2025 was an exciting year for NBN Co – well, as exciting as it gets for our government-run broadband provider – as it brought a series of NBN speed upgrades that now allow millions of Australians to achieve home internet download speeds that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.
And it seems Australians are clearly seeing the benefits of the faster plans as NBN Co has said, “Since launching on September 14 [2025]customers across Australia ordered higher speed plans at the fastest rate we’ve ever seen – more than 12,300 orders per week.”
Wait, what speed upgrades?
For the uninitiated, the speed upgrades arrived in mid-September, boosting NBN 100 plans to NBN 500 with 5x increased download speeds, NBN 250 to NBN 750 (a 3x speed increase) and a speed bump to existing NBN 1000 plans, giving them a guaranteed minimum speed of 750Mbps.
NBN Co also released a new NBN 2000 speed tier with theoretical maximum download speeds of 2Gbps, although so far only a handful of providers offer it. That said, the broadband wholesaler claims it has received 9,500 orders for an NBN 2000 plan since they went live.
Do the upgrades deliver on their promise?
Evidence suggests that yes, they do! I’ve previously reported on speed data recorded by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC), which found that customers on the best NBN 500 plans actually achieved even faster speeds – the average recorded speed was 503.9Mbps.
How can I get involved?
If you want faster internet at home, there are a few things you need to check first. The most important thing to be aware of is the specific type of connection you have in your area – you’ll need either fiber to the premises (FTTP) or hybrid fiber coax (HFC). If you don’t have either, then you can request a free fiber upgrade that will see a technician come to your home to install FTTP equipment. This upgrade is available for premises currently connected via FTTN or FTTC technology. If you are connecting via FTTB then unfortunately there is no upgrade path available to you.
NBN Co says 90% of the fixed network is now eligible to connect via full fibre, adding that it “expects to deliver upgrade paths to all remaining Fiber to the Node (FTTN) premises by the end of 2030”.
Which NBN plan should I get?
If you want to join the 12,300 Australians ordering a new high-speed NBN plan every week, the good news is you’ve got plenty of choice. I regularly check the prices of the best NBN plans and lately there is excellent value to be found.
I ultimately recommend the most affordable plans, or the ones with the best discounts or any extra perks thrown in. Internet service providers (ISPs) provide typical evening speed (TES) figures – the download speed you can realistically expect to achieve during the peak evening hours of 7pm to 11pm. All the ISPs I monitor quote the maximum 500Mbps for NBN 500 plans, while many quote close to the maximum on NBN 1000 plans.
For me, an NBN 500 plan is the best option for most people, and given that you need to achieve maximum speeds at all hours of the day, the most affordable plans are your best bet.
Here are my top 3 picks:
