Optus mobile plans review

Since its commercial arrival on the Aussie telco scene back in 1992, Optus has maintained its position as Australia's second-largest network operator, with Telstra consistently holding onto the number one spot in terms of number of subscribers.

A subsidiary of Singaporean telecommunications giant Singtel, Optus offers a range of mobile plans which offer big data at reasonable price points. It has both pre-paid and post-paid choices, as well as plans which include a handset.

Although Optus comes in second to Telstra with regards to its overall network coverage, the telco is still able to claim that its 4G networks reach 98.5% of the Australian population.

And while Telstra seems to have a significant lead when it comes to 5G coverage (based on nPerf's independent coverage maps) and is claimed to now reach 85% of the Australian population, it's worth nothing that OpenSignal has awarded Optus the 5G Download Speed crown for the last 4 years running. Of course, most users probably won't reach those top speeds unless they're right next to an Optus tower, and the network is relatively uncongested.

As for customer service, Optus still uses offshore call centres in India and the Philippines, though it does operate local call centres in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, too.

However, the real elephant in the room is that Optus has had a rough few years — in 2022, Optus experienced one of the biggest cyberattacks in Australian history, resulting in the personal information of roughly 10 million customers being exposed. This was followed by a nationwide outage in 2023, which lasted approximately 12-13 hours.

Most recently, a failed firewall upgrade on September 18, 2025, blocked over 600 emergency service calls during a 13-hour window, leading to at least three deaths.

So, while Optus has the second-largest network and a range of decently priced mobile plans, the question remains as to whether the telco can regain the trust of its customers — both existing, and potential. On top of this, Vodafone's network reach is now almost as wide-reaching as Optus', only with more data and cheaper plans on offer.

Optus mobile plans and pricing

• Optus SIM-only plans far more reasonably priced than Telstra
• No lock-in contracts for Optus SIM-only plans

Of the three main network operators in Australia, Optus arguably sits in the sweet spot between Telstra and Vodafone when it comes to price and value. That said, Vodafone's new double data offerings have thrown a huge spanner in the works, providing twice as much data as Optus' equivalent plans at cheaper prices.

Telstra undoubtedly has the best coverage, but is by far the most expensive. Optus is in second place, offering a good balance between coverage, price and data. That said, Vodafone's new double data plans have significantly overtaken Optus from a value standpoint, while a new network-sharing agreement between the two telcos has made them roughly equal in terms of reach.

So while Optus still delivers a range of plans which are well-priced and data-generous, Vodafone now offers comparable coverage (particularly in regional Australia), with twice as much data and at cheaper price points. In other words, It's now more difficult to recommend Optus over Vodafone when it comes to plans and pricing. That said, Optus still has a greater 5G reach than Vodafone, which has been slow to rollout its 5G network.

Optus postpaid plans

Recently, Optus made the decision to streamline its SIM-only offering to just three standard plans and one promo plan. While the plans are slightly more expensive than they were before, they now provide significantly more data.

Optus SIM-only plans start with the $55 Optus Choice Plus Plan, which comes with 50GB of monthly data, which means you're paying about AU$1.10 per GB.

That's followed by the $65 Optus Choice Plus Plan, which offers 180GB of monthly data (a cost of AU$0.36 per GB). That's almost three times what Telstra offers in terms of data on its entry-level Basic Upfront plan, which costs more at AU$70 p/m but only gets you 50GB (or AU$1.40 per GB).

Next is the $85 Optus Choice Plus Plan, which gets you 400GB of monthly data, or around AU$0.21 per GB, which is outrageously good value if you're willing to pay that much.

Also worth noting is that there are no lock-in contracts on any Optus SIM-only plan, and each one brings uncapped 5G network access in selected areas (excluding Northern Territory), unlimited standard talk and text within Australia, and unlimited standard international talk and text to 35 selected destinations. You can also share your data across eligible plans on the same account and donate your unused monthly data to Australians in need.

Optus prepaid plans

Although there are no lock-in contracts on any of the above Choice Plus plans, Optus also offers a range of prepaid plans for those who don't want to risk extra charges or only need service for a fixed period of time.

Optus prepaid plans with a 28-day expiry period start at AU$35 and come with fluctuating amounts of data. For instance, new customers on this plan get 40GB of data for the first three recharges (at a discounted rate of AU$13 per renewal), then drops down to 20GB from then on. That means after the introductory period you'll be paying AU$1.75 per GB.

Of course, there are other long-term 186-day and 365-day options for those who don't want to think about recharging for a while, though you'll have to pay a larger sum upfront. It's also worth noting that all Optus prepaid plans with a 28-day expiry period offer uncapped download speeds, while the long-term plans are capped at 250 Mbps.

Optus mobile coverage

• Excellent 3G / 4G coverage, but lags behind Telstra in 5G reach
• Optus awarded fastest 5G download speeds by OpenSignal

Given that Optus operates the second-largest mobile network in Australia, it probably comes as no surprise that it also offers the second-best coverage. That said, Optus no longer has a huge lead over Vodafone — thanks to a network sharing agreement between the two telcos, Optus coverage only beats Vodafone by 0.1%.

Where Optus is closest to Telstra is in its 4G reach, with a claimed 98.5% of the Aussie population covered (Vodafone currently sits at 98.4%). However, while Telstra's 5G mobile network is said to currently reach roughly 87% of Australians, Optus doesn't currently make any specific percentage claims — and if nPerf's coverage maps are any indication, it still has a lot of catching up to do.

During our rundown of the various mobile plans offered by Optus, you may have noticed that 5G network access was only available in selected areas, and excluded Northern Territory entirely. Sure enough, a closer look at nPerf's coverage map for Darwin shows a complete absence of Optus 5G network coverage, and only a small 3G and 4G presence.

Simply put, if you live in the Top End, you're better off going with Telstra or Vodafone — both of which offer a far greater 4G and 5G presence in NT. That said, if you live in any of Australia's major cities along the east coast, you should be OK. Optus does offer 5G network access in Perth, though the rest of the west coast is fairly barren in terms of coverage.

Optus mobile plans: Extras, perks and offers

• Big discount on Optus Sport access
• Discounts on streaming subscriptions with SubHub

In terms of extras, Optus postpaid SIM-only customers receive 3 months of Amazon Prime for free when they sign up via Optus SubHub. The latter lets you manage and pay for subscriptions in one place, which are added to your regular phone bill.

Additionally, customers can save up to 10% on streaming subscriptions when they add three or more eligible subscriptions to SubHub. Supported services include Netflix, Amazon Prime, Binge, Paramount Plus and more.

Best of all, sports-lovers who sign up to Optus Sport via SubHub get a huge discount on the service's monthly subscription cost, bringing it down from AU$24.99 p/m to just AU$6.99 p/m.

Optus also offers very competitive international roaming add-ons — for AU$5 per day, you get 1GB of data, 100 minutes of talk and 100 texts per day to use in over 90 Zone 1 destinations.

Optus mobile plans: customer service and community reviews

• Support team still has call centres in India and the Philippines
• Optus reputation at an all-time low

While Telstra has drastically decreased its use of off-shore call centres since 2021, switching over to a mostly Australia-based support team, the Singtel-owned Optus still relies on call centres located in India and the Philippines.

Of course, Optus also has call centres in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, although you probably won't know whether you're connected to one of those or someone from an overseas branch.

Thankfully, Optus has a huge retail presence in Australia, with over 350 branded Optus Yes outlets across the country, making it relatively easy for customers to receive face-to-face service.

Still, not everyone is happy with Optus, with the telco receiving mostly negative online reviews on sites like Product Review and Trustpilot, where it has earned overall customer satisfaction scores of 1.3 and 1.2, respectively.

With that in mind, it's important to note that both Telstra and Vodafone have achieved similar scores, which goes to show that most customers will only bother reviewing something if they've had a bad experience.

Even with that disclaimer, there's no denying that the telco's reputation is at an all-time low, following an immense cyberattack in 2022 which left the information of over 10 million Optus customers exposed.

This was not helped at all by a nationwide outage which occurred the following year, leaving 10 million customers and 400,000 businesses without mobile or internet access for around 14 hours. This was followed by a botched firewall upgrade which left customers unable to contact emergency services for up to 13 hours, resulting in at least three fatalities.

Needless to say, the telco has a long way to go in regaining Australia's trust — the market research company Roy Morgan named Optus as Australia's most distrusted brand in March 2024, and this latest disaster is only going to make that worse.

Optus mobile plans: Bottom line

Is an Optus mobile plan worth your money? In terms of value, Optus mobile plans are far more competitively priced than Telstra's, with SIM-only offerings that deliver big data and worthwhile perks.

As Australia's second-largest telco, it's no surprise that Optus falls behind Telstra in terms of coverage. That said, its reach is still significant — particularly when it comes to 4G coverage.

Of course, there's no denying that Optus has made some significant blunders with regards to customer security and service over the last few years — some of which of which will be impossible to forgive for many.

If you're willing to forgive Optus, you can at least rest assured that its mobile plans are good value and will likely satisfy most customers (outside of the Northern Territory).

• Best Australian phone plans with international roaming