Australia’s Best NBN Plans, Ranked By Speed

Australia’s Best NBN Plans, Ranked By Speed
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It’s easy to think every NBN plan and provider is equal, given they’re selling access to the same network. But despite standard speed tiers, performance varies from provider to provider, especially during peak hour.

Australia’s Best NBN plans: not all speeds are equal

While we’re all connecting to the same NBN, the way providers buy capacity on the network means speeds can and will vary from Telstra to TPG, for example.

This is most apparently during busy periods, such as when everyone is trying to binge Netflix at the same time. If everyone is trying to mainline content into their eyeballs, you can end up with a digital traffic jam. Heaven forbid a new Call of Duty patch drops.

Thanks to the ACCC, NBN providers must reveal what kind of speeds you can realistically expect to get during busy hours – not just the speed tier your plan is based on. Fortunately, there are a whole heap of providers that do an excellent job of consistently delivering the speeds their customers pay for, so we’re going to look at the best of the best.

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We’re going through providers in order of fastest evening speeds for NBN 100 plans, but some providers are now offering plans faster than NBN 100. These plans aren’t widely available yet, however.

NBN 250 plans are only available to FTTP and HFC addresses, while NBN 1000 plans are available to all FTTP addresses but just 58% of HFC addresses so far. 94% of HFC addresses should be able to connect to NBN 1000 plans by the end of the year, but FTTN and FTTC addresses will require upgrades to FTTP to be eligible for faster speed tiers. FTTB addresses are locked out for the foreseeable future.

Best Telstra NBN plans

Telstra is one of the fastest providers around when it comes to evening speeds, ostensibly advertising congestion-free plans. It reports 100Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

Telstra also has NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans, where it reports typical evening speeds of 230Mbps and 700Mbps, respectively. 230Mbps is above average for NBN 250 plans, and 700Mbps gives Telstra the fastest NBN 1000 plan around.

Best Aussie Broadband NBN Plans

Aussie Broadband must be one of the most loved NBN providers, and it’s easy to understand why. The telco seems to pride itself on ensuring customers don’t encounter congestion, and backs this up with bandwidth graphs showing how much capacity it has on the NBN versus how much is being used.

More importantly, this is also represented in its evening speeds, which are just a hair behind Telstra’s. Aussie Broadband reports evening speeds of 99Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 22Mbps on NBN 25 plans. You’ll also find a rather unusual NBN 75 speed tier where Aussie reports typical evening speeds of 66Mbps.

Aussie Broadband also offers plans faster than NBN 100, and currently boasts the fastest NBN 250 plan around, with typical evening speeds of 248Mbps. In addition, it has the second fastest NBN 1000 plan around, reporting typical evening speeds of 600Mbps.

Superloop

Superloop is also part of the congestion-free club, reporting maximum plan speeds on tiers as fast as NBN 100. That means 100Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

Superloop also offers NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans. The telco says customers get typical evening speeds of 215Mbps on its NBN 250 plan, and 250Mbps on its NBN 1000 plan. Just be aware that Superloop’s NBN 1000 plan isn’t unlimited, unlike most other NBN 1000 plans. Instead, you’ll get a 3TB allowance. If you exceed it, you’ll be capped to speeds of 100Mbps for the remainder of your billing month.

In addition to speed, Superloop stands out because it owns a lot of the infrastructure many other providers typically rent. Every NBN provider sells access to the same network, but that network only connects you to your provider.

After that, your provider is responsible for connecting to you the rest of the internet. This is referred to as “backhaul”. Superloop owns its own backhaul, and as such, says even its home NBN plans are “business class”.

Best NBN Optus plans

Optus’ evening speeds recently took a jump up, and it now reports full evening speeds on NBN 50 and NBN 100 plans, meaning you should expect 50Mbps and 100Mbps during peak hours.

Optus also has NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans in its roster and is reporting the stock standard 215Mbps and 250Mbps typical evening speeds on these, respectively.

SpinTel

SpinTel may be smaller than Telstra and Optus, but its evening speeds are just as good. The telco reports typical evening speeds of 100Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans, and 12Mbps on NBN 12 plans.

Considering SpinTel tends to undercut the competition, the combination of high speeds and lower prices certainly makes the telco worth a look.

TPG

TPG’s evening speeds have fluctuated a bit over time and show no sign of stopping – especially when it comes to NBN 100 plans. These have gone up again recently, however, with the telco now reporting 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans.

TPG also reports typical evening speeds of 48Mbps on NBN 50 plans, 22Mbps on NBN 25 plans, and 12Mbps on NBN 12 plans. It also recently introduced NBN 250 plans and NBN 1000 plans with typical evening speeds of 215Mbps and 250Mbps, respectively.

iiNet

iiNet’s evening speeds are almost identical to TPG, which makes sense, given the shared ownership. This means you can expect 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, or 12Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

iiNet’s NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans are a touch slower than TPG’s, however. In both cases, it is reporting typical evening speeds of 200Mbps.

Internode

Unsurprisingly, it’s the same story on Internode – another TPG brand. Once again, that’s 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, or 12Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

Like stablemate iiNet, Internode has NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans with typical evening speeds of 200Mbps on both.

Best Vodafone NBN Plans

Vodafone is also part of the TPG umbrella, and we’ve got the same old story on evening speeds: 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, or 12Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

If you’re a Vodafone postpaid mobile customer, you can save $15 per month on any Vodafone NBN plan.

Kogan Internet

Kogan Internet is quite literally Vodafone NBN by another name. You don’t get the option for a modem with 4G backup and won’t get a discount for bundling, but you’ll get a slightly cheaper plan. And can earn Qantas Frequent Flyer points!

Unsurprisingly, Kogan reports identical speeds to Vodafone: 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, or 12Mbps on NBN 25 plans. Kogan also has an NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plan, with typical evening speeds of 200Mbps and 250Mbps, respectively.

Tangerine

Tangerine is a newish NBN provider that’s made waves in the market. This is partially thanks to heavily discounted pricing during your first six months, and a 14-day risk-free trial on plans. If you’re not happy within your first fortnight, you can get a full refund of your plan fees. Tangerine won’t refund the modem, but every model it sells is unlocked and can be used with your next provider.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that Tangerine does a solid job when it comes to evening speeds. The telco reports 92Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 21Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

If you’re lucky enough to be able to get an NBN 250 plan, Tangerine reports typical evening speeds of 205Mbps on this speed tier.

MATE

MATE NBN plans tend to be a bit cheaper, but also a bit slower. You’re looking at 83Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 42Mbps on NBN 50 plans, 19Mbps on NBN 25 plans, and 10Mbps on NBN 12 plans.

You can also save $10 per month on any MATE NBN plans by bundling them with one of the provider’s SIM-only mobile plans. MATE’s mobile plans start at $20 per month for 10GB and are powered by the Telstra network.

MyRepublic

MyRepublic fares well when it comes to evening speeds. Customers can expect typical evening speeds of 83Mbps on NBN 100 plans, and 43Mbps on NBN 50 plans. Avoid MyRepublic NBN 25 plans however, as the telco only reports peak hour speeds of 15Mbps on those. Most other providers are now reporting 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

MyRepublic also has NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans, where it reports typical evening speeds of 200Mbps and 350Mbps, respectively. 350Mbps during peak hours makes its NBN 1000 plan faster than most.

iPrimus

iPrimus’s plans got a welcome speed boost recently, with it now reporting typical evening speeds of 95Mbps on NBN 100 plans and 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans. iPrimus has an NBN 250 plan, but has yet to provide speed guidance for it.

Dodo

Sibling brand Dodo sits right behind iPrimus with similar speed guidance. It reports 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans, 50Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 92Mbps on NBN 100 plans.

If you’re in NSW or Victoria, you can bundle your Dodo NBN plan with its energy and gas for a $10 per month discount.

Exetel


Exetel’s plans are a step down from the previous providers, but they’re still plenty fast. It reports typical evening speeds of 24Mbps on NBN 25 plans, 48Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 95Mbps on NBN 100 plans.

Best TPG NBN Plans

TPG’s evening speeds have fluctuated a bit over time and show no sign of stopping – especially when it comes to NBN 100 plans. These have gone up again recently, however, with the telco now reporting 90Mbps on NBN 100 plans.

TPG also reports typical evening speeds of 48Mbps on NBN 50 plans, 22Mbps on NBN 25 plans, and 12Mbps on NBN 12 plans. It also recently introduced NBN 250 plans and NBN 1000 plans with typical evening speeds of 215Mbps and 250Mbps, respectively.

Southern Phone

Southern Phone may be focused on providing regional telco services, but you can get its NBN plans anywhere. Their speeds are pretty respectable too, with it reporting 89Mbps on NBN 100 plans, 47Mbps on NBN 50 plans, and 25Mbps on NBN 25 plans.

Alex Choros is Managing Editor at WhistleOut, Australia’s phone and internet comparison website. 


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At Gizmodo, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.