Sarah Sheedy

Take 30 minutes, look around and compare energy plans.

“You have heard it a million times, but it pays to compare energy plans! Why do I recommend this to everyone, even my parents?

Most people don't realise that your energy plan expires every year or so. After that, what most energy companies do is roll you over to the default offer which tends to be the most expensive plan on offer for each provider. It's a very sly move on the energy companies' part, and it's really easy to inadvertently start spending way over what others are paying for their energy.

If you can get in the habit of checking in each year on your energy plan, as a general rule you can save around 25% off of reference price. Over the course of the year, for most families that can add up to the price of a family vacation! Really, it's a simple habit that can add some extra cash to your pocket.

I fully stand by my opinion that the easiest way to compare energy plans is to use a comparison service like Selectra, Compare the market, Canstarblue, etc. It's our job to make sure your switch is as quick and easy as possible. Best of all you don't pay for it. The energy provider gives us a referral fee, so nothing comes out of your pocket!"

Find out what your speed limitations are before signing up for a plan.

"NBN deals are a tricky topic. Most internet companies are happy to offer you plans that offer super-high speeds without telling you that your property isn't equipped to reach those speeds.

That's right, each property depending on where you are in Australia and the type of connection method you have installed at your property will determine the maximum speed you can reach while living at that property.

So my recommendation is that the best way to get an NBN deal is to start by researching the maximum speed that your property is equipped for. You can see this information on almost every internet website as well as the official NBN website.

This way, if you know your property can only reach max speeds of 200mbps, for example, then you also know there is no use in spending the extra money to purchase a plan for 1000mbps. Even if you purchase a faster plan, your speeds will be limited by your home's connection and you will only reach 200mbps, for example."

5G is still in its infancy. Wait until better plans and offers will come in the next few years.

"In my professional opinion, 5G plans currently aren't worth it in Australia. First of all, the networks are still very patchy as there is not yet 5G coverage available to the entire population. Even if you do live in a major city where companies are offering 5G coverage, you most likely won't use the 5G as your home internet connection because NBN is widely available, is more reliable, and reaches way faster speeds. Therefore, the only reason I see buying 5G internet is if you live off-grid, however, chances are, the 5G network isn't even available where you live if it's outside of a major city.

My recommendation is to wait for better options to come available as the 5g infrastructure improves in the years to come."

Opt for a monthly plan. You're more likely to get extra benefits and inclusions than with prepaid.

The mobile phone industry in Australia is going through a transition. The days of buying a mobile phone plan with a new phone are over. It used to be that when you got a new phone plan every two years or so you would also get a new phone included. With the rise of cheap Internet retailers like Kogan.com, most people have started to find better deals on mobile devices outside of phone carriers' offers.

That means people also no longer buy yearly contracts where you're locked into the same plan for years on end. Instead, the mobile phone industry has moved towards SIM-only prepaid plans & monthly plans with no-lockin contracts. In other words, all you get is a SIM card, and you supply the phone.

This is actually great for consumers because you're no longer tied to a company if you have bad coverage or you don't like the service you're getting.

Going for a prepaid service or for a monthly service really depends on you and your needs, but the main difference is that with a monthly plan you don't run out of data and calling.

With a prepaid plan if you use it up it's gone, or if you don't use it by the end of the month it's also gone (this depends on the supplier).

My personal recommendation: is to go for a monthly plan. That way you can forget about having to constantly recharge your phone, and almost all monthly plans now come with the option to leave whenever you like with no minimum contract or commitment.