FAQs

HughesNet® is America’s #1 choice for satellite Internet with over 1 million subscribers. HughesNet uses satellite technology to give you a super-fast, always-on Internet connection and is available everywhere, even in areas with slow or no high-speed options.

Satellite Internet service is available everywhere, even in areas with slow DSL and where fiber and cable options will not reach. With satellite Internet, the signal is sent from a satellite to a satellite dish mounted on your property, which connects to a modem inside. The modem includes Wi-Fi so that your phone, computer and other Wi-Fi devices can connect to the Internet. Satellite Internet is available wherever you live, even if you live in a rural area where cable or fiber lines are unavailable.

Satellite Internet service brings high-speed Internet to areas where fiber and cable options are unavailable. You can chat, email, stream video clips, visit your favorite social media sites, work from home, and connect your children to their distance learning programs.

Step 1: A request for a Web page is sent from your computer to a satellite about 22,000 miles out in space. At this altitude, the satellite’s period of rotation (24 hours) matches the Earth’s, and the satellite always remains in the same spot over the Earth (geosynchronous orbit). Because Internet via satellite is so technologically advanced, this distance hardly makes a difference, even with rural Internet connections.

Step 2: The satellite contacts the Hughes Network Operations Center (NOC) which locates the specific Website you have requested.

Step 3: The Website beams the information back along the same path to the HughesNet Network Operations Center, then to the satellite, and then to your computer through your HughesNet dish and modem. Although the signal travels a great distance, there is only a fraction of a second delay during this transmission. This is similar to delay you may have experienced when using a cell phone. In most cases, this delay (latency) isn’t apparent while surfing online.

Once HughesNet has been professionally installed, connecting to the Internet via satellite is simple!

The Bonus Zone is a period of time from 2am-8am, when all customers have access to 50 GB/month of additional plan data! All HughesNet Gen5 plans come with additional plan data during the Bonus Zone. Use this additional plan data to download large files like movies, system updates for your computer, tablet, or smartphone—and more.

HughesNet Gen5 automatically adjusts data rates for streaming video to deliver great picture quality while using less of your data. Speeds will adjust to deliver a DVD quality experience while using less data – allowing you to watch 3 times more video. If you want to watch an HD video, you can opt-in/opt-out of this data saver feature temporarily or permanently. You may also simply snooze the video data saver for 4 hours.

HughesNet has No Hard Data Limits. That means that even if you exceed your plan data, we won’t cut you off or charge you more. If you do use all of your plan data before the end of the month, you will be able to continue using the Internet for all applications but your speeds will reduce and will typically be in the range of 1 to 3 Mbps. Major streaming providers state on their websites that watching videos with DVD quality (aka Standard Definition) is possible at .5 to 1.5 Mbps (you can refer to the chart below). In periods of network congestion, speed may be slower and could be less than 1 Mbps which may mean that some applications will be slower to run and you may see buffering in video playback. You can purchase extra data, called Data Tokens, to bring your speed back up to 25 Mbps.

Recommended SD streaming rates by streaming service: Netflix – 1.5 Mbps; Amazon Prime Video – 1.5 Mbps; Hulu – 1.5 Mbps; YouTube – .5 Mbps;

Express Repair is a service protection plan designed to ensure that your HughesNet® service will be restored in an expedited manner in the event that an interruption occurs. Under the plan, you continue to receive Technical Phone Support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, but if the problem cannot be fixed over the phone, a certified technician will come directly to your location to quickly restore your service. Express Repair customers pay a reduced service fee for onsite repair visits.

Two service options are available:

• Express Repair – Basic: our commitment is to have a technician confirm a scheduled ETA and arrive by the second business day.
• Express Repair – Premium: our commitment is to have a technician confirm a scheduled ETA and arrive by the next business day.

Both services offer live technical phone support (toll-free), and if needed, a certified HughesNet technician will come to your home or business to restore service for only a $29.95 co-pay after the 30-day vesting period.

Some people may be hesitant to subscribe to satellite Internet because of myths they’ve heard – or because they are unaware of the convenience and quality offered by high-speed satellite Internet providers.

Myth #1 – Satellite Internet service providers don’t reach rural areas.

Hughes offers satellite Internet everywhere in the contiguous United States, including rural areas. Hughes is a reliable satellite Internet provider that supplies high-speed Internet service in areas where there is slow or no high-speed options.

Myth #2 – The satellite dish must be attached to a roof.

Although 97% of the time satellite antennas are attached to the roof of a home, satellite Internet service providers don’t always require it. A certified HughesNet installer is able to determine the best location on (or near) your residence where the satellite dish should be mounted.

Myth #3 – Using Satellite Internet ties up your phone line.

HughesNet delivers two-way, high-speed Internet access over satellite – not over your telephone line – so you can talk on the phone and surf the Web at the same time. That can save you money by eliminating the need for a second phone line.

Myth #4 – Satellite Internet equipment is big and complicated.

The bulky eight-foot wide satellite dishes from the 1980s are a thing of the past, at least when it comes to the needs of most businesses. HughesNet customers only need a computer, a modem, two coaxial cables, and the satellite antenna. The antenna is about the same size as most ordinary satellite TV dishes.

Myth #5 – When it is cloudy, satellite Internet doesn’t work.

Your satellite Internet connection is not affected by most clouds. Satellite Internet from HughesNet is only affected by weather in extreme circumstances such as heavy storms or unusually dense clouds. If you have difficulties with your service, contact HughesNet Customer Care and Technical Support staff.