to find the nearest group satellites. However, the accuracy was lower than that of standard GPS.

Possible reasons for the shutdown
Researchers believe Starlink may plan to bring back the navigation service in the future, but on a paid basis. Shutting down the feature now allows the company to prepare for such a monetization model.