Boost Your nbn® Speed: Upgrades, Tips & Performance Insights
Contents
- Why is speed important?
- How can I improve my nbn speed?
- What are the common factors that affect nbn speed?
- What is the nbn speed upgrade?
1. Why is internet speed important?
Your home internet plan speed is one of the factors that directly affects the performance of your connection and the devices attached to it. The faster the speed, the better your internet set-up should work. So, if you work from home, binge-watch streaming services or seriously love gaming, choose a high-speed nbn plan.
2. How can I improve my nbn® speed?
To improve your nbn® speed, start by running a speed test and restarting your device. Make sure you have the right speed pack for your needs, optimise your WiFi connection, or consider upgrading your hardware if necessary. Also, check for viruses or malware that could be affecting your connection.
Due to a wide variety of factors, sometimes your nbn speed might not be as fast as you were expecting. The nbn relies on cutting-edge fibre technology and there are a number of ways you can make sure you’re getting the most out of the nbn connection you have at your home or business.
Sometimes factors that are temporarily reducing your speed might be out of your control, such as internet congestion during peak times or the number of people currently accessing that same site or online service. If internet speed is a concern for you, below are a few actions you can take that might improve your current speed.
Before you start
Before you test your options, you should check how fast your internet speed actually is. It might be wise to run a speed test a few times on your device and note down the average upload and download speeds you’re getting. If you’re using a laptop or desktop computer on a WiFi network, plug your computer directly into your router or modem instead and then try the speed test again to see if you get a similar or different result.
Turn it off, then on again
Sometimes even the worst computer problems have an easy solution. Try restarting your device and turning it on again to see if there’s any improvement. Occasionally this can be the cause of slow internet and other problems with a device, especially if the problem is out of the ordinary.
Ensure you have the right speed pack
If you ran a speed test, have compared it with the maximum speeds of your plan and found it’s reasonably close, then you actually might need a faster plan than you currently have. There are a number of speed packs available on nbn plans and it’s important you have one that will best suit your needs. If you love binge-streaming Netflix or are a serious online gamer, then you’ll probably benefit from a faster speed pack than someone who just shops online.
Optimise your WiFi connection
Creating the perfect WiFi network at home can be a surprisingly difficult task. There are many factors that influence the quality of your WiFi connection and any interruption in the signal can slow down your nbn speed.
If you ran a speed test both on a WiFi network and plugged in via an ethernet cable and found different results, that’s normal. If your ethernet speed test is very slow, however, there might be an underlying problem.
Positioning your router or modem close to your devices is important: the less distance it has to travel and the fewer walls it needs to go through may result in a stronger signal. It’s also likely your WiFi network isn’t the only one around, especially if you live in an apartment block. WiFi networks can interfere with each other and reduce each other’s quality, though there are a couple of things you can try to improve the situation. Depending on your modem, you may be able to choose whether it operates on 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz, or a different wireless channel.
Upgrade your hardware
In some cases, particularly if you're experiencing WiFi connectivity issues in certain areas of your home, you might need to consider upgrading your network setup to get the most out of your nbn speed. One solution worth exploring is the Optus Ultra WiFi Booster, which can extend your WiFi coverage to areas that may otherwise be out of range.
The number of Boosters you might need depends on factors such as your home's size, layout, and construction materials. For instance, a 1-2 bedroom single-storey home with wood or gyprock internal walls may only require the Optus modem, while a 3-4 bedroom double-storey home with brick or masonry internal walls might benefit from an Optus modem plus two Optus Ultra WiFi Boosters.
For those looking to upgrade their primary modem, the Optus Ultra WiFi Gen 2 Modem offers significant improvements. This WiFi 6 modem delivers speeds up to 150% faster than the previous model, providing stronger and more reliable coverage throughout your home. It can support up to 128 connected devices simultaneously, making it ideal for households with multiple smart devices, Ultra HD TVs, and gaming consoles. The modem also features Optus 4G backup, ensuring you stay connected even if your nbn connection experiences issues. Additionally, this modem is built with sustainability in mind, using 95% recycled plastics and 100% recycled cardboard packaging.
Check for viruses & malware
In rare cases, harmful software or files on your computer can slow down your internet speed, often because they’re using it in the background. Make sure that your operating system and virus protection software are all up to date and run a full scan with them to make sure nothing sinister is going on.
3. What are the common factors that affect nbn speed?
nbn speeds are affected by factors such as network congestion, the speed tier of your plan, the quality of your equipment, WiFi interference, and the type of nbn connection technology in use at your address.
Even with the nbn’s cutting-edge technology and capability, there can be factors at your premises that might affect the download and uploading speeds you’re getting. If you're concerned about your internet speed, take a look at these five common factors that could be impacting it – You may be able to improve your nbn speed yourself!
WiFi connection
WiFi is the wireless network you probably have setup in your home to connect all your devices to the internet. Your WiFi router should be connected either to a separate modem, or straight into the nbn unit if you have a single modem router. WiFi is an amazing technology that gives you the freedom and flexibility to enjoy internet on any compatible mobile device anywhere within range.
However, WiFi can easily slow down for many different reasons, which leads to the appearance of a slower nbn connection. The position of your WiFi router plays an important role: the more walls or objects the signal must go through, the more likely it will affect your internet speed. Make sure the router placed in an elevated, central location in relation to where you commonly use your devices.
WiFi speeds can also be affected by how many devices are connected to your network. Different WiFi routers can handle varying numbers of devices, so make sure you’ve got one that suits your needs.
Internet congestion
The internet is a busy place: millions of Australians are using it at any one time, which can affect the speed you receive. Congestion typically occurs during the peak periods of internet use - for example, between 7pm and 11pm. One way to optimise your internet usage is to save your heavy uploading or downloading for other times of the day when possible.
Fortunately, the nbn is built to be high capacity, which means more space in the network cables with the aim to reduce internet congestion as much as possible.
Hardware & software
Technology changes at a rapid pace, and sometimes older hardware or software isn’t optimised to take advantage of better internet speed. If you rely on an old laptop, desktop or mobile device, it’s possible its hardware is simply unable to take advantage of the speeds offered by the nbn. Upgrading to a newer mobile device, or upgrading components on your laptop or desktop, could provide significant improvements to your internet speed.
Older software or internet browsers could also play a part in slow speeds, so make sure you keep them updated to the latest versions. There’s also a chance malicious virus or malware might impact your connection, so you may want to run a scan with your preferred security software.
Website capability
Sometimes the problem isn’t at your premises or anything to do with infrastructure or equipment at your premises. It’s possible that your internet speed can appear slow because the website you’re visiting has limited technical capabilities. Depending on where and how a website is hosted it may have limited bandwidth, meaning it can only support smaller numbers of people visiting it at once. If the website’s code or images aren’t optimised, this can also affect how quickly it loads.
You can easily test whether website capability is the cause of your slow speed by checking if other websites load quickly.
Overseas content
Ever wonder how we in Australia actually connect to websites that are hosted overseas? Believe it or not, there are cables lying on the ocean floor for just that purpose. Like internet congestion at home, when these cables are busy it can affect the speed of websites and your internet connection. Often this is a simple patience game and you might need to try the website again later.
If you’re not sure whether the slower speed is your connection or a foreign website you can always try a speed test.
4. What is the nbn® speed upgrade?
Australia’s nbn® broadband network is getting an exciting speed upgrade beginning from September 2025 that will enhance how many of us are able to connect, work and play online, with faster connections prepared for the future.
The nbn speed upgrade will apply across eligible Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) and Hybrid Fibre-Coaxial (HFC) connections on select plans, at no extra cost.
If you’re connected to the internet with one of our eligible Optus nbn plans on HFC or FTTP, or you’re thinking of making the switch, take a few minutes to read more about the new nbn speed tiers, what’s changing, and how the nbn speed upgrade will improve the connectivity you’re able to enjoy.
