Congestion-free NBN plans are now the norm, latest ACCC report confirms

Australian broadband services are continuously improving and getting faster, but now, there's a possibility that consumers could be getting even more speed than they bargained for, according to the latest Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) report.

The quarterly Measuring Broadband Australia report released today has revealed that in May 2024, the average download for NBN fixed-line connections during the typical evening hours was 100.4% of plan speed — which is mindboggling. This is the first time that the report has had an average result exceeding 100% of providers’ claimed plan speeds. Off the back of these stellar speed claims, the ACCC suggests that it is now "possible for consumers to receive speeds above their plan’s maximum download speed".

"Download speed performance has never been higher on NBN’s fixed-line and fixed wireless networks," says ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey. "This improved performance is encouraging to see following NBN Co’s investments in its network and its recently simplified wholesale pricing."

While pricing may be the only major differentiator between providers now, these results guarantee that NBN providers monitored in the report typically exceed their advertised speeds, and congestion-free plans are becoming increasingly normal across ISPs.

Optus leads the pack in over-delivering speeds across busy hours, achieving up to 104.7% of its claimed speeds on average. In close second was Superloop , which exceeded speeds by 103.8% during busy hours, followed by Telstra at 103.6%. That said, all providers monitored achieved at least 101% of speeds during the busy hours, which is no mean feat.

What's more, the report shows that NBN 1000 plans are finally living up to their gigabit claims, as 68.8% of tests across 288 white boxes achieved download speeds of at least 900Mbps. Meanwhile, hourly average download speeds ranged between 837-859Mbps, in line with results from previous reports.

Presently, no NBN providers claim to reach the theoretical maximum speed of 1,000Mbps. Most providers promise to deliver speeds between 350Mbps-700Mbps, which are still classified as 'ultrafast'. Only a few providers advertise speeds above 600Mbps — including Optus, Superloop and Telstra — and only one provider, Swoop , is close to the magic number, claiming to hit 969Mbps during busy hours.

Alongside these impressive speed claims, underperforming services also dipped, only making up 4% of NBN fixed-line services. This is marginally lower than the last report, the ACCC notes, making it the lowest figure in the program's history. A large proportion of these underperforming services are from FTTN connections, compared to other connection types.

In this case, it's safe to say that if you have an FTTN connection, taking up NBN's free fibre upgrade is well overdue. Several ISPs now offer AU$0 fibre upgrades if you switch or sign up for a higher tier, including SpinTel and TPG .

On the other hand, as NBN services improve and achieving faster speeds becomes the norm for most households, if you have yet to take full advantage of your NBN connection type and you can upgrade to a superfast or ultrafast plan, here are some providers we recommend:

Lucy Scotting is a digital content writer for Tom’s Guide in Australia, primarily covering NBN and internet-related news. Lucy started her career writing for HR and staffing industry publications, with articles covering emerging tech, business and finance. In her spare time, Lucy can be found watching sci-fi movies, working on her dystopian fiction novel or hanging out with her dog, Fletcher.