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NBN Co announces internet speed upgrades for 900,000 new premises

NBN Co has announced plans to provide a further 900,000 homes and businesses with free speed upgrades, bringing the total number of premises scheduled to receive a performance boost up to 1.1 million.

The upgrades are the next step in NBN Co’s massive $3.5 billion network investment program, which hopes to give up to 75% of NBN-connected addresses access to super-fast broadband speeds by 2023. The program will provide fibre extensions to eligible premises currently connected by Fibre to the Node (FTTN) technology, effectively upgrading each building to the faster Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) connection type.

NBN Co has released an extensive list of suburbs and towns where upgrades are set to roll out, including the first postcodes in Tasmania, ACT and the Northern Territory that will be eligible to switch to FTTP. The company has also added to its existing list of upgrade sites across New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia.

“We’re very pleased to announce the latest list of suburbs and towns across Australia – from Byron Bay on the eastern tip of New South Wales to Yokine in Western Australia – that will ultimately see around two million FTTN premises become eligible to join our ever-expanding Fibre to the Premises footprint, on demand,” said Stephen Rue, Chief Executive Officer at NBN Co.

“We are on track to achieve our goal of enabling around eight million premises, or up to 75% of homes and businesses on the fixed line network, to access NBN’s highest wholesale speed tiers, if they so choose, by 2023.”

You can find a complete list of suburbs and towns that will be eligible for NBN Co’s fibre upgrades here.

What does an NBN speed upgrade mean for me?

If you’re located in one of the included suburbs, and currently on a FTTN connection, you may be eligible to move to FTTP when upgrades are offered at your address. NBN Co has advised that specific upgrade details will be added to its online address checker by November 2021, so you may need to check back throughout the year to confirm if your home is eligible.

Currently, millions of Australians are on NBN connection types that disqualify them from accessing the fastest available wholesale speeds. FTTN homes are currently restricted to speeds of 100Mbps (megabits per second) or less, with many homes still unable to sign up for speeds tiers higher than 50Mbps, depending on their provider.

Fibre to the Node NBN

FTTP connections, however, can handle the super and ultra-fast NBN 250 and NBN 1000/ gigabit speed tiers, due to having fibre optic NBN technology running directly to the home, rather than using older copper wiring to connect to a neighbourhood node. By offering customers on FTTN an upgrade to FTTP, NBN Co is opening up millions of Aussies to the fast, reliable internet speeds that were originally promised on the NBN well over a decade ago.

Diagram of a fibre to the premises NBN connection

Do I need a fast NBN plan?

An increasing number of providers offer NBN 250 and NBN 1000 plans to eligible FTTP or Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) customers, including Telstra, Optus, Vodafone, Aussie Broadband, iPrimus, Kogan, iiNet, Internode, MyRepublic, and Superloop. A move to these plans can offer average peak hour download speeds of well over 200Mbps for NBN 250, and even faster for NBN 1000; as of March 2021, Telstra cites a typical evening speed of 700Mbps for its gigabit-speed ultra-fast plans.

These plans are great for families, people working from home, or anyone with heavy downloading and streaming needs wanting a fast connection free from buffering. However, they’re also expensive: currently, standard NBN 250 prices begin at around $110 per month for unlimited data, with unlimited NBN 1000 starting at $130 monthly. Check out the table below for a range of plans and deals.

NBN 1000 Plans Compared

The following table shows selected published NBN 1000 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of their standard monthly cost, from the lowest to highest, then alphabetically. Use our comparison tool to see plans from a range of providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

Brand Features Max Data**/billing period Advertised Cost^^/billing period
Kogan Logo

Diamond Unlimited

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000/50)
  • Modem available for $69 upfront

min. cost $109.90 for first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $109.90Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
TPG Logo

NBN Home Ultrafast

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000)
  • $0 setup fee on no lock-in contracts

min. cost $144.99 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $144.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site
iPrimus Logo

NBN 1000

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000)
  • $0 setup fee
  • $120 modem included when you stay connected for 12 months
  • PAYG calls

min. cost $265 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $145Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site

Home Ultrafast

  • NBN 1000/50
  • $0 set up fee
  • Optional $150 modem (or $0 when you stay connected for 12 months)
  • $134 per month when you have an AGL energy plan

min. cost $149 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $149Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site

Power House

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000/50)
  • Optional modem from $149 ($15 P&H)

min. cost $149 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $149Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
iiNet Logo

NBN1000 Liimitless

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000/50)
  • High-speed modem required

min. cost $149.99 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $149.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site
Internode

Home Ultrafast Speed

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000/50)
  • High-speed modem required

min. cost $149.99 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $149.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period
Origin Logo

Ultra Fast NBN 1000

  • Home Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000)
  • $0 setup fee
  • $144 per month when bundled with Origin energy

min. cost $154 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $154Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site
Telstra Logo

Ultrafast NBN

  • Ultrafast Speed (NBN 1000)
  • Typical evening speed: 250Mbps
  • $216 modem (free when you stay connected for 24 months)
  • Unlimited local, national & mobile calls included

min. cost $4,419 over 24 months

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $180Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
View all NBN plans listed on Canstar Blue

NBN 250 Plans Compared

The following table shows selected published unlimited NBN 250 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of their standard monthly cost, from lowest to highest, then alphabetically. Use our comparison tool to see plans from a range of providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

Brand Features Max Data**/billing period Advertised Cost^^/billing period

elite mates Home Superfast BYO

  • Superfast 250/25 Evening Speed (NBN 250)
  • Optional WiFi modem $165 upfront

min. cost $99 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $99Advertised Cost^^/billing period
iPrimus Logo

NBN 250

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250)
  • $0 setup fee
  • $120 modem included when you stay connected for 12 months
  • PAYG calls

min. cost $235 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $115Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
Southern Phones Logo

nbnSuperfast

  • Superfast 250/25 Evening Speed (NBN 250)
  • Optional WiFi modem $99 upfront

min. cost $115 over one month plan period

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $115Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site
Kogan Logo

Platinum Unlimited

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250/25)
  • Modem available for $69 upfront

min. cost $119.90 for first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $119.90Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
Superloop logo

Unlimited Superfast 250/25

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250/25)

min. cost $119.95 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $119.95Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
TPG Logo

NBN Home Superfast

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250)
  • $0 setup fee on no lock-in contracts

min. cost $124.99 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $124.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site

Home Superfast

  • NBN 250/25
  • $0 set up fee
  • Optional $150 modem (or $0 when you stay connected for 12 months)
  • $114 per month when you have an AGL energy plan

min. cost $129 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $129Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site

Power User

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250/25)
  • Optional modem from $149 ($15 P&H)

min. cost $129 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $129Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
Internode

NBN250 Unlimited

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250/25)

min. cost $129.99 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $129.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period
iiNet Logo

NBN250 Liimitless

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250/25)

min. cost $129.99 over one month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $129.99Advertised Cost^^/billing period
Origin Logo

Super Fast NBN 250

  • Home Superfast Speed (NBN 250)
  • $0 setup fee
  • $124 per month when bundled with Origin energy

min. cost $134 over first month

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $134Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go to Site
Telstra Logo

Superfast NBN

  • Superfast Speed (NBN 250)
  • Typical evening speed: 215Mbps
  • $216 modem (free when you stay connected for 24 months)
  • Unlimited local, national & mobile calls included

min. cost $3,459 over 24 months

UnlimitedMax Data**/billing period $140Advertised Cost^^/billing period Go To Site
View all NBN plans listed on Canstar Blue

Depending on your choice of NBN provider, you may be able to score introductory discounts that can save you a good chunk of cash over your first six or 12 months. However, if you’re looking for something more economical, a move to FTTP will also leave your home eligible for NBN 100, which – although slower – still offers fast evening speeds for a lower monthly price.

NBN 100 is also offered by just about every NBN provider, making it one of the more competitive speed tiers in terms of pricing and limited-time deals. With a maximum speed of 100Mbps, and typical speeds of over 90Mbps with most providers, it’s a good option for families, couples, and sharehouses, particularly in homes where multiple residents enjoy streaming, gaming or social media at the same time.

If you’re weighing up a move to fast NBN 100, we’ve compiled a range of plans below. The following table shows a selection of published unlimited Premium Evening Speed (NBN 100) plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of standard monthly cost, 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.

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