For landlords and operators

Share one internet connection and bill tenants fairly

One connection is cheaper per door. But the moment you charge for it, you need a clean split and real fairness. Here is how to do both.

No made-up prices. Just the split models, the fairness rules and when not to share.

The short version

If you read nothing else, read this.

One shared connection beats a dozen separate plans on cost per unit.
Charging for it means reselling a service. Check your plan's terms first.
Pick a split: in the rent, a flat per-unit fee, metered usage, or a managed provider.
Cap each unit so one heavy tenant cannot starve the rest.
Tenants accept a fair split when they can see it. Keep the billing transparent.

Why share one connection at all

Bottom line: one good connection divided across the building almost always costs less per unit than every tenant buying their own plan, and the saving falls to whoever runs the block. But the moment you charge a tenant, that saving becomes a service you are selling. Now you need a fair split, a way to stop one user ruining it for the rest, and a billing story every tenant accepts. This page is the operator side: the money and the fairness. For how the connection is wired, see the companion guide on how to share internet across a building.

The four ways to bill for it

There are only four models, and none is wrong. The right one depends on how even your tenants are and how much billing effort you want.

Include it in the rent

The simplest by a mile. Internet is baked into the rent and you carry the cost as a building expense. Best when usage is even and you want zero admin.

Flat per-unit fee

Every unit pays the same fixed amount covering the line and the gear. Predictable for tenants, easy for you, the most common choice. Only feels unfair if one unit uses far more.

Metered by usage

Each unit pays for what it uses. The fairest model when usage is lopsided, but it needs the gear to measure per-unit consumption and the discipline to show tenants their numbers.

A managed shared-service provider

Hand it to a provider who runs the network and bills tenants directly. You leave the billing seat, giving up some margin and control in exchange.

The fairness problem, and the fix

Every shared connection has the same weak point: one heavy user. On an unmanaged line, whoever downloads hardest wins and the quiet units carry the pain. Charge them the same fee and you have sold a bad deal. Fairness is a setting, not a promise.

Cap each unit

Per-unit quality-of-service caps give every tenant a guaranteed slice when the line is busy, so nobody can starve the others. Quiet times, the spare capacity is anyone's.

Match the cap to the fee

Same flat fee, same cap. If a tenant pays for a bigger share, the cap reflects it. The config is the agreement, applied to everyone the same way.

Let the wiring do the work

The mechanics, VLANs to keep each unit private and QoS to ration the line, live on the technical how-to page. Build it once and fairness stops being an argument.

You are reselling a service, so take care

Once money changes hands for internet, you are effectively reselling a service, not just splitting a cost, and that comes with obligations. None of this is legal advice. If a lease term or real money hinges on it, get advice for your situation.

Read your own plan's terms. Many residential plans forbid resale outright; some business plans allow it with conditions. Know which before you charge a cent.
Do not overclaim. You cannot guarantee a speed or uptime you do not control. Describe what tenants get, not the number on the marketing page.
Know your obligations. Charging for a utility can carry consumer and tenancy responsibilities that vary by where you are and how you charge. Check rather than assume.
Keep it transparent. A tenant who can see exactly what they pay for rarely disputes it. A vague line item invites every argument.

Metering and transparency go together

Here is the thing about a fair split: tenants accept almost any reasonable model if they can see it working. Transparency keeps the peace more than the exact split does. This is where metering earns its keep, and where it fails half-done.

Measure before you meter. A metered model is only fair if you capture per-unit usage, which needs the same managed kit that separates the units.
Show the numbers. A metered bill nobody can verify is worse than a flat fee. Give each tenant a way to see their own usage.
Write it down first. Agree the model, the split and what happens on an outage, in writing, before the first bill. A split agreed up front is accepted; one explained after the fact is contested.

When a tenant should not share

Sharing suits even, ordinary usage. It is the wrong answer for a tenant with genuine dedicated needs, and pushing them onto a shared line to save a little will cost you the tenant. I would not share in these cases.

A business needing its own public IP or SLA. A tenant that needs a static public IP, or carries a service-level guarantee, needs a dedicated line. A shared connection provides neither.
Compliance or insurance obligations. A tenant whose regulator, security policy or insurer has requirements about its network should not sit on shared infrastructure. That is a dedicated service, full stop.
Income that stops when the line does. One connection means one outage takes the whole building down at once. A tenant who cannot afford that shared fate, or who moves serious data all day and resents the fairness cap, is better off on their own line.

Body corporate or single owner changes the answer

Before you pick a model, work out who holds the building. It changes the money flow.

Body corporate block

The cleanest path. Run the connection as a shared building utility and recover the cost through levies. No separate tenant billing at all.

Single-owner block

You hold the account and the choice. Fold it into the rent for simplicity, or bill each unit directly for control. Either works, but you carry the billing.

Decide who owns it

Whatever the structure, one person owns the account, the gear and the reboot when it goes sideways. A network with no owner rots. Name the owner before it goes in.

Straight answers for operators

The questions landlords and operators ask when they start charging for a shared line.

How do I split one internet bill between tenants fairly?

Pick one of four models and put it in writing. Include it in the rent, charge a flat per-unit fee, meter usage and bill by what each unit consumes, or hand it to a managed shared-service provider who bills tenants directly. Include-in-rent is simplest, a flat fee most common. Metered is fairest, but only if you have the gear to measure it and you show tenants the numbers.

Can I legally charge tenants for internet I resell?

Charging for a shared service is common, but taking money for internet means you are effectively reselling it. Read your own plan's terms, because many residential plans forbid resale and some business plans set conditions. Keep the billing transparent and do not promise speeds or uptime you cannot control. This is general information, not legal advice. If money or a lease term hinges on it, get advice specific to your situation.

How do I stop one heavy tenant slowing everyone else down?

Set a per-unit quality-of-service cap so every tenant gets a guaranteed slice when the line is busy and nobody can starve the others. One heavy user on an unmanaged connection wins every time; a per-unit cap makes that impossible. The wiring uses VLANs and QoS, covered on the technical how-to page.

Should I meter tenant internet usage or charge a flat fee?

Flat is simpler and predictable, which most tenants prefer for a utility this cheap per door. Metered is fairer when usage is lopsided, say quiet offices plus one heavy operator, but it needs the gear to measure per-unit usage and only earns trust if tenants can see their own numbers. If your building is fairly even, flat wins on simplicity.

When should a tenant get their own connection instead of sharing?

When a tenant needs their own public IP, a guaranteed service level, or carries compliance or insurance obligations tied to their network. A business that cannot afford to share an outage, or that moves serious data, should hold its own line. Sharing suits even, ordinary usage, not a tenant with genuine dedicated needs.

Does a body corporate change how I bill for shared internet?

Yes. In a body corporate block, run the connection as a building utility and recover the cost through levies, so there is no separate tenant billing. A single-owner block is different: you hold the account and either fold it into rent or bill each unit directly. Decide which structure you are in before you choose a model.

Want a shared connection set up for your building?

Register your interest and tell us where the building is. When there is enough demand near you, we organise the shared connection and set it up to bill properly.