When you’re planning to sign on for an NBN plan, you need to do your research first – you can’t just pick up a plan and be satisfied with it. You’ll need to find the plan that is right for you: right with price, right with perks and right with service.
With this in mind – we bring to your attention TPG and Optus, two heavyweights in the internet world. While TPG usually dominates our NBN provider ratings when compared to Optus, take note of Optus’ quality perks and bundles. Every listing in this article includes a bundled phone as well, so if you’re looking for NBN with a phone, these two providers are perfect for you.
While TPG is mostly known in the NBN market, Optus is a heavy-hitter across the telco industry. With a much bigger budget, Optus is also able to offer things like 5G home broadband and home wireless.
With that extra experience and budget though, comes extra costs – which might bring you to prefer TPG over Optus. We’ll be diving deep into both of what these providers have to offer when it comes to NBN plans.
Jump to:
- TPG and Optus plans at a glance
- What NBN plan is right for me?
- TPG’s NBN 12 plans
- TPG and Optus Standard Plus plans (NBN 50)
- TPG and Optus Premium Plans (NBN 100)
TPG and Optus plans at a glance
We can cut NBN plans down the middle by thinking of them like this – plans that are just internet (which would be the majority of plans in Australia) and plans that are part of bundles (including streaming services, phone lines and so on). When you start to work in extras like discounts, Netflix access and other perks, things can get complicated quick.
TPG and Optus offer both of these kinds of internet deals – it’s just a matter of finding the one that is right for you.
Let’s break down some key differences. Both brands offer a modem, bundled into the package, but the price difference between Optus and TPG’s modems is massive:
- TPG’s modems add only an extra $10 to your spending, whereas Optus’ included modems are $252 upfront (but are reduced to $0 when you stay connected for 36 months).
- On top of this, TPG charges a $20 setup fee (on 18 month contracts), against Optus’ $99 setup fee (one month contracts). TPG’s one month contract setup fee is $119.95.
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TPG’s NBN 12 plans
TPG is one of the few providers in the country that still provides NBN 12 plans. NBN 12 is the lowest speed NBN, but it’s also the most affordable NBN option. TPG offers this speed grade at a few levels of data, offering 10GB, 100GB and unlimited packages, all of which bundle in a WiFi modem and phone line. TPG projects typical evening speeds of 10.9Mbps with this plan.
The following table shows a selection of published TPG NBN 12 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 a referral partner.
TPG and Optus Standard Plus (NBN 50) Plans
Rather than offering the standard NBN 25 speed tier, TPG and Optus both offer the Standard Plus NBN 50 speed tier – with TPG offering NBN 12 before this, and Optus starting at NBN 50.
Both of these providers offer bundled-in landline phones, but we’ve also included in the below table Optus’ bundled Standard Plus plan including Fetch TV and Optus Sport. Fetch is great if you have a family, or if you’re a huge TV nut, or both! It gives you access to a bunch of TV channels not accessible through free-to-air TV.
If you’re big on sport, Optus Sport might be what’s best for you. It’s where you can catch all the big games – including the Premier League, the UEFA Champions league and the Euro2020.
As for speeds, TPG appears to be on top, offering a projected 45.6Mbps as the typical evening speed, rivaling Optus’ 44Mbps typical evening speed.
The following table shows a selection of published TPG and Optus Standard Plus NBN 50 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 a referral partner.
TPG and Optus Premium (NBN 100) Plans
Down to the brass tacks, this speed tier is for die-hard internet users. While TPG’s NBN 100 plans offer upload speeds up to 40Mbps, Optus has transitioned its standard NBN 100 plan to the 100/20 speed tier, meaning uploads max out at 20Mbps. You can still request the previous NBN 100/40 speed from Optus, but will be required to pay an extra $10 per month, on top of Optus’ standard NBN 100 price.
Optus’ NBN 100/20 plans begin at $95 per month, while TPG prices premium plans from $89.99. TPG reports a higher typical evening speed, of 85.6Mbps, against Optus’ 80Mbps. Most NBN users won’t need speeds this fast, but if you’re big on online gaming or online streaming, this is the service that you want.
With Optus’ big Internet Entertainer plan sitting at $110, with a phone and Fetch TV included, it’s a bundle worth considering – however with TPG’s speeds, $10 modem for 18 months and with its bundled phone, this could be a better option if you don’t care about included entertainment.
The following table shows a selection of published TPG and Optus Premium 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 a referral partner.
What NBN plan is right for me?
Before we put TPG and Optus up against each other, let’s break down the different types of NBN plans. Picking the right NBN plan is tough, but it can be simple if you look into it a little bit. It all comes down to what speed is right for you – you can lower your cost with some providers by getting plans with limited data allowances per month, but ultimately the deciding factor in plans is speed.
NBN 12 Basic Evening Standard
NBN 12, otherwise known as the Basic Evening Speed, is the lowest speed NBN plan available on the market. With this connection, you won’t necessarily see a huge difference compared to an ADSL2+ connection. This speed is ideal if your internet plan isn’t a huge priority, and is great for basic social media usage, emailing and web surfing.
Remember, access to services like Stan and Netflix aren’t locked to a certain NBN speed. If nobody else in the house is using the internet at the same time, you could watch something online easily with this speed.
NBN 25 Standard Evening Speed
NBN 25, or the Standard Evening Speed, is the standard NBN speed tier across Australia. This is a hassle free stock-standard plan, and would have more than enough speed to never notice an issue watching videos. This speed is a great choice if you’re wanting to run a business from home, or if you do a lot of video calling. It’s important to note that neither TPG or Optus offer this speed tier.
NBN 50 Standard Plus Evening Speed
Also known as the Standard Plus Evening Speed, this speed tier would be great if you watch a lot of high definition or 4K content online. Typically with speeds below this, high definition content would take long times to load, but with this plan you’ll be set to click the button and enjoy.
Be aware though, NBN 50 and 100 have higher prices than 12 and 25, and you might be paying too much for what you want from the internet.
NBN 100 Premium Evening Speed
NBN 100, or the Premium Evening Speed, is the ultimate extra-fast speed for the NBN. This speed-tier is typically for high definition content and for online gaming, but it could also be a great way to stay hassle-free online.
If you’d like a more detailed explanation of what these speeds mean for you, we’ve prepared a great article on that here.
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