When you live in a share house, a solid internet connection is non-negotiable. Whether you like to unwind with some Netflix or play a few rounds of Call of Duty every evening, there’s a pretty good chance that your housemates are probably doing the same thing. Having a slow NBN plan might result in a few pass-agg messages in the house group chat.
While you might think a fast NBN plan has to be expensive, that isn’t necessarily true. Most internet providers offer introductory discounts, so it’s not hard to grab an NBN plan with top download speeds for cheap. It’s not a bad idea to swap to a different NBN plan when the discount period ends, so you can keep your monthly bill as low as possible.
To help everyone in your house stay online and happy, we’ve rounded up the cheapest NBN plans across every available speed tier.
Table of contents
Cheapest NBN 25 plans in Australia
If you’re in a smaller house (one to two people) with less internet-intensive needs, an NBN 25 plan should serve you well. The good news is that most internet providers offer NBN 25 plans with typical evening speeds of 25Mbps, so you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to fast connections.
Spintel has the overall cheapest plan at $49 per month for the first six months. From there, your monthly bill will jump up to $54.95 after those initial six months are over, which isn’t too shabby if you can’t be fucked hopping from plan to plan every month.
Tangerine is running an introductory offer where you can nab its NBN 25 plan for $49.90 per month for the first six months. Its monthly bill does jump up to $64.90 after that discount period ends, which is a fairly average price for NBN 25 plans.
Exetel is flogging a plan for $49.99 per month for the first six months, and then $59.99 per month after. Not bad, not bad at all.
Spintel, Tangerine and Exetel are all reporting typical evening speeds of 25Mbps.
Cheapest NBN 50 plans in Australia
If you don’t think an NBN 25 plan will work with your share house and the price tag on an NBN 100 plan is a bit much, even when split, getting an NBN 50 plan is a happy medium. In fact, NBN 50 is the most popular internet connection in Australia.
Kogan currently has the cheapest NBN 50 plan going at a discounted $58.90 per month. However, Kogan’s discount price only lasts for the first three months of your connection, instead of the usual six months offered by most other internet providers. Still, even with a full price of $68.90 per month, which is still cheaper than what other providers are offering, it’s not a bad pick overall.
Dodo is running a deal where you’ll only be paying $59 per month. This discount price lasts for the first six months you’re with the provider, and will bump up to $80 per month once that introductory period ends.
Tangerine has a similar offer where you’ll pay $59.90 per month for the first six months, and then $79.90 per month thereafter.
Exetel’s NBN 50 plan is a hair more expensive at $60.99 per month for the first six months you’re connected. After your first six months with Exetel, its plan increases to $78.99 per month. Exetel will also give you five free daily speed boosts every month, which will let you bump up your connection speed to NBN 100.
All of these providers are reporting typical evening speeds of 50Mbps, making them ostensibly congestion-free.
Cheapest NBN 100 plans in Australia
Grabbing an NBN 100 plan will set you back more, but if you live in a household that really gives its internet a workout, you’re better off going big from the start. Especially, if you’ve got a few people working from home.
Dodo is offering the cheapest plan right now at $64 per month for the first six months of your connection, with typical evening speeds 100Mbps. At the end of this introductory discount period, your plan will bump up to $85 per month.
Kogan is up next, with a plan that’ll set you back $68.90 per month. This price will only last for the first three months of your plan before increasing to $78.90 per month. However, this also means Kogan has the cheapest full-price NBN 100 plan, so it’s not a bad pick for value if you stick around long-term. The provider is reporting typical evening speeds of 90Mbps, so it’s a tad slower than the other cheap NBN 100 plans here.
Exetel‘s NBN 100 plan is available for $68.99 per month for the first six months, and then $84.99 per month once that introductory period ends. Exetel is reporting typical evening speeds of 100Mbps, and this plan also comes with five daily speed boosts that will let you increase your downloads to an NBN 250 connection.
Spintel is running a deal where its NBN 100 plan is only $69 per month for the first six months, and is reporting typical evening speeds of 100Mbps. The regular cost of Spintel’s plan is $79.95 per month, so if you want a bit of extra juice with your downloads, it’s worth paying the extra cash when compared to Kogan’s full-price cost.
Cheapest NBN 250 plans in Australia
If the hierarchy of needs in your share house goes 1) incredibly fast internet all of the time 2) hot water and 3) no mould, then an NBN 250 connection is an easy way to keep everyone happy. These plans usually sit around the $100 mark minimum, but if you have enough people living under the same roof, it should split nicely.
However, you need to make sure you can actually get an NBN 250 connection before signing up for one, as they’re only available to customers with FTTP or HFC connections. Look before you leap, folks.
In terms of the cheapest NBN 250 plans, Spintel is offering a connection that’ll set you back $75 per month for the first six months, and then $85.95 per month after that. Considering most NBN 250 plans are more than $85 when discounted, this plan is some great value. Spintel is reporting typical evening speeds of 211Mbps, which is still pretty good even if it isn’t the fastest.
Exetel‘s NBN 250 plan is slightly more expensive at $83.99 per month for the first six months but offers much faster speeds at 220Mbps. After that discount period ends, the full price for this Exetel plan is $98.99 per month.
If you want a superfast internet connection Southern Phone is reporting typical evening speeds of 250Mbps. This plan will set you back $95 per month. Dishing out $95 per month might seem pretty expensive, but that’s some pretty good value in terms of speed, and the fixed rate means it’ll work out cheaper than some other NBN plans in the long run.
Cheapest NBN 1000 plans in Australia
As it stands, NBN 1000 is the fastest NBN speed tier in Australia. It’s also the most expensive, but that doesn’t mean you can’t snag a great deal.
Superloop currently has the cheapest and fastest NBN 1000 plan, so you can’t beat that as far as value goes. You’ll pay $99 per month for the first six months you’re with Superloop and then $109 per month thereafter. The provider is currently reporting typical evening speeds of 700Mbps.
Swoop‘s NBN 1000 plan is very similar to Superloop’s in terms of pricing – you’ll pay a discounted $99 per month for the first six months, before a pretty steep price increase to $139 per month. That’s not a bad option if you swap to a different provider before the price change. However, Swoop is reporting typical evening speeds of 582Mbps, so Superloop is def the better value of the two providers.
Up next is TPG, which is reporting typical evening speeds of 671Mbps. This plan doesn’t have any discounts available, but you’ll pay a fixed rate of $104.99 per month, so the value isn’t too shabby when you consider that most full-price NBN plans in this tier are well over $110.
If you do go with an NBN 1000 plan, you’ll want to double-check your connection before signing up as they’re only available to customers with FTTP or HFC connections.
Image: Warner Bros.