Router · Starlink

Starlink router settings, restart, updates and bypass mode

The Starlink router comes with every Starlink kit. It has no web admin page: you change its few settings in the Starlink app, and it can’t forward ports.

Sign in
The Starlink app
App
The Starlink app (iOS and Android)
Password
There is no router admin password. You sign in to the Starlink app with your Starlink account. The Wi-Fi network has no password until you set one in the app, and the app won’t show it again afterwards.
Models
Router 3 (Gen 3), Router Mini, Gen 2 router, Gen 1 router, Starlink Mini built-in Wi-Fi

Checked 1 November 2026. Router 3, Router Mini and the Gen 2 router, plus the built-in Wi-Fi of Starlink Mini, with the Starlink app as of 2026. The Gen 1 router has no bypass mode: Starlink says to replace it with your own router.

Sign in to the Starlink router

Starlink says its router has no administrator portal. Every available setting is in the app.

  1. Install the Starlink app and sign in with your Starlink account.

  2. Join the Wi-Fi network named STARLINK, the default name.

  3. Tap Settings, then under Router and Networks pick your network.

  4. Set a Wi-Fi name and password, then tap Save. Devices then reconnect with the new details.

Forgot the Wi-Fi password? Factory reset the router. In the app it is Settings › Router › Factory Reset. Router 3 and Router Mini have a reset button; a Gen 2 router resets when you unplug and replug it 6 times in a row. A reset clears the Wi-Fi name, password and other settings.

Restart it properly

Starlink lists Reboot among the router settings in the app, but its help pages don’t show the exact screen.

  1. Open the Starlink app and tap Settings.

  2. Use the Reboot option for the router.

  3. Or unplug the router once and plug it back in.

  4. On Router 3, a flashing white light means it is connecting; solid white means it is online.

On a Gen 2 router, don’t unplug it repeatedly: six power cycles in a row factory-reset it.

Schedule a restart

There is no restart schedule. Starlink does reboot itself to install updates, by default around 3:00 AM local time.

Update the firmware

Starlink updates itself. Updates usually arrive every two weeks, download in the background and install during a reboot.

  1. To choose when that reboot happens, open the Starlink app and go to Settings.

  2. Select Starlink, then tap Software Updates.

  3. Pick Overnight, Morning, Afternoon or Evening.

While an update runs, the app shows it below the status title. A Starlink that has been offline for months may need a manual update; follow the steps in the app.

See connected devices

  1. Open the Starlink app and go to the Network screen.

  2. It lists every device on your Wi-Fi with its signal strength.

  3. Look for devices you don’t recognise. The app’s client pausing can cut one off.

The Starlink router doesn’t show data use per device, only the total. If strangers are on your Wi-Fi, set a stronger password.

UPnP and port forwarding

Starlink’s help pages don’t mention UPnP or NAT-PMP, and the router has no setting for either. It doesn’t support port forwarding or firewall rules for IPv4 or IPv6.

Why ports can’t be opened

On most plans, Starlink shares one public IPv4 address between many customers (CGNAT), which allows no inbound IPv4 traffic. Each kit also gets a public IPv6 prefix. Inbound IPv4 needs a plan with the public IP option and your own router.

Use your own router (bypass mode)

  1. Open the Starlink app and go to Settings.

  2. Turn on Bypass Mode. The router’s Wi-Fi turns off and its light goes violet.

  3. On Router 3, plug your own router into one of its Ethernet ports.

The app can’t turn bypass off. Only a physical factory reset on the router does. Some kits, such as Starlink Performance, need no bypass: plug your router into the power supply instead.

Prioritise calls and gaming

There is no QoS or device priority setting. Starlink’s list of app settings doesn’t include one.

2.4 and 5 GHz, and the channel

By default, 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz share one Wi-Fi name. Starlink suggests splitting them when a device is slow or doesn’t support 5 GHz.

  1. Open the Starlink app and go to Settings.

  2. Under Router and Networks, select your Starlink Wi-Fi.

  3. Turn on Split 2.4 / 5 GHz networks.

  4. Give one band a new name, such as ending in -2.4 or -5, and tap Save.

  5. Reboot the router so the change takes effect.

Change the channel

Starlink doesn’t document a Wi-Fi channel setting, and its list of app settings doesn’t include one.

Mesh: which node a device uses

Router 3, Router Mini and the Gen 2 router can mesh with each other. The Gen 1 router can’t. Starlink advises no more than three mesh routers.

  1. Place each mesh router one or two rooms from the main router and plug it in.

  2. Connect to your Starlink Wi-Fi and open the Starlink app.

  3. Wait 1–2 minutes for the New Mesh Node(s) notification, then tap Pair or Pair All.

  4. The node appears on the Network screen, which also shows how the nodes connect to each other.

Pair each node directly to the main router: chained nodes are slower. An Ethernet cable from the main router’s LAN port to the node’s WAN port gives the best speed.

Guest network

  1. Open the Starlink app and go to Settings.

  2. Tap Add Network.

  3. Enter a name and password for the guest network.

  4. Turn on the Guest Network option and tap Save.

Devices on a Guest network can’t see each other or your other devices, and can’t open the Starlink app. Your router always keeps at least one Default network.

DNS settings

Starlink lists custom DNS servers among the router settings in the app, but its help pages don’t show the exact screen. By default Starlink hands out DNS servers that are usually 8.8.8.8 and 1.1.1.1.

  1. Open the Starlink app, go to Settings and open the Router tab.

  2. For filtered DNS, open Content Filtering.

  3. Choose Malware or Malware and Adult Content. This switches the router to Cloudflare’s family DNS.

Choose No Filtering to undo it.

Connection status and logs

  1. Open the Starlink app and tap Statistics for speed, uptime, latency, outages and alerts. This works away from home too.

  2. Open the Event Log to see outages, router problems and spells of high packet loss.

  3. Run the advanced speed test. If Device → Router is slower than the internet test, your Wi-Fi is the bottleneck.

Alerts such as RECENT INTERRUPTIONS or POOR CABLE CONNECTION explain themselves when you tap them. Since mid-2026 the Event Log also lists band switches and mesh roaming for idle devices; Starlink says these are normal.

Manuals and downloads

Links go to the maker’s own pages.

Questions

Can I open ports on the Starlink router?

No. It has no port forwarding, and the default plan uses CGNAT with no inbound IPv4. Use bypass mode with your own router, and a public IP plan if you need inbound IPv4.

How do I turn bypass mode off?

Factory reset the router with its reset button (or six power cycles on a Gen 2 router). The app can’t do it while bypass is on.

Sources

Checked on 1 November 2026.

See what your router can’t tell you

Kilobat is a Mac menu-bar app that watches the network from your side: which app is using it, whether the Wi-Fi, the router or the provider is slow, and why a call froze.

Download for Mac ↓
brew install seifip/kilobat/kilobat