A starliner was identified as a type of transport which operated in Federation space. Starliners were easy prey, especially for ambitious warlords on non-aligned worlds. An unnamed starliner experienced such a fate in 2319 when Peretor Karnas seized command of the starship and ransomed the 63 people on board for weapons. (TNG: "Too Short a Season")

Colony ships, such as the USS Constantinople, were occasionally identified as starliners. (TNG: "The Schizoid Man"}