The NBN comes in many shapes and sizes. In addition to the myriad technology types being deployed, there are also different NBN “tiers” that determine the speed you receive and the price you pay. A recent study by customer satisfaction research group Canstar Blue has revealed the most affordable plans for each available speed tier – from 12Mbps all the way up to 100Mbps. Here is the list.
Last year, NBN Co scrubbed all mention of “speed tiers” from its website in a bid to clear up customer confusion. Instead, the available speeds are now referred to as ‘nbn 12’, ‘nbn 25’, ‘nbn 50’ and nbn ‘100’.
Nevertheless, Canstar has opted to stick to the original naming convention for its study, which breaks down like this:
- Tier 1 – 12/1: 12 Mbps download, 1 Mbps upload
- Tier 2 – 25/5: 25 Mbps download, 5 Mbps upload
- Tier 3 – 50/20: 50 Mbps download, 20 Mbps upload
- Tier 4 – 100/40: 100 Mbps download, 40 Mbps upload
Here are the cheapest available NBN plans for each speed tier:
While the above plans are the cheapest, Canstar warns that price alone does not necessarily indicate the best value. As the organisation explains on its website:
The best NBN plans with superfast speeds usually come with a hefty amount of data – unlimited in many cases – and this will be reflected by the price you pay. Going for the cheapest deals usually means sacrificing either speed or data.
In other words, it pays to do plenty of homework before committing to an NBN provider even if the monthly pricing looks like a great deal. (Especially when the monthly pricing looks like a great deal.) Other factors to consider are customer service, network reliability and overall reputation which you can research on independent forums like Whirlpool.
For a more detailed overview of each NBN speed tier, here are the four cheapest plans in each category. [Note: Our tables take a few seconds to generate so stick around if they’re not showing up.]
Cheapest NBN plans at 12Mbps
Click on each plan for more information:
For those on a super-tight budget, the cheapest available NBN plan on the market is Dodo’s 10GB offering which will set you back $29,90 a month. Just be aware that NBN Tier 1 speeds are barely any faster than an average ADSL2+ connection. As Canstar notes: “investing even just $10 more a month will see a huge boost in data.” Take that for what it’s worth.
Cheapest NBN plans at 25Mbps
Click on each plan for more information:
On the Tier 2 front (AKA NBN Co’s first designated ‘superfast’ speed tier), Teleron provides the most affordable plan with 50GB per month for $49. Canstar warns that you can expect “very frustrating congestion” on this particular speed tier, although it should be able to handle movie downloads and HD video streams proficiently.
If you expect to use lots of data, it’s definitely worth spending a few extra dollars in this price tier. For example, an additional $5 per month will net you 50GB extra gigabytes compared to the Teleron option.
Cheapest NBN plans at 50Mbps
Click on each plan for more information:
50Mbps is where you really start to notice fast internet speeds. The cheapest plan is from SpinTel for $59.95 per month. Handily, it also provides the best data allowance despite the cheaper price. Indeed, this speed tier appears to have a lot of discrepancy when it comes to data so be sure to tread extra carefully.
Cheapest NBN plans at 100Mbps
Click on each plan for more information:
As you can see, MyRepublic’s 100 Mbps is much better value for those who can get it: for an extra five cents per month it provides a (theoretical) speed boost of 100 per cent compared to the most affordable “Tier 3” plan. It also comes with an “unlimited” data cap compared to just 40GB for the aforementioned SpinTel offering.
READ NEXT: The Cheapest Unlimited NBN Plans In Each Australian City | Here Is Every Suburb That Will Be Getting The NBN In 2017
Canstar Blue [Via Business Insider]
Comments
20 responses to “Dealhacker: The Cheapest NBN Plans For Every Available Speed”
Not having NBN available in my area, and with it not coming anytime soon, I haven’t really been paying much attention to the options available.
Can someone please reassure me that I’m reading it wrong or that these numbers are riddled with typos and that people aren’t really selling these high speed internet packages with only 30gb download quotas?
Also – how likely are you to actually get the advertised speed that you’re paying for? I’ve heard stories of people getting speeds considerably slower than the theoretical maximum, but I’m not sure how common those problems are.
I think it largely depends on a) what kind of connection you have, b) who your ISP is, and c) how many others in your area are using it concurrently.
I just got my HFC connection last week, and I’ve run speed tests every couple of days at different times (peak/offpeak) and I seem to be getting consistent speeds for the moment (96-97Mbps down and 37-38Mbps up.) It’s possible that I was one of first to jump on the bandwagon after being told that it was available, so it’s entirely possible I might begin to notice drops in speed as more people connect, but I’ll just have to wait and see. It did take them 2 months to actually install the damn thing after my initial call to sign up, so it’s also possible others are already connected around me too. Only time will tell I guess.
Like you though, I’ve heard mixed stories from a lot of sources about shitty speeds. Mostly from FTTN and HFC connections. I know some people who have FTTN connections, and they barely manage to get 20 down on a 100 plan, but others I know are consistently getting the same kinds of speeds I am. Most likely has a lot to do with your proximity to the node, and the quality of the copper between there and your house.
It also has to do with your ISP’s Point of Interconnection. If your ISP’s POI for your area is congested, all users on that ISP in that area will suffer reduced speeds.
The Getting to the Point of Interconnection section on this page helps to clarify: http://www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/how-the-nbn-network-works.html
Who the hell takes a 100mb connection with only 10gb of data?
I know right?! A mate of mine who works for Telstra in Melb had their 100Mbps cable, and he was only allowed 200Gb/mth. He was always running out in the first couple of days. How anyone would thing 10Gb is a good idea is beyond me! You could download that in a matter of hours!
more like 4 mins
hahah yeah if you had a really solid connection! I was being generous with the time, assuming they wouldn’t just start a 10 gig download from steam right away 😉
On a 100/40 connection I’m typically downloading around the 12 Mb/s rate, so you’re getting around 83 seconds per Gb if you stick with that. Call it 100 seconds, and you’re talking about 1000 seconds before you hit your cap.
Having said that, I doubt anyone connecting to a 10 Gig plan uses the net so heavily it becomes an issue. Nan and Pop just checking Facebook and emails wouldnt need more.
Yeah I get a pretty solid 12Mb/s out of mine too. Lucky for me, I have unlimited data 🙂 Can’t imagine having to live with a cap at those speeds. I’d be forever checking how much I’d used!
Neither could I. On my earliest dialup plan, I was on 50 hours/month. It was horrible. So while it wasnt a data cap, it was the same thing in effect.
Since I went to ADSL2, I went with as much data as I could, and while TPG didnt offer unlimited in my local exchange, the 500 Gb limit was more than enough. Now I’m on NBN, its unlimited all the way for me as well, just so I dont need to watch it. Some months its 300 Gb, others its 30, depending on what games I download, or how much netflix or stan gets streamed.
It would drive me crazy having to watch that small an amount at home, especially with the number of devices that connect to the home network. Hell, my phone has a 10 Gb limit…
I was on the 500Gb plan with TPG too. It was plenty for the speeds I was getting, but now I can pull 12MB/sec, I’d much rather not worry about it at all 🙂
why …. only a dodo of course …;)
They’re the same people who take copper wire and try to say it’s equal to fiber.
Optus fixed wireless 50/20 Unlimited for $100/month isn’t too bad.
Why they are selling 12 Mbps and 25 Mbps plans which are a downgrade from adsl2+, what’s the point of spending billions to get what Downgraded internet. They should not even selling such low speed plans, there should be a govt regulation to ban slow speeds.
@dpkmbelb…
I was on ADSL but could only get 6.9Mbps max on a good day (Telstra), so I can’t imagine ADSL2 being any better, being copper technology. Dodo 12Mb/unlimited is $15/month cheaper than Telstra’s ADSL 100GB/ADSL plan that I was on before moving to NBN.
On the 12Mb fibre NBN unlimited data plan, I consistently get 11.7Mbps most days. Netflix runs well on HD. All ADSL services have been cut in our area for over 18 months now, so everyone have to be on Fibre NBN by now if they wanted to keep their Internet access to the house.
Fibre will always exceed copper because fibre doesn’t suffer attenuation as much as copper does over long distances. Fibre is a much superior technology. (I know because I work with the stuff).
I hear many other people on higher plan speeds on NBN are not getting the advertised speed… so why pay for it. 12Mbps works just fine. Netflix HD doesn’t suffer from buffering problems at 12Mbps – streams 100% of the time.
Also fibre NBN is half-duplex which is why I will never get 12Mbps but close to it.
So, low speed fibre NBN will also be better than most ADSL/2 copper connections. Fibre is also immune to electromagnetic interference which affects copper lines badly.
reason for slow internet on adsl2+ could be 2.4 ghz modem, i am also with telstra now but the modem is 5 ghz modem, i get up to 16 mbps download speeds. So this is better than 12 mbps nbn plan, when govt spend huge amount of money there should be a value for money for people. If you are just happy with 12 mbps then what all you needed was better modem and have a house closer to the telstra boxes
I wish I got 12Mbps from my ADSL!!
While I will be grabbing the fastest they’ve got, I could see my parents (who really only email and check a few websites) being quite happy with 12 or 25Mpbs.
Try 5ghz modem and change the channels to get the optimum speeds, you can get better speeds on adsl2+ too
If you get FTTN in you wont be able to get the 100/40 plan and from the amount of complaints on various other sites your lucky to get the speeds one the 50 /20 forget the rest.So much for thinking for the future
From Exetel’s website their 25/5 plan is just $49.99 for 100GB much cheaper than all except Teleron, but with double the download!
Dont forget to add $20 for country customers!