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Marine Data
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Service Plans / Marine Data
Marine Data Plans For Every Vessel
Marine data plans are matched to the network already on board, not chosen first: Fleet One, Fleet Broadband, Fleet Xpress and Certus - Marine each run on different terminals and different coverage patterns, from a small coastal boat to a vessel that needs broadband and voice on high-latitude routes.
Start here
How to choose a marine data plan
Start with the vessel's existing terminal and its normal route. A small coastal boat with occasional connectivity needs has different requirements from a vessel running regular ocean crossings or working in high-latitude waters where geostationary coverage runs out. Match the network to the route first, then size the plan to a typical week on board.
Step 1
Confirm which network the terminal runs on
Fleet One and Fleet Broadband both run on Inmarsat, Fleet Xpress runs on Inmarsat's Global Xpress Ka-band tier, and Certus - Marine runs on Iridium. A plan only activates on the network it was built for, so check the terminal model before choosing airtime. Terminals are sold under maritime satellite internet, alongside rental options for shorter deployments.
Step 2
Check the route against each network's coverage
Inmarsat's geostationary satellites, behind Fleet One, Fleet Broadband and Fleet Xpress, cover non-polar routes reliably but lose coverage at high latitudes. Iridium's low earth orbit constellation, behind Certus - Marine, covers all oceans including high-latitude and polar routes where geostationary systems fall short. A vessel that regularly transits far north or far south routes should weight Certus - Marine heavily in the comparison.
Step 3
Size the plan to crew welfare as well as operations
Compliance reporting, engine diagnostics and VPN access use a fairly predictable, modest amount of data. Crew welfare use, video calls home and streaming, is the variable that pushes many vessels into a larger plan than operations alone would need. Decide upfront how much of the allowance is for crew use before sizing the plan, so operational traffic is not the one competing for a shrinking balance.
Step 4
Decide between a single vessel plan and a shared or fleet plan
Fleet Broadband and Certus - Marine both offer plans built for more than one vessel: Fleet Broadband's SCAP plans for five or more vessels, and Certus - Marine's Shared Plan variants. A single boat should compare single vessel pricing tiers directly rather than a shared allowance meant to be split across a fleet, since a shared plan sized for one boat usually goes to waste.
Choose a network
Marine Data plans by network
Fleet One
InmarsatFor: Smaller vessels that need basic coastal or global data and voice without a large antenna.
Not for: Vessels running regular high-bandwidth work such as video or large file transfers should compare Fleet Broadband or Fleet Xpress instead.
Plans: Coastal Service plans from 10 to 50 MB with bundled voice minutes on some, Global Service plans from 15 to 100 MB, and prepaid blocks from 10 MB to 1 GB.
View Fleet One plans →Fleet Broadband
InmarsatFor: Vessels needing email, VPN, compliance reporting and crew welfare data across several terminal classes.
Not for: Vessels that regularly cross into high-latitude or polar waters should compare Certus - Marine instead, since Fleet Broadband follows non-polar routes.
Plans: Single Vessel plans from 25 MB to 40 GB, SCAP fleet plans from 1 to 8 GB, Voice plans from 1400 to 3200 minutes, and Link Unlimited high-speed plans at 20 or 40 GB.
View Fleet Broadband plans →Fleet Xpress
Global Xpress (Inmarsat Ka-band)For: Vessels that need near broadband speed for video, cloud applications or heavy data use at sea.
Not for: Smaller vessels without a 60 cm or 100 cm antenna class installed should compare Fleet One or Fleet Broadband instead.
Plans: Committed rates from 1024 down and 64 up kbps to 8192 down and 4096 up kbps, on terms of 3 months or 1, 3 or 5 years.
View Fleet Xpress plans →Certus - Marine
IridiumFor: Vessels working all oceans, including high-latitude and polar routes where geostationary systems lose coverage.
Not for: Vessels that never leave established shipping lanes and want the widest choice of terminal classes should compare Fleet Broadband instead.
Plans: Single Vessel and Shared Plan variants from 0 MB pay-per-MB up to 10 GB, plus 300 MB VSAT companion plans.
View Certus - Marine plans →Side by side
Marine data networks side by side
| Fleet One | Fleet Broadband | Fleet Xpress | Certus - Marine | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Coastal and global Inmarsat coverage, non-polar | Non-polar Inmarsat coverage across several terminal classes | Non-polar Inmarsat Ka-band coverage | All oceans, including high-latitude and polar routes |
| Speed class | Narrowband, MB-based allowances | Narrowband to mid-band, up to Link Unlimited high-speed tiers | Broadband, 1024 to 8192 kbps down | Narrowband to broadband, MB-based and pay-per-MB options |
| Plan types | Coastal and Global Service, plus prepaid | Single Vessel, SCAP fleet, Voice, and Link Unlimited | Committed rate plans by antenna class and term | Single Vessel and Shared Plan variants |
| Best for | Smaller vessels with basic data and voice needs | Compliance reporting, VPN, and crew welfare across a fleet | Video, cloud applications, and heavy data use at sea | High-latitude and polar routes needing broadband and voice |
| Hardware | Compact Fleet One terminals | Fleet Broadband terminal classes | 60 cm or 100 cm Fleet Xpress antennas | Certus-compatible marine terminals |
Popular picks
Plans people start with
Fleet Broadband voice plans
Fleet Broadband's Voice plans give a vessel dedicated calling minutes on the same Inmarsat network as its data service, sized for crews that rely on regular voice contact with shore.
Fleet Broadband Link Unlimited plans
The Link Unlimited tiers pair a fixed high-speed data allowance with a defined connection speed, so a vessel gets a known number of gigabytes at a known rate.
Fleet One or Fleet Broadband: matching the vessel to the plan
Fleet One and Fleet Broadband both run on Inmarsat, but they serve different sizes of vessel. Fleet One suits smaller boats that need basic coastal or global data and voice without a large antenna, with Coastal Service plans as small as 10 MB and Global Service plans up to 100 MB. Fleet Broadband scales further, from a 25 MB Single Vessel plan up to 40 GB, plus SCAP plans built for fleets of five or more vessels and Voice plans running to 3200 minutes a month. A single small vessel should start with Fleet One; an operation running several boats or heavier data use should compare Fleet Broadband instead.
When a vessel needs broadband speed
Fleet Xpress exists for vessels whose work outgrows narrowband Inmarsat service. Running on Global Xpress Ka-band with a 60 cm or 100 cm antenna, it offers committed rates from 1024 kbps up to 8192 kbps download, which suits video conferencing, cloud applications and heavy day-to-day data use at sea. Plans are sold on terms from 3 months up to 5 years rather than open-ended monthly renewal, so match the term to how long the vessel will carry the antenna before deciding. Vessels without the antenna installed should compare Fleet Broadband first.
Coverage where geostationary networks fall short
Fleet One, Fleet Broadband and Fleet Xpress all run on Inmarsat's geostationary satellites, which do not reach high-latitude or polar waters reliably. Certus - Marine runs on Iridium's low earth orbit constellation instead, covering all oceans including the routes where geostationary systems lose coverage. A vessel that regularly transits far north or far south should weight this heavily, regardless of what the rest of its data use looks like. For orientation across every network, see the plans hub, or check activation timelines at support.satmodo.com.
Questions
Marine Data plan questions, answered
Not covered here? The help centre has dialing guides, activation steps and coverage maps for every network.
Help centreIridium does, through Certus - Marine. Fleet One, Fleet Broadband and Fleet Xpress all run on Inmarsat's geostationary satellites, which lose coverage at high latitudes and do not reach the poles reliably. Certus - Marine runs on Iridium's low earth orbit constellation instead, covering all oceans including high-latitude and polar routes. A vessel that regularly works far north or far south should choose Certus - Marine rather than any Inmarsat-based plan, regardless of other preferences.
Not sure which marine network fits the vessel
Route, terminal class and how much of the allowance goes to crew welfare settle most marine data decisions. If two networks still look workable, call (800) 279-2366 and describe the vessel and its usual route, and the right plan becomes clear.
Every plan
All Marine Data plans
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