Telstra adds $A70 and $A80 capped 5G home internet plans
Telstra has expanded its 5G home internet line-up with two cheaper, speed-capped tiers. The new $A70 plan caps download speeds at 25Mbps and the $A80 plan at 50Mbps, both with a 1TB monthly allowance.
Telstra has added two cheaper 5G home internet plans, both with capped speeds and a 1TB monthly allowance. The new Basic tier is $A70 a month with download speeds limited to 25Mbps. A new Essential tier is $A80 a month, capped at 50Mbps.
The two plans sit below Telstra's existing Premium tier, which remains $A85 a month with typical busy-period speeds of 300Mbps down and 30Mbps up. The Premium plan is not speed-capped. All three are listed on Telstra's 5G home internet product page.
Customers on the Basic or Essential plan who exceed 1TB in a month see download speeds drop to 1.5Mbps until the next billing cycle, comparison site WhistleOut reported on 6 May 2026. Premium customers who go over their 1TB allowance keep a 25Mbps download and 5Mbps upload cap until the next bill.
The plans are sold month-to-month with no lock-in contract and ship with the Telstra Smart Modem 4, which supports Wi-Fi 7. Telstra charges a $A200 non-return fee if a customer cancels within 24 months and does not return the modem.
A Telstra spokesperson told WhistleOut that customers who pick a slower tier may not always be able to upgrade later, because each cell site carries a fixed amount of capacity. "The disclaimer is there to be upfront that if a customer moves to a lower-speed plan and later wants to upgrade, additional network capacity needs to be available at their address at that time," the spokesperson said. "In some areas, this may not be possible due to increased demand on the mobile network."
The new entry price puts Telstra within $A5 of TPG and Optus on fixed-wireless plans. Both rivals already sell sub-$A75 5G home tiers. Telstra pitches 5G fixed wireless as an alternative to nbn FTTP and FTTC for households with line-of-sight to one of its cells, with no technician install required.
Telstra has not said how many customers it has on 5G home internet, or how many cell sites can accept new connections at the cheaper price points.
Hamish Doolan
Telco reporter covering Telstra, Optus, TPG, NBN, and the spectrum. Reports from Brisbane.
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