What NBN speed do I have?

By now, most Australians are connected to an NBN plan, or at least have an NBN connection available to their home. The great thing about the NBN is that households have more choice than ever over which provider to go with, and generally, how fast they’d like their plan to be.

Why do I need to know which speed tier I’m on?

When you’re signing up to an NBN plan, you’ll typically have a range of different speed tiers to choose from. This means that you can choose a speed that suits your household needs and the way you use the internet at home, to ensure you’re not paying too much for a speed tier that you might not actually need.

You also want to ensure that the speed tier is fast enough to handle the online activities of those using your home internet. For example, streaming high-definition video typically requires a faster internet speed, so if you’re on a lower speed tier, you might have issues with slow load times and buffering. Being on a speed tier fast enough for your internet usage should eliminate those slower load times, and allow your plan to typically handle the activities you need to use the internet for.

Not all providers offer every speed tier, as some providers might only offer from the mid-range speed tiers and above. If you find that you’re on a speed tier faster than you actually need, switching to another NBN provider which offers the right speed tier for your household could save you money. A low-usage household on a fast-speed plan could easily save around $30-$40 per month, simply by switching to a lower speed tier.

How do I find out which speed tier I’m on?

If you’re unsure of which NBN speed tier you’re on with your current NBN provider, it’s relatively easy to find out what your current speed tier is. Take a look at your latest internet bill, where the plan you’re on should be listed. Typically providers will list the speed tier in the name of the plan; otherwise, you can compare the plan name to those on your provider’s website, or simply get in touch with your provider to find out the plan details.

Once you know which NBN speed tier you’re on, you might decide that this speed isn’t really matching your needs. Whether the speed is too slow for the way your household uses the internet, or you’re paying for a faster speed you don’t really need, finding the right speed tier for your household needs is a good way to ensure you’re getting the best value for money.

NBN Plans & Speeds

• NBN Sponsored Plans
• NBN50 Plans
• NBN100 Plans

The following table shows a selection of sponsored unlimited data Standard Plus Evening Speed (NBN 50), and Premium Evening Speed (NBN 100) plans on Canstar Blue’s database with links to referral partners.

Sponsored Products

NBN 100 SL Bundle BYO 1 Month Contract (1 month min. cost $79.99) Typical evening speed of 97Mbps Special Offer: Save $10/month for the first 6 months! $0 modem available. Plus, get 50% off SIM Plan fees. New customers only. T&C apply.

Unlimited Data/month

$79.99 Cost/month

Go to Site

NBN 50 1 Month Contract (1 month min. cost $85) Typical evening speed of 50Mbps Have a Vodafone phone plan? You’ll save $15/mth on Vodafone internet Get in quick on this package deal. T&Cs Apply

Unlimited Data/month

$85.00 Cost/month

Go to Site

NBN100 Liimitless 1 Month Contract (1 month min. cost $99.99) Typical evening speed of 97Mbps Save $10/mth for first 12 months on selected iiNet NBN plans Available to new customers only Available until withdrawn. T&Cs Apply

Unlimited Data/month

$89.99 Cost/month

Go to Site

View all nbn plans listed on Canstar Blue

*^View important information

Unlimited Home Standard (NBN 50) Plans

The following table shows a selection of published unlimited NBN 50 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of standard monthly cost (excluding discounts), from the lowest to highest, and then by alphabetical order of provider. Use our comparison tool above to see plans from a range of other providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

Unlimited Home Fast (NBN 100) Plans

The table below shows a selection of published unlimited NBN 100 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of monthly cost, from the lowest to highest, and then by alphabetical order of provider. Use our comparison tool to see plans from a range of other providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

What are the differences between NBN speeds?

There are six different speed tiers on offer from NBN Co, and internet providers can decide which speed tiers to offer to customers. Not all providers will offer every single speed tier, so if you’re after a certain speed, typically the slower or fastest speeds, you might need to shop around. The speed also determines how much you’ll pay for your NBN plan — the slowest speeds are often the cheapest NBN plans, while the fastest NBN plans are quite expensive, and usually over $100 per month.

The speed tiers have a few names, which might make it confusing to find out which speed you’re actually on. In the past year, NBN Co has changed the way it refers to speed tiers, and while some telcos have adopted the new naming conventions, the older speed tier names are still used by many providers. Here is a list of the different speed tiers and the different names they go by:

• NBN 12 or NBN 12/1 — also known as Home Basic I (previously known as the Basic speed tier)
• NBN 25 or NBN 25/5 — also known as Home Basic II (previously known as the Standard speed tier)
• NBN 50 or NBN 50/20 — also known as Home Standard (previously known as the Standard Plus speed tier)
• NBN 100 or NBN 100/20 or NBN 100/40 — also known as Home Fast (previously known as the Premium speed tier)
• NBN 250 or NBN 250/25 — also known as Home Superfast
• NBN 1000 or NBN 1000/50 or Gigabit NBN — also known as Home Ultrafast

Some providers might offer different speeds than the ones listed above, which is usually when the provider introduces a speed cap to one of the above speeds. It’s worth noting that the Home Fast speed tier is available with either 20Mbps or 40Mbps upload speeds, in conjunction with the 100Mbps download speed. Many providers choose to offer only the NBN 100/20 plan, which is a cheaper price than the NBN 100/40 speed. However, if you want the faster upload speeds, you might need to shop around.

What is a good NBN speed?

A good internet speed is an internet speed that is suited to your household. It depends on what sort of activities you and the rest of your household use the internet for, along with how large your household is. For example, a small one or two person household which uses the internet primarily for web browsing and emails, will most likely find NBN 12 or 25 speeds to be adequate. However, a larger household or four or more people, which uses the internet for online gaming, video streaming and general usage, will need either NBN 50 or NBN 100 speeds (or even faster).

The speed available to you (as well as the speeds you may experience), is also determined by your home’s NBN connection type. The faster speed tiers — NBN 100 and above — are typically only available to FTTP and some HFC connections. So, in addition to choosing the speed that is best for your home, you’ll also need to consider whether you’ll actually be able to sign up to a plan with that speed depending on your home’s NBN connection type.

Compare NBN plans

If you’ve decided that your current NBN plan isn’t quite matching your expectations, or maybe you’re just looking for the best value NBN plan for your household, the below tables compare a range of NBN plans across the four most common speed tiers. Switch between the tabs to compare plans on the different speed tiers.