What NBN speed tier do you need?

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The rollout of the NBN promised a faster, more reliable Australian internet infrastructure. But some who have made the switch have been decidedly disappointed with the results.

As with any broadband technology, there’s a laundry list of reasons why you might be experiencing broadband speeds slower than what you signed up for. And by virtue of the multiple speed choices offered, many Australians have been left scratching their heads over which NBN speed tier they need and what their internet speed should be once they’ve got it.

Well, you’re in the right place. Here’s your complete guide to each NBN speed tier and which one best suits you.

NBN 50 (Standard): Best NBN speed tier for most

• Up to 50 Mbps download
• Up to 20 Mbps upload

It’s the most popular NBN speed tier in Australia, and for good reason. NBN 50 (or Standard), is a one-size-fits-most solution that’s perfect for small households that need a little extra ‘oomph’ to satisfy their higher-usage needs.

50 Mbps should be enough to watch one 4K stream and a couple of HD streams at the same time, possibly with a little leftover to post your hot takes on Twitter. Plus, with 20 Mbps to work with when it comes to uploads, your video calls will be crisp and clear.

NBN 50 also happens to have some of the best value plans, with regular promotions bringing them below the $60/month mark.

See the most popular NBN 50 deals below.

NBN 100 (Fast): Best NBN speed tier for large households

• Up to 100 Mbps download
• Up to 20 or 40 Mbps upload, depending on your plan

If you’ve got a big family or live in a sharehouse, an NBN Fast plan is for you. Rocking download speeds of up to 100 Mbps, it’s the fastest NBN speed tier available to most Australians, as Superfast and Ultrafast plans are only available to a small number of households (depending on technology).

NBN 100 should be enough for each member of the household to get their work done, watch their favourite TV show and play the occasional online game. Really, it should only struggle if there are half a dozen or so people using it at the same time.

It’s also a popular choice among keen online gamers, streamers and content creators, as the potential for up to 40 Mbps upload speed makes for ultra-smooth live streaming and video uploads.

If you think NBN Fast is right for you, here are the most popular NBN 100 plans.

Only want the cream of the broadband crop? Take a look at our picks for the best NBN plans in Australia across categories like best on a budget, best for gaming and more.

NBN 250 (Superfast): Best NBN speed tier for ultra-heavy users

• Up to 250 Mbps download
• Up to 25 Mbps upload

Only a select few households are capable of speeds up to 250 Mbps, so if you’re one of them, congrats! While NBN Superfast plans were originally only available for FTTP connections and some HFC connections, the latter connection type is now covered entirely. And if you’re a heavy internet user and you’re eligible for it, NBN 250 will cater for all your gluttonous ways (and then some).

NBN 250 is enough to do pretty much anything online, and do it blazingly fast. Interestingly, you can actually get better upload speeds with an NBN 100/40 plan, which is something to keep in mind if you’re constantly working with large cloud-based files or software.

To see if you’re eligible for one of the most popular NBN 250 plans below, click the ‘Go’ link next to it and punch in your address.

NBN 1000 (Ultrafast): Fastest NBN speed tier

• Up to 1000 Mbps download
• Up to 50 Mbps upload

Again, NBN 1000 (Ultrafast) plans are only available to FTTP and selected HFC connections. NBN says around 95% of premises are covered, so if you’re one of the lucky ones, you can get the fastest fixed-line internet currently available in Australia.

There’s pretty much nothing you can’t do with download and upload speeds this fast. Honestly, it would be a waste of money for most users, but if you’re a hardcore live streamer, gamer, busy creative or simply want to flex on your mates, NBN 1000 will do you just fine.

You’ll find the most popular NBN 1000 plans below. Just click ‘Go’ next to the plan you like, enter your address and see if it’ll work with your setup.

NBN 25 (Basic II): Best NBN speed tier for single-person households

• Up to 25 Mbps download
• Up to 5 Mbps upload

NBN Basic II offers download speeds of up to 25 Mbps, which is perfect for those who live alone (and may also suffice for lighter usage two-person households). Unless you find yourself frequently doing something that requires a lot of bandwidth (i.e. if you’re a streamer or video editor), 25 Mbps is enough to stream any TV show or movie in HD with enough left over to do some online shopping or uni work at the same time.

On the downside, because most streaming services that offer 4K content require a minimum of 25 Mbps to do so, you’ll likely experience buffering – especially if you plan on using the internet for any other reason simultaneously.

Upload-wise, 5 Mbps isn’t anything to write home about, but it’ll be enough to conduct reasonably clear video calls and upload the odd medium-sized file. If your job requires you to upload lots of large files on a regular basis, NBN 25 probably won’t be fast enough for you.

Below are the most popular NBN 25 plans right now.

NBN 12 (Basic I): Best NBN speed tier for infrequent users

• Up to 12 Mbps download
• Up to 1 Mbps upload

As the slowest available NBN speed tier, customers on NBN 12 (a.k.a. Basic I) plans can expect a maximum download speed of 12 Mbps. That’s enough for one device to watch Netflix in high definition, but if you like browsing the web while bingeing your favourite TV shows, NBN 12 will struggle to keep up. Plus, given upload speeds are capped at a measly 1 Mbps, you may experience issues with video calls.

We only recommend NBN 12 plans for those who only require the internet for sending and receiving emails, online shopping and streaming the occasional movie. It’s a popular tier among seniors and those on a strict budget, but since it often comes with a small monthly data allowance instead of unlimited data, it certainly won’t suit most users.

Regardless, if you think NBN 12 will work for you, here are the most popular plans in that speed tier.

What is a good NBN speed?

That depends on the speed tier you’ve selected. It’s rare you will hit the maximum potential speed for any NBN speed tier but if you’re paying for Fast NBN 100 and regularly hit 100 Mbps, we’d consider that a great NBN speed.

It’s more likely you will hit closer to the average of 85.6 Mbps during busy hours, which is still great but not quite as fast as your connection has the potential for.

Each NBN speed tier has a maximum potential speed that looks pretty on paper but there many opposing forces that keep that maximum speed out of reach: the NBN technology used at your address, congestion on the network during busy hours and the available CVC at your POI all have an impact on your speed. This is why the ACCC has encouraged Australian ISPs to advertise their typical evening speeds for a more accurate figure.

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If your speed test results are anywhere between the average and the maximum potential speed, let’s say 85 to 100 Mbps for Fast NBN 100, you’re getting your money’s worth.

Here’s a rough guide to give you an idea of whether your current speed tier is delivering the goods. Run a speed test while connected to your home Wi-Fi using the widget below and compare the results with the table underneath.

NBN speed tiers

NBN Basic I (NBN 12)

NBN Basic II (NBN 25)

NBN Standard (NBN 50)

NBN Fast (NBN 100)

NBN Superfast (NBN 250)

NBN Ultrafast (NBN 1000)

250 Mbps to 500 Mbps

If your NBN plan is delivering speeds within the Poor range, get in touch with your provider and work through some basic troubleshooting. If your speeds don’t improve, it might be time to consider another provider.

It’s possible your current provider hasn’t purchased enough CVC in your area’s POI, causing congestion on the network.

Fastest NBN plans in each speed tier

Looking for the best possible download speed for your tier? Here are the fastest plans for each NBN speed tier. To change tiers, simply click the drop-down menu in the top left.

NBN speed jargon primer

With the introduction of the NBN, we’ve been forced to adopt an entirely new vocabulary of acronyms and technical jargon. Before we begin, let’s quickly explore some of the head-scratchers you’ll find in this article. For more, check out our full NBN terminology explainer.

Mbps

Not to be confused with megabytes (which is used to measure file size), Mbps or “megabits per second” is the metric used to measure the speed of data transfers across the internet. This standard measurement is used by internet service providers across the world. More Mbps allows you to transfer more data at once, which gives you faster downloads and more bandwidth between multiple devices.

ISP

That one’s easy. ISP stands for Internet Service Provider. Your ISP is the company that supplies your broadband connection, such as Telstra or Optus.

Typical evening speed: The ACCC has tasked ISPs with selling speeds based on real-world averages. If a network advertises 100 Mbps but can’t deliver that on average, they could land in hot water with the ACCC. This is why you will see ISPs advertise “typical evening speeds” – a more realistic expectation of what to expect when signing up to a plan.

CVC/POI

When the NBN rolls out in a suburb, ISPs are required to purchase CVC or “connectivity virtual circuit” at that suburb’s POI or “Point of Interconnect”. CVC is essentially the bandwidth on the NBN that ISPs purchase to sell to you. The more CVC your provider purchases, the more homes it can connect in your suburb. ISPs estimate how many customers they will connect in a given area and purchase an equivalent amount CVC. If the provider underestimates the amount of CVC needed in your area, you may experience congested speeds.

Georgia Dixon has over seven years’ experience writing about all things tech, entertainment and lifestyle, with bylines in TechLife magazine, 7NEWS and Stuff.co.nz. In her spare time, you’ll find her playing games and daydreaming about good food, wine, and dogs.

How to test your NBN internet download (and upload) speed

Test your internet speed and ping to find out if you’re getting the fastest NBN possible in your area.

We are committed to sharing unbiased reviews. Some of the links on our site are from our partners who compensate us. Read our disclosure policies to learn more.

How to test your internet speed

1. Check what NBN speed tier you are paying for.
2. Connect to the internet via your NBN home WiFi connection on any device.
3. Click the big orange Start Speed Test button at the top of this page.
4. Allow roughly 30 seconds for the speed test to run.
5. Check the speed test results (Mbps) and compare them against the speed you are paying for.
6. Find more detailed information further down the page to see if your result is acceptable.

How to speed up your internet

We have a comprehensive guide to speeding up slow internet, but if you’re not experiencing any particular technical issues, the solution is often to switch plans and providers. Here’s a small selection of fast NBN plans and providers.

Explained: How to run an NBN internet speed test

First step: check what NBN speed tier you are paying for. There are several speed tiers (Basic I NBN 12, Basic II NBN 25, Standard NBN 50, Fast NBN 100, Superfast NBN 250 and Ultrafast NBN 1000), and the speed you are paying for will inform the quality of your results. The same goes for home broadband connections.

Running an NBN speed test to check your NBN internet speed couldn’t be simpler. Simply make sure you’re connected to the internet via your home NBN WiFi modem with the device you plan to test on and hit the big “Start Speed Test” button at the top of this page. If you are testing from your smartphone and you’re not connected to WiFi, the speed test will return results from your mobile network (also handy to know).

Allow around ten seconds for the internet speed test to run. Once complete, you’ll be given your download speed result, and if you click more info, you can find your ping/latency and upload speeds. See, we told you an NBN speed test was easy.

While ping and latency are important to some users, download and upload speed are the two most important data points in your NBN speed test (they are, after all, what you usually pay extra for).

How do internet speed tests work?

Basically, an internet speed test works in a few stages.

First up, it’ll send a request to a server and wait for a response. The time between making the request and getting a response (in milliseconds) is what we call ‘ping’. Ping won’t be a major consideration for most everyday internet users, but if you’re keen to learn more, check out the ping and latency section below.

Second, and most importantly, the test will measure your download and upload speeds. This works by the test tool opening multiple connections to the test server and downloading small bits of data. While this is happening, the tool will measure how quickly it downloaded that bit of data and how much of your network’s resources were used in the process. Using this information, it will then optimise the size of that bit of data and the number of connections to accurately measure download speed.

Testing upload is essentially the same thing, but instead of requesting data, you’re the one sending those bits of data to the test server. Using the same method, the tool establishes the right number of connections and the right data size to accurately measure your upload speed.