Speed guide for Vodafone nbn™

This support article will explain the factors that affect the speed of your nbn™ service. To understand the speeds you can expect with Vodafone nbn™, we’ve likened it to the speeds you go while driving a car. Even if you have a sports car, how fast you drive will depend on factors such as traffic, speed limit and the type of road you’re driving on. It’s similar to how internet speeds work.

Factors that affect the speed of nbn™.

Speed tier of your plan.

The speed tier of your plan is like a speed limit. For example, if your plan uses nbn™ 25, your maximum download speed will be 25Mbps – even if your internet could potentially reach higher speeds. It’s important to note that various factors affect your internet speed. Because of this, you may not always receive the maximum speed available on your plan.

Your nbn™ connection.

There may be a maximum line speed for the nbn™ connection at your premises. This could be due to your nbn™ technology type or other factors, such as the condition of the wiring in your building.

For customers with FTTB/FTTN/FTTC technology, we’ll undertake a speed check after your service is activated. If your maximum line speed doesn’t support the speed tier of the plan you’ve chosen, we’ll let you know. We may change your plan to one that’s more suitable, so you’re not paying more for speeds you can’t achieve.

Typical Evening Speed.

This is the typical evening period download speed that the average consumer can expect to receive between 7pm and 11pm or 9am to 5pm for business customers. This is not a guaranteed minimum speed and you may experience lower speeds during this period due to the factors discussed on this page.

Content that you access.

Driving somewhere that’s far away takes longer compared to somewhere that’s close. Similarly, downloading content from overseas takes longer than downloading local content. Also, you may experience slower speeds if you’re trying to access content that’s affected by congestion. This typically happens when a lot of people are trying to access the same site.

Peak hours for internet usage.

We constantly monitor the speeds of Vodafone nbn™ to try and optimise the experience for our customers. However, when a lot of people are online at the same time, your internet speeds can be impacted. It’s similar to traffic during peak hour on a busy road, except that the peak time for internet use is usually between 7pm to 11pm.

Our network capacity.

Think of the nbn™ as a highway, with each provider having a certain number of lanes that customers can use. When you drive on a highway in peak hour, you’re less likely to be stuck in traffic if there are more lanes. Similarly, the more network capacity your provider buys from nbn co, the faster your internet speeds will be during peak hours. We’re constantly monitoring the speeds of Vodafone nbn™ to try and optimise the experience for our customers.

Number of devices connected.

If you use the internet on a single device, it can access all of your bandwidth. But when multiple devices use your internet at the same time, your bandwidth is shared between them. This may feel like you’re experiencing slower speeds, even though it’s really the effect of reduced bandwidth for each device.

Modem type.

The quality of your modem will impact your speeds, as not all modems are the same. You can select a plan that comes with the Vodafone Wi-Fi Hub™ 2.0 to maximise the performance of your nbn™ service.

Modems used on ADSL may not work with Vodafone nbn™, and modems made before 2013 may struggle to reach higher speeds. If you’re using the Vodafone Wi-Fi Hub 1.0 and change your plan to nbn™ Home Superfast or nbn™  Home Ultrafast you will need to connect via the device’s 5Ghz Wi-Fi connection. The Vodafone Wi-Fi Hub 1.0 only supports up to 100Mbps speeds via ethernet.

If you’re using your own modem, it may struggle to achieve the speeds available on the nbn™ Superfast, nbn™ Ultrafast, nbn™ Superfast BYO and nbn™ Ultrafast BYO plans. You should check with your device manufacturer or check the device specifications on your Approved Device or Compatible Modem (as applicable) to identify the speed capabilities and limitations of the device, including any device you use when connecting to the NBN Service.

To learn more, go to our Compatible Modem support page.

Device Type.

Your device, such as your laptop or tablet, can also impact your speeds. Some devices may be capable of accessing the maximum speed available on your plan, while other devices may not. Devices made before 2013 may struggle to reach higher speeds. You may need to check with your device manufacturer or specifications to identify the speed capabilities of your device.

Wi-Fi performance.

Wi-Fi performance can be impacted by multiple people using the same Wi-Fi network, physical obstacles or interference from surrounding devices.

The Vodafone Wi-Fi Hub™ comes with a 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi frequency. Generally, the 5Ghz frequency can give you faster speeds at a shorter distance, while 2.4GHz offers more range but may have slower speeds.

Additional information