"First of all, the numbers confirm the massive improvement over 2017, which is just terrific," Sims says.

"And then you've had [internet service provider] MyRepublic taking notice of the results and improving their performance. This monitoring does keep everyone on their toes."

The Singapore-based internet company performed poorly during the previous quarter — it's first appearance in the report — delivering only 74.4 per cent of its maximum advertised download speeds during busy periods. In this most recent quarter, that was up to 82.1 per cent.

TPG led the pack again this time, delivering 88.4 per cent of its plans' maximum download speeds. It was followed by Aussie Broadband (85.8 per cent), iiNet (84.8 per cent), Optus (84 per cent), Telstra (83.5 per cent) and MyRepublic.

Sims says that although only a small number of the tests showed speeds of less than half of the advertised maximum, telcos should be aiming to deliver at least 90 per cent consistently. If it's not possible, they shouldn't advertise it, he says.

"The goal should absolutely be that everyone gets more than 90 per cent of the maximum speed they’ve paid for. "That should not be an unrealistic goal," he says.

"You should be getting what you were sold, and you shouldn't have been sold what can't be delivered."

The Measuring Broadband Australia program was initiated last year amid complaints that internet companies were selling 50Mbps NBN plans to consumers in circumstances where they knew 50Mbps speeds were practically impossible to achieve.

Sims says the original report — by focusing on how close speeds came to the advertised maximum — forced ISPs to put more checks in place, and asserts that they will be very keen not to let their performance slide now that they're consistently doing better.

There are some things the data doesn't show, however. For example Telstra ranks quite low among the ISPs, but it has the disadvantage of accommodating a much broader footprint and range of services.

Since last year, the telco has also approached customers that were sold a 50Mbps plan and can't achieve near those speeds, offering a discount. The report shows these connections as falling short even if the customers are getting a good deal, Sims says, and if you remove those connections from the data Telstra moves to second place.

There are also some ISPs — including Dodo and Internode — that are not covered in the report, making complete comparisons difficult. This is because the data relies on broadband customers who volunteer to have their speeds monitored. Those interested in signing up can register at the Measuring Broadband Australia site.

Sims says that customers who aren't getting the speeds they're paying for should contact their ISP, and if they don't get a good result they should lodge a complaint with the telecommunications ombudsman.

"We get our data from that source, and we want to know about it," he says.