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Paying only for your call, data and text plan with no handset to subsidies is the cheapest way to run a smartphone these days. Going SIM only, by contrast, will generally leave you free and easy on a rolling monthly agreement. They tend to max out at a year. Jump to network deals: All prices were correct at the time of writing, but deals pricing can change at the drop of a hat. As such, move fast if you want to land yourself a worthwhile bargain.
At such a low price, this is one of the best SIM contracts that money can buy. Providing a range of contracts from several major UK networks, Mobiles. At such an affordable rate, the Vodafone contract is the perfect option for any parents or guardians looking for an inexpensive SIM to give to their children. Once you factor in the automatic cashback, this is an incredible deal that gets you unlimited minutes for a minimal price.
With a solid amount of data included, it's hard to argue with the sheer value for money you get with this great SIM from iD.
Vodafone is currently offering a range of deals on its month plans, all but the two cheapest of which come with unlimited texts and minutes. This is one of the best all-rounder SIM deals on the market, giving you just enough of everything for under a tenner. Virgin Mobile is back with a new round of flash sales, including multiple contracts to suit all types of budgets. The unique service grants customers weekly freebies and early access to gig tickets ahead of their general release. O2 is offering roaming at no extra cost in 75 countries when you sign up.
Definitely a fantastic option for anyone who loves to travel. EE has several cracking deals that are available until the end of January, all of them offering a hefty amount of data for a low monthly price. Signing up with EE also nets you six months of Apple Music and three months of BT Sport on the house, so you can put all that data to good use instantly. This beast of a SIM grants you an amazing 30GB of data, meaning that you'll be a hit with anyone in desperate need of a hotspot.
Plusnet already has quite a reputation for offering low-cost SIM cards with a fair amount of data attached, but with its most recent deal, the company is on to a winner. If your pay monthly contract comes with a phone you'll need to ensure that the phone is paid off or be prepared to pay off the phone in a lump sum before upgrading. If the term of your pay monthly contract has not yet ended you may have to pay a penalty before being allowed to change to a pay monthly SIM only deal.
You can find out this information by checking your account with your current operator online, or by calling customer service for your operator. Most operators offer special SIM only deals just for tablets that contain a healthy monthly data limit. To take advantage of this just make sure that your tablet will accept a SIM card and runs 3G i. A tablet SIM only deal works in the same way as your mobile deal does.
You get a SIM card, a monthly data limit, and a monthly bill. All you need to do is plug that SIM in and go. Technically you could probably use a regular mobile SIM only deal for your tablet, but this isn't advisable. A mobile SIM only deal includes not only a data limit but also calling minutes and text limit, neither of which you'll need on a tablet.
There's no point in paying for services that you're not going to use.
People do get understandably worried about using lesser known operators, but in general, you shouldn't be concerned. Smaller networks known as MVNOs don't have their own infrastructure to provide service. Instead, they rent infrastructure from one of the large networks. This means that if you sign up for Sky Mobile you'll get the same coverage and standard of service as you would from O2. Smaller networks are often cheaper than larger ones since they didn't need to spend money building infrastructure , whilst providing the same standard of service. However, smaller networks do have their own customer service centres, and their own deals for phone models, which may or may not be as good as with a larger operator.
As long as your current contract with your operator is at an end or within the grace period that allows you to change the contract this should be no problem at all. You should call your operator to ensure that you're allowed to change to a SIM only deal, and once you are, go ahead and change. Depending on your operator there may be a period where you're still on your old contract, and you may or may not get two bills in the first month one for you old contract, one for your new.
Again, it's best to check on this with customer service first. Once you've done that you'll need to cancel your old contract and sign up for your new one. In general, it's best to sign up for the new deal first to ensure that there aren't any problems with cancelling your old contract. Call your old operator and ask how their contract cancellation process works and how long it takes before deciding whether to cancel first or not. The company is required to give you this information when requested, though it may take several days to arrive by email or mail.
When you have your PAC, go to your new operator and sign up for a contract, requesting that you keep your old number. If you're signing up online there should be a step that asks you if you want to do this. You'll need to give your PAC to your new operator, and that's it, the operator will do the rest. If you no longer need an old SIM card, you can throw it away. However, since a SIM card does contain data about you, it's best to destroy it first.
Take out the SIM card from your phone and use scissors to cut it into pieces.
Make sure that you cut across the small bronze square at least once since this is the chip that contains your info. Once you've cut it up, you can safely throw the pieces of your old SIM away. All plans include unlimited calling minutes and texts. BT Mobile also offers SIM only family plans that give savings for multiple SIM cards on one account and the convenience of just one bill for all your family phones. EE has a variety of SIM only contract options, including day contracts, all of which offer fast 4G mobile data.
The operator has some of the highest mobile data limits around, making them a good choice if you're a big mobile internet user. All plans have unlimited texts, and most have unlimited calling minutes too.
EE also gives you 6 months access to Apple Music on sign up, and has data caps to prevent you accidentally going over your mobile data allowance. Freedompop is an unusual operator since they don't actually use a mobile operator network. Instead, all calling and texting uses WiFi. This allows the company to have exceptionally low rates starting from you paying absolutely nothing. Currently, not all areas of the UK have access to Freedompop's network. All deals with Freedompop are SIM only and have no contracts , and all include unlimited texts, calling and WiFi data.
However, you will need to check with the operator's website to ensure that you have access to the service in your area. Giffgaff have a range of simple SIM only plans, all containing 4G data as the default. There are no contracts with Giffgaff, and all SIM only plans are day ones, meaning you can cancel anytime. Giffgaff also offers payback rewards, where you collect points for recommending the service to others. These points can be converted to cash, credit, or a charitable donation.
The company offers a range of SIM only plans both big and small, all with 4G mobile data. All contracts are day rolling plans, meaning you can cancel or change your plan at any time. Plans also all include data rollover, so you can push your unused data into next month should you need to. The company also offers bill capping, so you can limit how much your monthly bill can be, meaning no unpleasant surprises! If you're looking for low-cost phone service, iD is an excellent choice. They have a range of SIM only plans, all of which are day contracts so you can cancel or change your plan anytime you like.
They also offer bolt-ons, so you can add extra services to your contract.
Lebara Mobile is a 3G only operator. The operator is particularly known for their great international calling rates, making them a great choice if you have friends or family abroad. O2 is the second largest operator in the UK and offers fast 4G mobile data as well as 3G services.
They have plenty of SIM only plans to choose from, with both 12 month and 30 day contracts available. You can also add bolt-ons to your chosen plan if you decide to add a little extra data to your contract. With O2 you'll get discounts for combining your mobile service with a home broadband service, as well as regular daily deals that give you discounts on cinema tickets, for example, and chances to win phones and other gadgets. They have plenty of SIM only plans to choose from, all of which include international roaming for the same price as UK service, and access to fast 4G mobile data speeds.
There's also the possibility to add a bolt on to your existing plan to give you extra minutes, texts or data should you need to. Plusnet's SIM only plans are no contract, so you can change or cancel your plan at any time. They also offer caps so that you can limit the amount of your monthly bill and not get any surprises! If you're a Plusnet home broadband user, you'll get discounts on mobile plans too. They offer a variety of plans, all with different mobile data limits, and you can change your plan whenever you'd like.
Sky Mobile has both 3G and 4G mobile data coverage. If you're an existing Sky customer you'll get discounts on your mobile service. Sky Mobile also allows you to roll over your leftover mobile data to the next billing month if you like and offers family plans letting you save money and have just one monthly mobile bill. They're renowned for being a simple network to use. All their SIM only contracts are day plans, so you can change or cancel when you wish. All plans have unlimited calling and texting. And if you don't use up your monthly data limit, a discount is given on your next mobile bill.
You can add add-ons to your plan should you need any extra mobile data, and data is available in both 3G and 4G. Currently, roaming and international calling are not available on Smarty, but these features are coming soon. You'll get 4G data as standard, and contracts are available in 12 month or day forms, giving you flexibility.
There are plenty of different plans to choose from with Tesco Mobile, including affordable family plans. You can also cap your monthly spending to prevent spending too much. Tesco Mobile offers great parental controls for kid's accounts too. All contracts with TPO are day rolling contracts, so there's no credit check and you can change or cancel your plan whenever you like. All plans include unlimited texting, and there are add-ons should you need any extra monthly data or calling minutes.
Three are famous for being one of the best UK operators for mobile data and offer 4G as well as 3G service. They are one of the few operators that have an unlimited data plan although not all plans contain this.
Three offer both 12 month and 1-month contracts and the company guarantees that you will not get an unexpectedly large data bill. With Three you can also stream services such as Netflix without using up your mobile data limit. All their plans include fast 4G mobile data and unlimited texts. The company offers 12 month SIM free contracts, but allows you to change your data limit at any time should you need more or less mobile data. You can roll over any unused data to the next month.
Virgin Mobile also lets you use services such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger without using any of your data limits, and has no mobile roaming charges in 43 countries across the world. Vodafone is the third largest mobile operator in the UK. They offer a wide range of SIM only plans on both 12 month and 1 month contracts, all of which include fast 4G mobile data. On a 12 month contract you can change your plan after the first 3 months if you find you need different data, texting or calling limits. You can add a variety of Vodafone Passes to the contract that allows you to use certain apps such as WhatsApp or Netflix without needing to use your mobile data.
And Vodafone offers no roaming charges in different destinations. Voxi is an MVNO that uses Vodafone's network to provide service and is designed for customers under the age of They offer a range of SIM only plans, all on 30 day contracts, allowing you to change or cancel your plan whenever you like. All plans have unlimited texting and calling and fast 4G mobile data, and all allow you to use social media apps such as Facebook and Snapchat without using up your mobile data limit.
You'll also be able to use your phone anywhere in Europe for no extra charge and be rewarded for recommending the operator to friends or family. If you have any questions relating to our SIM only deals and whether they're right for you then feel free to contact us for advice. Latest Guide: The Best Family Plans. Filter and sort deals. Choose Your Network All Networks asdamobile bt ee giffgaff id o2 plusnet skymobile smarty tescomobile three virginmobile vodafone voxi.
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