Best internet plans for working from home

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With broadband speeds getting faster and connections more reliable, employers are offering flexible working arrangements to employees. Working from home — full time, part time, or every now and then — has become a convenient way to balance professional and personal obligations, providing a helpful alternative for parents, students, or anyone needing a break from the stress of commuting.

If you have flexible work or study conditions, you’ll most likely need a reliable and fast internet plan. In this guide, we’ll take a look at the best internet for working from home in Australia and how to find the best plan to suit your needs.

Which internet plan is best for work from home?

Choosing the best internet for working from home can be a confusing decision to make, with so many different internet connection types and speeds now available.

While most households will be connected to the NBN — whether that’s a fibre connection, fixed wireless or satellite — there are several other options also available. Home wireless broadband using the 4G or 5G network is a good alternative if you have strong network coverage, while Starlink’s satellite internet is also a popular option for households in regional and remote areas.

There are also other options such as alternative fibre networks such as Opticomm, but these are often not widely available. Mobile broadband using a 4G or 5G network is also a good option, but is mostly used as portable internet and may not meet your working from home needs.

Depending on which internet type you have, choosing which internet plan is best for work from home will come down to what is available to you and what your working from home needs are.

If you upload a lot of large files and join a lot of video calls, a plan with a fast upload speed will be essential for a smooth experience. In comparison, faster download speeds are useful for tasks such as downloading many documents or receiving emails and media. If your work requires you to do any of these high-intensity internet usage tasks, you’ll want to ensure your plan meets your needs.

NBN offers you might like

• NBN Sponsored Plans
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• NBN100 Plans

The following table shows a selection of sponsored unlimited data Standard Plus Evening Speed (NBN 50), and Premium Evening Speed (NBN 100) plans on Canstar Blue’s database with links to referral partners..

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View all nbn plans listed on Canstar Blue

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Unlimited Home Standard (NBN 50) Plans

The following table shows a selection of published unlimited NBN 50 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of standard monthly cost (excluding discounts), from the lowest to highest, and then by alphabetical order of provider. Use our comparison tool above to see plans from a range of other providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

Unlimited Home Fast (NBN 100) Plans

The table below shows a selection of published unlimited NBN 100 plans on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of monthly cost, from the lowest to highest, and then by alphabetical order of provider. Use our comparison tool to see plans from a range of other providers. This is a selection of products with links to referral partners.

Best NBN plans for working from home

NBN offers a wide range of speed tiers designed for different household usage needs. There are slower speed tiers which offer cheaper plan prices, but are suited to smaller households and lighter usage needs. However, the faster speed tiers may offer a faster performance for working from home, despite being more expensive.

The slower NBN speed tiers — Home Basic I (NBN 12) and Home Basic II (NBN 25) — can be a good option if your work requires more basic speeds in smaller households. However, you may find the upload speeds a bit slow.

For many of us that need the internet for work, Home Standard (NBN 50) speed tiers or faster will offer a smoother performance for a range of tasks, such as video calls. These plans will also download files much faster than the slower speed tiers.

The fastest speed tiers — Home Fast (NBN 100), Home Superfast (NBN 250) and Home Ultrafast (NBN 1000) — will of course offer the smoothest performance and fastest speeds if you upload and download a lot of files. These plans will also be more reliable if you have multiple people working from home at the same time, especially for activities like video calls. However, these plans can be rather expensive, so you may need to compromise on a slower speed tier if you have a tighter budget. High-speed plans also aren’t available on all NBN connection types.

If you want a clearer idea of the differences between the speed tiers, NBN Co lists the expected time it will take on different speed tiers to upload and download files.

Compare NBN plans

Once you know which NBN speed tier will best suit your work from home needs, you’ll want to compare a range of NBN plans from different providers to find the best plan for your needs. You can switch between the tabs below to compare plans on the different speed tiers.

Best home wireless plans for working from home

If you’re looking for an internet type that isn’t the NBN, home wireless broadband is a popular alternative to a fixed-line connection — provided you’re in an area with good mobile network coverage. Home wireless broadband uses either a 4G or 5G mobile network to deliver internet services to your household modem.

Home wireless broadband will typically include larger data allowances or unlimited data, and these plans are designed to be used in a fixed location, rather than on-the-go — unlike mobile broadband. However, some home wireless broadband plans include speed caps, so you may find the typical speeds available are similar to some of the NBN speed tiers.

Essentially, home wireless broadband serves as your primary home internet, rather than as a complement to your existing broadband service. Most home wireless plans include a modem or hub, rather than the SIM card or dongle you’ll usually get with mobile broadband. However, this can vary between telcos — your service provider will let you know how you’ll connect at sign-up.

If home wireless sounds like the best internet for working from home for your needs, you’ll want to consider whether a 4G or 5G plan is best for you. Here are the key differences between both:

Finding the best home wireless broadband plan for working from home will depend on what your usage needs are. While 5G might offer the best performance for a wider range of work from home activities, coverage isn’t as widespread as 4G, so you’ll need to compare the network coverage maps. You’ll also want to consider if a speed-capped plan is fast enough or if you’re better off with uncapped 5G speeds.

Is mobile broadband a good option for working from home?

While mobile broadband uses the same 4G and 5G mobile networks as home wireless plans — and your smartphone — these plans are usually designed for portability. Some providers might offer these plans as a data-only SIM card, which you can use in your tablet or other device, while some providers will offer modems to bundle with your plan.

As these plans are designed for on-the-go usage, they usually aren’t the best internet type for working from home. Mobile broadband plans often have smaller data inclusions — while home wireless is often unlimited data — and may also have speed caps. However, a mobile broadband plan could be a good back-up option if your home internet isn’t meeting your work from home needs, or you need to work away from home or the office.

What to look for when choosing a work from home internet plan

Connection type and coverage

While most households are connected to the NBN, not all NBN connection types are created equal. Some speed tiers are only available on FTTP and some HFC connections, so you may have a more limited choice of speed tiers.

If you’d prefer a home wireless internet plan — or mobile broadband — it’s a choice between 4G or 5G coverage. Either way, you’ll need to make sure that your home has mobile network coverage.

Data allowance

Video calls and constant email checking can quickly chew through your data. If you’re working from home it may be best to opt for an unlimited data plan. The good news is that most NBN and home wireless plans plans include unlimited data by default.

Max speeds

Slow internet speeds are frustrating at the best of times, but you definitely don’t want to be glitching mid video-conference. Ensuring that your internet speed is fast enough to meet your work needs is essential. Keep in mind that some home wireless and mobile broadband plans can have speed caps, so you might not be getting the super-fast speeds that 5G is capable if you have a speed-capped plan.

Price

While having the fastest unlimited internet plan is great in theory, it isn’t always possible if you have a tight budget as the fastest plans are typically the most expensive. Make sure to balance your internet needs with your budget.

Best internet provider for working from home

When you have an idea of what type of internet you want, you’ll need to compare a range of internet plans from different providers. Comparing plans from different providers helps you to find a plan that will best suit your needs and budget. If you’re looking at home wireless plans, you’ll also need to compare the network coverage at your home.

There isn’t one single ‘best’ internet provider. But if you want to know what other Aussies think about their home internet, Canstar Blue’s Most Satisfied Customer awards offer insight into how customers rate their current provider across a range of categories, including overall satisfaction.

Our NBN provider award for Most Satisfied Customers in 2024 went to Aussie Broadband, which scored five stars across most categories including overall satisfaction, speed and reliability, and customer service.

For home wireless broadband providers, iiNet was the award-winner in 2024, scoring five stars in all categories including overall satisfaction, value for money and speed and coverage. Our 2024 mobile broadband award was won by Amaysim, which scored five stars in all categories including overall satisfaction and speed and coverage.

While everyone’s experience with their internet service and provider will be different, these ratings can give you a general idea of how customers rate their provider on a range of important factors. However, deciding which internet plan is best for work from home will ultimately come down to a plan that meets your needs and budget.

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