Fibre to the Node continues to underperform, says ACCC

Alex Angove-Plumb - Digital Content Editor

Last updated 02 April 2026

A modem router having its cable adjusted

Almost 12% of households with a Fibre to the Node (FTTN) connection to the NBN aren’t receiving the speeds they pay for, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

Released today, the regulator’s latest Measuring Broadband Australia report shows 11.8% of FTTN connections aren’t reaching 75% of their NBN plan’s promised speed in at least 5% of download speed tests.

In comparison, NBN plans for 4.9% of FTTP households and 6.1% of HFC households also underperform, but it’s not an apples-to-apples affair. While the fastest plan an FTTN household can sign up to is NBN 100, HFC and FTTP connections can access much faster speed tiers such as NBN 500 and beyond. As such, an “underperforming” plan delivered via HFC or FTTP might still significantly outpace the fastest FTTN connection.

Percentage of underperforming NBN plans

Technology	FTTN	HFC	FTTP
Underperformance (%)	11.8%	6.1%	4.9%

Even so, the ACCC found 6.3% of NBN 500 plans were underperforming, with some failing to even reach speeds above 100Mbps.

ACCC Commissioner Ian Oppermann commented on the results, stating, “Retailers need to inform customers if their FTTN connection cannot achieve their selected plan speed so the customer can consider if they would be better off on another plan”.

While true, switching to a slower plan isn’t necessarily the most advantageous option in some circumstances.

There’s very little difference in price between NBN 100 and NBN 50, which is the next-slowest option. By downgrading from one to the other, a household guarantees maximum download speeds of no more than 50Mbps, while saving very little money in return.

Alternatively, most FTTN households (and pretty much all FTTC ones) can get a free upgrade to FTTP – something also mentioned by Oppermann in the ACCC’s release. Ordering an NBN 500 plan from an eligible provider is all that is needed to trigger the upgrade. Check our FTTP upgrade guide for these details, and some popular NBN 500 plans from eligible providers below:

#1	Dodo	Dodo FTTP, HFC nbn500 Unlimited Plan FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/48 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Incl. $30/mth discount for 6 months based on the standard price $92.99/mth. Ends 08.12.26. T&Cs apply. $62.99/mth for first 6 mths, then $92.99/mth Min. cost $62.99 Go to Site*	$62.99/mth for first 6 mths, then $92.99/mth Min. cost $62.99	Go to Site
#2	Tangerine Telecom	Tangerine Telecom FTTP, HFC Speedy Max NBN 500/50 FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42.5 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Includes $33/mth off for the first 6 mths, $59.90/mth for first 6 mths, then $92.90/mth. Ends 30.10.26 $59.90/mth for first 6 mths, then $92.90/mth Min. cost $59.90 Go to Site	$59.90/mth for first 6 mths, then $92.90/mth Min. cost $59.90	Go to Site
#3	Superloop	Superloop FTTP, HFC Family Max nbn500/50 FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/45 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Incl. $21/mth off for 6 mths! $74/mth for 6 mths, then $95/mth + Bundle & Save $74/mth for first 6 mths, then $95/mth Min. cost $74 Go to Site	$74/mth for first 6 mths, then $95/mth Min. cost $74	Go to Site
#4	Exetel	Exetel FTTP, HFC One Plan 500/50 FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/45 Mbps Unlimited Data $80/mth Min. cost $80 Go to Site	$80/mth Min. cost $80	Go to Site
#5	SpinTel	SpinTel FTTP, HFC Home Turbo 500/50 FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Includes $20.95 off your plan for first 6 months! $69/mth for first 6 months, then $89.95/mth. $69/mth for first 6 mths, then $89.95/mth Min. cost $69 Go to Site	$69/mth for first 6 mths, then $89.95/mth Min. cost $69	Go to Site
#6	TPG Editor's Pick	TPG FTTP, HFC Editor's Pick nbn Home Fast Unlimited Plan FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Save $240 over 12mths! $74.99/mth for first 12 months, then $94.99/mth. Min cost $84.99 if modem returned. T&Cs apply $74.99/mth for first 12 mths, then $94.99/mth Min. cost $74.99 Link not supplied	$74.99/mth for first 12 mths, then $94.99/mth Min. cost $74.99	Link not supplied
#7	Flip	Flip FTTP, HFC Unlimited Fast Speed nbn500 FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Incl. $19.90/mth off for 6 months - $69/mth for first 6mths then $88.90/mth. New customers only. Ends 31.10.26. T&Cs apply. $69/mth for first 6 mths then $88.90/mth Min. cost $69 Go to Site	$69/mth for first 6 mths then $88.90/mth Min. cost $69	Go to Site
#8	iiNet	iiNet FTTP, HFC nbn500 Liimitless FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Includes $25/mth off for 6 mths - $69.99/mth for first 6 months, then $94.99/mth. Use code SAVE25FOR6 $69.99/mth + $10 Upfront for first 6 mths, then $94.99/mth Min. cost $79.99 Link not supplied	$69.99/mth + $10 Upfront for first 6 mths, then $94.99/mth Min. cost $79.99	Link not supplied
#9	Aussie Broadband	Aussie Broadband FTTP, HFC Fast Fibre - Unlimited FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/44 Mbps Unlimited Data Deal: Includes $20 off for the first 6 months. Promo code SPRING20. $99/mth after promo ends 15.11.26 $79/mth for first 6 months, then $99/mth Min. cost $79 Link not supplied	$79/mth for first 6 months, then $99/mth Min. cost $79	Link not supplied
#10	Vodafone	Vodafone FTTP, HFC Home Fast+ nbn® FTTP, HFC nbn® 500/42 Mbps Unlimited Data $99/mth Min. cost $99 Link not supplied	$99/mth Min. cost $99	Link not supplied

There are also many factors inside your own home that can cause an NBN connection to underperform. The most notable is your router. Some cheaper routers can have unreliable or worsening performance as time goes on. And some particularly old routers have a firm connection limit of 100Mbps.

To check if your router is limited to 100Mbps, its max internet speed is often printed on a port labelled “Internet” or “WAN”. If not, there might be a sticker on the underside with technical specifications.

Sometimes you can fix performance issues by “power cycling” your router or modem router, which is a fancy term for unplugging its power cable, waiting a couple of minutes and plugging it back in again. If you see a performance increase, you might need to do this regularly.

Of course, you might need to lump it and buy a new modem router. It’s a bit of a wild west out there, but you can check our best NBN routers guide if you’d like some recommendations and some tips on what to look out for.

There are also plenty of other factors to consider. If you’d like more information, take a look at our guide covering slow NBN speeds and what can cause them.

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Alex Angove-Plumb

Digital Content Editor

Alex Angove-Plumb is a Digital Content Editor at WhistleOut and an award-winning journalist. He's been in the tech publishing industry since 2010, putting him a few short years away from the title of Grizzled Ancient in his chosen profession. He was an original WhistleOut-er before running NBN Co's corporate blog for two years, then moving on to a lengthy stint at CHOICE. Now he's come home.

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