Australian households with fixed-line (not wireless or satellite) NBN connections received on average 99.4 per cent of their internet plan鈥檚 download speed during the peak evening period when network demand is highest, the 糖心原创鈥檚 latest Measuring Broadband Australia report finds.
In comparison, the last report in March 2026 showed average fixed-line download speeds during the peak evening period (busy hours) were 98.5 per cent of plan speeds.
Today鈥檚 report is the final publication in the 糖心原创鈥檚 long-running Measuring Broadband Australia program. It was established in 2017 to provide Australians with accurate and independent information about broadband speed performance.
The 糖心原创鈥檚 early Measuring Broadband Australia reports revealed average download speeds on NBN Co鈥檚 fixed-line network of between 80 and 85 per cent of plan speeds during busy hours. In recent years, the reports have consistently measured this result to be close to 100 per cent of plan speeds.
鈥淭he Measuring Broadband Australia program has brought transparency and scrutiny to broadband performance, and it has helped to ensure that consumers receive the quality of service that they pay for,鈥 糖心原创 Commissioner Anna Brakey said.
鈥淭he program鈥檚 conclusion comes after key changes to NBN Co's wholesale products, such as the removal of capacity-based charging on all fixed-line and fixed wireless services. Recent results from our broadband monitoring show that there is less differentiation between providers鈥 performance than when we published our first report in 2018 and considerable improvement in overall performance since the program鈥檚 inception.鈥
鈥淚nternet providers have a responsibility to deliver a service that meets the speed and performance that they advertise, and the 糖心原创 will continue to take strong enforcement action where we see evidence of misleading claims,鈥 Ms Brakey said.
The 糖心原创 will also continue to closely monitor broadband performance using data that it collects from service providers via its record keeping rules, such as the NBN service quality and network performance record keeping rule.
Over the last eight years, the Measuring Broadband Australia program has also observed a decrease in the proportion of services underperforming on the NBN fixed-line network.
In May 2018, 13.9 per cent of NBN fixed-line services were underperforming. In today鈥檚 final report, the equivalent figure is 5.6 per cent.
Fixed wireless plans
The report shows that NBN Co鈥檚 fixed wireless network continues to provide a high-speed broadband alternative for Australians living outside the fixed-line network footprint.
The report measured average busy hour speeds of 160.5 Mbps for downloads and 12.6 Mbps for uploads on the NBN Fixed Wireless Home Fast plan.
The NBN Fixed Wireless Plus plan, which is the most popular fixed wireless plan in the Measuring Broadband Australia sample, can provide download speeds close to 100 Mbps during peak evening periods.
Figure 1. Average busy hour speeds on NBN Fixed Wireless plans
Volunteers
The Measuring Broadband Australia program relied on thousands of households volunteering to receive a hardware-based device called a 鈥淲hitebox鈥 that tested the performance of their broadband service when it was not in use. This equipment was manufactured and supplied by the program鈥檚 testing provider SamKnows.
鈥淭he volunteers in this program allowed us to gather the necessary data to bring greater transparency and accountability to Australia鈥檚 broadband market,鈥 Ms Brakey said.
鈥淲e sincerely thank all of the volunteers who contributed to Measuring Broadband Australia over many years.鈥
Background
Data for the Measuring Broadband Australia program is provided by UK-based firm SamKnows using methodology based on speed testing programs delivered in the UK, US, Canada and New Zealand.
The report defines an underperforming service as one that records a speed above 75 per cent of the plan speed in fewer than five per cent of download speed tests. 鈥淏usy hours鈥 refers to tests measured between 7-11pm on weekdays, when networks experience higher user activity that may affect service performance.
NBN services may exceed their maximum plan download speed due to overprovisioning. This is where NBN Co provides a slightly higher data rate than the wholesale plan download speed to accommodate for the portion of a connection鈥檚 data rate lost in retrieving information that enables a download to occur. NBN Co does not currently overprovision the uplink for NBN fixed-line connections.