NBN might be a filthy acronym, but it’s also inevitable. The good news is performance on Australia’s new network appears to be getting better, with telcos purchasing more bandwidth the ACCC and NBN reporting decreases in peak hour congestion. In short, if you’re buying a fast NBN plan, you’re more likely to get the speeds you’re paying for consistently (outside of issues such as your distance from the node, sorry).
If you want to upgrade from a slower connection or are looking to change provider, we’re taking a look the best deals on the some of the fastest NBN plans around.
NBN 50
Let’s start with NBN 50. While NBN 50 isn’t the fastest speed available, plans have seen significant price cuts lately making them excellent value. And depending on the technology you’re using to connect to the NBN, 50Mbps may be the fastest speed you can get.
Telstra isn’t known for being cheap, and that’s still the case with NBN. But If you’re after Foxtel, Telstra’s NBN offering is worth considering. $129 per month gets you NBN 50 speeds, unlimited data, and a Foxtel subscription including the standard Entertainment Pack and the premium Sports pack. You’ll pay $124 in setup fees for this one.
Telstra says NBN 50 customers can expect speeds of around 40Mbps during peak hours.
Optus has two NBN 50 options: a basic $75 per month plan with no add-ons, and a $80 per month plan with Fetch TV and Optus Sport subscriptions. If you’re happy to sign a 24-month contract, you won’t pay any setup or hardware fees.
Optus says NBN 50 customers can expect speeds of around 40Mbps during peak hours.
If you’re after bang for buck, Mate Communicate’s $59 per month NBN 50 plan is currently our “Editor’s Pick” at WhistleOut. You get unlimited data, it’s contract free, and you don’t pay any setup fees. If you need a modem, Mate will sell you for an extra $149, but you’re able to bring your own if you’d prefer.
It’s worth noting this $59 price is only valid for the first six months, after which you’ll pay $69 per month. But since Mate’s plans are no contract and don’t have setup fees, you can always consider your options when your discount runs out.
Mate says NBN 50 customers can expect speeds between 20Mbps and 50Mbps during peak hours.
Internode’s always been a respected name in Australian internet, and despite new corporate masters, has managed to hold on to its reputation an ISP for internet lovers. $74.99 per month will get you NBN 50 speeds with 500GB of data on a 24-month contract. You’ll only need to pay $15 in upfront costs.
Internode says NBN 50 customers can expect speeds of 43Mbps during peak hours.
NBN 100
If you’re looking for a faster connection, you’ll need a NBN 100 plan.
Vodafone is still a comparatively new player when it comes to NBN, and its plans are only really available in capital cities (and a few other se;ect areas). If you can get Vodafone, the telco is running a couple of offers that could make it worth considering.
If you sign up for a 24-month contract before the end of June, you’ll get a one-year subscription to Netflix (the HD plan). All customers also get Vodafone’s NBN modem that has 4G fallback for outages. For NBN 100 speeds, you’re looking at $99 per month with no extra set-up fees.
Vodafone hasn’t provided specifics regarding speeds during peak hours.
Belong, also known as budget Telstra, will do an NBN 100 plan with unlimited data for $90 per month. You’ll also get $80 of mobile credit to use with its newly launched MVNO, if you feel like switching to Belong for your phone service too.
Belong says NBN 100 customers can expect speeds of around 60Mbps during peak hours.
TPG
If you think cheap internet, TPG will probably spring to mind. While the NBN wholesale model does mean TPG hasn’t significantly undercut the competition as it did with ADSL, its plans are still competitive. $89.99 per month gets you NBN 100 speeds with unlimited data and no contract. You’ll pay $129.95 in setup fees.
TPG says NBN 100 customers can expect speeds of around 78Mbps during peak hours.
You might not have heard of Aussie Broadband before, but the company is starting to make a name for itself thanks to its “congestion-free NBN” promise. Aussie says you won’t experience “6pm slowdown” on its network and has backed this up by publishing bandwidth usage graphs (CVC) for its entire network. No other ISP in Australia currently does this.
An unlimited data NBN 100 plan will set you back $99 per month with no contract. A modem will cost you $169, but you can bring your own to have setup fees waived.
Aussie Broadband says NBN 100 customers can expect speeds of around 90Mbps during peak hours.
Faster than NBN 100
If you’re lucky enough to have a FTTP NBN connection, a couple of providers offer speeds above NBN 100. Aussie Broadband, for example, offers NBN 150 and NBN 250 plans. You pay a large premium for these, with 500GB costing you $155 per month and $175 per month on NBN 150 and NBN 250 speeds, respectively. SkyMesh is another NBN provider that sells plans faster than NBN 100, but you’ll need to send them a direct enquiry if you’re after one.
Nothing take your fancy? Here are some more NBN 50 plans:
And here a couple more NBN 100 plans:
