Short answer: probably not, at least not for the reason you think. Most of the time, when a business calls up ready to upgrade their NBN plan, the actual problem turns out to be a router sitting in the wrong spot, a Wi-Fi channel fighting with the next door, or half the office on a video call while backups run in the background. The plan itself is often fine.
That’s not to say upgrading is never the answer; sometimes it absolutely is. But before you pay more for a faster business NBN plan, it’s worth fifteen minutes working out whether speed is really the issue, or whether something simpler is quietly wrecking your connection.
How to Actually Tell the Difference
The fastest way to find out is a proper speed test, run at a few different times of day, not just once when things feel slow. Run one first thing in the morning, once mid-afternoon when everyone’s online, and once in the evening. If your results are consistently well below what your NBN plan promises, that’s a real problem. If they’re mostly fine but tank during specific hours or on specific devices, that’s usually a setup issue, not a plan issue.
For a reliable read, an NBN speed test Australia-wide tool run through your provider or a site like the ACCC’s Measuring Broadband Australia program gives a more accurate picture than a random speed test app, since it’s measuring against your actual plan tier rather than a generic benchmark.
What Your NBN Plan Is Actually Promising You
Every NBN plan has a typical evening speed printed on it; that’s the number that matters, not the theoretical max. Here’s roughly how the tiers stack up:
| NBN Tier | Typical Speed | Realistic Use Case |
| NBN 25 | ~25/10 Mbps | Very small office, light browsing and email |
| NBN 100 | ~90-100/40 Mbps | Small business, a handful of staff, VoIP calls |
| NBN 500 | ~500/50 Mbps | Medium team, video calls, cloud software |
| NBN 750 | ~750/50 Mbps | Heavier upload needs, larger teams |
| NBN 1000 | ~1000/100 Mbps | Data-heavy businesses, multiple sites |
If your test results are sitting close to the “typical speed” for your tier, your NBN plan is doing its job; the problem is somewhere else. If they’re well under it consistently, that’s a genuine case for looking at NBN providers Australia has on offer and either fixing the connection or moving providers.
The Setup Problems That Get Blamed on the Plan
This is where most of the frustration actually comes from, and it’s rarely the plan itself.
- Router placement: A router stuffed in a cupboard or behind a filing cabinet loses signal fast. Even a metre or two of relocation can make a noticeable difference.
- Too many devices on wifi, not Ethernet: Wifi is shared bandwidth. Desktop computers and anything that stays in one place should be on a cable where possible.
- Old or underpowered hardware: A router that came free with a plan five years ago probably isn’t built for how many devices are now connected to it.
- Everything competing for the same bandwidth: Backups running during business hours, video calls, and cloud syncing all fighting for the same connection will make even a fast NBN plan feel sluggish.
- Congestion at peak times: Evenings are the busiest time on most networks; if your slowdown only happens between 6-9 pm, that’s a different issue than a genuinely undersized plan.
Questions to Ask Before You Blame the Plan
Before assuming you need a bigger, more expensive NBN plan, it’s worth working through a few things first:
- Have you actually run a proper speed test at different times of day, not just once?
- Is the slowdown happening on every device, or just one or two?
Yes, on the same connection? - Have you checked how many devices are actively using the connection at once?
- Is your router more than three or four years old?
- Are you paying for a plan tier that was sized for a much smaller team than you have now?
When It’s Genuinely Time to Upgrade
Sometimes the honest answer is that your business has outgrown its NBN plan. A few signs that’s actually what’s going on:
- Speed tests are consistently well below your plan’s typical evening speed, even with a decent router and wired connections
- Video calls regularly freeze or drop when more than a couple of people are on them at once
- The team has grown since the plan was set up and nobody’s revisited it
- You’ve added things like cloud-hosted phone systems or heavier file-sharing tools that weren’t part of the picture originally.
If that’s the situation, upgrading NBN plan tiers is the right move, not a band-aid. A business running a cloud phone system, for instance, needs enough consistent bandwidth to keep call quality solid; patchy internet is one of the most common reasons VoIP calls sound choppy, and it’s worth checking your phone and internet setup together rather than treating them as separate problems.
What Business Internet Providers Don’t Always Tell You
Not every business internet provider is upfront about what’s actually included in the plan versus what shows up as a surprise later. A few things worth checking before you switch or upgrade:
- Whether the advertised speed is the typical evening speed or a best-case maximum
- What the data allowance actually is; unlimited plans are common now, but not universal
- Whether static IP addresses or business-grade support are included or billed separately
- What the contract length is, and what happens if the connection genuinely underperforms
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s broadband performance monitoring program, typical evening speeds on most NBN plans now sit close to the advertised maximum, so a big, consistent gap between what you’re paying for and what you’re getting is worth raising with your provider directly rather than just accepting it as normal.
Conclusion
Before assuming your NBN plan is the problem, it’s worth ruling out the simpler stuff first: router placement, wired versus wifi, and how many things are competing for bandwidth at once. If speed tests still come back consistently low after that, then yes, it’s time to look at upgrading or switching providers. Either way, a business internet setup should feel like it fades into the background, not something the team is constantly working around.
Contact Pear Australia today to talk through whether your current NBN plan actually fits how your business runs now. Call 1300 007 327 or visit peartelco.com.au; we’ll help you work out whether it’s the plan, the setup, or genuinely time to upgrade.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How do I know if my NBN plan is actually too slow?
Run a speed test at a few different times of day and compare the results to your plan’s typical evening speed. If you’re consistently well below that number, even with a decent router, it’s likely the plan. If it’s only slow at certain times or on certain devices, it’s usually a setup issue.
2. Why is my NBN speed slower than what I’m paying for?
This usually comes down to router placement, too many devices on wifi instead of Ethernet, outdated hardware, or several things using the connection at once. Genuine underperformance against your plan’s typical speed is less common but does happen.
3. What NBN plan is right for a small business?
It depends on your team size and what you’re using the connection for. A small team doing email and browsing can often run fine on NBN 50, while businesses running cloud phone systems, video calls or heavier file transfers usually need NBN 100 or above.
4. Will upgrading my NBN plan fix slow internet?
Only if the plan itself is genuinely the bottleneck, if the real issue is router placement or network congestion, a faster plan won’t fully fix it; those problems need sorting first.
5. How do I switch to a better NBN provider without losing my connection?
Most providers can port your service across with minimal downtime; the switch usually happens on the back end before your old connection is cut off. It’s worth asking any new provider exactly how the changeover works before signing up.