Free Pay As You Go SIM Cards: The Best Pay As You Go Deals In The UK

There are 15 mobile networks that offer a free Pay As You Go SIM card. Discover the UK’s best Pay As You Go SIMs.

In the UK, most mobile networks offer a free Pay As You Go SIM card, allowing you to use your mobile phone with no contracts and no long-term commitments. You’ll simply need to top it up and put the SIM card inside your mobile phone: there are no credit checks required and there’s no need to set up a Direct Debit.

Alongside the four main networks that offer their own Pay As You Go SIM cards (EE, O2, Three and Vodafone), there are lots of other Pay As You Go providers that will give you the exact same coverage. For instance, giffgaff offers 4G & 5G coverage from O2 on a range of flexible Pay As You Go plans, with no need to top-up every month.

In this article, we’ve reviewed 15 mobile networks to find our best Pay As You Go SIM cards. Here’s an overview of our top picks:

	giffgaff: Best Overall Pay As You Go SIM Bundles from £6 per month, or traditional Pay As You Go with no monthly top-up. With O2 5G coverage. Learn more.
	VOXI: Best for Social Media & Messaging Browse social media and chat with your friends, without using your data. With Vodafone 5G coverage. Learn more.
	Vodafone Pay As You Go: Best for Rewards Get discounted meals, coffees, and days out with the family using a Pay As You Go SIM. Learn more.
	Lyca Mobile: Best for International Travel & Calls Roam at no extra cost in the EU and India (up to 35GB). Plus international minutes for calling 41 destinations.
	1p Mobile: Best for Pay As You Go Rates Top-up with £10 and use over a 60-day period, at rates of 1p/minute, 1p/text and 1p/MB.
	Lyca Mobile eSIM: Best for UK Visitors Get instant online delivery, with international calls & EE 5G coverage included.

You can read on to find out more about each individual Pay As You Go provider.

Best Pay As You Go SIM Cards

Best Overall Pay As You Go SIM Card

giffgaff

giffgaff is one of the UK’s most popular providers when it comes to Pay As You Go SIM cards. They’re part of O2, but they’re run as a separate brand. As such, you’ll get access to the same coverage as O2 customers. In addition, you’ll also get the faster speeds available on 5G (which isn’t available to O2’s own Pay As You Go customers).

There are two ways to use a giffgaff Pay As You Go SIM card:

• You can buy a monthly plan with inclusive minutes, texts and data. With this option, you’ll top-up by a fixed amount each month. In return, you’ll get unlimited minutes, unlimited texts, and an allowance of data. For instance, there’s 2GB data for £6, 5GB data for £8 and 20GB data for £10.
• You can use traditional Pay As You Go with no need to top-up every month. The only requirement is that you’ll need to use your SIM card at least once every 6 months. On traditional Pay As You Go, you’ll pay 25p/minute, 10p/text and 10p/MB. You’ll get free calls and texts to other giffgaff members as long as you’ve topped up in the last 3 months.

On giffgaff, there are some additional features included such as EU roaming (up to 5GB per month) and access to WiFi on the London Underground. However, their customer support is an online-only affair. In addition, you won’t get access to the O2 Priority app.

Best for Social Media & Messaging

VOXI

If you’re looking for a Pay As You Go SIM card that allows you to stay in touch with your friends and family without worrying about data, VOXI offers Unlimited Social Media on all of their Pay As You Go plans. This means you can use Facebook, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Instagram and more without it counting towards your download limit. There are also plans available with Unlimited Music and Unlimited Video.

Some of the plans currently available include 20GB for £10 (with Unlimited Social Media) and 25GB for £12 (with Unlimited Music and Social Media).

The main disadvantage to be aware of is that international roaming will cost extra on VOXI so you’ll need to budget extra for this if you’re planning to travel abroad soon.

You’ll get 5G coverage from Vodafone’s network on all of VOXI’s Pay As You Go plans. This is because they operate as a sub-brand of Vodafone (in the same way that giffgaff is actually owned and operated by O2).

Best for Rewards

Vodafone

Vodafone is one of the UK’s big name mobile networks with their own Pay As You Go service.

In our opinion, a key reason to choose Vodafone’s Pay As You Go service is VeryMe Rewards. This gives you access to exclusive offers from brands like Costa Coffee, Just Eat, Sainsbury’s and Thortful. For instance, you’ll get discounted meals at independent restaurants, along with savings on coffee and days out with your family (in partnership with Eat Local from the Gourmet Society, Local Blend from Coffee Club, and the Kids Pass).

If you’re a regular mobile user, you can get 8GB data for £10 and 25GB data for £15 on Vodafone. This makes Vodafone a comparatively expensive option, as you can get more data for the same price on giffgaff and VOXI. Having said that, it can be worthwhile if you utilise the VeryMe Reward offers.

If you’re a light mobile user, Vodafone has a seldom-advertised plan known as ‘Pay as you go 1’. On this plan, you’ll pay £1 per day for unlimited UK minutes, unlimited UK texts and 50MB data. Crucially, you’ll only pay this if you actually use your phone for calls, texts or data (receiving an incoming call or text doesn’t count). Therefore, this plan can be a good option if you’re getting a SIM card for emergency use, as you can call and text as much as you like for £1 per day.

Best for International Travel & Calls

Lyca Mobile

If you’re looking for a Pay As You Go SIM card that allows you to roam internationally at no extra cost, Lyca Mobile is currently our recommended option.

On all of Lyca Mobile’s plans, you’ll get inclusive roaming in Europe and India, with a generous limit on the amount of data you can use abroad each month (up to 12GB on limited data plans and 35GB on unlimited data plans). For comparison, you’ll get just 5GB per month of international roaming on giffgaff, and nothing on VOXI and Vodafone. There’s also an AloTurka plan with inclusive roaming in Turkey.

When you order a new Lyca Mobile Pay As You Go SIM card, you’ll be able to benefit from one of their introductory deals that start from £4.25/month. You’ll be able to benefit from this discounted price for up to 3 months:

Alternative: Depending on where you’re travelling to, there could be better value options. For instance, VOXI can be a good option if you’re travelling to the USA, Canada or the Caribbean with your mobile phone.

Best for Low Pay As You Go Rates

1pMobile

If you’re looking for the lowest possible Pay As You Go rates, 1pMobile has a flexible Pay As You Go plan where you’ll pay just 1p/minute, 1p/text and 1p/MB. The catch is that you’ll need to spend at least £10 every 60 days on your SIM. For this reason, it isn’t suitable for light users who would otherwise spend less than £5 per month.

If you’re a regular user, there are a range of one-month bundles available on 1pMobile such as 2GB data for £6, 10GB data for £8 and 25GB data for £10. All of these plans come with 4G and 5G coverage from EE.

1pMobile has been around since 2016. It’s a sister company of the Utility Warehouse and is also part of the FTSE 250-listed Telecom Plus PLC. According to their latest report, they have 420,000 mobile customers, split across the 1pMobile and Utility Warehouse brands. This makes them a medium-sized provider, with a track record over the last 8 years.

Best for Visitors to the UK

Lyca Mobile eSIM

If you’re visiting the UK and looking for a Pay As You Go mobile plan, our recommendation is to get a Lyca Mobile UK eSIM. At the time of writing, they’re the only fully-featured Pay As You Go mobile network in the UK to offer their plans on an eSIM with instant online delivery. This means there’s no need to get a physical SIM card, and you’ll be able to use it alongside another SIM card through dual-SIM functionality.

If you’re using a Lyca Mobile eSIM, you’ll have access to 99% population coverage across the UK. This is powered by EE’s 4G and 5G network. You’ll also get some international minutes (which can be handy for calling back home), along with roaming at no extra cost in the EU and India.

If you no longer need to use your Lyca Mobile eSIM, you can cancel the automatic renewal of your plan at any time.

Alternative: If you still have a bit of time before your trip to the UK, you can order a giffgaff SIM card. On giffgaff, there’s free international delivery but it can take up to 5 business days or more for your SIM card to arrive. As you’re getting a regular SIM card, there’s no need to have an eSIM-ready phone.

Other Pay As You Go SIM Cards

Big provider but slow, expensive & few customer benefits

EE

In the UK, EE still offers a Pay As You Go service, even though they haven’t really promoted it for a number of years (it’s mainly a carry-over from their old heritage brands of Orange and T-Mobile).

Although EE’s Pay As You Go service is still available, there are few good reasons to sign up for it today. That’s because it’s relatively expensive and you’ll only get a small amount of data. There’s also a maximum download speed of 25Mbps (this is a speed limit that no other mobile network has).

If you choose Pay As You Go from another major brand such as O2 or Vodafone, there are normally some special offers available that can make up for the higher price you pay (e.g. with O2 Priority and VeryMe Rewards). On EE, there isn’t really anything equivalent as most of their customer benefits are only available on Pay Monthly. All you’ll really get on EE Pay As You Go is the ability to earn up to 3GB extra data per month and the ability to connect to 150,000+ BT Wi-Fi hotspots.

Pay As You Go SIM with O2 Priority rewards

O2

If you’re looking for a Pay As You Go SIM card with exclusive customer offers, O2’s Pay As You Go SIM will give you access to the O2 Priority app. This gives you savings on dining out and other experiences, plus early access tickets to selected gigs and events across the UK.

The disadvantage of O2’s Pay As You Go service is that it’s relatively expensive, especially when compared to a giffgaff SIM card. On O2, you’ll get a smaller amount of data that’s restricted to 4G speeds.

Another drawback is that some of the best offers have recently been withdrawn from Priority, such as the weekly coffee and sausage roll freebies.

Pay As You Go SIM with Three+ rewards & inclusive Go Roam

Three

Three currently offers a Pay As You Go SIM card, with a choice of bundles available from £10 per month. Although the coverage isn’t quite as good as on EE, O2 or Vodafone, you’ll get access to 5G at no extra cost.

There are two main benefits to choosing Three’s Pay As You Go SIM card.

Firstly, you’ll get access to their Three+ rewards such as a £1 coffee from Caffè Nero each week, or a cinema ticket for just £3 at Cineworld. This can go some way towards helping you ‘earn back’ the cost of your plan.

Secondly, you’ll get international roaming at no extra cost in 71 destinations. This can be beneficial if you’re travelling to certain destinations such as the USA. You’ll normally pay up to £5 per day extra for this on Three’s Pay Monthly plans.

Bundles from £4 with Vodafone coverage

ASDA Mobile

If you’d like a Pay As You Go SIM card with Vodafone coverage, it’s cheaper getting an ASDA Mobile SIM card.

On ASDA Mobile, you can choose from a range of one-month bundles that start from just £4 per month. The cheapest £4 per month plan gives you unlimited UK minutes & unlimited UK texts. You’ll then get an allowance of data included on the plans from £5 per month (e.g. 3GB data for £5, or 10GB data for £8). You’ll also get 5G coverage included on the plans from £10 per month.

If you don’t want to top-up your phone every month, you can use ASDA Mobile on a traditional Pay As You Go basis. With this option, you’ll pay 15p/minute, 10p/text and 10p/MB.

For customers with a connection to China or Hong Kong

CMLink

If you have a connection to Mainland China or Hong Kong, you can consider a CMLink Pay As You Go SIM card. This is available from the UK arm of China Mobile International.

Some of the added features you’ll get include the ability to use some of your data at no extra cost in Mainland China and Hong Kong. There are also 1,000 international minutes included each month. You can use this for calling China, Hong Kong and other selected destinations.

Customers with a China Mobile phone number in the mainland or Hong Kong can link that to their CMLink UK SIM for an extra £3 per month. This will allow you to receive incoming calls and texts on that number.

Expensive Pay As You Go SIM with Three coverage

iD Mobile

iD Mobile is the own-brand mobile network from Currys and the Carphone Warehouse. They offer Pay As You Go plans from £6 per month, but these have barely changed over the last few years. As such, you’ll get very small amounts of data (e.g. only 6GB data for £10). Combine that with the limited customer benefits and poorer coverage, and there’s almost no good reason to choose an iD Pay As You Go SIM.

Pay As You Go with 3 months half price & Vodafone 5G coverage

Lebara Mobile

In the UK, Lebara Mobile offers Pay As You Go bundles from £5 per month. All of their plans come with an inclusive allowance of international minutes, plus roaming in the EU and India at no extra cost.

As a special offer for readers of this website, you can get 3 months half price when you use the KEN3 voucher code at checkout. This makes it possible, for instance, to get 5GB data for just £2.50 per month for 3 months.

A Welsh mobile network with EE coverage & Welsh support

RWG Mobile

Also known by its full name of ‘Red White & Green’, RWG Mobile calls itself the “mobile network for Wales”. They offer cheap Pay As You Go plans with UK-wide coverage, provided by EE’s 4G and 5G network. Their customer support is available in both English and Welsh.

Pay As You Go plans with EE 5G coverage

Talk Home Mobile

In the UK, Talk Home Mobile offers Pay As You Go plans with 4G & 5G coverage from EE. Most notably, they have a Penny Pro plan where you’ll pay just 1p/minute, 1p/text and 1p/MB. This is similar to the rates on 1pMobile. However, the catch is you’ll need to manually opt-in every 30 days to benefit from this rates (otherwise, you’ll pay their standard rates of 18p/minute and 5p/text).

Earn Clubcard points on your mobile spend

Tesco Mobile

When you join Tesco Mobile’s Pay As You Go service, you’ll be able to earn Clubcard points on all of your Tesco Mobile spend.

Regular mobile users can get a Rocket Pack bundle from £7.50 per month. Alternatively, light users can choose the Triple Credit plan. With this, you’ll get some bonus credit that lasts for one month, every time you top-up your phone.

For most people, it’s difficult to recommend Tesco’s Pay As You Go service as you’ll generally get more data for less elsewhere. Although it’s a nice bonus being able to get some Clubcard points on your spend, this amounts to just 1% back (e.g. you’ll get Clubcard points that are worth just 10p, when you top-up by £10).

Frequently Asked Questions

More Information

For more information, see our guide to Pay As You Go deals in the UK. You can also read our in-depth mobile network reviews and our guide to the best SIM-only deals (including Pay Monthly SIMs).