Here is the head-to-head comparison.
Crucial Update (Nov 2025): Safaricom recently panicked and updated their terms. They quietly raised the “Fair Usage Policy” (FUP) cap on all Home Fibre plans to 15TB (Terabytes) per month. This is effectively “true unlimited” for 99.9% of households, likely a direct response to Starlink’s pressure.
📶 The Battle for Home Internet: Safaricom Fibre vs. Starlink
| Feature | Safaricom Home Fibre | Starlink (Standard Residential) | The Winner? |
| Best Entry Price | KES 2,999 (Bronze Package) | KES 4,000 (Residential Lite) | Safaricom |
| Hardware Cost |
Free / KES 3,000 (Router usually free, sometimes installation fee applies) |
KES 27,000 – 45,500 (Mini Kit vs. Standard Kit) |
Safaricom (Zero upfront risk) |
| Speed (Download) |
Fixed (15, 30, 80, or 500 Mbps) (You get exactly what you pay for) |
Variable (50 – 200 Mbps) (Fluctuates based on congestion) |
Starlink (If you pay for speed) |
| Data Cap (FUP) |
15TB Limit (Throttle applies after 15,000GB) |
Truly Unlimited (No hard cap, but deprioritization exists) |
Tie (Both are effectively unlimited) |
| Latency (Ping) |
Low (8-20ms) (Better for competitive gaming) |
Medium (25-50ms) (Surprisingly good, but higher than fibre) |
Safaricom |
| Reliability |
prone to “Fiber Cuts” (Road construction often kills it) |
prone to “Rain Fade” (Heavy storms can drop signal for minutes) |
Depends on your location |
| Coverage |
Urban Only (Nairobi, Mombasa, major towns) |
Everywhere (Remote villages, farms, national parks) |
Starlink (By a mile) |
| Portability |
None (Fixed to your house) |
High (Roam plans let you move the dish anywhere) |
Starlink |
| Installation |
Technician required (Waiting for the “Safaricom guy”) |
DIY (Do It Yourself) (Plug & play in ~15 mins) |
Starlink (Convenience) |
🏆 Which one should you pick?
1. Stick with Safaricom Fibre if:
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You live in an apartment in Nairobi/Kiambu: If fibre is already in your building, it is cheaper, more stable for gaming (lower ping), and has zero hardware cost.
-
You are on a budget: The KES 2,999 Bronze plan is unbeatable for basic streaming and TikTok.
2. Switch to Starlink if:
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You work remotely: Safaricom downtimes (often caused by roadworks) can last hours. Starlink is independent of local infrastructure.
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You live in a “Standalone” or Upcountry home: If Safaricom keeps telling you “we are not in your area yet,” stop waiting. Starlink works today.
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You hate “throttling”: Even though Safaricom raised the limit to 15TB, Starlink is philosophically against hard caps.