Australians are just weeks away from a major boost to internet speeds around the country, but telcos are warning people that if they don’t have the right gear, they might miss out.

Earlier this near, the NBN Co announced a significant upgrade to its download and upload speeds that would roll out in mid-September.

In Speedtest’s latest global rankings for broadband speed in June, Australia ranked 75th, below countries such as Egypt, Slovakia, and Argentina, and just two places above war-ravaged Ukraine.

The incoming national upgrade could see Australian households increase their download speeds by up to 500 per cent – with the right set-up and plan.

The upgrade will only apply to households with fibre to the premises (FTTP) and hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) broadband connections.

Additionally, customers on NBN plans of less than 100 megabits (NBN’s “Home Fast” plan will need to upgrade to take advantage.

NBN Co says most Australian households have a 50 megabit plan at the moment, with 100 megabits being the next tier up.

“Back in 2015, the typical Australian home had two or three internet-connected devices,” the body said in its announcement.

“Today, the average number is about 25 and includes devices like smart phones, laptops, TVs and smart speakers – all of which need the internet to work.”

Come the roll-out, people with the right connection and an NBN Home Fast plan will see their download speeds increase from 100 megabits per second (Mbps) to 500Mbps.

Home Superfast download speeds will increase from 250Mbps to 750Mbps, and Home Ultrafast upload speeds will double from 50Mbps to 100Mbps.

NBN Co is also launching a new Home Hyperfast plan, with download speeds of 2000Mbps.

As well as checking their connection type, people are urged to contact their service provider to make sure they have the right plan to receive the upgrades, and whether they have a wifi router able to handle the increased speeds.

NBN Co said 62 per cent of Australians hadn’t made a change to their home internet set-up in the past two years, while two-thirds (about 66 per cent) hadn’t upgraded their broadband plan in the past five years.

However, with the right equipment and plan in place, the upgrades are likely to come at no extra cost, with major providers confirming they will pass on the upgrades automatically.

“We’ll be passing on NBN Co’s new internet speed upgrades to customers on eligible plans and technology at no extra cost,” a Telstra spokesperson said.

“It’s a good idea to check if you have the right type of NBN connection and hardware (including modem and cabling) before they hit the accelerator.

Optus has also confirmed there would be “no extra cost” for the upgrades to eligible plans.

“To help navigate these changes, we’ve also simplified our NBN plan structure – moving from nine to four core options, making it easier to choose a plan that suits your household needs,” Optus chief customer officer Anthony Shiner said.

TPG Telecom general manager fixed line product Andrew O’Connor said the process would be “automatic” for Vodafone, TPG, and iiNet customers, but urged them to make sure they had the right gear.

“Although plan speeds are getting faster, many households may not see the full benefit unless their wi-fi can keep up,” he said.

“The biggest bottleneck will no longer be the NBN plan speed but rather the modem and wi-fi setup inside the home. Some modems, even relatively new ones, aren’t built to support these higher speeds. And third-party wi-fi extenders can actually slow things down rather than improve coverage.”

He said customers were already being contacted in preparation for the change.