How good is Vodafone now that it is sharing the Optus mobile network? We assume coverage is similar, but what are the differences in service and costs?
You can’t find a complete Vodafone 4/5G coverage map, just an address checker. We surmise that its coverage prior to Optus was extremely limited. nPerf has a coverage map, but as it reflects actual users, it probably does not reflect Vodafone’s new status.
Optus has a coverage map and claims 7000+ sites Australia-wide, with 2600+ new sites and 1300+ upgrades in regional Australia. It covers 98.4% of the population (4G) and 80.5% (5G), and it covers 1 million square km—not much land coverage.
As usual, nPerf below tells a different story.
Telstra claims 9000+ towers for coverage claims of 99.8%, 1.7 and 2.7 million square kilometres wholesale/retail network coverage. There is a huge difference between 5G wholesale and retail, – 75% vs 91%.
As usual, nPerf tells a different story.
Costs at 28/4/25 – there may be cheaper promotional and pre-plans.
Vodafone SIM only monthly uncapped
- $49 for 50GB (double data promotion $39/100GB for 12 months)
- $59 for 180GB (double data $49/360GB)
- $69 for 360GB (double data $59/720GB)
Optus SIM only monthly uncapped
- $55/50GB
- $65/200GB ($69/360GB for 12 months)
- $85/400GB
Telstra SIM only monthly uncapped
- $65/50GB
- $75/180GB
- $99/300GB
CyberShack’s view: Vodafone is no longer Vodafail (we hope)
How good is Vodafone? Well, it now has Optus coverage and gives you some choice.
According to Trustpilot Australia,
- Vodafone gets 1.5 stars with 77% of reviews at 1-star.
- Optus gets 1.2 stars with 61% at 1-star.
- Telstra gets 1.3 stars with 90% at 1-star.
The Catch-22 is that while you can get far cheaper plans from MVNOs, they are capped speeds. Read Telstra’s Retail Vs Wholesale mobile plans – the catches you need to know.
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