The NBN is gradually spreading around the country, even if it’s not happening as quickly as we’d like. Here’s our latest guide to what small businesses can expect to pay.
How much should your business pay for a low-end NBN fibre plan? The NBN is gradually spreading around the country, even if it’s not happening as quickly as we’d like. Here’s our latest guide to what small businesses can expect to pay.
(If you're more in the market for bigger service with fatter pipes, check out the second half of our list here.)
Rather more than two years ago, we surveyed NBN plans available for home and small business use. We’ve revisited the topic, but with some changes:
ISPs that say explicitly or implicitly state that business use is disallowed were ignored. So some well-known names are missing from our table. And we certainly make no claim that it is 100 percent comprehensive.
We’ve researched more than three dozen ISPs, though some are clearly reselling the same service.
Only fibre plans were considered, although we note that NBN wholesale pricing is the same regardless of technology.
As far as possible, we’ve listed unbundled plans. But Optus currently charges less for a bundle that includes phone calls than it does for the equivalent unbundled NBN plan. It’s also possible that a bundled plan would make more financial sense for your business.
The following table presents the low-end business-friendly plan advertised by each ISP on its web site. That usually means a 12/1Mbps connection and a fairly small amount of data. Why did we start so low? The NBN rollout is past the stage where it is a fast alternative to traditional broadband - in a growing number of areas it is the fixed-line network. Part Two looks at the high-end plans from the same ISPs - but please note that there are often many intermediate combinations of speed and download allowance.
Remember that this is just a general guide. We have not tested the services, and it is important to realise that the performance you’ll get over an NBN connection can vary with different ISPs. Also, there are too many fine details to allow us to draw any real conclusions. Do particular inclusions provide you with real value? Can you put up with slow speeds if your traffic is shaped (throttled) after exceeding your quota for the month? If not, are you prepared to pay more each month for a bigger quota just in case you have a busy month, or are you better off with the option of paying for a top-up every now and then?
Various sites purport to provide comparisons between NBN ISPs, but take care: the information they provide may not be up to date (for the record, our table was compiled in mid July 2015), and as with comparison sites in general, they may exclude ISPs that don’t pay one way or another to be listed, and the order may reflect the site operator’s interests rather than yours.
|
ISP |
URL |
Limit |
Price |
Setup fee |
Excess data |
Inclusions/Notes |
|
ACN Pacific |
50GB |
$59.00 |
$49 |
Shaped |
||
|
Alpha Talk |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
Astron |
Unlimited |
$59.95 |
$25 |
N/A |
||
|
Aussie Broadband |
5GB |
$30.00 |
$0 |
Shaped |
5 mailboxes |
|
|
Australia On Line |
20GB (5GB peak, 15GB off-peak) |
$29.95 |
$169 (tapers to $0 on contract) |
Shaped |
||
|
Australia Telcom |
30GB |
$55.90 |
$99 |
Shaped |
||
|
Blaze Telecom |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149.00 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
Boom Broadband |
50GB |
$40.00 |
$100 (tapers to $0 on contract) |
Shaped |
||
|
Commander |
50GB |
$59.95 |
$119 |
Shaped |
Minimum 25/5Mbps. 24 month contract |
|
|
DeVoteD NBN |
25GB |
$39.95 |
$100 (tapers to $0 on contract) |
Shaped |
||
|
engin |
50GB |
$49.95 |
$0 |
Shaped |
||
|
Figo Telecom |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
Go Fone |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
Harbour ISP |
15GB (5GB+10GB off peak) |
$29.95 |
$0 |
0.8c/MB |
If you opt to pay for more than the minimum data allowance (eg, $4.95 a month extra for 10GB+10GB), any excess is shaped rather than charged |
|
|
IIG |
15GB |
$53.00 |
$0 |
$0.533/GB |
Unmetered between 7pm and 7am. Can consolidate data allowances of multiple sites |
|
|
iiNet |
50GB |
$69.95 |
$79.95 |
Shaped |
25/10Mbps |
|
|
Infinity Broadband |
30GB |
$44.95 |
$50 ($0 on 24-month contract |
Shaped |
||
|
Internode |
30GB |
$79.95 |
$99 ($0 on 24 month contract) |
Shaped |
5 mailboxes, static IP address and IPv6 prefix on request. Written SLA with credit if not met (conditions apply) |
|
|
Loadednet |
50GB (25GB+25GB) |
$45.00 |
$0 |
Shaped |
1 mailbox |
|
|
Montimedia |
50GB |
$69.95 |
$0 |
Shaped |
Router, 5 mailboxes. Web space offered to residential customers cannot be used for commercial purposes |
|
|
MyNetFone |
50GB |
$49.95 |
$199 ($0 on contract) |
Shaped |
Includes "basic voice" service - up to 2 concurrent calls, on DID number, all calls are extra, appropriate hardware required |
|
|
nbnSP |
1000GB |
$125.00 |
150 |
$0.0142/MB |
12 month contract. Free website |
|
|
One Dial |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
OntheNet |
60GB |
$49.95 |
$0 |
$5/GB |
||
|
Optus |
200GB |
$70.00 |
$125 |
Shaped |
Unlimited standard local and national calls |
|
|
Prism Telecom |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
SkyMesh |
6GB |
$29.95 |
$0 |
From $2/2GB |
10 mailboxes. Web space offered to residential customers cannot be used for commercial purposes |
|
|
Sleektel |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
SoleNet |
50GB |
$64.00 |
$0 |
Shaped |
24 month contract, must be bundled with phone service |
|
|
Speed Telecom |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
||
|
Telcoshare |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
||
|
Telstra |
25GB |
$60.00 |
$251 |
$0.001/MB |
NB Telstra only quotes prices for 25/5Mbps. 24 month contract. Includes modem, installation, IPv6/56 static IP address range, IPv4 static IP address, domain name and DNS hosting. |
|
|
TGEN |
50GB |
$74.00 |
$0 |
Shaped |
||
|
Trinity Telecom |
30GB |
$50.00 |
$149 |
Shaped |
24 month contract |
|
|
URL Networks |
10GB |
$50.00 |
$160 (tapers to 0 on 24 month contract) |
Shaped |
||
|
Vaya |
Unlimited |
$59.00 |
$0 |
N/A |
24 month contract. Subject to "reasonable use" which is not defined for NBN customers |
|
|
Westnet |
50GB |
$69.95 |
$79.95 |
Shaped |
Minimum 25/10Mbps |
|
Plans shown are for fibre (but since NBN Co's wholesale pricing is technology-independent, we're not sure why retail prices would vary) |
|
Setup fee includes any startup costs shown on the ISP's web site, including establishment fees, installation fees, and any mandatory hardware and delivery charges |
|
‘Off peak' times vary significantly. Not all ISPs consider normal business hours to in the peak period, so take this into consideration. |
|
Many ISPs offer add-on phone services. While you don't have to take internet and phone service from the same provider, such bundles may provide better value |
