There’s nothing worse than when you’re in the middle of a Netflix movie and the video stream suddenly starts stuttering and the dreaded words “buffering” appear on the screen. A bad internet connection can ruin your night.
Streaming video from the internet requires a decent amount of bandwidth, but just how fast does your connection really need to be? We’ve done some investigating and have summarised our findings below.
How fast does your internet need to be to watch Netflix?
From Netflix’s own website, recommended internet speeds for watching Netflix are shown below.
Type | Recommended Speed |
---|---|
Standard Definition (SD) | 3 Mbps |
High Definition (HD) | 5 Mbps |
Ultra High Definition (4K) | 25 Mbps |
How much data do I need for Netflix?
Everyone knows that streaming video uses quite a bit of data. But let’s dig a little deeper and find out exactly how much data Netflix uses and how much data you will need per month.
The table below shows the data use per hour for different movie qualities. Given the quality and size of televisions today, I would assume that most people would be watching in high definition or ultra high definition. The table also shows the approximate data used per movie assuming the average movie is about 1.5 hours or 90 minutes long.
Movie Quality | Data use (per hour) | Data use per movie |
---|---|---|
Standard Definition | 1GB per hour | 1.5GB |
High Definition (HD) (1080p) | 3GB per hour | 4.5GB |
Ultra High Definition (UHD) (4K) | 7GB per hour | 10.5GB |
7GB per hour for UHD 4K video streaming is a pretty significant amount of data and will add up pretty quickly if you stream a lot of video content.
Now, let’s look at the monthly data use for different types of users. I reckon I watch about 1 movie a week. How many do you watch?
Type of Netflix User | Hours per week watching Netflix | Data required per month |
---|---|---|
Light | 3 hours (2 movies) | 36GB for HD 85GB for UHD |
Medium | 7.5 hours (5 movies) | 90GB for HD 210GB for UHD |
Heavy | 15 hours (10 movies) | 180GB for HD 420GB for UHD |
Addict | 25 hours (16 movies) | 300GB for HD 700GB for UHD |
Our Recommendation
In terms of connection speed, we recommend a minimum speed of 25 Mbps for streaming Netflix. If you have a large family or more than one movie will be streaming simultaneously then upgrading to 50 Mbps would be a wise choice.
When it comes to data use, as you can see in the table above, monthly data requirements vary depending on how many hours of Netflix you watch per month.
Light and medium users can get away with around 200GB per month whereas heavy users and movie addicts will need an unlimited plan.
Best NBN plans for light and medium Netflix users
If you watch Netflix around an hour a day on average then these are the plans for you.
Company | Plan Name |
Monthly Cost |
Avg Monthly Cost (2 years) |
Typical Evening Speed | Quota | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Superloop |
Home Basic (NBN) (Month by month) |
$59.95
$49.95 for first 6 months |
$57.45 | 25 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Exetel |
Everyday (NBN) (Month by month) |
$59.95
$49.95 for first 0 months |
$59.95 | 25 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Aussie Broadband |
Casual (NBN) (Month by month) |
$69 | $69 | 25 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Exetel |
Extra Value (NBN) (Month by month) |
$69.95
$53.95 for first 6 months |
$65.95 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Superloop |
Home Standard (NBN) (Month by month) |
$69.95
$54.95 for first 6 months |
$66.2 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Click here to view more great value NBN internet plans for Netflix |
Best NBN plans for heavy Netflix users
Heavy users of Netflix will need the unlimited data and 50Mbs speed that these plans offer.
Company | Plan Name |
Monthly Cost |
Avg Monthly Cost (2 years) |
Typical Evening Speed | Quota | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Exetel |
Extra Value (NBN) (Month by month) |
$69.95
$53.95 for first 6 months |
$65.95 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Superloop |
Home Standard (NBN) (Month by month) |
$69.95
$54.95 for first 6 months |
$66.2 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Australia Broadband |
Standard Plus (NBN) (Month by month) |
$70 | $70 | 48 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Aussie Broadband |
Intermediate (NBN) (Month by month) |
$79 | $79 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Aussie Broadband |
Everyday (NBN) (Month by month) |
$79 | $79 | 50 Mb/s | Unlim |
Read Reviews |
Click here to view more great value NBN internet plans for Netflix |
Best Wireless 4G and 5G plans for Netflix
4G and 5G wireless plans that should support Netflix are listed below
Company | Plan Name |
Monthly Cost |
Avg Monthly Cost (2 years) |
Typical Evening Speed | Quota | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vocal |
Wireless 200 (Wireless - 4G) (Month by month) |
$59
Setup Fee: $249 |
$69.38 | 79 Mb/s | 200 GB |
Read Reviews |
Moose Mobile |
200GB (Wireless - 4G) (Month by month) |
$59 | $59 | 50 Mb/s | 200 GB |
Read Reviews |
Vocal |
Wireless 200 (Wireless - 4G) (24 month contract) |
$59
Setup Fee: $149 |
$65.21 | 79 Mb/s | 200 GB |
Read Reviews |
Yomojo |
200GB (Wireless - 4G) (Month by month) |
$59.9 | $59.9 | 15 Mb/s | 200 GB |
Read Reviews |
Yomojo |
500GB (Wireless - 4G) (Month by month) |
$59.9 | $59.9 | 15 Mb/s | 500 GB |
Read Reviews |
Click here to view more great value wireless 4G and 5G plans for Netflix |
Can you stream Netflix on 4G or 5G wireless home broadband?
The short answer is Yes, if you have a 4G or 5G home wireless internet connection you should be able to watch Netflix in some form.
4G speeds can easily exceed 100Mbs and 5G can go even faster so connection speed will not be the problem. You will need to keep an eye on your data usage though as Netflix can quickly chew through your data allowance.
Your actual ability to watch Netflix via 4G or 5G will rely on the following factors:
- network congestion and bandwidth availability in your area which may vary by the time of the day
- number of people using the internet at your house at the same time
- the mobile network you are connected to. Some networks are stronger in some areas compared to others.
Can you stream Netflix on your phone?
Yes, you should be able to download the Netflix app to your Apple or Android device and watch Netflix on your phone or tablet. The same constraints will apply to your phone connection as apply to watching Netflix on a wireless 4G or 5G broadband connection.
How many people use Netflix?
Netflix has over 200 million subscribers worldwide and 6 million in Australia which is pretty astounding.
Does your video streaming cut out?
Maybe you need a faster internet plan? Our broadband plan finder can help! Check it out here.
Further Reading
This article is the part of our ultimate guide to NBN, wireless and broadband internet in Australia. Other articles in this series are:
- The ultimate guide to NBN, wireless and broadband internet in Australia
- Types of Internet and broadband in Australia
- What are the different types of NBN internet connections?
- How to choose a broadband internet plan
- How do I connect to the NBN?
- How to read and compare NBN plans?
- What internet speed do I need for working from home?