Foxtel from Telstra Review – How to Save Money by Bundling

Review was updated on 17 March 2021

Everyone knows Foxtel, the pay TV provider with millions of customers, decades of experience and some of the best first-run TV on the planet. But did you know you can get your Foxtel service directly from Telstra – and it could save you money?

What is Foxtel from Telstra?

It’s no secret that Foxtel is, of course, co-owned by Telstra – but despite that fact, the huge phone and internet company has been pretty hands-off when it comes to Foxtel over the years. More recently, though, Telstra has been actively bundling Foxtel services with their own phone and broadband services to their customers – something that was just a minor side benefit for a while, but which came to be known by its own brand name: Foxtel from Telstra.

As a brand, that’s got to be one of the most descriptive names out there – after all, it tells you exactly what you’re getting, and where you’re getting it from! But far from just being another place you can sign up for a Foxtel service, Foxtel from Telstra offers some very useful benefits – and some very, very tasty deals.

The Pros and Cons

What can I watch with Foxtel from Telstra?

Foxtel is home to some of the world’s greatest content, and for many Australians, Foxtel is the only way they can catch those movies and television series. With an enormous content library, it can get a little overwhelming to break it down, so we did exactly that. The first thing you need to know about Foxtel from Telstra’s pricing model is that the base package “Foxtel Plus” is okay, but you can get a whole lot better. That’s truer now than ever before, thanks to some terrific deals.

Hit TV shows

The base Foxtel Plus bundle represents huge value. You get premium drama channels like Fox Showcase and Fox One included, giving you access to huge hit shows from the likes of HBO such as Game of Thrones (with all seasons available to stream on-demand) alongside Foxtel’s exclusive Australian hits like Wentworth and talked-about shows from the FX stable like Mr Inbetween or The Walking Dead. That’s 55 entertainment, drama and reality TV channels all in one place at $49/month.

All the best movies

If you prefer movies to wind down with at the end of the day, you can get the Movies HD bundle – adding 11 themed movie channels showing everything from new releases to all-time classics, 24 hours a day, with thousands of movies available to stream on–demand. This is also where bundling becomes a good thing — for only a dollar more per month, you score 11 movie HD channels plus 55 Foxtel Plus channels – and access to Australia’s only 4K Ultra HD movies channel as a bonus!

Ad-break-free live sport

Sports fans, meanwhile, get full access to Foxtel’s acclaimed live sports coverage in the Sport HD + Foxtel Plus bundle, including full ad-break-free coverage of live cricket, AFL, NRL, international tennis and golf and heaps more. If you’re a sports fan you probably already know you need Foxtel to get the good stuff, and this bundle gives you the good stuff for a lot less than you’d think. Forget the need for a sports streaming service, you have access to the home of sport with Fox.

Foxtel from Telstra channel packs

Check out the table below for the full list of channels on offer in each channel pack:

How much does Foxtel from Telstra cost?

As you’re probably aware, Foxtel needs to be installed at your home by qualified techs if there isn’t already a pre-existing installation there, so budget for that if you don’t have a satellite dish on your roof at the moment. If the home or building you’re in already has a Foxtel dish and connections set up, though, you can request a “self-install” option if you’d rather just have the iQ box sent to you with the cables you need to set it up yourself. 

The Foxtel Plus package gives you the base 55 standard Foxtel entertainment and drama channels – a very useful TV service in its own right, of course, but without any of the headline-grabbing stuff – for $49 per month. On top of that, the iQ3 or iQ4 set top box will cost you an extra $125 one-off fee (though that’s often waived as a special offer). There are so many choices when it comes to your tailored entertainment bundles. Well, just take a look at the options you have here:

• Foxtel Plus $49 (includes Fox Showcase, home of HBO)
• Movies HD + Foxtel Plus $50 (includes 11 channels of 24/7 movies and the Movies Ultra HD channel)
• Sports HD+ Foxtel Plus $50 (a whole planet’s worth of premium content for sports fans plus the Fox Sports 4K channel)
• Premium $70 (includes entertainment, drama, kids, movies, sports)
• Platinum Plus $99 (includes every channel Foxtel has to offer as well as a Netflix HD subscription)

Last audited 12th April 2023

Foxtel from Telstra features

One of the great benefits of getting your Foxtel from Telstra is the ability to bundle it on your Telstra bill with other Telstra services. For many people that’ll mean a Telstra mobile phone service – and that comes with its own range of benefits that enhance your entertainment experience. Bundling usually means greater value in the long run. Just like with the original Foxtel packages, the ones you can get from Telstra also offers an entry-level package with over 60 entertainment channels. If you get the Sports HD, you’re guaranteed to experience ad-break free uninterrupted sports with 4K TV included in most packs.

Over 90 full HD channels + Netflix

If you’re after everything that Foxtel has to offer, go with the Platinum Plus bundle, which opens up all of Foxtel’s 90+ channels to you in full HD, with access to everything on demand as well as the brand new 4K channels, which deliver live and replayed 4K sport and the best Ultra HD movies. Foxtel’s ultimate package also includes a standard Netflix subscription so you’re still up to date with Netflix’s hottest shows, with Multiroom casting included as well.

Get rewarded with Telstra Plus

No matter which Foxtel from Telstra bundle you choose, you also get access to the Telstra Plus rewards program, which is free to join and opens up a range of valuable perks and freebies just for being a member. Every dollar you spend on your Telstra services – including Foxtel from Telstra – translates into 10 Telstra Plus reward points, which you can spend on some very desirable devices . And all members get free bonuses like access to streaming service Binge for three months or more, as well as discounted tickets to sports, movies, concerts and events.

Australia’s only 4K TV channels

Foxtel’s two 4K channels are included in the Movies HD + Foxtel Plus, Sports HD + Foxtel Plus, Premium and Platinum Plus bundles, adding even more awesomeness to your entertainment and sports experience.

Voice Remote control

The Foxtel iQ4 box now comes with an advanced remote control that includes a brilliant voice search feature, making it easy and fun to find stuff to watch without the hassle of looking through menus. All you need to do is press the remote’s voice button and say what you want – for example “movies with Tom Cruise” or “war movies”. The search is even smart enough to know what you’re looking for if you remember a line from a movie but can’t remember what the movie was – for example, “show me the money” will take you right to the film that line came from, Jerry Maguire. It’s incredibly handy, and once you’ve tried it, you’ll end up using it all the time.

Foxtel bundles through Telstra

There’s more to Foxtel from Telstra than just the billing side, though, because even though they give you the exact same high-quality Foxtel service, their channel pack bundles and pricing tend to differ quite substantially, as does the way the installation and setup are charged. As with Foxtel themselves, these bundles tend to change over time, but in general, they provide better overall bang for your buck than a direct Foxtel service.

Foxtel from Telstra User Experience

One of the key features of these Foxtel plans is the iQ4 set top box, with full 4K support and upgraded hardware that’s much smoother and snappier to operate than any iQ box before it. The iQ4 is a triumph of user-friendly design, seamlessly blending live TV channels with your own recordings, on-demand content and recommendations. The recently launched Movies and Drama on-demand sections open up access to thousands of movies and hundreds of complete TV seasons ready to stream, including the sought-after HBO catalogue, only available on Foxtel.

With the iQ4 supplied with a Foxtel from Telstra service, you’ll have the premium Foxtel viewing experience right from day one. You can check out our review of the brilliant iQ4 here – and yes, we loved it!

How to watch Foxtel from Telstra

Foxtel requires the correct hardware which usually consists of an active cable line or satellite dish. While that may be the case for a lot of scenarios, there are now alternatives.

Foxtel Go

For starters, Foxtel offers a pair of mobile apps that let you browse the full Foxtel guide and schedule recordings at home from anywhere on the planet – a feature you never realise you needed till the first time you need it! The Foxtel Go app gives you on-demand and live streaming access to all your Foxtel channels on the go at no extra cost, so you can keep up with the latest scores even when you’re on the way home from work. With Foxtel Go, you’re always ready to stream your Foxtel channels on a range of devices:

How to contact Foxtel from Telstra

Whether you’re asking about bundles and plans, want to put everything together under the one Telstra bill, or just need help with your service, you can call customer support for Foxtel From Telstra on 13 22 00 from 8am to 9pm, 7 days a week.

Foxtel from Telstra verdict

Foxtel from Telstra is exactly what the name on the tin says – a fully-fledged Foxtel service, but set up through Telstra and billed by Telstra. That means you can have your Foxtel service put onto your monthly Telstra home phone, mobile and broadband bill, giving you the convenience of everything being covered by a single bill that gives you an overview of exactly what you’re spending on services without having to dig around through credit card statements or email archives. It also gives you a payment window to work with rather than just taking the money out of your account right away.

While many people wouldn’t even have thought to consider checking out Telstra if they’re getting Foxtel installed, as you can see here, it’s a very good idea if you do. Combining the convenience of a single bill, integration with Telstra’s broadband and mobile services, fantastic bundle pricing and superb customer service, Foxtel from Telstra is actually the best way to get hooked up with Foxtel – and get hooked up with the rest of the digital world at the same time!