---
title: Is Fixed Wireless the Same as Satellite Internet?
url: https://hdiss.net/guides/is-fixed-wireless-the-same-as-satellite/
business: High Desert Internet Services (HDISS)
phone: 775-575-9593, 775-391-5660
email: info@hdiss.net
mailing_address: Home base: 200 S Virginia St, Suite 760, Reno NV 89501 (dispatch office, not a walk-in store). Mail: Billing Dept., PO Box 11353, Reno NV 89510
hours: Office open 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, seven days a week. Network watched around the clock.
type: Fixed wireless internet service provider (homes and small businesses), web hosting, customer email, domain registration
service_area: Northern Nevada - Washoe, Lyon, Storey, Churchill and Douglas counties and Carson City; availability is checked address by address (line of sight to a tower)
plans: Bronze $50/mo up to 500 Mbps down, up to 200 Mbps up; Silver $75/mo up to 800 down, up to 200 up; Gold $99/mo up to 1 Gig down, up to 200 up; ask about the up to 1 Gig / 1 Gig ultra-low-latency service
no_online_purchase: true (check your address or call; existing customers pay at https://www2.fernley.net/hdiss/onlinepay/paymentform.cfm)
since: 2002
---

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- Is fixed wireless the same as satellite?

# Is fixed wireless the same as satellite internet?

No. Fixed wireless is a radio link from your roof to a tower a short distance away on the ground, while satellite internet sends your data up to a dish in orbit and back down again. Both use radio and both need a clear view, but they look at different things: a tower for one, the sky for the other.

A typical small fixed-wireless customer antenna (a generic example, not High Desert equipment). Photo: Fastlamb, [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), via [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fixed_Wireless_Access_Antenna_Alvarion_Hokkaido_Japan.jpg), cropped. [Photo credits](https://hdiss.net/photo-credits/)

On this page

- [How is a tower link different from a satellite link?](#how-is-a-tower-link-different-from-a-satellite-l)
- [Why does the distance change the delay?](#why-does-the-distance-change-the-delay)
- [What about Starlink?](#what-about-starlink)
- [Why do I need line of sight if there is no satellite?](#why-do-i-need-line-of-sight-if-there-is-no-satel)
- [Does weather affect them the same way?](#does-weather-affect-them-the-same-way)
- [Which one fits my home?](#which-one-fits-my-home)

High Desert Internet's own FAQ answers this question with a flat no, and it is still the right answer. Some of the numbers that went with that answer were out of date, though, so this page replaces them with figures from the FCC and NASA, each with its date. The short version is distance. A tower is a few miles to a few tens of miles away. A geostationary satellite is tens of thousands of kilometers away.

## Takeaways

- Satellite internet bounces your data off a satellite. Fixed wireless goes to a tower on the ground and then onto a wire.
- The FCC measured 594 to 612 ms of delay on geostationary satellite service, against 12 to 37 ms on wired and ground-based service (2018 report).
- Low-earth-orbit satellite such as Starlink is much closer than the older geostationary kind, and its delay is lower. It still needs open sky.

## How is a tower link different from a satellite link?

A fixed wireless signal goes from the antenna on your building to a tower, then continues over the provider's own network to the wider internet. The High Desert FAQ puts the link distance at up to about 40 miles. The signal never leaves the ground.

A satellite signal goes from the dish on your house up to a satellite and down to a ground station, and the answer makes the same trip in reverse. NASA's Earth Observatory lists geostationary orbit at about 36,000 kilometers above the surface, roughly 22,000 miles. The FCC's Measuring Broadband America report describes the round trip from earth station to satellite and back as approximately 44,500 miles.

## Why does the distance change the delay?

Radio travels fast, but not instantly. Delay, called latency, grows with the length of the path. The FCC's 2018 Measuring Broadband America report measured median latency of 594 to 612 ms on geostationary satellite services, while the wired and ground-based services it tested ranged from 12 to 37 ms. The FCC added that the higher delay may impair the perceived quality of highly interactive applications, such as video calls.

Delay is a separate thing from speed. A satellite plan can advertise up to 100 Mbps and still feel slow to a video call, because each round trip takes longer. Our guide on [what latency is](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-is-latency/) explains the difference.

## What about Starlink?

Starlink is also satellite, but its satellites sit far lower than the geostationary kind. A shorter trip means lower latency, and that is the whole of Starlink's advantage over the geostationary systems. This site prints no Starlink latency figure; Starlink publishes its own, and Ookla publishes measured medians by quarter, so read those pages for a current number.

On its own site, read 10/15/26, Starlink lists residential plans at $55, $85 and $130 a month, says speeds are up to 400+ Mbps on the top tier, and says speeds are maximums that are not promised and will be slower during congestion. It also offers a 30-day trial. Its dish needs a view of open sky, the way a fixed wireless antenna needs a view of a tower. The [Starlink comparison](https://hdiss.net/compare/starlink/) has the full published list with dates.

## Why do I need line of sight if there is no satellite?

Because radio at these frequencies travels in a straight line and does not bend around obstacles. The antenna on your home and the tower must see each other. A satellite dish has the same need, aimed upward instead of sideways. For a tower link, the thing to check is what stands between your roof and the tower: trees, a ridge, a neighbor's building. Our guide on [line of sight](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-line-of-sight-means/) goes through the check.

## Does weather affect them the same way?

Not exactly, and neither provider can promise immunity. Both kinds of link need a clear path, and anything that changes that path or loads the equipment matters. The FCC's 2026 Section 706 Report says satellite service reliability may decline during congestion and that actual speeds depend on location, time of day and plan (FCC 26-55, paragraph 28). For a tower link, our [weather guide](https://hdiss.net/guides/weather-and-a-wireless-link/) covers what is known and what is not.

## Which one fits my home?

If no tower can see your roof, satellite may be the only option, and it is a real one. If a tower can see your roof, a local fixed wireless provider offers a shorter path, a technician visit and a phone number in your own area code. High Desert's plans are Bronze at $50 a month with up to 500 Mbps down, Silver at $75 with up to 800 Mbps and Gold at $99 with up to 1 Gig, each with up to 200 Mbps up and no contracts (hdiss.net, read 10/15/26).

To find out which applies, submit the address or call 775-575-9593. Someone at the office studies the route from the closest tower to your roof and phones you with the result. A clear route leads to a technician visit to confirm it, and a blocked one is reported just as plainly.

### Sources

- [fcc.gov/reports-research/reports/measuring-broadband-america/measuring-fixed-broadband-eig](https://www.fcc.gov/reports-research/reports/measuring-broadband-america/measuring-fixed-broadband-eighth-report) (FCC Measuring Broadband America, Eighth Report, read 10/15/26)
- [science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/catalog-of-earth-satellite-orbits](https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/catalog-of-earth-satellite-orbits) (NASA Earth Observatory, read 10/15/26)
- [starlink.com/](https://www.starlink.com/) (Starlink residential plan cards, read 10/15/26)
- [docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-26-55A1.pdf](https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-26-55A1.pdf) (FCC 26-55, paragraph 28, read 10/15/26)

### Talk to a person

- Call [775-575-9593](tel:7755759593) [775-391-5660](tel:7753915660) Open 9-5 every day
- Email [info@hdiss.net](mailto:info@hdiss.net)

[Check my address](https://hdiss.net/check-availability/#check)

Local since 2002

Fixed wireless from towers in Northern Nevada. Three plans, no contracts, local support, 4.8 on Google from 36 reviews.

[About High Desert](https://hdiss.net/about/)

### Keep reading

- [What fixed wireless internet is and how it works](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-is-fixed-wireless-internet/)
- [Fixed wireless vs satellite internet](https://hdiss.net/compare/fixed-wireless-vs-satellite/)
- [Geostationary vs low-earth-orbit satellite vs a tower hop](https://hdiss.net/compare/geo-vs-leo-vs-tower-latency/)
- [Switching from satellite internet](https://hdiss.net/internet-for/satellite-switchers/)
- [Geostationary satellite](https://hdiss.net/glossary/geostationary-satellite/)
- [Low-earth-orbit satellite](https://hdiss.net/glossary/low-earth-orbit-satellite/)

## More on choosing and understanding

- [What fixed wireless internet is and how it works](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-is-fixed-wireless-internet/): Fixed wireless internet is a radio link from a tower to a small antenna mounted on your home or shop, with a router inside that shares the connection over Wi-Fi. It needs no phone line or cable in the street, only a clea
- [What line of sight means and why we check it first](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-line-of-sight-means/): Line of sight means your roof antenna and the tower it points at can see each other, with nothing solid in between. It is checked at your address because the path is what decides whether fixed wireless works, and a town
- [Trees, hills and buildings: what blocks a wireless link](https://hdiss.net/guides/what-blocks-a-wireless-link/): Anything solid between your antenna and the tower can block a fixed wireless link: tall trees, a ridge or hill, and large buildings. A technician can often work around one blocker by moving the antenna, and sometimes the

## Questions people ask

### Is fixed wireless slower than satellite?

Neither is slower by definition. Plans on both advertise up-to speeds, and the real difference is the delay on each trip, which is higher on geostationary satellite.

### Can I use my old satellite dish with High Desert?

No. A fixed wireless antenna and radio are different equipment, supplied by High Desert and aimed at a tower. Ask when you call what to do with the dish.

### Does fixed wireless count as satellite for data limits?

No. The two are separate services with their own terms. High Desert's data transfer limit wording is in its service agreement.