What Internet Speed Do I Need? A Simple Method (2026)
Most households need less speed than they are sold, and some need more upload than they have. Add up what runs at your busiest hour, using the figures the services themselves publish, then allow some headroom. Here is how, with worked examples and the current nbn tiers.
The internet speed you need is the total of everything your household does online at the same time, at its busiest hour, plus some headroom. For most one to three person homes that comes to well under 50 Mbps, which is why nbn’s Home Standard tier (sold as nbn 50) suits so many people. Big households that stream in 4K, game and work from home in the evening can justify Home Fast or faster, if their connection can take it.
The trick is to use real numbers rather than guesses. Streaming and video-call services publish the speed they need, and nbn describes what each of its tiers is designed to support. This guide puts those figures in one place and walks through the method.
Step 1: list what happens at your busiest hour
Speed matters most when several people are online at once, which for most homes is between 7pm and 11pm. That is also the period the ACCC asks providers to report their typical speeds for. Write down what typically runs at the same time in that window:
- TV and tablet streams, and at what quality (HD or 4K)
- video calls
- online games (being played, or being downloaded)
- large downloads and uploads: software updates, cloud photo backups, work files
- everything else: phones scrolling, smart speakers, security cameras
Step 2: add up the speeds each activity needs
These are the services’ own published recommendations, as at September 2026. They are download speeds unless marked.
| Activity | Recommended speed | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Netflix, HD (720p) | 3 Mbps or more | Netflix |
| Netflix, Full HD (1080p) | 5 Mbps | Netflix |
| Netflix, 4K Ultra HD | 15 Mbps | Netflix |
| YouTube, 720p | 2.5 Mbps | YouTube |
| YouTube, 1080p | 5 Mbps | YouTube |
| YouTube, 4K | 20 Mbps | YouTube |
| Zoom video call, one-on-one, 720p | 1.2 Mbps up and down | Zoom |
| Zoom video call, 1080p | 3.8 Mbps up, 3.0 Mbps down | Zoom |
| Zoom audio only | 60–80 kbps | Zoom |
| Microsoft Teams HD video | Under 1.5 Mbps | Microsoft |
Add the figures for everything on your busiest-hour list. Then add headroom of around a third for the things that are hard to count, such as phones, background updates and smart devices, and so there is spare capacity when someone starts a download.
Step 3: match the total to an nbn tier
nbn describes each fixed-line tier by what it is designed to support. Pick the lowest tier that covers your total with the headroom included.
| nbn tier | Speed (download/upload) | What nbn says it is designed to support |
|---|---|---|
| Home Basic I (nbn 12) | 12/1 Mbps | Standard or high definition streaming |
| Home Basic II (nbn 25) | 25/10 Mbps | 4K streaming on one device, or HD streaming |
| Home Standard (nbn 50) | 50/20 Mbps | 4K streaming on 1–2 devices at the same time |
| Home Fast I (nbn 100, FTTN/FTTC/FTTB only) | up to 100/20 Mbps | 4K streaming on 1–4 devices |
| Home Fast II (nbn 500, FTTP/HFC) | 500/50 Mbps | 4K streaming on 10 or more devices |
| Home Superfast, Ultrafast, Hyperfast (FTTP/HFC) | 750/50 to 2,000/200 Mbps | 4K streaming on 10 or more devices, plus very large downloads |
nbn’s own caveat is worth repeating: performance can drop depending on how many people are online at the same time. The tier is a ceiling, not a guarantee.
Worked examples
A couple. One 4K Netflix stream (15 Mbps), one person on a 1080p Zoom call (3 Mbps down, 3.8 up), phones and browsing (say 5 Mbps). Total about 23 Mbps down; with headroom, about 30. Home Standard (nbn 50) covers it comfortably, and Home Basic II would cope most nights.
A family of four. Two 4K streams (30 Mbps), a teenager gaming online while a game update downloads (the download will take whatever is spare), a video call (3 Mbps), phones (5 Mbps). Total about 38 Mbps before the download; with headroom, about 50. Home Standard is the minimum, and Home Fast (nbn 100 on FTTN/FTTC, nbn 500 on FTTP/HFC) will make downloads and busy nights noticeably smoother.
A share house or large family. Four or five people streaming, gaming and working at once, with regular large downloads. Home Fast II (nbn 500) or faster on FTTP or HFC. On FTTN, the top tier is Home Fast I, and the copper line may cap it; a fibre upgrade may be the real fix.
A single person or light user. Browsing, email, one HD stream, the odd video call with family. Home Basic II (nbn 25) is usually enough, and it is often among the cheapest plans. See our page on NBN plans for seniors for ways to cut costs further.
Don’t forget upload speed
Upload speed is what you send: your side of a video call, photo backups, files sent for work, live streams. It is easy to overlook because most activities download far more than they upload. Zoom’s 1080p calls need 3.8 Mbps up, so two people on HD calls at once need more than the 1 Mbps upload of Home Basic I and comfortably fit the 20 Mbps of Home Standard. If you work from home and send large files, look at the upload speed of the tier as well as the download.
Gaming: speed versus latency
Once a game is running, latency usually matters more than raw download speed. Latency is the delay between your action and the server’s response. Fixed-line connections, especially FTTP and HFC, have the lowest latency. Geostationary satellite (Sky Muster) has much higher latency because of the distance involved, while Starlink states 25 to 60 milliseconds. Where speed does matter for gamers is downloading games and updates, which can be very large; a faster tier shortens that wait.
Why you might not get the speed you pay for
If your household total fits your tier but things still feel slow, the bottleneck is often somewhere else:
- Wi-Fi. Distance, walls and interference cut speeds, and older routers may not keep up with fast plans. Test with a device plugged into the modem by cable to separate a Wi-Fi problem from a connection problem.
- Your line. On FTTN and FTTB, nbn quotes a range (such as 25–100 Mbps on Home Fast I) because the copper line can cap speeds. Ask your provider what your line can reach.
- Evening congestion. Compare providers’ typical evening speeds. The ACCC’s final Measuring Broadband Australia report, in June 2026, found fixed-line NBN customers received on average 99.4% of their plan’s download speed in the evening peak, so congestion is less common than it was, but it varies by provider.
- The device. Older laptops, phones and smart TVs can’t use the full speed of the faster tiers.
Choosing a plan
Once you know the tier you need, compare plans on that tier by typical evening speed, ongoing price and modem terms. Our NBN speed tiers guide explains each tier and which connection types can get them, and the internet hub walks through comparing plans. If a fixed line is slow at your address, 5G home internet may be worth testing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good internet speed in Australia?
For most small households, 50 Mbps download (nbn Home Standard) is a good speed: it covers a couple of 4K or HD streams, video calls and browsing at the same time. Larger households that stream, game and work from home in the evening are better suited to a Home Fast tier or faster, where their connection allows it.
Is 50 Mbps a good speed?
Yes, for most one to three person households. Netflix recommends 15 Mbps for a 4K stream and 5 Mbps for full HD, and a 1080p Zoom call needs about 3 Mbps down and 3.8 Mbps up, so 50/20 Mbps leaves room for several of those at once.
Is 300 Mbps fast enough for Netflix?
Far more than enough. Netflix recommends 15 Mbps for 4K Ultra HD, so 300 Mbps could in principle carry many 4K streams at once. Speed that high matters for large downloads and big households, not for streaming.
Do I need 500 Mbps internet?
Most households don't need it for streaming or calls. It is worth it if you regularly download large files or games and want them done in minutes, if many people are online at once, or if the faster tier costs little more than the slower one. It is only available on FTTP and HFC.
Is 20 Mbps fast?
20 Mbps download is enough for one 4K stream or a few HD streams, but not much more at the same time. As an upload speed, 20 Mbps is comfortable for video calls and sending files, which is why the upload on nbn 50 plans is useful.
How much internet speed do I really need at home?
Add up the streams, calls and downloads that run at the same time in your busiest hour, using each service's recommended speed, then add headroom of a third or so for phones, updates and everything else. Pick the lowest nbn tier that covers that total.
