Check and manage mobile data usage

If you stream a lot of videos using your smartphone, you can make your data stretch further by reducing the streaming quality of your videos. Many streaming apps also allow you to download content while you’re connected to Wi-Fi, which you can then watch while you’re on the move.

Netflix

• Open the Netflix app on your smartphone and sign into your account
• From the More tab, select App Settings
• Set video quality to Standard.
   

YouTube

• Open the YouTube app on your smartphone
• From the account button (top right), select Settings
• Toggle on Play HD on Wi-Fi only
• Toggle on Autoplay next video
• Select off for Autoplay on Home
• Select 360p for upload quality.

When we calculate your mobile data usage, we include uploads and downloads.

Common downloads that typically use a lot of mobile data include:

• Watching videos on sites like YouTube and Netflix
• Listening to music on sites or apps like Spotify
• Incoming emails with large attachments
• Virus definition updates performed by virus protection software
• Software updates for Microsoft, Adobe, smartphones, Smart TV and more. Software updates can be triggered by any device that wants to update its own software or requests information
• Playing games on a website or a downloaded app
• Data sent between sites on a Virtual Private Network (VPN). You may set up a private tunnel between sites to send secure data but not realise how much it uses. This is more for high-end business users
• Remote security cameras which constantly send data to a main site.
   

Common uploads that typically use a lot of mobile data include:

• Outgoing emails with large attachments
• Online and web-based games
• Being part of a music or video sharing network. The person who houses the file incurs upload usage when someone downloads the file from them
• Remote back up of data to a main hub, including online photo storage services
• Data sent between sites on a Virtual Private Network (VPN). You may set up a private tunnel between sites to send secure data but not realise how much it uses. This is more for high-end business users
• Remote security cameras which constantly send data to a main site.

If you’re on a mobile, tablet or mobile broadband plan, or Pre-Paid service, we’ll send you a notification when your data usage reaches 50%, 85%, and 100% of your monthly allowance. You can choose to receive your notifications by email or SMS.

If you have a 13-digit account number, your alerts may be sent in ‘real-time’, which means you’ll get them as you’re using the data. Otherwise, keep in mind that these alerts aren’t in real time and can be delayed by up to 48 hours.

If you’ve used more than 100% of your allowance, excess usage charges apply. To view your excess charge rate, check the details of your plan in My Telstra.

If you don’t want to receive data usage alerts, you can turn the notifications off. Turning this setting on or off doesn’t use any data.

You can manage your data usage alerts in My Telstra:

1. On the homepage, find your mobile service in the Account overview section, and select the Manage link
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and select Data usage
3. Halfway down the page, select Manage your data usage notifications and select Off, then hit Save.
   

Good to know: If you have shared data, you can select different alerts for each of your services.

Get the most out of your mobile data with some handy tips on how to be smart about your usage and make it stretch further.
 

Use Wi-Fi whenever you can

Connect to Wi-Fi when you’re watching videos, streaming music or downloading pictures as they can use lots of data. You can also connect to a Telstra Air Wi-Fi hotspot when you’re out and about.
 

Turn off your mobile data

If you’re watching videos or listening to music on your mobile, your device might choose to use mobile data even when you think it’s connected to Wi-Fi.

 To make sure it keeps using available Wi-Fi, go to your device settings and turn off mobile data. You'll still be able to send and receive text messages and calls. 

If you need help turning your mobile/cellular data off, see our device guides. You can turn mobile/cellular data back on at any time, to use the internet or check your email.
 

Limit sending and receiving files and push notifications

Sending and receiving files and attachments like pictures, documents, videos or music by email can use lots of data. You can choose to change your settings to receive emails less often, for example, every hour, or even manually. Otherwise, try sending when you’re connected to Wi-Fi instead.

 Your device may also be set to receive push notifications. This means real-time email downloads, and constant checking for new emails and app updates – all of which use even more data. You can deactivate push notifications in your device settings.
 

Delete emails that won’t send

If an email won’t leave your outbox, your device may be continually trying to send it and each new attempt uses more data.

 Delete any messages left in your outbox, and either try again with a new email or try another platform like Gmail, Outlook or another email app.
 

Limit Facebook, YouTube, Skype, gaming and browsing

Checking social media and browsing the internet generally can also use a lot of data, particularly due to video streaming. Gaming can also contribute towards your data usage.
 

Turn off Smart Network Switch

Smart Network Switch is a feature on some Android phones that allows your device to automatically switch between Wi-Fi and the mobile network. While this can provide a better internet experience, it can use more data.

Check if this feature is off, or switch it off, in your device settings. It may be listed as something other than Smart Network Switch, depending on your device, but is often found under Wi-Fi.

Telcos and internet providers measure the amount of data transferred between your device and the internet. This amount is commonly expressed as a standard unit called a byte.

One million bytes are referred to as a megabyte, represented by the symbol ‘MB’. One billion bytes are referred to as a gigabyte represented by the symbol ‘GB’.

What’s the difference between metered and unmetered data?

Metered data counts towards your monthly data allowance. In the case of our Endless Data BYO mobile plan, metered data counts towards the 40GB at our highest network speeds available to you.

Unmetered data doesn’t count towards these limits.

No, there are limits. While Telstra’s Endless Data BYO mobile plan offers unlimited data, only 40GB of this data is available to you at our highest network speeds. Once you reach the 40GB limit, your data speeds will be capped at 1.5Mbps and may be slowed further during busy periods.

What does 1.5Mbps mean?

The ‘Mbps’ part is an abbreviation of ‘megabits per second’. It’s used as a measure of internet speeds. This is literally the number of megabits your internet or mobile connection can download in a second. 1.5Mbps is not suitable for HD videos or high-speed applications.

What can I do with 1.5 Mbps?

A speed of 1.5Mbps allows basic internet browsing and social media use, although your pages may be slower to load. It’s also enough to watch video streaming services like Netflix and YouTube in standard definition, but you may experience some buffering and pausing. You can also listen to music streaming services like Spotify using a 1.5Mbps connection.

What’s Telstra’s FairPlay Policy?

Telstra's FairPlay Policy (PDF, 200KB) also places limits on the amount of data you can download. This is to prevent people downloading data for business or other purposes that may interfere with the network. But don’t worry, your ordinary personal use is considered fair.

Internet shaping is the limiting of your internet or data speeds. It’s also known as internet throttling or internet speed capping.

Internet service and mobile data providers have a finite amount of capacity, or bandwidth, on their networks. This bandwidth is shared between all the users of that network. Faster data speeds use up more bandwidth, so internet and data providers cap speeds to make sure that all users on the network have enough bandwidth.