HughesNet Internet in Illinois at a Glance
HughesNet delivers satellite internet across 100% of Illinois, offering plans from 25 Mbps to 200 Mbps starting at $49.99 per month. As a satellite provider, HughesNet is especially valuable in Illinois's rural and underserved communities where cable and fiber infrastructure has not been built, providing reliable broadband via its orbiting Jupiter satellite system.
About HughesNet Satellite Internet in Illinois
HughesNet is one of the nation's leading satellite internet providers, delivering broadband service to customers across Illinois using its advanced Jupiter satellite system in geostationary orbit. Unlike cable or fiber, HughesNet does not require ground-based infrastructure to reach your home. A small satellite dish installed on your property communicates directly with a satellite 22,000 miles above the equator, meaning service is available anywhere in Illinois with a clear view of the southern sky, from Chicago, Aurora, and Rockford to the most remote corners of the state.
Southern Illinois and the western prairie counties face persistent broadband challenges, with many farming communities relying on outdated DSL or having no wired options. For these communities, HughesNet provides a modern broadband connection that simply cannot be matched by the limited or nonexistent wired options available. Illinois features the flat prairies of central and southern Illinois, the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys, and the rolling hills of the Shawnee National Forest region, and HughesNet's satellite technology overcomes these geographic barriers by beaming internet directly to your home regardless of terrain or distance from urban infrastructure.
The contrast between Chicago's gigabit fiber access and the dial-up-era speeds still common in rural Gallatin, Pope, and Hardin Counties exemplifies Illinois' digital divide. HughesNet provides modern satellite broadband to farming families and small-town residents across downstate Illinois.
HughesNet Plans Available in Illinois
| Plan | Price | Download | Upload | Data | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HughesNet Select | $49.99/mo | 50 Mbps | 5 Mbps | 100 GB | No contract |
| HughesNet Elite | $74.99/mo | 100 Mbps | 5 Mbps | 200 GB | No contract |
| HughesNet Fusion 100 | $94.99/mo | 100 Mbps | 5 Mbps | 200 GB | No contract |
| HughesNet Fusion 200 | $174.99/mo | 200 Mbps | 25 Mbps | Unlimited | No contract |
| HughesNet Select 15GB | $49.99/mo | 25 Mbps | 3 Mbps | 15 GB | No contract |
| HughesNet Fusion 50 | $74.99/mo | 50 Mbps | 5 Mbps | 100 GB | No contract |
HughesNet offers six plans in Illinois, ranging from the budget-friendly Select 15GB plan at $49.99 per month with 25 Mbps downloads to the premium Fusion 200 plan at $174.99 per month with 200 Mbps downloads and unlimited data. The Fusion plans combine satellite connectivity with a cellular network component to significantly reduce latency compared to standard satellite service, which typically has latency around 600 milliseconds. This hybrid approach makes Fusion plans better suited for video conferencing, online gaming, and other latency-sensitive applications.
All HughesNet plans in Illinois are available without a contract, giving you the flexibility to change or cancel service without early termination fees. The standard satellite plans (Select, Elite) provide solid download speeds of 50-100 Mbps with data allowances of 100-200 GB per month, while the Fusion lineup offers the same speeds with the added benefit of lower latency through cellular bonding technology.
Prices as shown on FCC Broadband Labels as of February 2026. Equipment lease fees, taxes, and installation charges may apply. Actual speeds may vary based on network conditions, satellite congestion, and weather.
HughesNet Availability in Illinois
HughesNet satellite internet is available to virtually 100% of Illinois residents and businesses. Because the service relies on a satellite dish communicating with an orbiting spacecraft rather than cables in the ground, there are no coverage gaps based on distance from a central office or cable head-end. Illinois' 12.6 million residents are overwhelmingly concentrated in the Chicago metro area, leaving the state's 57,914 total square miles of prairie and farmland with thin broadband coverage.
Illinois' flat terrain is nearly ideal for satellite internet reception. With virtually no topographic obstructions, most Illinois properties have an unimpeded view of the southern sky. Professional installation ensures your dish is optimally positioned for the best possible signal quality at your specific location in Illinois.
To verify availability and check which plans are offered at your Illinois address, you can visit the HughesNet website and enter your location. In nearly all cases, all six plans listed above will be available regardless of where you live in the state.
Is HughesNet Right for Your Illinois Home?
HughesNet is an excellent choice for Illinois residents in areas where cable, fiber, or fixed wireless broadband is unavailable or unreliable. If you live in a rural area and your current internet options are limited to slow DSL or mobile hotspots, HughesNet's speeds of 25 to 200 Mbps represent a significant upgrade. The service is also a solid backup internet option for homes that experience frequent outages on their primary wired connection.
However, if you have access to cable or fiber internet in your area of Illinois, those technologies typically offer lower latency and may provide better value for heavy internet usage like competitive online gaming or frequent large file uploads. HughesNet's standard satellite plans have latency around 600ms, which is noticeable for real-time applications but perfectly adequate for web browsing, email, streaming video, and social media. The Fusion plans reduce this latency substantially by incorporating a cellular network component.
Downstate Illinois residents wanting to stream Bears, Cubs, or Cardinals games in areas where cable doesn't reach find HughesNet a practical and available solution. For most household internet activities including streaming HD video, browsing the web, working from home on most applications, and video calling on platforms that buffer well, HughesNet delivers reliable performance across Illinois.
HughesNet Illinois FAQ
Is HughesNet available everywhere in Illinois?
Yes. HughesNet satellite internet covers virtually 100% of Illinois, including the most rural and remote areas of the state. As long as your property has a clear view of the southern sky for dish installation, HughesNet can provide service. This makes it one of the most widely available internet options in Illinois, reaching communities that cable, fiber, and fixed wireless providers do not serve.
What is the fastest HughesNet plan available in Illinois?
The fastest HughesNet plan available in Illinois is the Fusion 200, which delivers download speeds up to 200 Mbps and upload speeds up to 25 Mbps for $174.99 per month. This plan includes unlimited data and uses HughesNet's Fusion technology, which combines satellite and cellular connectivity to provide lower latency than standard satellite plans. It is HughesNet's premium tier and is suitable for households with multiple users and devices.
Does HughesNet have data caps in Illinois?
Most HughesNet plans include monthly data allowances rather than hard caps. The Select 15GB plan includes 15 GB, the Select and Fusion 50 plans include 100 GB, and the Elite and Fusion 100 plans include 200 GB. When you exceed your data allowance, your speeds are reduced but service is not cut off. The Fusion 200 plan offers unlimited data with no throttling. Data usage resets at the beginning of each billing cycle.
What is HughesNet's latency like in Illinois?
Standard HughesNet satellite plans have latency of approximately 600 milliseconds (0.6 seconds) due to the distance the signal must travel to the satellite and back. This is inherent to geostationary satellite technology and affects all satellite internet providers similarly. HughesNet's Fusion plans (Fusion 50, Fusion 100, and Fusion 200) significantly reduce latency by incorporating a cellular network component for time-sensitive data, making them a better choice for video conferencing, VoIP calls, and other real-time applications.
Is HughesNet good for streaming in Illinois?
Yes, HughesNet is capable of streaming video in Illinois. Plans with 50 Mbps or higher download speeds can handle HD streaming on platforms like Netflix, YouTube, and Disney+. The Elite and Fusion plans at 100 Mbps can support multiple simultaneous streams. While the latency may cause a brief delay when starting a video, once buffering begins, streaming quality is generally smooth and consistent. For households that primarily use the internet for streaming entertainment, the 200 GB data allowance on the Elite plan typically supports 80-100 hours of HD streaming per month.
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