These Are the Fastest NBN Plans and Providers in Australia Right Now

These Are the Fastest NBN Plans and Providers in Australia Right Now
Contributor: Chris Neill, Alex Choros
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While every internet service provider is technically reselling access to the same network, if your provider doesn’t have enough bandwidth to go around then you can expect a strain on your NBN’s download speeds.

These slowdowns are most noticeable during the period of 7pm to 11pm, which is seen as the peak busy hours by internet providers. Depending on which NBN connection you go with, your mileage may vary from provider to provider, with some offering plans that have faster typical speeds during this evening period than others.

If you feel the need for speed and are sick of waiting for your streaming services to finish buffering mid-movie, we’ve ranked every NBN speed tier by its fastest internet providers.

This article has been updated since its original publication.

The fastest NBN 25 plans

When it comes to NBN 25, most internet providers are offering plans that hit the peak speeds of 25Mbps, making them ostensively congestion-free.

Currently, the providers Tangerine and Exetel have two of the fastest and cheapest plans going for this NBN tier. Tangerine is running an introductory offer where you’ll pay $49.90 per month for the first six months you’re connected, and then $59.90 per month thereafter.

Exetel is running a similar offer, where the first six months of your connection will cost you $53.99 per month and then $64.99 thereafter.

If you want a longer discount period, Southern Phone is offering an introductory deal that will last for the first 12 months of your plan. You’ll pay $55 per month initially before the price increases to $65 per month once your first year with the provider is over.

The fastest NBN 50 plans

Similar to the previous speed tier, there are a lot of providers offering NBN 50 plans with typical evening speeds that hit the peak of 50Mbps. As a bonus, a fair few of them are also offering introductory discounts on their respective plans.

If you want something fast from this tier while saving yourself a few bucks, Dodo is currently the internet provider with the cheapest NBN 50 going. You’ll pay $53.80 per month for the six months of your connection, and then $75 per month thereafter.

Again, Exetel is also running a similar introductory deal for its NBN 50 plan. You’ll pay $53.99 per month for the first six months and then $74.99 per month once the discount period ends.

Kogan’s NBN 50 plan is currently $58.90 per month for the first three months. While this is a bit more expensive than the previous two providers and the discount period is much shorter, Kogan’s full-price plan is cheaper at $68.90 per month. If you’re after an NBN 50 plan that’ll always be under $70, this one is a good option.

The fastest NBN 100 plans

If you’re after a fast NBN 100 plan, your best options are Belong, Exetel, Optus, Southern Phone, SpinTel and Telstra. These providers are all currently advertising NBN 100 with typical evening speeds of 100Mbps.

In terms of price, Southern Phone, Exetel and SpinTel have the cheapest plans available in this tier – in that order. Southern Phone‘s NBN 100 plan will set you back $65 per month for the first 12 months, before increasing to $85 per month after the discount period ends.

Exetel is also running a deal where your first six months with the internet provider will only set you back $68.99 per month, before increasing to $84.99 per month.

SpinTel‘s discount pricing is similar to Exetel’s as well. You’ll pay $69 per month for the first six months, and then $79.95 per month once the introductory deal period is over.

The fastest NBN 250 plans

NBN 250 is where the fastest providers start to vary. At the time of writing, only Southern Phone, Swoop and Telstra offer plans with typical evening speeds of 250Mbps.

Of these three fastest providers, Southern Phone has the cheapest NBN option. It’s currently running a deal where you’ll pay $95 per month for the first six months, and then $115 per month thereafter.

Telstra‘s plans are comparatively more expensive – you’ll pay $120 per month for the first six months, and then $140 per month once this discount period ends.

Meanwhile, Swoop isn’t currently running an introductory deal, so you’ll pay a flat $119 per month.

While Superloop is a tad slower than these aforementioned internet providers – it’s reporting typical evening speeds of 240Mbps – it’s currently offering a deal that makes it a much cheaper option. You’ll pay $85 per month for the six months you’re connected with Superloop, and then $99 per month once that initial deal period ends. Considering the full prices of the three aforementioned providers are well over $100 each month, that speed difference is a pretty solid trade-off in terms of value.

Before you sign up for any of these NBN 250 plans, it’s important to check that your home has a connection that can support it first. Currently, only addresses with Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) or Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) connections can support NBN 250.

The fastest NBN 1000 plans

Southern Phone currently has the honour of offering the fastest NBN 1000 plan in Australia, with typical evening speeds of 650Mbps. You can currently pick up Southern Phone’s NBN 1000 connection for $115 per month, which is the price you’ll pay for the first 12 months of your connection. Once that first year is over, you’ll be paying $135 per month – which is still relatively cheaper than what most providers are charging for an Ultrafast internet connection.

After this, a few providers are offering NBN 1000 connections with typical evening speeds of 600Mbps.

If you want a fast connection and want to pay under $100 for the first few months you’re connected, then you’ll want to check out Superloop’s connection. You’ll pay $99 per month for the first six months, and then $109 per month after that. Even at full price, this makes Superloop one of the cheapest NBN 1000 plans going. In terms of value, this plan is hard to beat.

Optus is also offering an introductory offer, where you can nab its plan for $129 per month for the first six months of your connection, and then $149 per month thereafter. However, if you do go with Optus you’ll need to stick around for 36 months or you’ll cop a modem repayment fee that’s equal to $8.50 per remaining month (to a total of $306).

Aussie Broadband is up next and will set you back a flat $149 per month.

Similar to NBN 250, only FTTP and HFC connections can support an NBN 1000 plan – so make sure your home has the right connection in place.


The Cheapest NBN 50 Plans

Here are the cheapest plans available for Australia’s most popular NBN speed tier.

At Lifehacker, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.

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