Q1 2026 National Call Centre Rankings
These results reveal how well Australian call centres are handling new customer enquiries — based on real mystery shopping calls conducted by trained assessors.
We analyse over 80 individual CX metrics using the Australian Contact Centre CX Standards — providing an independent, consistent and detailed view of service delivery across the sector.
This quarterly snapshot highlights standout performers, identifies friction points, and helps set expectations for what great CX should look like — supported by our Benchmarking Services that assist contact centre managers in delivering award-winning contact centres.
Executive Summary – National Call Centre Rankings Q1 2026
The Quarter in Summary
Australia's contact centre performance deteriorated sharply in Q1 2026, with the national Overall CX average falling to 50.7% — the lowest result on record since ACXPA commenced national benchmarking. This marks the second consecutive quarter of decline and confirms that the modest gains seen earlier in 2025 have been comprehensively reversed. The industry is now operating at levels not seen since the baseline period of 2023.
These results are drawn from real mystery shopping calls conducted by trained assessors attempting to enquire about, or purchase, products and services across seven key sectors. The assessment reflects genuine sales and acquisition opportunities — not service or retention calls — meaning accessibility failures and conversation breakdowns translate directly to lost revenue, abandoned purchases, and early-stage brand damage before the customer relationship even begins.
The Accessibility Crisis
The quarter was defined by a sector-wide accessibility crisis. Calls Answered Percentage collapsed to 77.0% — down 13.3 percentage points from Q4 2025 — meaning nearly one in four prospective customers calling contact centres experienced extended delays beyond ten minutes or abandoned their call entirely. This represents lost sales opportunities at the initial point of contact.
Average Wait Time increased to 2:28, up 29 seconds from the previous quarter and the longest wait recorded since Q1 2024. Total Time to Reach Live Person reached 3:41, extending the end-to-end customer journey by 34 seconds and representing the most difficult access environment on record. While these wait times may appear modest compared to service or technical support lines where delays routinely extend beyond fifteen minutes, they are measured against inbound sales enquiries — the very calls organisations should be prioritising to capture revenue and build new customer relationships.
Sector Performance and Banking's Collapse
At a sector level, performance softened almost universally. Six of seven sectors recorded quarter-on-quarter declines in Overall CX, with only Councils improving marginally by 1.6 percentage points. Leadership at the top remained consistent: ISPs led Overall CX for the fifth consecutive quarter, while Banks ranked last for the fifth consecutive quarter and for 10 of the past 11 quarters.
However, the Banking sector experienced a catastrophic collapse in Q1 2026, recording 32.3% — its worst result on record — driven by four major banks finishing among the bottom four organisations nationally, with Bendigo Bank achieving 5.9%, the lowest quarterly result ever recorded across all sectors since ACXPA benchmarking commenced. This collapse coincided with a period of rising interest rates and heightened customer interest in switching providers or securing better deals, potentially overwhelming contact centre capacity during a period of peak demand for sales and retention conversations.
Agent Mastery: The Only Bright Spot
Beneath these headline movements sits one notable exception to the prevailing decline. Agent Mastery — which measures the soft skills agents use to build rapport, uncover customer needs, explain clearly, and close with confidence — improved to 53.1%, up 1.9 percentage points from Q4 2025. Agent Mastery assesses how effectively agents Engage (build rapport and take ownership), Discover (identify what the customer actually needs), Educate (explain product features and benefits clearly), Close (conclude the call with clarity and next steps), and create lasting Impact through empathy and communication quality.
This represents the first quarter-on-quarter improvement in Agent Mastery since Q2 2025 and provides the only measurable evidence of forward progress in the quarter. This improvement suggests that the decline in Overall CX was driven almost entirely by accessibility failures rather than conversation quality — agents who did connect with customers performed marginally better than the previous quarter. However, this gain in soft-skill capability is largely theoretical for the growing number of customers unable to reach an agent at all.
The Challenge Ahead
The data reinforces an increasingly urgent industry challenge: excellent conversation capability exists at the top end, but accessibility failures are preventing customers from experiencing it. When one in four sales calls is abandoned or delayed beyond reasonable timeframes, and wait times extend beyond two and a half minutes on average, contact centres are failing at the first and most fundamental test — making themselves available to the customers attempting to reach them. Overall CX outcomes are now being shaped less by what happens during conversations and more by whether those conversations occur at all.
Leading Contact Centres – Q1 2026
Each quarter, ACXPA recognises the contact centres that delivered standout performance against the Australian Contact Centre CX Standards. These results highlight where excellence is being achieved nationally — whether through strong balance across all measures or exceptional execution in a specific dimension of contact centre performance.
Engie recorded its first national Overall CX win, delivering the strongest combined performance across both Accessibility and Agent Mastery. Their result reinforces the impact of balanced execution — making it easy for customers to connect and delivering confident, effective conversations once they do. Engie has now led the Energy sector in 8 of the past 11 quarters, with Q1 2026 marking their fifth consecutive sector victory.
Engie led the nation for Accessibility, continuing a pattern of consistently strong access outcomes. Their result demonstrates that near-instant connection is achievable at scale when call handling fundamentals are executed well. Engie maintained their sector-leading Average Wait Time of just 0:04 (4 seconds).
Youi topped Agent Mastery nationally, delivering the strongest aggregate performance across the five competencies of Engage, Discover, Educate, Close, and Impact. Their result sets a clear benchmark for frontline capability and conversation quality. Youi has now led the Car Insurance sector in Agent Mastery for 7 consecutive quarters.
Engie set the national benchmark for speed of answer, connecting callers to a live agent in just four seconds on average — the most visible expression of Accessibility performance and a result achieved for the sixth consecutive quarter.
🎯 Agent Mastery Competency Leaders
Agent Mastery assesses universal conversation skills that apply to all contact centres, regardless of industry, product, or enquiry type. These competencies deliberately exclude product knowledge, internal processes, or policy compliance, focusing instead on how effectively agents communicate, guide, and support callers through a live interaction.
Q1 results show that leadership in these skills is distributed, with different organisations excelling at different stages of the enquiry journey:
Key Wins – Industry Progress
Despite the sharpest national decline on record, the data continues to highlight areas of genuine progress. These wins are important not because they represent industry-wide improvement, but because they show what is demonstrably achievable when contact centres execute well against the fundamentals.
💬 Agent Mastery improves for the first time in three quarters
National Agent Mastery averaged 53.1%, up 1.9 percentage points from Q4 2025, representing the first quarter-on-quarter improvement since Q2 2025. This provides measurable evidence that conversation quality is stabilising and, in some cases, advancing — even as accessibility continues to deteriorate. Leading performers such as Youi (72.1%), Optus Internet (68.8%), and Energy Australia (65.0%) continue to demonstrate that high-quality, effective enquiry conversations remain achievable at scale.
🎯 Four of five Agent Mastery competencies show improvement
Engage improved to 31.1% (down 0.6 percentage points), while Discover improved to 47.0% (up 2.1 percentage points), Educate improved to 62.1% (up 2.5 percentage points), Close declined to 50.9% (down 2.6 percentage points), and Impact improved to 72.9% (up 5.5 percentage points). The substantial improvement in Impact — the competency measuring empathy, communication quality, and lasting positive impression — represents the strongest individual gain across all measured dimensions.
📞 Accessibility excellence remains achievable at the top end
National Accessibility averaged 61.8% in Q1 2026. While this reflects significant volatility at the industry level, leading performers such as Engie (94.1%), Uniting NSW.ACT (92.3%), and Uniting AgeWell (92.0%) continue to demonstrate that excellent ease of connection is achievable across very different sectors when call handling fundamentals are executed consistently.
⏱ Fast connection remains achievable for leading centres
Several organisations continue to deliver exceptionally short wait times. Engie (0:04), TPG Internet (0:05), and Telstra Internet (0:07) recorded the fastest average connection times nationally across the entire quarter, reinforcing that speed of answer remains a controllable outcome when resourced and managed effectively.
🏆 Consistent execution continues to deliver sustained results
Sector momentum remains visible where execution discipline is maintained. ISPs led Overall CX for the fifth consecutive quarter with 60.6%, while individual organisations such as Engie (fifth consecutive Energy sector win), Youi (9 of the past 10 quarters leading Car Insurance), and Holmesglen Institute (10 consecutive quarters leading Education) demonstrate that sustained CX performance is built through consistency, not short-term intervention.
Overall CX Challenges – National Issues
Q1 2026 revealed the most severe deterioration in national contact centre performance since ACXPA benchmarking commenced. While the previous quarter represented a concerning low point, Q1 2026 confirms that accessibility challenges are now systemic, structural, and worsening — with consequences that extend across all measured sectors.
📉 The weakest national Overall CX result on record
The national Overall CX average fell to 50.7%, down 2.0 percentage points from Q4 2025 and marking the lowest industry-wide result since ACXPA benchmarking commenced in Q3 2023. This confirms that the improvements seen in Q2 2025 were not sustained and that pressure on contact centre performance intensified through the second half of 2025 and into early 2026.
📞 Calls Answered Percentage collapses to historic low
Calls Answered Percentage plummeted to 77.0%, down 13.3 percentage points from Q4 2025 (90.3%) and representing the lowest result on record. Nearly one in four Australians calling contact centres experienced extended delays or call abandonment when attempting to reach a live agent. This represents a fundamental failure at the first stage of the customer journey and materially undermines any subsequent improvements in conversation quality or resolution outcomes.
⏱ Average Wait Time reaches worst level since Q1 2024
National Average Wait Time increased to 2:28, up 29 seconds from Q4 2025 (1:59) and matching the longest wait time recorded since Q1 2024. Total Time to Reach Live Person reached 3:41, up 34 seconds from Q4 2025 (3:07), meaning customers now navigate menus, listen to messages, and wait in queues for nearly four minutes before speaking with anyone who can address their enquiry.
🏦 Banking sector records catastrophic collapse
Banks recorded 32.3% Overall CX, their worst result on record and the fifth consecutive quarter in last place nationally (10 of the past 11 quarters). Four major banks finished among the bottom four organisations nationally: Bendigo Bank (5.9%) — the lowest quarterly result ever recorded across all sectors since ACXPA benchmarking commenced — ING (15.2%), NAB (19.8%), and Westpac (23.1%). Banking Accessibility collapsed to 31.2%, with Calls Answered Percentage falling to 56.8%, meaning fewer than six in ten prospective customer calls are answered within 10 minutes.
⚖️ Performance polarisation continues to widen
Overall CX scores ranged from 73.0% at the top to 5.9% at the bottom this quarter. While leading centres are delivering fast, confident, and effective experiences, a growing cohort continues to struggle with consistent execution across core CX fundamentals. The gap between best and worst performance now spans 67.1 percentage points — the widest disparity on record.
🔻 Six of seven sectors decline quarter-on-quarter
Only Councils improved quarter-on-quarter (up 1.6 percentage points to 57.8%). All other sectors declined: Banks (down 5.8 percentage points), ISPs (down 2.0 percentage points), Energy Retailers (down 1.0 percentage point), Car Insurance (down 2.8 percentage points), Education Providers (down 4.8 percentage points), and Aged Care (down 1.4 percentage points). This sector-wide deterioration reinforces that Q1 2026 represents a structural challenge, not isolated underperformance.
Final Thought
Q1 2026 reinforces a clear national message: excellence in contact centre performance is achievable, but it is becoming increasingly rare. The strongest performers continue to demonstrate that fast access and high-quality, human conversations can coexist — while a growing majority struggle to deliver one, the other, or both.
This matters because the contact centre remains one of the most operationally intensive and commercially influential functions in many organisations. When access is unreliable or conversations lack confidence and clarity, effort increases, resolution drops, and demand is pushed elsewhere — driving higher cost to serve and poorer outcomes. When one in four calls is abandoned or delayed beyond reasonable timeframes, the question is no longer about conversation quality — it is about whether conversations occur at all.
By contrast, best-practice contact centres consistently show stronger efficiency, clearer decision outcomes, and higher conversion or resolution rates. They resolve more enquiries first time, reduce repeat contact, and make better use of frontline capacity — benefits that compound over time as volumes grow and environments become more complex.
The data shows this is possible: Engie connects customers in 4 seconds and delivers 73.0% Overall CX. Youi achieves 72.1% Agent Mastery with balanced performance across all five competencies. Holmesglen Institute has led its sector for 10 consecutive quarters through consistent execution.
As the national industry association, ACXPA exists to lift capability across the sector through independent benchmarking, shared standards, and evidence-based insight. The purpose of this report is not simply to rank performance, but to show where execution gaps are limiting results and what best practice looks like when those gaps are closed.
The leaders have shown what is possible. For the rest of the industry, the challenge is now unmistakable: deliver access that is reliable, conversations that are confident and effective, and a customer experience that earns trust — while operating more efficiently — every call, every time.
Recognising Call Centre Excellence in Australia
Congratulations to the top-performing contact centres delivering standout customer experiences for their business in Q1 2026.
These results are based on independent mystery shopping assessments, using real customer enquiries to evaluate how well contact centres are meeting the expectations of Australian consumers.
While industry averages provide important benchmarks, it's the ability to respond quickly, reduce friction, and convert interest into action that separates the best from the rest.
Quarterly Trend
Overall CX
Australian (Industry)
The Overall CX Score is the most important metric in our benchmarking program – a single, weighted score that reflects how easy it is for customers to reach a contact centre and the quality of the experience once connected.
As the defining measure of customer experience, the Overall CX Score blends Accessibility (30%) and Agent Mastery (70%) to reflect both access and impact – with a greater emphasis on the agent's role in shaping outcomes. Penalties are applied for major breakdowns to ensure a true picture of performance from the customer's perspective.
Key Metrics Trend – Australian Call Centre Industry (12-Month View)
The chart below highlights a 12-month trend across three core CX performance metrics for the Australian call centre industry:
- Overall CX – A weighted composite score reflecting the end-to-end customer experience, factoring in accessibility, agent quality, and call handling efficiency.
- Accessibility – The ease of reaching a human agent.
- Agent Mastery – The quality and effectiveness of agent conversations.
Overall CX
This is the headline metric – representing the total customer experience across every stage of the call journey. It's calculated using a weighted combination of the Accessibility and Agent Mastery scores, providing a holistic view of how effectively contact centres deliver end-to-end service across all sectors and customer types.
Accessibility
This measures how easily and quickly customers can reach a live person. It includes website access to phone numbers, phone menu complexity, clarity of options, time spent in queue, and call answer rates. Higher scores reflect faster, simpler, and more customer-friendly access to support and sales teams.
Agent Mastery
This evaluates the skill, confidence, and professionalism of frontline agents. It covers how well they greet callers, understand needs, explain options, resolve enquiries, and close the call – including tone, empathy, clarity, and overall delivery. It's a direct reflection of the human side of the experience.
Learn more about the Australian Contact Centre CX Standards that power these assessments.
Call Centre CX Quadrant – Australian Call Centre Industry Sectors Q1 2026
This Call Centre CX Quadrant illustrates how Australian contact centres sectors compare in Accessibility (ease of reaching a live agent) and Agent Mastery (quality of customer interactions).
Striking the right balance is no easy feat – some sectors offer fast and easy access, but fall short in agent skill or engagement, which can undermine the overall experience.
Others may deliver strong agent interactions but frustrate customers with long wait times or difficult IVRs before help is even reached.
The top-right quadrant represents Contact Centre CX best practice – sectors that make it both easy to get help and deliver high-quality conversations once the conversation begins.
