Elon Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, has officially launched in São Tomé and Príncipe, making the remote island nation the 26th African country to gain access to the service.
According to Business Insider Africa, the high-speed, low-latency broadband aims to overcome the country’s historical reliance on a few underwater cables and limited terrestrial networks, offering a significant improvement in connectivity.
Government organizations, companies, and wealthier households are expected to be the primary users initially, but the launch marks a step toward broader digital access.
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Starlink offers two hardware options in São Tomé and Príncipe: the Standard Kit at STN 5,500 ($257.3) and the Mini Kit at STN 4,400 ($206).
Monthly subscriptions are available as the Residential plan at STN 1,700 ($79.5) and the Residential Lite plan at STN 1,300 ($60.8). By comparison, the country currently has the ninth highest average broadband cost globally at $85.78 per month.
Internet penetration in São Tomé and Príncipe has grown from 32% in 2022 to over 61.5% in 2025, mostly through mobile networks, which account for more than 154,000 active cellular connections.
Fixed broadband remains limited, with only a small fraction of households connected and total fixed subscribers in the low thousands.
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Image Credit: African Business
