Optus Mobile Review ALDI Mobile Review Amaysim Mobile Review Belong Mobile Review Circles.Life Review Vodafone Mobile Review Woolworths Mobile Review Felix Mobile Review Best iPhone Plans Best Family Mobile Plans Best Budget Smartphones Best Prepaid Plans Best SIM-Only Plans Best Plans For Kids And Teens Best Cheap Mobile Plans Telstra vs Optus Mobile Optus NBN Review Belong NBN Review Vodafone NBN Review Superloop NBN Review Aussie BB NBN Review iiNet NBN Review MyRepublic NBN Review TPG NBN Review Best NBN Satellite Plans Best NBN Alternatives Best NBN Providers Best Home Wireless Plans What is a Good NBN Speed? Test NBN Speed How to speed up your internet Optus vs Telstra Broadband ExpressVPN Review CyberGhost VPN Review NordVPN Review PureVPN Review Norton Secure VPN Review IPVanish VPN Review Windscribe VPN Review Hotspot Shield VPN Review Best cheap VPN services Best VPN for streaming Best VPNs for gaming What is a VPN? VPNs for ad-blocking This ultimate guide to choosing an internet plan is designed to walk you through all of the home-broadband options in Australia, from ubiquitous picks like an NBN plan through to the versatility of mobile broadband, the cable cutting of home wireless broadband, as well as less common alternatives like ADSL2+, cable internet, non-NBN fibre and Starlink satellite. While you can’t pick which NBN technology connects your home to the NBN, there is a Technology Choice Program that offers free quotes for a full fibre upgrade. Paying to upgrade your NBN connection would take it from one of the less future-proofed and currently speed-capped technologies to Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP). Below is a daily updating list of popular NBN plans with unlimited data across technology types.
NBN 12 (max 12Mbps download, 1Mbps upload) NBN 25 (max 25Mbps download, 5Mbps upload) NBN 50 (max 50Mbps download, 20Mbps upload) NBN 100 (max 100Mbps download, 20Mbps or 40Mbps upload) NBN 250 (max 250Mbps download, 25Mbps upload) NNB 1000 (max 1000Mbps download, 50Mbps upload)
At the time of writing, FTTP and Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) were the only two NBN technologies in Australia that support plans on all six NBN speed tiers. On the other end of the speed spectrum, NBN satellite providers offer plans built on NBN 12 and NBN 25 speed tiers, while NBN Fixed Wireless providers offer those as well as NBN 50 plans. The only exception there is that NBN Fixed Wireless Plus plans (the NBN 50 equivalent) have the potential to burst above 50Mbps download speeds and, technically, can reach speeds of up to 75Mbps. That just leaves the other ‘FTT’ technologies: Fibre-to-the-Curb (FTTC), Fibre-to-the-Building (FTTB) and Fibre-to-the-Node (FTTN). Theoretically, homes connected by any of these NBN technologies can sign up for plans up to NBN 100 speeds, but some providers may offer disclaimers that their plans may not be able to reach advertised download speeds for homes serviced by these NBN technologies. For FTTN homes, it’s a little trickier because even the NBN corporate plan for 2021 separated FTTN homes into those capable of reaching NBN 100 speeds (1.2 million), NBN 50 speeds (1.9 million) and NBN 25 speeds (1 million). This is likely why the current NBN upgrade plan is to prioritise upgrading FTTN homes to FTTP abodes. To finalise the upgrade, though, eligible FTTN homes need to order an NBN 100 plan or faster, while eligible FTTC homes will have to order an NBN 250 or NBN 1000 plan to complete the FTTP upgrade. ADSL2+ plans are only capable of reaching speeds of up to 24Mbps download and 1Mbps upload, but slower speeds are much more likely. There are only two ADSL2+ plans in our database: Mate’s ADSL2+ #citymates ($49 per month) plan and Telstra’s Unlimited Data offering ($80 per month). You can see these ADSL2+ plans below. We’d advise anticipating average download speeds around 40Mbps because, like NBN Fixed Wireless, home wireless broadband speeds tend to be more impacted by congestion than NBN fixed-line NBN. There are some 5G options emerging, though, which have the potential to reach speeds above NBN 100 plans. The table below offers a side-by-side comparison between the providers in our database, covering key areas across mobile network, download speeds, starting monthly price and data, post-data cap costs or speed throttling, as well as included home wireless broadband networking equipment. Check out the table below for a side-by-side comparison of the mobile broadband providers in our comparison engine, broken down into mobile network, starting monthly price and data, how the provider handles things post-data cap, as well as what mobile broadband modem options they have. (Note that at the time of writing Southern Phone was temporarily not offering new sign-ups for its mobile broadband plans.) While you can’t choose the NBN technology that services your home, you can request a free quote for costs to upgrade your home to FTTP. This will cost many thousands of dollars and take weeks or months to complete, though. It used to be that those in regional, rural, offshore and remote areas were restricted to whatever broadband was available. Of late, that’s either NBN Fixed Wireless or NBN Sky Muster satellite, but that’s changed in recent times with the advent of Starlink satellite as a viable competitor. The initial upfront cost is steep—$709 for the hardware and $100 to cover shipping and handling—and the single plan cost of $139 per month is comparatively expensive next to cheaper and mid-range options from NBN satellite. Still, Starlink boasts minimum download speeds that are double that of the fastest NBN 25 speed tier for NBN satellite, plus the hundreds-of-times lower latency makes real-time online activities like gaming and videoconferencing feel more seamless. The other main forms of home broadband are dependent on availability, restricted to very specific areas, which means NBN plans compare better when stacked next to them. We’d never recommend choosing an ADSL2+ plan these days unless it’s a last resort. Why? It’s an ageing form of broadband that doesn’t compare well to its contemporary peers. It’s a different story for VDSL2, cable and non-NBN fibre plans—these latter two can hit speeds above NBN 100 plans, too—all of which are worth considering as viable NBN alternatives. That said, their limited availability makes them tricky to recommend for most homes. If you can access any of these broadband technologies, it’s absolutely worth weighing them up in comparison to NBN to see which one comes out on top for your needs. Alternatively, home wireless broadband is the other internet technology worth considering. It’s a great choice if your home has a strong mobile signal from the network you hope to use: Telstra, Optus or Vodafone. While busy times can impact overall speed and reliability, home wireless broadband providers at least offer larger starting data caps and the option for unlimited data. Mobile broadband, on the other hand, is internet that can travel with you, but it costs more to get hundreds of gigabytes of data. Because most mobile broadband plans are currently built on 4G technologies, you shouldn’t expect download speeds to be as reliably fast as NBN 50 and NBN 100 plans. This should start to change once 5G mobile broadband plans become more ubiquitous and when Telstra, Optus and Vodafone finish rolling out their respective 5G networks. Whether you’re appraising Telstra NBN plans or other Telstra internet plans, expect to pay for the privilege. While the cost is high for Telstra broadband plans—whether it’s NBN, ADSL2+, cable, home wireless broadband or mobile broadband—these plans tend to offer top-tier speeds and excellent support. On the other end of the price spectrum are providers like Kogan, which lack the bells and whistles of more premium priced NBN plans but do offer decent speeds and competitive pricing. The big competitor for Telstra, though—in terms of broadband plans for NBN, home wireless broadband and mobile broadband—is the same as in the mobile space. Optus internet plans tend to have more competitive pricing, particularly for Optus NBN plans, and they still offer great support as well as some decent perks. Vodafone NBN plans (and other Vodafone internet plans) compete closely with Optus and Telstra, offering a compatible NBN modem that’s free upfront and doesn’t cost anything if you stay with Vodafone for long enough (also true of Optus and Telstra). Having 4G backup on the NBN modem is a nice touch, plus Vodafone NBN plans have great speeds, too. TPG NBN plans may have upfront fees on no-contract plans, but this provider does tend to score well in the ACCC’s broadband tests, plus the provider’s great value plans also have flexibility to include phone bundles. Other TPG internet plans include impressive speeds on non-NBN fibre options, but 20Mbps capped download speeds for its home wireless broadband plans isn’t ideal for most homes ’net needs. iiNet NBN plans are worth considering if you want to compare competitive pricing and decent speeds or, alternatively, if you fancy bundling entertainment options via Fetch TV packages. Aussie Broadband plans are available for NBN and select non-NBN fibre homes as well as those seeking a mobile broadband provider. For Aussie Broadband’s NBN plans, this is a provider that prides itself on offering fast download speeds and enjoys high reported customer satisfaction. Providers like Aldi Mobile and Amaysim are likely more familiar to those seeking a mobile plan, but they do offer competitive pricing on mobile broadband plans. Aldi Mobile, in particular, has competitively priced plans on the Telstra wholesale network that come with great inclusions. Amaysim is light on perks but does have a tendency towards generous data promotions. Belong is an NBN provider that offers simplified plan structures and decent prices, but premium NBN speeds on Belong NBN plans are restricted to FTTP, HFC and FTTC homes only. Belong’s NBN speeds weren’t that great initially but they have been improving in recent times. Dodo NBN plans fare better overall, with a great mix of value and self-reported typical evening speeds, plus there are some great optional extras if you want a phone or entertainment options. Internode NBN plans offer a similar level of versatility, even if the prices aren’t particularly competitive. Admittedly, Internode NBN plan speeds are great up to NBN 100 but, while there are faster plans available, their speeds aren’t as fast as competitors. Tangerine is a consistent contender for its NBN plans, and it’s great to see identical pricing and flexibility across metro and NBN Fixed Wireless offerings. There’s also great flexibility in terms of optional extras, too, ranging from landline or SIM Only phone plans to networking equipment. Superloop is an NBN provider that may not be a household name but does offer competitive pricing, recurring first-year discounts and fantastic speeds via investments into its own fibre network. Aussie Broadband and Superloop are a couple of rare providers that offer transparency on CVC, so you can have a better idea of NBN speed expectations in your area. Speaking of rarities, iPrimus is an NBN provider that still offers data-limited NBN plans to metro areas as well as upfront fees. While plan prices aren’t the most competitive out there, we do appreciate the plan versatility and great support options. Exetel may not be overly competitive on the pricing front but its NBN plans have been improving in speed, plus they’re worth considering if you want an included modem-router and/or landline phone. For those in non-metro areas, NBN providers like Activ8me, SkyMesh and IPStar are worth considering alongside providers that operate in metro areas for a mix of decent pricing and included data. Speaking of providers that service metro and non-metro areas, Southern Phone is one that crops up across NBN technology types. While its plans aren’t overly competitive in terms of price, there’s a good range of support options, decent download speeds and a reasonably priced WiFi modem worth considering. Spintel may not offer NBN satellite services like Southern Phone does, but it offers competitive pricing (with regular ongoing discounts for new sign-ups) and great speeds for NBN metro plans, plus it’s also worth considering for those in Fixed Wireless NBN areas. Moose Mobile is another provider with great pricing (not to mention high reported customer satisfaction) if you’re after a mobile broadband or home wireless broadband plan. As for other providers in our comparison engine, that leaves MyRepublic and Mate Communicate. MyRepublic has competitively priced plans for NBN homes in metro areas, with some great gamer-centric add-ons. Mate, on the other hand, offers great value NBN plans with competitively priced bundles for those in metro and NBN Fixed Wireless areas. That’s one way to save money, but it’s worth checking in with our best NBN plans page to see which plans might be best for your needs if you’re in the market for a new provider. Generally speaking, the slower the internet plan, the cheaper it will be. 4G mobile broadband plans are an exception to this rule but they’re also not viable replacements for home internet. Still, there’s money to be saved based on your home internet usage. This tends to be based on how many people are in your home and the type of online activities those people perform. Before we dive into specifics, check out the table below to get an idea of the available broadband technologies ranked in terms of max download speed but also compared in terms of max upload speeds, number of people using it simultaneously and online activities. NBN 50, which is the most common speed tier, offers a great mix of pricing and performance. It’s recommended for homes with three or four people, all of whom may want to stream HD videos, download files and play games online. If that’s not fast enough for you, double the max potential download speeds with an NBN 100 plan that’s meant for five or more people and makes multi-screen 4K streaming accessible. Technically, home wireless broadband and mobile broadband plans that operate on 4G networks can reach these speeds, too, but they’re more likely to hit speeds around the NBN 50 speed tier. If you’re dealing with a data cap, remember that activities like downloading large files and streaming video tend to chew through multiple gigabytes of data each hour. That’s why we tend to recommend unlimited plans (and the technologies where that’s common). Cable internet can reach download speeds of up to 350Mbps but it’s also only available in select areas and its upload speed is a lot slower than NBN 25 plans and above at around 2.5Mbps. Really, though, NBN plans and other technologies like 5G that offer speeds above 100Mbps download are meant for larger homes looking for no-compromise internet usage when it comes to handling concurrent video streams (in up to 8K quality), simultaneous 4K videoconferences and minimal downtime when downloading or uploading files.
