The short answer
What an internet and home phone bundle really sells you
Most "internet and home phone bundles" are sold as a deal: add a landline for a few dollars, or get one thrown in free. That framing hides what is really going on. A modern home phone is VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), which runs over the very same NBN connection you already pay for, so the calls cost your retailer almost nothing to carry. The bundle is not generosity, it is a retention and discount lever designed to make your plan stickier and the headline price look sharper. And there is a real catch that the deal language buries: because a VoIP phone runs on your internet and your mains power, it goes dead in a blackout or an NBN outage, unlike the old copper landline that powered itself from the exchange. This page explains how home phone bundles actually work, when the saving is real versus an intro trick, and why the blackout question matters more than the price.
Here is the core takeaway in one line: bundling a VoIP home phone with NBN is rarely about the phone, it is a retailer retention and discount lever, and the only catch that really matters is that a VoIP line has no dial tone in a blackout or NBN outage. That single idea fixes the two things people get wrong: they treat the "bundle saving" as real value when the calls cost the telco almost nothing to carry, and they assume the new home phone is a like-for-like replacement for the old copper landline when it is not, because the copper line powered itself from the exchange and a VoIP phone does not. Decide whether you want the phone for convenience or for emergencies, because those lead to very different choices.
Reframe the assumption: the home phone is not the deal, it is the hook. A VoIP line rides the same NBN connection you already pay for, so it is nearly free for the retailer to throw in, and it makes you harder to lose. Judge the bundle on its total monthly price after any intro discount, and on whether you have a backup for when the power is out.
The blind spot
Why most home phone bundle guides steer you wrong
Most "best home phone and internet bundles" articles do one of three unhelpful things, and each one leaves you misreading the deal.
First, they rank bundles by the advertised saving. They line up plans and crown the one with the biggest "save $X" badge, as if that discount were a permanent feature of the phone. It usually is not. The saving is almost always an introductory discount on the internet portion that lapses after six or twelve months, after which you pay the standard rate and the bundle was never really cheaper.
Second, they treat VoIP as a straight landline replacement. They tell you the calls are unlimited and the handset plugs in, then stop. What they skip is the part that matters most: a VoIP phone runs on your internet and your mains power, so in a blackout or an NBN outage it goes silent, including for triple zero (000). The old copper line drew power from the exchange and kept working; the new one does not.
Third, they pad the list with providers to look comprehensive. A "top ten bundles" page implies ten meaningfully different products, when in reality most NBN plans now include local and national VoIP calls as standard. The choice that matters is not which of ten retailers to pick for the phone, it is whether you need a paid call pack at all and what your blackout backup is.
How the home phone bundle is built, piece by piece
Expert analysis: what a bundled VoIP phone really costs
The calls ride your existing connection, so they are nearly free to supply
Start with the economics. A VoIP home phone turns your voice into data packets and sends them over the same NBN line that carries your internet. It uses a tiny amount of bandwidth, in the order of a few megabytes for an hour of talking, which is nothing against an unlimited-data plan. Your retailer (the industry calls them RSPs, or Retail Service Providers, such as Telstra, Optus, Aussie Broadband, iiNet, TPG and Mate) already pays NBN Co for the connection, so layering a phone service on top is mostly software and a small interconnect cost. That is why so many plans now bundle unlimited local and national calls at no extra charge: it is close to free for the retailer to give away.
The bundle is a retention and discount lever, not a product
If the phone costs the retailer almost nothing, why offer it at all? Because it does two jobs that have nothing to do with phone calls. It makes the headline price look sharper, since "internet plus home phone for $X" reads better than internet alone at the same price. And it makes you stickier: a bundle feels harder to unpick when you think about leaving, and a ported home phone number ties you in further. Telcos call this retention, and a free or near-free VoIP line is one of the cheapest retention tools they have. The "saving" you are shown is a marketing frame layered over a cost that was never really there.
The intro discount is where the real money moves
Watch where the dollars actually sit. The advertised bundle saving is usually a discount on the internet portion for the first six or twelve months, not a permanent cut to the phone. When the intro period ends, the plan reverts to its standard monthly price, and the home phone keeps costing whatever it always did. Because internet in Australia has no price cap, unlike electricity with its Default Market Offer, the gap between the intro price and the ongoing price can be wide. The honest comparison is the ongoing total against buying each part standalone, with the intro discount treated as a one-off bonus rather than the price.
VoIP, mains power and the blackout gap
The last piece is the one the deal language buries, and it is physical. The old copper landline drew its power down the line from the telephone exchange, so it kept a dial tone even when your house lost power. A VoIP home phone is the opposite: it needs your NBN modem powered and your connection up. In a blackout, or during an NBN outage, the phone is dead, and that includes calls to triple zero (000). For most homes this is an inconvenience; for a home with a medical alarm, a monitored security panel or someone who relies on the landline in an emergency, it is a genuine safety gap. The fix is a backup: a charged mobile, a modem battery backup unit, or a registered medical-alarm arrangement.
Interactive explainer
Bundle vs separate cost checker
Toggle the add-ons you are thinking about, and it shows your bundled monthly total against buying each piece on its own, then flags when the "bundle saving" is really just an intro discount that drops off later.
Is your bundle actually cheaper than buying separately?
Indicative only, based on mid-market NBN 50 examples. Always check the real plan price after any intro period before you sign up.
Pick what you want in the plan
Ongoing bundled total
We compare the ongoing bundled price (after the intro discount lapses) against buying the same pieces standalone. A streaming or mobile add-on you could buy direct does not create a real saving; only a genuinely free or cheaper inclusion does.
Assumptions: NBN 50 base ~$75 a month, home phone ~$5 a month bundled vs ~$10 standalone, mobile SIM ~$30 a month either way, streaming ~$15 a month either way. Prices are indicative 2026 ranges and vary by retailer. Sources: RSP published plans, ACCC, Canstar Blue 2026.
| Bundle component | Indicative cost/mo | What you are really paying for |
|---|---|---|
| NBN 50 plan on its own | $70 to $80/mo | Same line you already use; the phone changes nothing about the internet. |
| Home phone add-on (VoIP) | $0 to $15/mo | Often free or near-free because the calls ride your existing data path. |
| Pay-as-you-go calling | $0/mo + per call | No monthly fee; you only pay for calls made, which suits light or backup use. |
| Mobile SIM in the bundle | $15 to $40/mo | A separate product; the "bundle saving" here is usually a small bill credit. |
| Streaming add-on | $10 to $25/mo | Standalone subscriptions you could buy direct; bundling rarely beats the retail price. |
What this looks like in real homes
How the bundle trap plays out for real households
The mechanics above are not theory. They are exactly how Australian households end up overpaying or caught out:
The intro discount that quietly lapsed
A couple signs up for an "internet plus home phone" bundle advertised as a $15 a month saving. For six months it looks sharp, then the intro discount drops off and the bill jumps. The home phone was never the saving; the discount on the internet was, and it was always temporary.
The medical alarm that went silent in a blackout
An older household replaces the copper landline with a VoIP bundle, assuming it works the same way. A storm knocks out power for a few hours, the NBN modem goes dark, and the home phone and the monitored medical alarm both lose their dial tone at once. The fix, a charged mobile and a battery backup, was never mentioned in the deal.
The streaming add-on that saved nothing
A family adds a streaming service to their bundle because it is "discounted". The bundled price turns out to match what the service costs to buy direct, so the only thing the bundle changed was tying the subscription to the telco bill. The saving existed on the badge, not on the total.
The free home phone nobody used
A renter takes the included VoIP line because it is free, plugs in a handset, and never makes a call, relying on a mobile instead. No harm done, but it is a reminder that a free inclusion is worth exactly zero if it does not change behaviour; the plan should be chosen on the internet, not the phone.
The insider insight
The home phone is the hook, the blackout gap is the real story
Here is the part most bundle guides never say out loud. The home phone in your NBN bundle is not there because you need a landline, it is there because it costs the retailer almost nothing and it keeps you on the plan. The marketing wants you to weigh the "saving" on the phone, when the phone was never the cost. Meanwhile the one fact that genuinely matters, that a VoIP line has no dial tone in a blackout, gets a footnote at best, because leading with it would undercut the like-for-like landline pitch. The telco's incentive is to frame the bundle as value and to keep the blackout limitation quiet.
The non-obvious truth: on an NBN bundle you are not really buying a home phone, you are buying a retention lever dressed as a discount, and the only part with real consequences is the loss of a powered, always-on emergency line. The households that get this right ignore the "save" badge, pick the plan on the internet and the ongoing price, take the free VoIP phone only if it is genuinely free, and put a charged mobile or a battery backup in place for when the power is out. Because internet has no price cap, the spread between a sharp ongoing price and a dressed-up one is wide.
The practical consequence: never choose a bundle on the saving alone. Treat the home phone as a convenience, judge the deal on its ongoing total, and make sure you have a way to call for help when the line goes dark.
Grounded in the analysis
What you should actually do with a home phone bundle
Specific moves that follow from how the bundle is built, not generic advice.
Price the ongoing total, not the saving
Ignore the "save $X" badge and work out what the bundle costs after the intro discount ends. Use the checker above to put the ongoing bundled price next to buying each part standalone, then decide on that number.
Take the phone only if it is genuinely free
A VoIP home phone that is truly $0 or a few dollars a month with no strings is fine to take. If the only reason it looks cheap is a temporary discount, or if you will use a mobile anyway, skip it and choose the plan on the internet.
Set up a blackout backup before you need it
A VoIP phone has no dial tone in a power cut or NBN outage, so arrange a backup: keep a charged mobile, ask about a modem battery backup, and if anyone relies on a medical alarm, confirm a registered arrangement.
Choosing the internet first? Read our NBN plans guide, then check whether home wireless broadband suits your address.
Current figures, last updated 2026-06-16
Indicative Australian home phone bundle figures for 2026. Sources: RSP published plans (Telstra, Aussie Broadband, iiNet, Mate, SpinTel), the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Canstar Blue 2026. Prices vary widely by retailer and lapse after any introductory period.
The bottom line
Why the bundle is a hook, not a deal
An internet and home phone bundle looks like a saving, and that is exactly the point. The VoIP calls ride the connection you already pay for, so they cost your retailer almost nothing, which means the bundle is a retention and discount lever rather than a product worth chasing. The advertised saving is usually a temporary intro discount, and the one fact with real consequences, that a VoIP phone has no dial tone in a blackout, gets buried under the like-for-like landline pitch. So price the ongoing total, take the phone only if it is genuinely free, and set up a backup for when the power is out. With no price cap on internet and most bundles now month to month, the smart move is to choose the plan on the internet and treat the home phone as the convenience it really is.
Common questions
A Selectra expert answers your home phone bundle questions
No, not on its own. A VoIP home phone runs over your NBN connection and your modem, both of which need mains power. The moment the power goes out, or the NBN suffers an outage, the phone has no dial tone, so you cannot make calls including to triple zero (000). This is the single biggest difference from the old copper landline, which drew its own power from the telephone exchange and kept working in a blackout. If anyone in the home relies on a medical alarm, a monitored security system or a home phone for emergencies, you need a backup: a charged mobile, a modem battery backup unit, or a registered medical-alarm arrangement. Many people are caught out because the bundle was sold as a like-for-like landline replacement when it is not.
Sometimes the included calls are genuinely free, and then the answer is yes, because the VoIP service costs your retailer almost nothing to provide over the same data path. But be careful with the word "save". When a retailer advertises a bundle saving, it is often an introductory discount on the internet portion that drops off after six or twelve months, not a permanent reduction in the phone cost. The honest test is to compare the total monthly price after any intro period against buying each piece on its own. If the home phone is truly $0 or a few dollars a month with no strings, take it; if the saving only exists because of a temporary discount, the bundle is a marketing frame, not value.
Because it costs them very little and it makes you harder to lose. VoIP calls travel over the same NBN connection your retailer already sells you, so adding a phone line is mostly software, not extra network cost. In return, the retailer gets a stickier customer: a bundle feels more annoying to unpick when you think about switching, and the home phone number ties you in further. Telcos call this retention, and a low-cost or free home phone is one of the cheapest retention tools they have. That is why so many NBN plans now quietly include unlimited local and national calls; it is not generosity, it is a lever to keep you on the plan and to make the headline price look more competitive.
In most cases, yes. Australian rules let you port an existing landline number to a new provider, so you can usually move your familiar number onto a VoIP home phone when you switch to an NBN bundle. The port happens during the changeover and your old copper service is disconnected, because the copper phone network has been retired in NBN areas. Confirm the number is portable before you cancel anything, keep the old service active until the port completes, and remember that once you are on VoIP the phone behaves like an internet device, plugging into the NBN modem rather than the wall socket, and sharing the blackout limitation of any VoIP line.
For most households, no. Mobile plans now include unlimited national calls and texts, often with international minutes, so the home phone is no longer a necessity the way it once was. A VoIP home phone makes sense in a few specific cases: if you have a number you have used for decades and want to keep, if mobile reception is poor at your address, or if older family members are more comfortable with a fixed handset. Just do not pay extra for it on the assumption it is a safety net, because in a blackout the mobile is the more reliable option, not the VoIP landline. Decide whether the phone is for convenience or for emergencies, because those point to different choices.
Three things. First, the price after any introductory period, because the advertised bundle saving often evaporates once the intro discount ends. Second, the call inclusions, since "unlimited calls" sometimes means local and national only, with mobile and international calls charged per use. Third, and most important, the blackout plan: a VoIP home phone will not work in a power cut or NBN outage, so if anyone relies on it for medical alarms or emergencies, arrange a charged mobile or a battery backup. Compare the bundled total against the standalone parts, ignore the marketing word "save", and treat the home phone as a convenience rather than a guaranteed lifeline.
