Australia’s internet slower than third world countries, now ranking 81 globally

The quality of Australia’s internet services has slipped to an embarrassing spot behind global competitors, now worse than third world countries.

Australia has slipped down the global rankings for overall internet quality, now worse than several third world countries.

According to Speed Test Global, the country has dropped to 81 in the world for fixed broadband performance below countries like Nicaragua, Uzbekistan and El Salvador.

Slow internet and drop outs tops the list of complaints made to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman with a 13 per cent increase in complaints during the last quarter of 2024.

Frustrated customers are feeling the impact, with slow speeds and dropouts topping complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman.

Reports surged 13 per cent in the last quarter of 2024, as Australians struggled with unreliable connections.

“Australians deserve and should expect better when it comes to their internet,” CEO of Australian internet service provider Occom, Philip Luo, said.

“For too long Australian consumers have been accepting slow connections, poor customer service and delayed response times and in many cases it’s compounded by them not actively switching from their current providers and looking for a better option.

“Many Australians can actually solve their internet issues by switching to a better service provider.”

Millions of Australians could be paying too much for sluggish internet, with experts urging households to review their plans as data demand is expected to double by 2029.

The company has doubled its customer base since 2022 with a growing number of Aussies ditching the major telcos and choosing smaller internet service providers.

The percentage of high-speed plans has also increased by 54 per cent in the last 18 months alone.

It comes as experts warned last week that millions of Australians could be paying too much for sluggish internet, with households urged to review their plans as data demand is expected to double by 2029.

New figures from NBN Co reveal that two in five Australians haven’t upgraded their internet set-up in five years, leaving households with higher costs and slower speeds.

In the past decade, data usage has surged tenfold, with the average household now consuming 433.63 gigabytes (GB) per month across 25 devices.

And with that number expected to rise to 44 devices per household by 2030, the company warns outdated plans could leave many struggling to keep up.

“If you’re experiencing buffering, slow downloads, or video calls that freeze or drop out, these are some of the telltale signs that your home internet isn’t up to the task,” NBN’s consumer spokesperson Jane McNamara said.

“Many Australians with outdated plans find they can double their speed for the same cost per month, or even less, just by speaking to their provider, or shopping around.

“There are now more than 150 retailers offering NBN services, competing on price, inclusions and service.”

NSW had the highest total data consumption during the month of June last year (763,897.93 GB), followed by Queensland (527,410.73 GB), Victoria (402,326.25 GB), South Australia (242,508.15 GB), Tasmania (97,749.12 GB), and the Northern Territory (36,104.63 GB).

The suburb with the highest average data usage was Bidwill in NSW (887.13 GB), while Essendon Fields in Victoria had the lowest (63.13 GB).

Gaming and streaming platforms are driving the surge in internet usage, but new applications are expected to increase the demand, including 8K video streaming which requires up to 80 times more data than standard definition, and cloud gaming – which doesn’t require downloads – can consume up to 120 times more.

For Andrey Derevyanko, keeping up with his internet usage while working from home became a challenge.

Despite already being on a fast-speed plan, he is already looking to upgrade to NBN’s new multi-gig plan, which will be available in September.

“We have about 40 devices connected to the internet at home, including air conditioner, washing machine, gaming consoles, VR, and heaps more,” he said.

“My girlfriend and I both work from home, and my role at Trendspek means I need to work with massive online files, so fast internet is really important.

Andrey Derevyakno has about 40 devices connected to the internet at home. Picture: Supplied

“Not long ago we lived with two other couples as housemates, and we all worked from home, so we saw how quickly the internet can crash out when more than one person is using heavily at the same time.”

Future funding of the NBN has become a major election issue, after Anthony Albanese injected an extra $3 billion into the company in January. That was in addition to the $480m taxpayers spent on the wireless upgrade, which NBN Co contributed $270m towards.

However, overall growth in NBN has plateaued. About 8.8 million Australians used its broadband services in the December quarter, compared with 8.76 million in the same period in 2023.

HOW TO IMPROVE INTERNET SPEED:

• Type in your address into the NBN website to check the type of connection you’re on, whether a full fibre upgrade is available, and what speed plans are available from which retailers.
• Check the age of your Wi-Fi router – update about as often as your mobile phone.
• Make sure your Wi-Fi router is in a high, central location, away from interference.
• Consider a Wi-Fi mesh network to extend signal coverage.
• Plug in fixed devices, like smart TVs, into the router directly when possible.

Originally published as Australia’s internet slower than third world countries, now ranking 81 globally