Subj : NBN 500 plans are officially live and we still cant get over how To : All From : TechnologyDaily Date : Tue Sep 16 2025 01:45:08 NBN 500 plans are officially live and we still cant get over how affordable they are Date: Tue, 16 Sep 2025 00:38:08 +0000 Description: We always assumed NBN 500 plans would represent exceptional value, and now they're officially live, our assumptions have come true. FULL STORY ====================================================================== Its a huge week for Australias National Broadband Network, as the NBN speed upgrades that have been teased and talked about for the past 12 months are officially now live. As we expected, not every single retail service provider (RSP) has updated their websites just yet (and some have even said that while theyll be honouring NBN Cos upgrades, the changes wont be rolled out until October), but based on the providers who have pushed through the updates, we can already see a pretty clear picture of what the new NBN 500 plans , in particular, can offer Australians. One word: value. Big speed, low price When NBN Co first announced this months plan upgrades, it said they would arrive at no extra cost to RSPs. We of course hoped that meant customers wouldnt be asked to pay anything extra and, based on what weve seen so far for the new NBN 500 tier, thats largely been the case. The result is a set of NBN plans that now offer up to 500Mbps download speeds for prices that, just a couple of weeks ago, would only get you 100Mbps. Effectively, its a 5x increase for free. In the table below, we've cherry picked a handful of providers now offering NBN 500 plans, to give you a good indication as to the sort of price you can expect to pay. We've chosen cheap options such as Spintel and Kogan Internet, alongside more expensive alternatives from the likes of Origin Energy. Origin is currently the most expensive provider of those we monitor, but we imagine that will change once Telstra activates its upgrades. NBN 500 plans from notable providers Provider Introductory monthly cost Regular monthly cost First year cost Exetel N/A AU$80 AU$960 Spintel AU$64 AU$86.95 AU$905.70 Kogan Internet AU$66.90 AU$85.90 AU$916.80 Buddy Telco N/A AU$85 AU$1,020 Origin Energy N/A AU$107 AU$1,284 Over the past 18 months, wed already noticed that the best NBN 100 plans had begun to offer much greater value than their slower NBN 50 counterparts, with the average monthly cost of the faster option generally costing users less than AU$10 more each month. Now that 100Mbps plans have morphed into plans offering 5x the speed for the same price, 50Mbps plans look like even worse value. To paint a clearer picture, well use Spintel as an example. The telco still offers an NBN 100 plan (likely for customers on older NBN connection technologies who arent yet able to take advantage of the speed-boosted plans) alongside a new NBN 500 plan that has the lowest introductory cost of any provider right now at just AU$64p/m . Spintels slower, 100Mbps plan ? That starts at AU$68p/m before settling at the same ongoing rate as its new 500Mbps counterpart of AU$86.95p/m. Not only does this mean youll pay less in the first year on the faster plan, but ultimately, youd be paying the exact same amount each ongoing each year. What you need to upgrade Last week, we detailed everything you needed to get these brand new high-speed NBN plans . The main criteria is to have the right connection type. This is either fibre to the premises (FTTP) or hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC). If you do have either of these, you can sign up for a new NBN 500 plan right away. If you dont have either of these connections, then its quite likely youll be eligible for NBN Cos free fibre upgrade , which get the required equipment installed at your premises. If you are in an eligible area and want faster broadband, we really dont see any reason why you wouldnt take advantage. Not only will you be able to experience much faster and more reliable internet speeds at home, but youll also be ensuring your home is futureproofed. You can view our favourite NBN 500 plan options so far in our dedicated guide, or you can view a mixture of NBN 500 and NBN 100 plan pricing in the widget below. The price comparison widget perfectly visualises just how affordable some of the new plans are, compared to the slower options they replace. You might also like Learn more about the best NBN 750 plans Want to go faster still? Check out the best NBN 2000 plans Can't get 500Mbps internet? Check out the best NBN 100 plans instead ====================================================================== Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/wi-fi-broadband/nbn-500-plans-are-official ly-live-and-we-still-cant-get-over-how-affordable-they-are --- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 (Linux/64) * Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100) .