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Oblique view from high above the North Pacific looking north at Alaska at dusk. The west is still lit by a low sun, the east is in twilight with a few city lights. A thin glowing rose line runs east-west across southern Alaska. Stone-colored points (Starlink) fill the sky over all of Alaska and the Arctic; rose points (Amazon Leo) stay over the Pacific, south of the line.

Alaska

Will Amazon Leo work in Alaska?

Amazon Leo's first satellites never fly far enough north to serve most of the state. Here is why, where the line falls, and what could change it.

By Starlink vs LeoFacts checked How we checked

Computed positions of 11,112 Starlink and 391 Amazon Leo satellites at 02:15 UTC on October 26, 2026, from CelesTrak orbital elements. Earth imagery: NASA Blue Marble and Black Marble (public domain). Render: Starlink vs Leo from CelesTrak data; Earth imagery NASA (public domain)

Where Alaska stands · as of

Mostly no. The FCC's order approving Amazon Leo (then Project Kuiper) says service “cannot be provided to the majority of Alaska”, and the satellites now in orbit reach no farther north than about 58.7°N Our calculation.

About 87.6% of Alaskans live north of that line, including Anchorage and Fairbanks. A polar layer that could cover the rest was approved on Feb 10, 2026, but none of it has launched.

Southeast Alaska, Kodiak and the Aleutians fall inside or near the edge; nearly everyone else is outside it. If you live in Alaska and need internet soon, Amazon Leo is not a realistic option to wait for. The buy-or-wait tool walks through what to do instead.

What the FCC said

When the FCC approved Amazon's first-generation system in 2020, it noted the gap plainly and waived its rule that a system like this must cover all 50 states:

“Given the proposed design of the Kuiper system, service cannot be provided to the majority of Alaska.”

FCC 20-102, Order and Authorization, released · Confirmed · checked

Amazon's own 2019 technical filing put it more bluntly: “Alaska’s high latitude makes it effectively impossible to serve using the Kuiper System.” Nothing Amazon has published since names Alaska. Its newer statements promise “initial latitude bands” without saying which Announced.

Why the line falls near 58.7°N

It comes down to two numbers in Amazon's own filings.

  1. How far north the satellites fly. Every Leo satellite launched so far goes to Amazon's 630 km shell, and its FCC license sets that shell's orbits at a tilt of 51.9° to the equator. So none ever passes over a point farther north than 51.9°N.
  2. How low a dish will look. Amazon's filing says its terminals only talk to satellites at least 35° above the horizon. A satellite at the top of its path is still that high in the sky for a dish about 470 miles farther north, but no farther.
  3. Add them up. That reach is about 6.8° of latitude, so the edge sits near 58.7°N Our calculation (the drawing below shows it to scale). North of it, no satellite in today's shell ever climbs 35° above your horizon.
  4. The edge is not the coverage line. Near the edge a satellite passes only now and then. Amazon's own filing promised continuous coverage only to about 56°N Announced.

Drawn to scale

Why the first Leo satellites stop short of most of Alaska

A slice through the Earth along a line of longitude, from 49°N to 62°N, with heights and distances to scale. A Leo satellite's path tops out over 51.9°N at about 630 km up. A dish at 58.7°N sees that satellite exactly 35° above its horizon, the lowest angle Amazon's terminals use. North of 58.7°N no satellite in this shell ever climbs that high. Amazon's own filing promised continuous coverage only to about 56°N.

Heights and distances to scale (Earth radius 6,371 km). Inputs: the 51.9° / 630 km shell and the 35° minimum angle from Amazon's FCC filings; the 6.8° reach and the edge are our calculation Our calculation.

Amazon's other first-generation shells are tilted less, so they reach even less of the north. Only the 51.9° shell gets past 48.62°N:

How far north each first-generation shell can reach
ShellTilt (inclination)Farthest north at 35° minimum
590 km30°Confirmedchecked 36.43°NOur calculationchecked
590 km33°Confirmedchecked 39.43°NOur calculationchecked
610 km42°Confirmedchecked 48.62°NOur calculationchecked
630 km51.9°Confirmedchecked 58.7°NOur calculationchecked

Our calculation from the shells in the FCC's Feb 10, 2026 grant and the 35° minimum in Amazon's 2019 filing. The higher minimum Amazon lists for low-gain links moves each edge a little farther south.

Where the edge falls on the map

Draw the line across the state and the picture is stark. Southern Southeast Alaska and the Aleutians sit inside the band Amazon filed; Juneau and Kodiak sit between that band and the edge, so expect part-time service at best unless Amazon says otherwise; Anchorage, the Mat-Su, the Kenai Peninsula, Fairbanks and every town farther north are outside.

Computed view

How far north each network reaches, computed from orbital data

Map of North America seen from space, shaded in two tones. Everything south of a thin dark rose line at about 58.7 degrees north is tinted rose; north of the line, up to the North Pole, the map is taupe and bone. The line crosses southern Alaska just north of Juneau and Kodiak and runs on across northern Canada. Eight small dots mark Alaska towns; five of them, including Anchorage, Fairbanks and Utqiagvik, are north of the line.
  • Utqiagvik, 71.3°N: Beyond the edge
  • Fairbanks, 64.8°N: Beyond the edge
  • Nome, 64.5°N: Beyond the edge
  • Anchorage, 61.2°N: Beyond the edge
  • Bethel, 60.8°N: Beyond the edge
  • Juneau, 58.3°N: Inside the edge, part-time at best
  • Kodiak, 57.8°N: Inside the edge, part-time at best
  • Ketchikan, 55.3°N: Inside the filed continuous band
About 87.6% of Alaskans live north of 58.7°N Our calculation. The edge is our calculation from Amazon's FCC filings; near it, satellites pass only now and then.Northernmost latitude each network's satellites in operational orbits can serve as of 23:30 UTC on October 25, 2026: Amazon Leo to 58.7 deg N (51.9 deg shell at about 630 km, 35 deg minimum elevation in Amazon's FCC filings); Starlink to the North Pole (97.3 deg shell). Computed from CelesTrak orbital elements; geometric reach only, not a service map. Earth imagery: NASA Blue Marble (public domain); borders: Natural Earth.Render: Starlink vs Leo from CelesTrak data; Earth imagery NASA (public domain) Town labels placed from the render's own coordinates. On a small screen the town names are in the map and lists below.

Map drawn by us

A closer look: where the edge crosses Alaska

  • South of ~56°N: inside Amazon's filed continuous-coverage band
  • ~56°N to 58.7°N: reachable on paper, part-time at best
  • North of 58.7°N: beyond the edge of today's satellites
  • Utqiagvik 71.3°N: Beyond the edge
  • Fairbanks 64.8°N: Beyond the edge
  • Nome 64.5°N: Beyond the edge
  • Anchorage 61.2°N: Beyond the edge
  • Bethel 60.8°N: Beyond the edge
  • Juneau 58.3°N: Inside the edge, part-time at best
  • Kodiak 57.8°N: Inside the edge, part-time at best
  • Ketchikan 55.3°N: Inside the filed continuous band
Outline: Natural Earth (public domain), simplified; town positions approximate. A plain diagram, not a coverage map from Amazon, which has published none.

How many Alaskans that leaves out

Counting every 2020 Census block by latitude, 642,646 Our calculation of Alaska's 733,391 residents, about 87.6%, live north of 58.7°N. Use the stricter angle Amazon lists for low-gain links and the share rises to 92.3%; measured from the 56°N continuous-coverage line, it's 96.3%.

  • South of 56°N: 3.7%
  • 56°N to 58.7°N: 8.7%
  • North of 58.7°N: 87.6% Our calculation

Towns inside and outside the edge

Census places from the same count, largest first, with the latitude of each place's center. The lists come straight from our data file, so they update when it does.

Outside: north of 58.7°N

59 places of 1,000+ people Our calculation

  1. Anchorage61.17°N291,247
  2. Fairbanks64.84°N32,515
  3. Knik-Fairview61.51°N19,297
  4. Badger64.80°N19,031
  5. College64.87°N11,332
  6. North Lakes61.62°N9,450
  7. Meadow Lakes61.64°N9,197
  8. Wasilla61.58°N9,054
  9. Tanaina61.66°N8,817
  10. Kalifornsky60.45°N8,487
  11. Kenai60.56°N7,424
  12. Steele Creek64.93°N6,437
47 more places
  1. Bethel60.79°N6,325
  2. Chena Ridge64.79°N6,015
  3. Sterling60.54°N5,918
  4. Palmer61.60°N5,888
  5. Gateway61.57°N5,748
  6. Homer59.65°N5,522
  7. South Lakes61.59°N5,229
  8. Fishhook61.73°N5,048
  9. Utqiagvik71.25°N4,927
  10. Farmers Loop64.91°N4,704
  11. Nikiski60.73°N4,456
  12. Soldotna60.48°N4,342
  13. Valdez61.08°N3,985
  14. Big Lake61.52°N3,833
  15. Nome64.51°N3,699
  16. Butte61.53°N3,589
  17. Goldstream64.94°N3,299
  18. Kotzebue66.88°N3,102
  19. Farm Loop61.63°N2,747
  20. Seward60.12°N2,717
  21. Eielson AFB64.67°N2,610
  22. Cordova60.53°N2,609
  23. Ester64.88°N2,416
  24. Deltana63.79°N2,359
  25. Dillingham59.06°N2,249
  26. Fritz Creek59.75°N2,248
  27. North Pole64.75°N2,243
  28. Willow61.89°N2,196
  29. Ridgeway60.53°N2,136
  30. Bear Creek60.21°N2,129
  31. Anchor Point59.75°N2,105
  32. Houston61.62°N1,975
  33. Point MacKenzie61.34°N1,852
  34. Haines59.25°N1,657
  35. Susitna North62.15°N1,564
  36. Lazy Mountain61.66°N1,506
  37. Cohoe60.27°N1,471
  38. Hooper Bay61.51°N1,375
  39. Diamond Ridge59.70°N1,330
  40. Prudhoe Bay70.37°N1,310
  41. Tok63.33°N1,243
  42. Skagway59.46°N1,164
  43. Funny River60.48°N1,103
  44. Salamatof60.60°N1,078
  45. Talkeetna62.31°N1,055
  46. Sutton-Alpine61.74°N1,038
  47. Buffalo Soapstone61.68°N1,021

Inside the edge, north of 56°N

11 places of 500+ people; part-time at best Our calculation

  1. Juneau58.37°N32,255
  2. Sitka57.19°N8,458
  3. Kodiak57.79°N5,581
  4. Mill Bay57.82°N4,216
  5. Petersburg56.76°N3,043
  6. Wrangell56.18°N2,127
  7. Kodiak Station57.77°N1,673
  8. Hoonah58.12°N931
  9. Womens Bay57.69°N743
  10. Gustavus58.44°N655
  11. Kake56.98°N543

South of 56°N

8 places of 500+ people; inside the band Amazon filed Our calculation

  1. Ketchikan55.36°N8,192
  2. Unalaska53.91°N4,254
  3. Akutan54.14°N1,589
  4. Metlakatla55.12°N1,454
  5. Craig55.49°N1,036
  6. King Cove55.09°N757
  7. Klawock55.56°N720
  8. Sand Point55.31°N578

Population: 2020 Census. "Inside the band" means the geometry allows it, not that Amazon has said it will serve these towns or when; it hasn't.

The polar system: approved, not launched

What could change the answer is a separate set of satellites on steeply tilted orbits. The FCC approved Amazon's polar system on Feb 10, 2026 Confirmed: 1,292 satellites in three shells (600 km at 82°, 620 km at 66°, 650 km at 80°). The FCC grant records Amazon's own description: “Kuiper has clarified that its three constellations operate independently and serve different geographic regions.”

Amazon Leo's polar system, as of Nov 3, 2026
ItemStatus
Approved by the FCCFeb 10, 2026 Confirmed checked
Satellites approved1,292 Confirmed checked
Polar satellites launched0 Confirmed checked
Launch date announcedNot announcedchecked
FCC deadline: half in orbitFeb 10, 2032 Confirmed checked
FCC deadline: all in orbitFeb 10, 2035 Confirmed checked

Those are deadlines, not a schedule: the license lets Amazon take until then. Amazon has also filed for a separate phone-to-satellite system with some high-inclination shells (5,105 satellites; applied to the FCC (2026); deployment planned from 2028 Planned). That one is for phones, not for home internet through a Leo dish.

Alaska coverage: what readers ask

Will Amazon Leo work in Alaska?

Not in most of the state with the satellites Amazon is launching now. They reach about 58.7°N at most Our calculation, and about 87.6% of Alaskans live north of that. Parts of Southeast Alaska, Kodiak and the Aleutians are within reach on paper; Amazon hasn't said when or whether it will serve them.

Will Amazon Leo work in Anchorage?

No, not with today's satellites. Anchorage sits at about 61.2°N, north of the 58.7°N edge Our calculation. The polar layer that could change that has not launched.

Will Amazon Leo work in Fairbanks?

No. Fairbanks, at about 64.8°N, is well beyond the edge of the current satellites' reach Our calculation.

Will Amazon Leo work in Juneau or Ketchikan?

Possibly, but not fully. Ketchikan (about 55.4°N) is inside the band Amazon filed for continuous coverage; Juneau (about 58.4°N) is past that band but inside the edge, so expect part-time service at best Our calculation. Amazon has named no Alaska towns, dates or plans.

Amazon says service starts at northern latitudes. Does that include Alaska?

Amazon said its rollout would begin “in northern and southern latitudes” Announced. With every satellite in the 51.9° shell, “northern” can only mean the upper part of what that shell reaches, which ends near 58.7°N. That reading is ours; Amazon hasn't named any state.

When will Amazon Leo cover Alaska?

Amazon hasn't said. Its polar satellites are approved but none has launched, no launch date is announced, and the FCC's deadline for half of them is Feb 10, 2032 checked .

Does Starlink work in Alaska?

Yes. Starlink's specifications say: Serves Alaska, with higher latency than the lower 48 Confirmed. Speeds there trail the rest of the country in Ookla's tests.

Read next

How these facts were checked

The FCC wording comes from the FCC's 2020 Kuiper order (FCC 20-102) and Amazon's 2019 technical filing. The edge latitude is our own geometry from Amazon's filed orbit (inclination and altitude) and minimum elevation angle, using the standard coverage formula; the share of Alaskans is our count of 2020 Census blocks by latitude. Both are labeled "our calculation". The polar system's details come from the FCC Space Bureau grant of Feb 10, 2026. Read the editorial policy.

FCC orders and Census data files are fixed public records whose text can't change, so the "Facts checked" date leaves them out. We read them on Oct 25, 2026; each one is listed at the foot of the page.

Where each fact comes from

  1. cdn.geekwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Kuiper-Technical.pdf (primary source) · checked
  2. www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/2020/data/01-Redistr… (primary source) · checked
  3. docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-553A1.pdf (primary source) · checked
  4. aboutamazon.com/news/innovation-at-amazon/project-kuiper-satell… (primary source) · checked
  5. cdn.geekwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/AmazonLeo-Gen2.pdf (primary source) · checked
  6. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-direct-to-device-sat… (primary source) · checked
  7. Starlink spec sheet (DOC-DF-1915-15313-48) (primary source) · checked
  8. ookla.com/research/reports/us-broadband-performance-report-h1-2… (primary source) · checked
  9. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-arianespace-first-mi… (primary source) · checked
  10. docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-20-102A1.pdf (primary source) · checked
  11. Natural Earth 1:50m cultural vectors (state outlines, used for our map), Natural Earth (dataset) · checked