How to choose the right speed NBN plan for your home – 7NEWS.com.au

Choosing your NBN speed is one of the most important factors to your internet connection, and also one of the few that you have control over. The speeds your internet can achieve will dictate how many people can comfortably use your connection at the same time.

The speed required for your household is determined by the activities you do online, how many people are in the house, and your connections typical evening speed.

Your internet speed is a shared resource meaning that every online activity on the network will diminish the remaining speed available. Three simultaneous video streams will use around 15Mbps of speed, so an NBN 25 connection will only have around 10Mbps left for any other online frivolities.

Some activities like streaming video or gaming occupy more speed than others, such as browsing social media. Yet on average, Aussies use the internet primarily to stream video, music and browse social media, which combined uses approx 6.5Mbps per person.

For simplicitys sake, we are recommending NBN speed based on the aforementioned usage. If you work from home or tend to use your connection for more data-intensive pursuits such as video calling and gaming then you may need faster speeds to keep up.

If its just you at home then you can probably get away with an NBN 12 plan, but wed still recommend an NBN 25. Typical evening speeds for NBN 12 plans sit between 7Mbps and 10Mbps, which is cutting it very fine for the 6.5Mbps per person range.

For around the same price you can get an NBN 25 plan with typical evening speeds of around 20Mbps, giving you a comfortable speed buffer for any online activities.

Tangerines Standard Speed UNLIMITED plan is a stand out NBN 25 deal, offering unlimited data at typical evening speeds of 21Mbps for just $49.90 per month. This promotional pricing expires after six months at which time the plan goes back to $59.90, but Tangerines plans are contract-free so you can always leave once the discount runs out.

Theres plenty of other NBN 25 deals out there for around the same price, tap or click on any of the buttons below to find out more.

Dual person households would need an absolute minimum speed of 13Mbps to browse comfortably alongside one another. For many households an NBN 25 plan will suffice but if youd rather have a bit more room to breathe then an NBN 50 plan is the way to go.

NBN 50 plans will cost around $10 extra per month than an NBN 25 option. This extra charge gets you an average of 40Mbps typical evening speeds which is fast enough to handle eight Netflix streams simultaneously.

Belong is currently offering unlimited data on its NBN Starter plan for just $55 per month on a 12-month contract. Its the cheapest NBN 50 option on the market but your speeds are limited to 30Mbps. For around $5 more you can opt for Tangerine or Internode, both which are slinging a six-month promotional discount. Youll need to sign a six-month contract with Internode but Tangerine is once again contract-free.

Click or tap on any of the plans to learn more.

For any household with more than three people, we would suggest an NBN 100 plan. As with any other household, you could probably get away with a speed tier below but for peace of mind, its worth opting up.

Most NBN 100 plans are now 100 / 20 plans, meaning youll have maximum download speeds of 100Mbps and upload speeds of 20Mbps. 100 / 40 plans used to be more common but the change has made this speed option more affordable with only a marginal difference in overall performance for most users.

Only people who routinely send large files are likely to notice the change in upload speeds, but everyone notices the change the cost makes to your back pocket.

Typical evening speeds for NBN 100 plans sit at around 80Mbps with prices at around $90 per month. Plenty of providers are offering timed promotional discounts bringing the cost down to around $80 per month for the first six months. Tangerine, Vodafone and Southern Phone are all sitting in this category and represent great value.

If youd rather shy away from promotional pricing then Superloop has the fastest typical evening speeds at 90Mbps. For $89.95 per month on a no lock-in contract this is the quickest NBN 100 plan available right now.