amaysim’s $50 NBN 500 deal: check the bill after month six

What does the deal actually cost?

amaysim’s October NBN 500 promotion is worth a look, but the decision gets much clearer once you add up the first year and check the router already sitting at home.

amaysim is advertising NBN 500 for $50 a month for six months on new services, then $90 a month. The offer card lists an end date of 20 October. All prices here are Australian dollars.

If you keep an eligible active amaysim mobile service, the ongoing broadband price becomes $80 a month after those six months. The bundle discount saves $10 on the NBN bill; your mobile plan is a separate expense.

Using those rates, the first year comes to $840 without the mobile discount: six months at $50, then six at $90. With the discount it is $780: six months at $50, then six at $80.

That works out to $70 or $65 a month across the year. These estimates assume unchanged pricing and continued eligibility, and exclude mobile costs, hardware and any applicable connection or other fees.

The useful comparison is with your own twelve-month spend. Signing up for another mobile plan purely to unlock a broadband discount deserves its own bit of maths.

Who can get it, and what does 500 mean?

NBN 500 is available on eligible FTTP and HFC connections. Check your address before getting attached to the price. amaysim’s Key Facts Sheet lists typical evening speeds of 500Mbps download and 43Mbps upload between 7pm and 11pm. These are typical figures, with no guaranteed minimum.

The practical appeal is room for simultaneous activity: streaming, downloading a chunky game update and working from home without everyone competing for a small connection. Whether you notice the extra capacity depends on what currently slows you down.

Pay attention to upload speed if you regularly send large video projects or back up files to the cloud. The 500 in the plan name describes the download tier. Upload-heavy households should compare that second number too.

Your router still has a job to do

amaysim supplies this as a BYO-equipment service. Before buying anything, check that your current router is compatible and capable of handling the speed.

Look for gigabit WAN and LAN ports, and check the specifications rather than judging it by how many antennas it has. A 100Mbps Ethernet port can become a bottleneck well below this plan’s speed. TP-Link’s technical guidance explains why wireless marketing numbers and wired-port speeds are different.

Then test the bit people tend to blame on their provider: Wi-Fi. Run a speed test beside the router, repeat it over Ethernet if possible, then try the room where things usually crawl. NBN recommends this comparison to help identify coverage and equipment problems.

If the wired connection performs well but the back bedroom struggles, placement or mesh coverage may deserve attention. A faster subscription cannot move a brick wall. Budget for any needed equipment when comparing the deal.

A couple of checks before switching

The Critical Information Summary confirms unlimited data, subject to the Fair Go Policy, and month-to-month billing. Cancellation has no fee, although unused prepaid days generally are not refunded. There is no included landline service, and an existing home phone service may be disconnected when switching.

For a household that can use the speed and already owns suitable equipment, this is worth shortlisting. Compare the ongoing bill, check your current provider’s exit conditions, and put a reminder in your calendar before month seven. That is when the bargain needs another look.