The best Fixed Wireless NBN plans for remote internet access

If you’re way outback, you might be eligible for Fixed Wireless NBN.

Regional Australians who are miles away from an NBN POI (Point of Interconnect), there are two far-reaching Internet connection types you might be eligible for: Satellite NBN and Fixed Wireless NBN.

If you’re less than 14 kilometres from a Fixed Wireless NBN tower, it could be your best option for getting faster broadband speeds at home. We’ve rounded up the best Fixed Wireless NBN Internet plans available.

Best Fixed Wireless NBN plan

Tangerine XL Speed Boost Unlimited

The Tangerine XL Speed Boost Unlimited plan is an incumbent choice when it comes to best Fixed Wireless NBN. Why? The value starts with an ongoing six-month pricing promotion, and there’s no contract so you can leave at any time. Tangerine also offers a no-risk 14-day trial, so you can try before you buy.

As the name suggests, this Tangerine NBN Fixed Wireless plan comes with unlimited data, and it’s a Fixed Wireless Plus plan, which means it has the potential for speeds that burst above 50Mbps. You can BYO modem to save money at sign-up or buy one of a few options (including a 4G Backup Modem). You can also add on a home phone plan for $10 a month.

Check out this plan next to other popular Fixed Wireless plans below.

Next best Fixed Wireless NBN plan

Mate NBN wireless mates plus

It can’t compete on the six-month promo pricing offered by our Tangerine winner, but the Mate NBN wireless mates plus plan offers great value at a fixed monthly price. If you do want to save money, bundle this Mate Fixed Wireless NBN plan with an eligible Mate mobile plan to knock $10 off your monthly internet bill.

Outside of cost, you’re paying for a Fixed Wireless Plus plan, which means that while speeds may drop as low as 6Mbps – a finite-bandwidth technology challenge for all Fixed Wireless connections – they also have the potential to burst above 50Mbps.

Check out this Mate plan next to other popular Fixed Wireless Plus options below.

Cheapest Fixed Wireless NBN plan

Tangerine Standard Speed Unlimited

There’s no getting past the great value of Tangerine plans. Take this Fixed Wireless NBN, for instance. It has a six-month promotional price that knocks $10 off your monthly bill, which makes it the cheapest monthly price available for Basic II speeds (up to 25Mbps). Even when that price reverts to normal, it’s among the cheapest Basic II NBN Fixed Wireless plan available.

Because there’s no contract, you’re free to switch providers after six months or beforehand. You can even take the service for a spin for two weeks as part of a zero-risk trial. Save money by using a BYO modem from a previous provider or pay for one upfront. You can also pay an extra $10 per month to add a home phone service.

You can see this Tangerine plan next to other cheap Fixed Wireless NBN plans below.

And more cheap NBN Fixed Wireless plans sorted by price.

Next cheapest Fixed Wireless NBN plan

Mate NBN wireless #greatmates

If you’ve got to the end of the six-month discount with the Tangerine Standard Speed Unlimited plan and every cent counts, consider the Mate NBN wireless #greamates plan. The Mate plan is 90 cents cheaper per month than the regular monthly cost for the cheapest Tangerine plan, and it’s the same price whether you opt for the recommended Basic II (up to 25Mbps download speeds) or Basic I (up to 12Mbps download speeds) as part of the NBN Wireless #goodmates plan.

There’s no contract, so you can come and go as you please, plus you can knock $10 off your monthly bill if you bundle your Mate internet with an eligible Mate phone plan.

Check out this cheap Mate Fixed Wireless NBN plan next to other affordable picks.

And more cheap NBN Fixed Wireless plans sorted by price.

Best fast Fixed Wireless NBN plan

Aussie Broadband Family nbn™ – Fixed Wireless Plus Unlimited

If you want a fast Fixed Wireless NBN plan, you definitely want to opt for Fixed Wireless Plus, which has the potential to burst beyond NBN Standard (50Mbps) download speeds. That’s in actuality, but Fixed Wireless Plus connections also have the potential to reach speeds of 75Mbps download and 10Mbps upload.

Aussie Broadband has a great reputation for customer service and award-winning service, which is part of why the provider’s Family nbn™ – Fixed Wireless Plus Unlimited is our top pick for this category. While not the cheapest, the monthly cost is reasonable for a Fixed Wireless Plus connection. There’s also no contract and you can BYO modem, too.

You can see this Aussie Broadband Fixed Wireless Plus plan in comparison to other speedy picks below.

What is Fixed Wireless NBN Internet and how does it work?

Where Sky Muster NBN satellite customers connect via a literal satellite orbiting the Earth, NBN Fixed Wireless customers get their Internet in a more familiar fashion, with data transmitted over a radio signal emitted from a tower. Not unlike the way we connect to the Internet with our smartphones via a 4G/5G mobile tower.

Satellite NBN plans are still quite expensive, and, out of necessity, offer capped data usage to prevent congestion on the network. Fixed Wireless, on the other hand, offers more traditional NBN speeds. Fixed Wireless connections aren’t as stable as Fixed Line connections because they’re at the mercy of the same outages and stability issues of any mobile network.

Think of Fixed Wireless as sitting somewhere between Fixed Line and Satellite NBN; it’s not as reliable as Fixed Line, but it offers faster speeds and more data than Satellite NBN.

How fast is Fixed Wireless NBN?

The ACCC’s trusted broadband speed testing program doesn’t include Fixed Wireless speeds. There are, however, some standard NBN speed guides to follow if you want a better idea of what to expect.

Fixed Wireless customers have access to three NBN Speed Tiers: Basic (12Mbps), Standard (25Mbps), and Standard Plus (50Mbps) but select providers (like Aussie Broadband) will offer a Fixed Wireless exclusive speed tier, Fixed Wireless Plus. Fixed Wireless Plus plans claim to achieve potential evening speeds of 70Mbps, but the factors that impact mobile 4G/5G signals will also affect Fixed Wireless customers. Outages, environmental obstructions, and home satellite positioning can all impact Fixed Wireless speeds.

Here are the fastest NBN Fixed Wireless plans available.

How to boost a bad NBN Fixed Wireless Signal

If you’re not getting the speeds promised on NBN Fixed Wireless, there are a few first steps to take as recommended by the ACCC:

Contact your ISP

They may be able to tell you if you are connected to a congested cell.

Change providers

If talking to your ISP doesn’t help, it might be time to switch to a provider with less congestion on its cell.

Reduce streaming quality

Streaming services like Netflix and Stan allow you to lower the quality of your stream and the bandwidth used. Dropping the bit-rate on your stream could improve your speeds for every other online activity.

Pause downloads and updates

If your PlayStation 4 is downloading a game while your PC is running a software update, you’re going to notice a drop in speed. These activities hog a fair bit of bandwidth while running, so it’s worth putting them on pause if you need to prioritise another online activity.