Best 5G mobile plans in Australia

 5G in Australia has quickly gone from being a niche inclusion that offered next-generations to the few consumers who could afford it to a mainstream option that's speedy and comprehensive enough that many are treating it as a full-blown alternative to the NBN.

While Samsung was the first big phone maker to jump on the 5G bandwagon, it didn't long before Apple and others caught up. As more and more phone manufacturers have moved towards making phones that offer 5G as standard rather than at a premium, the local lineup of mobile providers offering plans with access to 5G speeds has done the same.

There are still some decent deals available through the Big Three, but if you're after the best 5G SIM-only plans in 2023 then there are plenty of reasons to take a look at the many MVNOs that also offer those faster download speeds at a more competitive price.

In this guide, we'll take you through our top picks for the best 5G phone plans. But first, here's a look at a few of the most popular options:

Telstra's Basic mobile plan is our pick for the best 5G mobile plan overall thanks to its superior Telstra coverage, generous 40GB data allowance and (somewhat) reasonable $58 monthly price tag. It's not the cheapest 5G phone plan on the market, but it's the one you'll need if you're looking to make the most out of your iPhone 14's next-gen speed capabilities.

If you're not quite sold on Telstra's offering, here's how much the iPhone 14 will set you back over 24 months on the most popular plans.

The Belong 20GB Mobile Plan is the obvious winner when it comes to the cheapest possible SIM-only phone plans with 5G. It's not quite as thrifty as the prepaid pick below, but it runs on Telstra’s larger 5G network, comes with a modest 20GB of monthly data and costs just $35 per month. Even if your 5G speeds are capped at 100Mpbs, that's a steal compared to many other 5G phone plans.

Here's how this plan compares to other popular SIM-only plans with 5G coverage.

If you want the cheapest possible 5G phone plan - no matter how slow the network rollout might be - it’s worth checking out one of Vodafone’s Prepaid Plus plans. These range in price between $30 and $50 per month, but there are regular deals that slash prices and boost data allowances, so keep an eye out.

The $30 Prepaid Plus Starter Pack is currently our pick of the lot. Vodafone is currently running a promotion that lets you pick this one up for half the usual price. It comes with 40GB of monthly data and a $5 discount if you enable automatic recharging.

Telstra and Optus also recently jumped on the 5G prepaid train, but their offerings aren't as good value as our top Vodafone pick. If you're interested, you can check them out below.

As Australia’s largest telco, it’s no surprise that Telstra’s 5G rollout is kicking the competition’s butt right now. At the time of writing, its next-gen network covers 80% of the Australian population. That’s by far the best coverage from the best three, but the gap will only get narrower as Optus and Vodafone catch up.

Regardless, if you’re only after the best coverage you can get, Telstra’s 5G phone plans have you covered. Unfortunately, that coverage does come at a premium, with the cheapest  Telstra plan 5G data plan coming in at $58, which isn't exactly as budget-friendly as the competition.

If you're after for a little more data though, look no further than the $68 Essential Plan. It gets you four times the data of the cheaper Basic Plan, plus all the same perks.

If that's not enough for you, here's the full range of Telstra's 5G plans.

The entry point to Optus’ 5G network is far cheaper than Telstra’s, but you’ll likely only get coverage in metropolitan areas. If you’re okay with waiting a little longer for better coverage and unwilling to go prepaid, you can save a decent chunk of change, as Optus’ cheapest 5G phone plan is $9 cheaper than Telstra’s.

That said, if you're game to spend a little more there's a ton of value to be found in Optus' $89 Promo Plan. Currently discounted down to $69 per month for the first 12 months, this plan gets you a whopping 500GB of 5G data. That sum makes it our top pick when it comes to bang for the buck.

Need more (or less) data? Check out all of Optus' 5G plans below.

Since Vodafone extends the 5G olive branch to all its prepaid plans, you can get access for as little as $30. That said, if you actually want decent data inclusions, the $55 Medium Plan is your best bet. It comes with 150GB of monthly data, after which your speed gets throttled down to 2Mpbs.

Of the Big Three, Vodafone has the least 5G coverage and really only caters for capital cities. In fact, according to Vodafone's website, only 1,000 suburbs across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra, Perth, Gold Coast, Central Coast, Wollongong and Sunshine Coast can currently access its 5G network.

For a sense of how this plan compares to the rest of the roster, take a look at Vodafone's postpaid 5G plans below.

The map below should help you get a better sense of what the coverage of the Telstra 5G network looks like. It'll also help you visualise the 5G coverage of MVNOs like Boost Mobile, Belong, Exetel, MATE and NuMobile since those providers utilise the same 5G network as Telstra.

The map below should help you get a better sense of what the coverage of the Optus 5G network looks like. It'll also help you visualise the 5G coverage of MVNOs like SpinTel and Aussie Broadband since those providers utilise the same 5G network.

The map below should help you get a better sense of what the coverage of the Vodafone 5G network looks like. It'll also help you visualise the 5G coverage of MVNOs like TPG, iiNet, Kogan and Lebara since these providers utilise the same 5G network.

Still looking for the perfect 5G data or phone plan? Here's a list of popular 5G phone plans we have in our database