Why does this two-minute YouTube video take so long to buffer? Image: Shutterstock

Australian has slipped once again in the Speedtest Global Index for fixed broadband speeds.

We are now sitting at 68th place with an average fixed broadband speed of 41.78 Mbps – well below the global average of 73.58Mbps.

Our internet is worse than that of Vietnam, Kazakhstan, and India.

We’re still beating Peru, though.

Early last year, Australia sat at 62nd on the rankings.

But with the NBN rollout nearing completion – 91 per cent of premises were ready to connect by the end of last year – there is little sign that our internet rankings will improve once the massive communications infrastructure project is finally done, especially considering the NBN’s purpose is to see all households and businesses connected with a paltry minimum download speed of 25 Mbps.

Currently, NBN providers advertise premium speeds as high as 94 Mbps during peak hours.

Even if that were Australia’s average, we would only climb to 28th position on the rankings – still far below New Zealand which has an average fixed broadband speed of 103.38 Mbps.

Singapore boasts the world’s best average speeds just higher than 200 Mbps.

Australians can only dream of seeing the Speedtest needle swing that high.

At least we’ve got 4G

Thankfully, we flounder considerably less is in the mobile internet speed department.

Our average mobile speed of 67 Mbps is more than double the global average and puts us in 6th place – ahead of even Switzerland and Singapore, countries that totally trounce us in fixed broadband speeds.

Australia’s mobile speeds are among the best in the world, but mobile broadband is no panacea.

The average cost per gigabyte of mobile data has shrunk over the years, down to less than $5 according to a recent ACCC report.

The ACCC also reported a nearly 50 per cent growth in downloads between 2017-18 and 2018-18 – in part due to Australians enjoying internet content like the ever-expanding list of video streaming services.

But I wouldn’t rush to tether your smart TV to your phone since Netflix advises that an HD stream uses about 3GB per hour.

Thankfully the ACCC found there are a growing number of NBN plans that offer unlimited downloads (about 40 per cent).

Unfortunately, no matter how much data you have on your NBN plan, Australia’s slow speeds will keep you from enjoying the Tokyo Olympics when they are broadcast in 4K later this year.

That is, unless you have a (non-NBN) Optus 5G fixed wireless connection.

What are internet speeds like where you live? Leave us a comment below.