What’s the best internet for working from home?

In these unprecedented times, many workplaces and jobs have moved from the office into the home. There’s a lot to consider when starting to work from home: what can I use as a home office? Do I have a comfortable chair? Do I have all the cables and technology I need? And, of course, is my internet connection good enough for working from home?

There are a lot of options available for home internet when it comes to both the actual technology as well as the provider. If you’re looking at picking up home internet with Optus, there are a few choices you have available to you. Depending on your situation and job, one may be a better fit for you than another.

nbn®

The nbn is what many would consider the standard choice for a home internet connection, whether that’s for leisure or for working from home. A significant percentage of Australia now has access to the nbn, so if you haven’t jumped on board yet then now might be the perfect time.

There are numerous advantages to choosing Optus nbn as your working from home internet connection: it has high maximum speeds and unlimited data, you can choose to add a higher speed pack (if your nbn connection has the line speed capacity) or include a phone line, plus much more. Optus plans also include a modem that gets you connected to the internet straight away, even before the technician comes out. In the past, a disadvantage of the nbn was the wait time in getting it setup, but this is no longer an issue thanks to the Optus Ultra WiFi modem.

If the nbn is available to you, there’s no doubt it’s a solid choice for working from home. View Optus nbn plans

4G Home Internet

As an alternative to traditional broadband, you might consider a 4G Home Internet connection, if you’re in an Optus 4G coverage area. 4G Home Internet delivers internet to your home in the same way you can get connected on your mobile phone. While the maximum theoretical speeds are not as high as nbn, 4G is super easy to setup. Once you receive the modem all you have to do is plug it in, connect your devices on the WiFi network and you’re good to go.

While unlimited data is not currently an option with our 4G Home Internet plans, you can pick up 500GB of data per month, which should be plenty for most jobs, even working from home. View Optus 4G Home Internet plans

5G Home Internet

While it is rolling out in selected areas, 5G is not yet as widely available as the nbn or 4G Wireless Broadband, but if it is in your area then it’s absolutely an option worth considering. As the next generation of wireless internet, 5G offers all the simple setup advantages of 4G Wireless Broadband plus much higher maximum speeds. The 5G rollout is ongoing, and more addresses will eventually be able to get access. You can check if 5G is available at your address on our 5G plans page.

Mobile

Though perhaps not the first choice for a regular working from home internet connection, you could choose to setup a WiFi hotspot through your mobile phone or mobile broadband device. Whether or not this is a suitable option for you will depend on how much content you’re downloading, how much video you’re streaming for meetings as well as the amount of data included on your mobile plan and the coverage in your area. Mobile may not be the most obvious choice for home internet, though it might be a suitable option for some.

Shop nbn with Optus

Find out more about the nbn and how to get connected with Optus. We have an exciting range of great-value nbn plans with speed options and extras available.