giffgaff offers a range of flexible SIM-only plans. Find out about their Pay As You Go plans, monthly rolling, and SIM-only contracts.

In the UK, giffgaff now offers a range of SIM-only and mobile phone deals, with the flexibility to change your plan from month to month. You’ll get 4G & 5G coverage from O2, along with inclusive EU roaming (up to 5GB per month in the EU).

At present, giffgaff’s best value plans include 25GB data for £10 and 40GB data for £15 when you take an 18-month contract. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a one-month rolling plan without the long-term commitment, you can get 20GB data for £10. It’s also possible to use giffgaff on a Pay As You Go basis, with no monthly fee.

In this article, we’ll review the giffgaff mobile network. We’ll start by looking at the plans available, including giffgaff’s 18-month ‘good contracts’, the one-month rolling ‘golden goodybags’ and Pay As You Go ‘goodybag’ bundles. We’ll then look at some of the features you’ll get included on giffgaff, and how you can keep your current phone number when you switch to them.

giffgaff Bundles & Plans

In the UK, giffgaff now offers three types of plan:

  • 18-month contracts (also known as ‘good contracts’)
  • Monthly rolling plans (previously known as ‘golden goodybags’)
  • Pay As You Go bundles (previously known as ‘goodybags’)

All of them give you an element of flexibility to change your plan each month (e.g. if you want more data or less data on your plan). However, you can be rewarded with a larger allowance of data when you commit to giffgaff for longer (e.g. when you choose an 18-month plan).

The following table shows a side-by-side comparison of the three types of plan:

18 Month Contract
(Good Contracts)		 Monthly Rolling Plan
(Golden Goodybags)		 Pay As You Go Plans
(Goodybags)
Contact Length:
 18 month contract 1 month rolling No contract (Pay As You Go)
Renews automatically?
 Yes Yes No
Switch Plans:
 Within giffgaff’s 18m range Switch to any plan Switch to any plan
Cancelling Your Plan:
 Fees apply† Cancel any time Cancel any time
Data Allowances
£6 per month: - 2GB data 1GB data
£8 per month: 6GB data 5GB data 4GB data
£10 per month: 25GB data 20GB data 15GB data
£12 per month: - 26GB data 25GB data
£15 per month: 40GB data 35GB data 30GB data
£20 per month: 120GB data 100GB data 80GB data
£25 per month: unlimited data 100GB + Always On data 80GB + Always On data
£35 per month: - unlimited data 150GB data
Minutes & Texts:
 Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited

† If you cancel your 18-month contract early on giffgaff, you’ll need to pay a early termination fee which is 50% of your current plan cost, multiplied by the number of months you have remaining on your contract.

In addition, you can use giffgaff on a traditional Pay As You Go basis with no monthly fees. If you do this, you’ll pay giffgaff’s standard Pay As You Go rates which are 25p per minute, 10p per text and 10p per MB.

Regardless of which SIM-only plan you choose from giffgaff, there’s no credit check and you’ll have access to the same 4G & 5G coverage from O2. You’ll also get inclusive EU roaming (up to 5GB per month).

There’s also 1GB of extra data at no extra cost from the third month onwards when you choose a plan costing £10 per month or more (excluding unlimited data plans).

In the following section, we’ll look at each type of plan in more detail.

18 Month Contracts

Also known as ‘good contracts’, giffgaff’s new 18-month plans are the latest addition to their SIM-only offering. With these plans, you need to commit to staying on giffgaff for the next 18 months. However, you’ll still have the flexibility to change your plan over time (e.g. moving upwards or downwards within giffgaff’s 18-month range).

The following table shows giffgaff’s new 18-month contracts:

TariffMinutesTextsDataMonthly Cost
£8 SIM Only ContractUnlimitedUnlimited6GB£8.00
£10 SIM Only ContractUnlimitedUnlimited25GB£10.00
£15 SIM Only ContractUnlimitedUnlimited40GB£15.00
£20 SIM Only ContractUnlimitedUnlimited120GB£20.00
£25 SIM Only ContractUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited£25.00

You can switch between giffgaff’s 18-month plans at any time without resetting the term of your commitment or incurring early termination fees. However, if you’re leaving giffgaff altogether, there’ll be an early termination fee. This is 50% of your current plan cost, multiplied by the number of months you have remaining on your contract.

Monthly Rolling Plans

Also known as ‘golden goodybags’, these are one-month rolling SIM-only plans that you can change or cancel at any time without incurring a penalty. You’ll also benefit from automatic monthly payments from a saved credit card or debit card.

In terms of the deals available, you won’t always get as much data as you would on an 18-month contract. For instance, you’ll get 20GB data for £10 on a monthly rolling plan (the equivalent 18-month contract comes with 25GB data).

The following table shows giffgaff’s one-month rolling ‘golden goodybag’ plans:

TariffMinutesTextsDataMonthly
Cost
£6 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited2GB£6.00
£8 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited5GB£8.00
£10 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited20GB£10.00
£12 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited26GB£12.00
£15 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited35GB£15.00
£20 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited100GB£20.00
£25 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited100GB
+ Always On		£25.00
£35 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited£35.00

To get a monthly rolling plan, you’ll need to have your payment card details saved inside your giffgaff account. You’ll also need to set your plan to recur automatically. It isn’t possible to manually purchase a golden goodybag from a top-up voucher or from your Pay As You Go credit.

Pay As You Go Plans

If you’re looking for even more flexibility, giffgaff offers ‘goodybag’ bundles that you can buy on a Pay As You Go basis. You can buy a regular goodybag whenever you like, using your Pay As You Go credit, a top-up voucher or a credit/debit card.

The following table shows giffgaff’s regular Pay As You Go plans:

TariffMinutesTextsDataMonthly
Cost
£6 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited1GB£6.00
£8 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited4GB£8.00
£10 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited15GB£10.00
£12 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited25GB£12.00
£15 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited30GB£15.00
£20 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited80GB£20.00
£25 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited80GB
+ Always On		£25.00
£35 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited150GB£35.00

At present, you’ll get 15GB data for £10 on a Pay As You Go plan from giffgaff. This compares to 25GB data on an 18-month contract and 20GB data on a one-month rolling plan.

Pay As You Go Rates

If you don’t have a contract or an active Pay As You Go plan, you’ll pay giffgaff’s standard Pay As You Go rates. There are no monthly fees with this option: you just pay for what you use at the rates of 25p/minute, 10p/text and 10p/MB.

If you call or text another giffgaff member, this will be free as long as you’ve added some credit or purchased a plan in the last 3 months. Your free giffgaff-to-giffgaff calls can last for up to 60 minutes per call, but it’s always possible to hang up and re-dial if you’d like to keep talking.

giffgaff’s standard Pay As You Go rates are as follows:

Calling Rates:
Voice Calls 25p/minute to other UK networks (free to giffgaff)†
International Calls Country dependent (check destination)
Calls to Voicemail 8p/call
Messaging Rates:
Text Message (SMS) 10p to other UK networks (free to giffgaff)†
Picture Message (MMS) 30p
Internet Rates:
Mobile Data 10p/MB

† You’ll get free calls, texts and video calls to other giffgaff members providing you top up at least once every three months. Free giffgaff-to-giffgaff calls can last for up to 60 minutes (though you can hang up and re-dial after one hour).

Most mobile users will be best off choosing a plan. For instance, £6 of Pay As You Go credit would give you either 24 UK minutes or 60MB of data at the standard Pay As You Go rates. For comparison, giffgaff’s £6 golden goodybag gives you unlimited UK minutes, unlimited UK texts and 2GB of data.

Handset Deals

If you’re looking to get a new device, giffgaff sells a range of phones from Apple, Samsung, Google, Motorola, Nokia and more. All of their phones are sold unlocked and come with free delivery on the next business day. There’s also the option to split up the cost of your handset and to pay for it in interest-free instalments through Klarna (at 0% APR).

If you’re looking to save some money and to live more sustainably, giffgaff also sells a range of refurbished mobile phones. On average, refurbished smartphones create 89% less e-waste than buying a brand new smartphone. giffgaff’s refurbished handsets also have a minimum 12-month warranty, along with a battery life guarantee.

Klarna Terms:
0% APR. Finance subject to status and credit checks with Klarna Bank AB (publ). UK residents aged 18+ only. Direct Debit. giffgaff Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and acts as a credit broker and not a lender, offering credit products provided by Klarna Bank AB (publ). Terms apply, see giffgaff.com/terms. giffgaff Limited, UB8 1HB

giffgaff Features

Flexible Plans

Regardless of the plan you choose, there’s the option to move it up or down as you require.

If you’re on one of giffgaff’s 18-month contracts, you can move up or down to any other plan in giffgaff’s 18-month range (e.g. to get more or less data). When you do this, it won’t reset the term of your commitment and you also won’t incur any early termination fees for changing your plan.

If you’re on one of giffgaff’s one-month rolling or Pay As You Go bundles, you can change to any other plan, whenever you like.

Small print: Pay monthly plans allow you to change plan mid-contract. See giffgaff.com/terms for more details on how to switch your plans.

No Credit Check

On all of giffgaff’s SIM-only plans, there’s no need for a credit check when you sign up. This means there’s one less thing to worry about and less hassle when you sign up for a SIM card.

If you buy a mobile phone on a 24-month payment plan with Klarna, a status and credit check will apply for this with Klarna. However, there’s no credit check required if you decide to pay for your phone in one go.

4G & 5G Coverage From O2

On giffgaff, you’ll have access to 99% population coverage across the UK. This is provided by O2’s 2G, 3G and 4G networks.

In addition, if you’re using a 5G-ready phone, you’ll have access to O2’s 5G network in 750 UK towns and cities. This covers around 50% of the UK’s population.

Before you sign up as a giffgaff member, it’s worth checking to make sure you can get coverage where you live. You can do this by entering your postcode on giffgaff’s online coverage map:

Check giffgaff coverage (giffgaff.com) →

5G T&Cs: 5G available in selected areas. 5G device, sim and tariff required to access 5G. See https://www.giffgaff.com/help/articles/does-my-area-have-5g-coverage

Inclusive EU Roaming

On giffgaff, you can use your plan allowances at no extra cost (up to 5GB per month) when you travel to 37 European destinations. This includes popular tourist hotspots such as Spain, Italy, France, Portugal and more.

giffgaff’s inclusive European roaming has a fair use limit of 5GB data per month. For most users, this should be more than enough. According to Ofcom, the average UK mobile user consumes about 4.5GB data per month. This is equivalent to about 1GB data if you’re travelling abroad for one week. If you exceed the 5GB per month limit, you’ll pay an extra 10p/MB.

Unlimited Data Plans

If you’re looking for unlimited data on giffgaff, you can currently choose from the following plans at £35 per month:

TariffMinutesTextsDataMonthly Cost
£35 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited£35.00
1 month

Both of these plans come with access to O2’s 5G network and no speed restrictions. However, there’s a fair usage threshold of 650GB per month. In addition, giffgaff says you shouldn’t tether your phone to more than 12 devices at the same time.

If you’re looking for a lower-cost plan where there’s no need to worry about losing your data connection in the middle of the month, you can consider getting one of giffgaff’s Always On data plans instead. With these plans, you’ll get a certain amount of full-speed 5G data (between 80GB and 120GB per month). If you exceed this, you can continue using data but your download speeds will be reduced to a maximum of 384kbps between 8am and midnight.

TariffMinutesTextsDataMonthly Cost
£25 Golden GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited100GB
+ Always On		£25.00
1 month
£25 GoodybagUnlimitedUnlimited80GB
+ Always On		£25.00
1 month

For more information, see our full guide to unlimited data plans in the UK.

giffgaff App & Community

You can use the giffgaff app to see how much data you’ve used and also to top-up your account on the go. It will also give you access to thousands of public Wi-Fi hotspots, including when you’re travelling on the London Underground.

If you need help and support, this is available through giffgaff’s online community. According to giffgaff, the majority of questions asked on their community will get answered by other members within two minutes. For any account-specific queries (e.g. to do with your SIM card or payments), you can ask a giffgaff agent online.

Certified B Corp

giffgaff is a certified B Corp with a score of 85.8. This score is based on five main areas: how they treat their customers, colleagues, the community, the environment, and how they run their business.

According to giffgaff, they’ve generated more than £1m worth of charitable donations together with their members. In addition, all of their SIM cards are made from recycled plastic, with fully recyclable packaging. In addition, giffgaff offers a choice of refurbished mobile phones, allowing members to save money and to be more sustainable.

Keeping Your Phone Number

If you’re changing from another mobile network to giffgaff, it’s a straightforward process to keep your current phone number.

Start by ordering your new SIM card from the giffgaff website. Once you’ve done that, you can request a PAC Code from your old network. This can normally be obtained through your mobile network’s website or app, or by texting PAC to 65075.

You’ll normally get your giffgaff SIM card delivered on the next working day after you place your order. Once you’ve activated it and chosen your plan, you can submit the PAC Code online through a form on giffgaff’s website. This will schedule the transfer of your phone number (normally for the next working day, as long you submit it before 3pm).

For a step-by-step guide on transferring your phone number to giffgaff, please select your current mobile network from the drop-down menu below:

PAC Code Finder: Transfer Your Phone Number to giffgaff

Select your current mobile network:

  More Options

Be aware that it isn’t possible to transfer credit from your old mobile network to giffgaff. For this reason, you should try to use it up before your phone number moves over.

More Information

For more information about giffgaff’s bundles and plans, please see giffgaff’s official website.

Your Comments 95 so far

We'd love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. So far, we've received 95 comments from readers. You can add your own comment here.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jessica,
      Yes, you can simply use your Pay As You Go credit to buy a goodybay (excluding golden goodybags which can only be purchased from a new card payment).
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

  • Liam said:

    Hi, I’m moving abroad and would like to switch my number to a PAYG GiffGaff (sending a text every six months or so). When I visit home (the U.K.), would it be possible to convert to a Goodybag which includes data for the period of my stay, then revert back to pure PAYG when I go back abroad?

  • Jonathan Bannister said:

    Just an update to your information. Giffgaff have dropped Ratesetter for loans and now use Klarna. The major difference is that Klarna do a hard credit check whereas Ratesetter did not.

  • Ladja Queiroz said:

    I have tried going into my giffgaff login to view my account but the website keeps saying my login and password are incorrect. I have since changed multiple times the password and retrieved the login which I had right in the first place still saying its wrong. I create a new account in order to ask an ‘agent for help’ the agent asks me details which I answer all of and then tells me I haven’t but wont specify what I haven’t included. Now my phone wont call or text or work and I cant even put money on this god damn sim in order to carry it on or stop the monthly payments which they are pretending haven’t gone through. This is by far the worst phone company I have ever used and I will make sure no one I know uses them lets all be honest giff gaff isn’t ‘run by you’ its run by no one.

    • bARBARA replied:

      You have my sympathy. I have just post a comment on similar line . Begining to feel that giffgaff is just one enormous swindle., andd seems I AM NOT ALONE!

  • Jim Morefield said:

    Does the plan start at the first of each month, or does it start 3o days from the day you activate the card. I will be in the UK starting on may 25th and leaving on June 15th, do I need to buy two cards.

    Jim

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jim,
      It starts from the day you activate your goodybag bundle and lasts for one calendar month. Therefore, if you activate on May 25th, it should last you until around June 24th.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Mark Coughlin said:

    I have a gift gaff card, put £10 on my balance, and brought o £15 goodybag, my balance credit went to zero, my goody bag credit was still 14.72GB with unlimited minutes and text, went to send a text and automated voice said you can’t because you have no credit on your balance, so my question is why wasn’t the text charge taken from the unlimited goody bag, it’s as if I have a goody bag but all call charges are coming out of the balance, I don’t understand why I wasn’t able to make text or calls when I had an active goody bag ?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Mark,
      Thanks for your comment. The SMS text message should normally be taken from your goodybag, providing it’s a standard UK landline or mobile number that’s included in your goodybag allowances. If this wasn’t the case, I’d recommend getting in touch with a giffgaff agent and asking them to take a look into it for you.
      Ken

  • Toby said:

    I am coming to the UK from Canada and might need to send a text or make a call to Canada. How do I pay for that if I buy a giffgaff SIM with a bundle?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Toby,
      Thanks for your comment. On giffgaff, you’ll need to top-up your account with extra credit if you’d like to pay for services that are not covered by your goodybag bundle. The minimum top-up is £10 on giffgaff, making this a fairly cost-prohibitive option if you just want to make a short call outside your goodybag!
      One way to side-step this is by initially topping up your account with extra credit before buying your goodybag. For instance, you could top-up with £15 of credit, and then convert £10 of it to a goodybag. This will give you a £10 goodybag along with £5 of credit for all out-of-bundle charges.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Saj said:

    i will be the first time user.

    The website mentioned the following steps :
    1.Fill in the form to get your Free SIM Card
    2. Once it arrives activate it and top up online at giffgaff.com
    3. Once you’ve topped up, pop your SIM into an unlocked phone

    However, the FAQ says – To activate your SIM, you’ll need a credit/debit card, or a top-up voucher.
    So, for both for activation and top-up do we need to enter credit card details?
    How do you obtain that “shiny new activation code”?
    Do I need to top up first to get an activation code?
    To top up do I have to create an account / profile first ?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Saj,
      Thanks for your comment. When your giffgaff SIM card arrives in the post, it will have a unique activation code that you can enter online. This code is simply used to identify the SIM card to giffgaff. Once you’ve entered it online, you can top-up your SIM card (e.g. using a debit card or credit card) and you’ll be assigned a phone number from giffgaff.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Amir,
      Thanks for your comment. You’re absolutely right! If you look at the Companies House documents, “giffgaff operates as a 100% owned subsidiary of Telefonica UK Limited, a mobile network operator trading under the O2 brand”. Here, there’s no actual legal distinction between Telefonica UK and O2 UK. However, I choose to refer to the latter as it’s better known as a household name and is easier for people to understand.
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

  • Kerry said:

    I recently returned from a trip to the UK. I ordered the GIFFGAFF Sim beforehand and got it delivered to the US. It was so easy once I landed in London to activate and topup. I ordered one of those sims that came with a £5 referral so I added £10 so i could use the £15 goody bag.. I had 4g+ consistently, I went to Paris as well and the network was 4g the whole time. I made lots of video calls, social media updating and such, music streaming in the 16days I was there and I had 5.9gb remaining of the 8gb. I have a dual SIM phone and out of curiosity I also bought an ASDA sim, just to compare since it’s using EEs network. I have to admit I was disappointed with ASDA. There were times it had no signal at all example when we went to Windsor Castle. Sorry for the epistle but for some future tourist who might be in doubt as I was, GIFFGAFF got an A+ from me.

    • Niall replied:

      Yes, let it be known Asda, and EE in particular , whose system they use , is for reasons too numerous to mention [poor coverage , crap Pay as U go rates etc] not worth bothering with.

  • Jessica Lee said:

    Hi, i am a tourist and would like to get a prepaid card when travelling to London and Netherland. May I know, which is the best choice for £10 per month bundles (giffgaff or voxi)?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jessica,
      Thanks for your comment. Either of these SIM cards should probably be fine, but I’d typically recommend giffgaff if you’re a visitor to the UK. The reason for this is because you’re able to top-up with a non-UK card, and you can also have the SIM card sent to a non-UK address. I don’t necessarily know whether this is possible on VOXI (and you’ll probably need a UK address for your SIM card to be sent to), though VOXI does offer more data for the same price if you’re able to get it to work.
      KEn

      • Jessica Lee replied:

        Thanks Ken. Since is too short of time, I will need to get/purchase the giffgaff SIM. Will it be expensive and where to get it?

    • Stefan replied:

      Hi Jessica,

      I’m on VOXI but you can only sign up using a debit or credit card. You can’t buy top-up vouchers for VOXI. I’m not sure that foreign debit or credit cards will work on VOXI. In your case I think giffgaff is probably the better option.

      Stefan

      • Jessica Lee replied:

        Hi Stefan,

        Thanks for your response. In that case, I will go for giffgaff. Is it easy to get/purchase the SIM when I am there?

        • Ken replied:

          Hi Jessica,
          Just to give you a bit of feedback on this (@Stefan – feel free to add if I’ve missed something important): you can get a giffgaff SIM card from many UK supermarkets for a small cost of approximately £1. However, it might be easier just to order the SIM card in advance (you can do this on giffgaff’s website – they’ll post out a free SIM card to you, wherever you are in the world).
          Hope this helps,
          Ken

  • June said:

    Hello Ken,

    I am interested in the goody bag £20, GiffGaff. Will the data work in these countries? Is there any additional charges?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi June,
      You can use your giffgaff goodybag at no extra charge when travelling inside the EU. Does this cover the countries you’re looking to visit?
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Dean,
      Many thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, I don’t represent giffgaff, but anyway there is no longer a £30 goodybag available for sale. The most expensive is currently their £25 goodybag which gives you unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and Always-On data.
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

  • Dan Mercer said:

    As of yesterday new Goodybag allowances kicked in eg £7.50 one now gets 2GB Data so guess You might wish to now update this but guess what I’d be most interested to see is how long it takes the competition to respond accordingly in which case a lot more updating would beckon . . . Great site this I find for good objective overview of PAYG!

  • Ganesh said:

    Hi Ken..superb site. Thank you for making the effort to put so much information for your readers.
    I want to get the Giffgaff 20 pounds. But do they post the SIM to Malaysia?

  • Al said:

    Hi Ken
    We live in Switzerland and come to Cornwall 2 or 3 times a year. Every time for 1-3 weeks.
    To get the internet in England I will be using a 4G-N12 Wireless N300 LTE modem router and an Apple notebook. I have no mobile
    Which SIM card (4G / LTE SIM) and which provider should we use?
    We need only Internet (about 3 hours / day) and is it possible if we are not in England to stop a subscription (monthly, or Goodybag or prepaid without subscription) and use again next time?
    Thanks for the help!

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Al,
      Many thanks for the comment. I think firstly it’s worth having a look at my guide to UK mobile coverage (particularly as you’re travelling to Cornwall which has patchy coverage at times). The most important thing is figuring out which network coverage providers serve the area you’re visiting (once you’ve done that, you’ll know which mobile networks it’s possible to use on your phone).
      More generally, I’d recommend getting a Pay As You Go tariff with a 30-day bundle that allows you to tether. giffgaff is a fantastic choice and is probably my recommended network for visitors to the UK. Each time you visit the UK, you can buy a goodybag which will last for 30 days. There is no obligation to then renew that goodybag immediately – instead, you can just wait until the next time you visit the UK. Your SIM card will remain active for future visits, providing it isn’t unused for a period of more than 6 months.
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

      • Al replied:

        Thanks for the quick reply – and it is very useful! I was unsure if I had interpreted the detailed explanations of the website correctly and it seems that I thought in the same direction. Therefore I will test the next visit (September) what is really good. I am glad that there is your website and the many advices, again great thanks for it.

  • Amir said:

    Just for info giffgaff is owned by telefonica not o2. Both companies are owned by the parent company.

    Its like plusnet, its not owned by EE its owned by BT group which also own EE but Life mobile was owned by EE confusing i know but worth getting it right.

    Also ken anyway you can get your site to open new windows when you click on a link the anount of times i click through then close the window only to find your websute gone is very frustrating lol. Most other sites open a new window. Not a moan just a suggestion. But keep up the good work. It seems niw that EE based and three based mvno’s are cheap but o2 based mvno’s are expensive any reason for this?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Amir,
      Many thanks for your comment!
      With regards to giffgaff’s ownership status, I was under the impression they were a subsidiary of O2 rather than a sister company (e.g. from this thread on the giffgaff forums). I’ll do a bit of further digging, but let me know if you think this thread is no longer accurate!
      With regards to opening new windows, thanks also for the feedback on this! Personally, I find it really annoying when websites open links in new windows or tabs. For this reason, I’m probably against changing the behaviour on this website (but on your side, you can always hold down either Shift or Control when clicking a link to open it in a new window/tab).
      With regards to MVNO pricing, I agree that O2 MVNOs tend to be more expensive overall. I think wholesale is an area that EE and Three compete a lot more aggressively in (in particular, Three which has only been serving MVNOs for a couple of years). This probably means they offer more competitive rates to MVNOs on their network. O2 has been fairly quiet in the MVNO space (most of their MVNOs e.g. giffgaff and Tesco are actually partly owned by themselves!)
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Chris said:

    Hi

    I’m coming to the UK next week and am planning on popping a Giffgaff SIM into my phone whilst I’m there. I’ll get a Goodybag, but how are international calls charged? Do I have to set up something different?

  • Gavin said:

    Am I the only one who although is a giff gaff user, does have continuous problems with phone calls or texts? People never find me on the phone as the giff gaff voicemail kicks in immediately as if I live in a remote village in Scotland. I also attempt numerous calls but I cannot easily reach them.

    It is a bit of a problem to be in London, to want to deal with personal and business calls and almost never be reached on the phone and at the end of the day, we are in 2016, not in 1900. Apart from the goodybags and all these cheap and cheerful faces, does giff gaff work? In my experience, it doesn’t!

    It is also deceiving that it relies on the O2 network since I don’t think that O2 does not work in London…

    Any ideas on how to fix the lack of signal reception, since the online community does not mention that at all?

    I cannot change it as the international calls are competitive but still I cannot easily reach them as I wanted to or as they wanted to just find me on my whereabouts…

    Disappointed. But am I the only one?

  • miles said:

    I ken
    I just wanted to share that I have just discovered that Giffgaff now allows topups using Paypal

    This is an important update as you can now link your giffgaff topup to paypal and avoid using topup vouchers. Further, you can set up a recurring goodybag (amount of your choice) and have continuous Giffgaff service.

    I last used Giffgaff in 2012 when you needed to purchase a topup voucher every 30days and then go online and convert the topup into a goodybag – you had to do this every month otherwise you were unable to make calls and this was inconvenient.

    Giffgaff piggybacks on the O2 network which is great

    Kind regards

  • Ian said:

    The 0.49p/min Mobile Termination Rate cap for 1 April 2016 onwards is expressed by Ofcom in terms of ‘2012 pricing’. Taking inflation into account, the actual rate will be slightly higher, and believed to be around 0.51p/min. I assume Ofcom will update their table around 1 April 2016.

    The provisional figure mentioned in the ‘MCT 2015-2018 Review’ Final Statement document on Ofcom’s website is 0.51p/min.

  • Amir said:

    Nothing special about giffgaff now the text should have been dropped to 5p but phone calls kept at 10p! Why they ate doing this is beyond me asvthere are much cheaper alternatives like asda and tesco who still charge 8p a min

    £5 for a hundred mins and 500 text but yet on life you get 500 mins and 500 mb of internet! Make yoir minds up but i’d change tbh

    • Chas replied:

      I have been with Giffgaff for about 5 years when it used to be good value.
      But to receive 10 days notice of a 50% increase in call charges is just not on.
      It is now one of the most expensive providers for uk call charges. Why Giffgaff are hiking there charges up when the market rates are downwards is a mystery

      • Ian replied:

        If you make more than 33 minutes of calls per month to
        – geographic numbers starting 01 (excluding CI and IoM) and 02,
        – non-geographic numbers starting 03, and
        – mobile numbers starting 071-075 and 077-079 (excluding CI and IOM and other giffgaff mobile numbers),
        at 15p per minute, you will already have spent more than £5.

        Beyond usage levels of just 33 minutes per month (less if you also send text messages or use the internet) it’s time to get the £5 goodybag. This comes with 125 minutes of calls, 500 text messages and 100MB data.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Ryan,
      Thanks for the heads up about this! I’ll get the website updated over the next few weeks as giffgaff moves over to their new pricing structure.
      Ken

  • Nelgrd said:

    Just a word of caution to people considering giffgaff – the data speeds are dreadful.

    Giffgaff dont really care. Much better operators out there.

  • Tim said:

    Hi and thank you for the review. I just wanted to know, you said TPO supports the Labour party, so what party does Giff Gaff support? Thanks

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Tim,
      Thanks for your comment and a very good question! I don’t believe giffgaff has any political connections (it’s simply a part of O2 which is then owned by Telefonica, a company based in Spain). With regards to TPO, I don’t believe their connections are explicit (the company was however started by donors to Labour and they’ve also assisted in many Labour campaigns).
      Ken

  • Alistair said:

    Hi… I was looking what 30 day rolling contacts as I’m out of contact with T-Mobile and don’t need another contact as I’m moving country at the end of the year. Giffgaff seems to have good packages but I just wanted to ask if there is any other similar packages that I could consider to see me through to the end of the year. Also, can I set up a direct debit to recredit the package on a monthly basis until I want to cancel it?

    Thanks,

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Alistair,
      giffgaff is certainly a good option: they provide good value without you actually needing to sign any contracts. With regards to paying by Direct Debit, unfortunately this isn’t possible on giffgaff. A fairly good alternative is the auto top-up feature. Every month, giffgaff will take the relevant amount from your credit card automatically (it’s similar to Direct Debit but uses the long number on the front of your credit card instead). You can turn this feature on & off at any time.
      Ken

    • Katarzyna replied:

      Omg this is the worst network ever so keep away from them, you need to pay for call history stray statement £10, recently giff gaff took £7 from my top up account and i can check because i have to pay 10 to investigate it,

  • MiniOnionMinion said:

    HELP PLEASE??!?
    Seeing as GiffGaff, ASDA Mobile and IKEA FamilyMobile all have the same PAYG, what is the best one for a PAYG smartphone (although I might buy a bundle once in a blue moon if bundles are available)???????

    Your conclusions have really confused me…
    Thanks in advance, Ken!

    • Ken replied:

      Hi MiniOnionMinion (loving the name!),
      All three options could be perfect good – it really depends on how you use the handset – there isn’t a one-size-fits-all network I’d like to recommend. In general, I would recommend you first consider coverage on the networks – there’s no good choosing a network if you aren’t able to get coverage in your home. The article I’ve linked to will help you through the process of comparing network coverage. Once you’ve got a shortlist of the networks you’d like to consider, you can then compare the prices or the bundles available on the network. Finally, you could have a look at all my mobile network reviews: they should hopefully help with clarifying some of the details about the network you’ve chosen.
      Good luck and do feel free to drop me another message if you have any specific questions!
      Ken

  • Rich said:

    Hi, If I order a sim card and I want a new number, is it possible to have a say in my new number? ie, something easy to remember.
    Kind Regards
    Rich.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Rich,
      Unfortunately it isn’t possible to choose your own phone number when using giffgaff. As far as I’m aware, the only network allowing you to do this at no extra charge is IKEA Family Mobile who currently charge 8p/minute and 4p/text. Of course, once you have the phone number issued by Family Mobile, you can then transfer it to the network of your choice (i.e. you could use that custom number on giffgaff).
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

  • Nils said:

    As a foreigner I’m interested in a short term solution to mainly internet connection during a vacation. Most operators seem to require a UK adress to ship the SIM to. Do you have any suggestions if I would like to have the SIM before actually arriving in the UK or do I have to go to a shop once in the UK?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Nils,
      Unfortunately if you order a SIM card online, you’ll normally need to have an address in the UK. Sometimes, it will be possible to order a UK SIM card whilst in another country – this will normally be through a third-party retailer (e.g. there might be someone selling UK SIMs on eBay).
      The easiest thing to do would be to probably get the SIM card from a shop in the UK (you can either do this at the airport or you can find a shop close to your hotel). This would obviously restrict you to the major networks which actually have a retail store presence (EE, O2, Three and Vodafone). You can see a comparison of their offerings here, here and here.
      Ken

  • Ying said:

    hi,ken:)

    i wish to know how many subscribers that giffgaff have now? and how about the company’s revenue and OBIDA?

    why giffgaff could run well by the lowest pricing?

    thanks a lot:)

    ying

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Ying,
      Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, I don’t have any concrete figures about giffgaff’s subscriber numbers and company revenue. The most recent press report was from November 2013 where it was said that giffgaff have 1m+ subscribers. For revenue and accounting information, your best bet would be the Companies House accounts. However, at present, these are only made up to December 2012.
      Ken

  • lichtielass said:

    Could someone tell me if this network works as quick as 3 UK and what is the data streaming like, also I would want all u can eat data but when traveling I will need to teather by it but I am able to do this with 3 uk at moment ATM but due to move I no longer get signal in my house and have WiFi but losing value and stuff looking for much the same can anyone advice thanks in advance

    • Ken replied:

      Hi lichtielass,

      Thanks for your comment! giffgaff has some pretty good network speeds – 3G is provided by O2’s network and you’ll get the same speeds as customers on O2 (see the Coverage & Network section of the review). Peak speeds can sometimes be higher on Three but O2 still has very good coverage and there might be little noticeable difference in every day usage.

      Regarding your question about tethering, you can tether on giffgaff but only on packages without unlimited data (i.e. goodybags of £10/month or less). If you’re looking for unlimited data plus tethering, your only real option is to go with Three’s All You Can Eat data.

      Hope this helps,

      Ken

  • Errol said:

    I am a new customer on Gifgaf, I bought a £10 goodybag which was great. For my £10 pounds i got 250 minutes Unlimited texts and 1 Gigabyte of internet.
    My problem and gripe with Gifgaf is that at the end of my month my goodybag ran out, i fully expected to loose the rest of the 700 megabytes i had left. But i hardly used my minutes infact i still had 248 minutes left. But when my goodybag ran out i had no minutes left which i was quite annoyed and felt cheated. Can anybody please tell me if this is a normal practise of Gifgaf. I have vowed not to buy any more air time from them.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Errol,

      The allowances on giffgaff goodybags are for one month only. In your case, you were given 250 minutes, unlimited texts and 1GB internet for £10/month. After the one month is up, you’ll lose any unused allowances. Unfortunately it isn’t possible to roll over your unused allowances to the next month 🙁

      Ken

  • claire said:

    Hi not long moved house and am on 3 UK sim only pay as u go £15 all in one which was great til I moved I no longer get a signal for 3in my house but because its such a fast internet when out and about I am worried GG will not b as quick as know O2 has had bandwidth trouble coz so many on network could anyone comment on this and plus I have Sony xperia S so would need micro sim but which plan would I need to have teathering not for much I only use teathering when wi-fi not available n just phone to my tablet at 3 I can do this for the £15….could anyone that see`s this please comment so I can make an informed decision. Thanks in advance for reading peeps 🙂

  • Soruk said:

    Tethering: You can now tether on the £10 goodybag in addition to the gigabags as it no longer has unlimited data, instead a defined amount (1GB) that you can use in any way you like.

  • Arnold said:

    Been with GG a month now and no real complains especially for what you get for your money. Considering what pathetic allowances other providers make and frequently change too!

  • bkkmei said:

    Giffgaff prices are great value, but I had a tremendous number of problems porting over my old number. I wasn't receiving texts and calls from landlines. Contacting their 'agents' by web means it's hours, if not a day, before you get a response. And all the delayed ping pong of trying to resolve a long running query with different agents, and constant re-explanation of the problem, in the end they're just copying and pasting the same 'resolution' to you over and over again so you just end up going round in circles.
    I'm sure there are many many satisfied users there, but my problem never got resolved and in the end, I had to port out to another provider to get the issue resolved.

  • Flaming-B said:

    I think this article needs updating. GiffGaff are now doing a Blackberry addon for £3 per month and Goodybags can now be configured to renew automatically provided you have a debit card registered.

  • @ahshyuanshyuan said:

    I am on 3 UK pay monthly plan (24 months contract), being such a good internet provider, it's sad that 3 UK doesn't allow internet tethering on my plan (only the One plan will allow tethering). Last few days, I was so urgently needing tethering. I activated my giffgaff simcard which I have ordered earlier on. I was so happy that giffgaff saved my life with its gigabags. 3 UK really disappointing me.

  • Dave said:

    Hi,
    Although you state that there is no fair usage policy on the 'unlimited' data provision on the goody bags, I have discovered from reading giff gaff forums that people have been banned from giff gaff for using "too much" of their 'unlimited' data.

  • Sue said:

    As a natural last minute person, it would have been handy to have a warning that renewing at the last minute doesn't work. I'd assumed the topup was a bit flaky until accidentally seeing a post on the forum. That's a pretty minor gripe for what is a very affordable service. And I prefer getting help from the forum than a phoneline now!

  • Sue said:

    Liking Giffgaff – they offer a really good deal. I tend to go with the £10 monthly Goodybag and especially appreciate not needing to worry about exceeding the data allowannce. I had a problem with an unwanted voicemail notification solved in seconds through the forum. My only small problem is the purchase of a new Goodybag is not available for several hours on the day it runs out and this is not highlighted on the site, so I thought this was down to poor support until I came across a message on a forum.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Sue,

      Thanks for your comment 🙂 How about queuing a Goodybag? The queued Goodybag should then start when your current Goodybag expires meaning you don't have this problem.

      Hope this helps!

      Ken

  • jonreeve said:

    can anyone tell me how to buy one of these goodybags/lab items?Also is there a way to get giffgaff GPRS/MMS settings sent"Over The Air"directly to my mobile plz….oh one more thing!what No. do I call to check balance?HELP!!Thanx

  • Mike said:

    Hi, having used GG for a bit, I can confirm a few things:
    1 – you don’t need to unlock your o2 iphone to work on it.
    2 – there’s more details on the website about the pricing of data.
    3 – free data is available as part of a ‘goodybag’ and this includes using voip and streaming video / audio
    It seems to me a pretty decent deal!
    Mike

  • Mike said:

    This seems to be almost identical to TMobiles £10 plan which offers 100 minutes, Internet, and 100 texts. I know gifgaf states unlimited texts but 100 is plenty for most. What I am interested to know is how much Internet will cost after 25 May. Their website doesn’t specify. It only states it us free until then say if you take the £5 plan. I’m currently with asda mobile using the vodafone network which is great at 8p a call & 4p a text with mobile Internet for 20p a meg.

    • yorr replied:

      100 texts is plenty only if you send 3 texts a day average. unless you live on email/facebook or prefer to call people, it's definitely not plenty these days 🙂

  • Mark said:

    Thanks for another interesting and useful post.

    Is the GiffGaff network a 3G one? My PAYG O2 iPhone 3 GS will be available for unlocking soon and unless I decide the upgrade to the new model I will be looking for for the cheapest way to get G3 when my O2 deal expires.
    I hardly make any calls on the phone and so the GiffGaff £10 goody bag might be ideal – if it provides G3 internet access. It’s a shame it uses O2 as their G3 coverage is far from good.
    I know you covered this question of cheap G3 packages recently but I don’t think it included GiggGaff in the comparison.

    Thanks again you latest report.

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