Mobile networks like iD Mobile, SMARTY Mobile and Superdrug Mobile piggyback on Three’s coverage in the UK.
In the UK, there are only four network coverage providers: EE, O2, Three and Vodafone. Every other mobile network is a “virtual network operator”, piggybacking on coverage from one of the big four providers.
At present, a number of mobile networks piggyback on coverage from Three. The two biggest ones are iD Mobile and SMARTY, with Superdrug Mobile also available as smaller provider. On all of these networks, you’ll get the same 3G & 4G coverage as customers on Three, but sometimes with different features and benefits such as data rollover on iD Mobile and unused data discounts on SMARTY.
In this article, we’ll review and compare the mobile networks using coverage from Three in the UK. We’ll compare the best value SIM cards with Three coverage, ranging in price from £5/month up to £20/month and more.
Contents
Mobile Networks Using Three Coverage
In the UK, Three offers 99.8% population coverage on 4G and 98.7% population coverage on 3G. Three is currently rolling out 5G coverage across the UK, with 25 towns and cities due to receive 5G coverage by the end of 2019.
The following table shows a list of mobile networks piggybacking on coverage from Three. On all of these networks, you’ll get the same 99.8% population coverage that’s available to customers on Three:
Mobile Network | Coverage Provider | 2G | 3G | 4G | 5G | Coverage Checker | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Honest Mobile | Three1 | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Check Honest Mobile Coverage | ||
iD Mobile | Three | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Check iD Mobile Coverage | ||
Smarty | Three | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Check Smarty Coverage | ||
Superdrug Mobile | Three | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Check Superdrug Mobile Coverage | ||
Three | Three | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Check Three Coverage |
1 On Honest Mobile, you can buy a £10/month Smart Signal add-on to get access to EE and O2 coverage when Three's coverage isn't available.
For a full list of UK mobile networks and the coverage providers they’re using, please see our in-depth guide to mobile phone coverage in the UK.
Tariff Information & Coverage Map
You can find out more information about each network by tapping on the relevant logo to visit their website:
- Three
3G, 4G & 5G - Honest Mobile
3G & 4G - iD Mobile
3G & 4G - Smarty
3G & 4G - Superdrug Mobile
3G & 4G
You can also read our in-depth review of the coverage that’s available on Three.
In addition to the above types of coverage, customers on iD Mobile and Three can access Wi-Fi Calling and 4G Calling with a compatible handset.
Unfortunately, 2G coverage isn’t available on Three or on any other mobile network that uses coverage from Three. Your smartphone will therefore need to support 3G coverage as a minimum (it isn’t possible to use a 2G-only handset). Certain dual-SIM smartphones may not be compatible with Three or with any other mobile network using coverage from Three.
Deals By Price Range
Through the rest of this article, we’ll compare the best value SIM cards giving you coverage from Three. We’ve separated all of the plans out by price range, starting from £5/month up to £20/month and more.
Please select your preferred price range to see a list of currently available deals:
Less than £10/month
If you’re looking for a low-cost SIM card that costs less than £10/month, there are options available from iD Mobile, SMARTY and Three. Often, it’ll be possible to get a SIM card from just £5/month with inclusive minutes, texts and mobile data.
For light users, SMARTY’s £7.50/month Small plan is well worth a look. Available on a one-month rolling basis, you’ll get unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 2GB of data. There’s an unused data discount of £1.25/GB applying to this plan, meaning the amount you pay in future months could be less than this.
The following table shows SIM cards with coverage from Three that are available for less than £10/month:
Network | Minutes | Texts | Data | Monthly Cost |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 3GB | £5.00 1 month |
![]() | 200 | Unlimited | 2GB | £5.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1GB | £5.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1GB | £5.00 1 month |
![]() | 600 | Unlimited | 1GB | £5.00 12 months |
![]() | 150 | Unlimited | 500MB | £5.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £6.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £6.00 1 month |
![]() | 200 | Unlimited | 2GB | £6.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1GB | £6.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 1GB | £6.00 24 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 10GB | £7.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 6GB | £7.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 2GB | £7.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 15GB | £8.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £8.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £8.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 8GB | £8.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 5GB | £8.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 3GB | £8.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 8GB | £9.00 24 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £9.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £9.00 24 months |
From £10/month
For £10/month, you can choose from a range of SIM cards from Three, iD Mobile, SMARTY and Superdrug Mobile.
On Pay Monthly, our recommended SIM card is SMARTY’s 30GB plan. You’ll get unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and a massive 30GB of data. Alternatively, you could choose the £10 Medium data discount plan which gives you 4GB of data and a discount for unused data at the rate of £1.25 per gigabyte. For instance, if you were to use only 2.4GB of data, you’d have 1.6GB of leftover data. This would translate through to a £2/month discount.
It could also be worth considering Three’s All-in-One 10 bundle which is available on a prepaid basis with no need for a credit check. On Three, you can benefit from the Go Roam offer which allows you to use your mobile phone abroad in 71 destinations at no extra charge.
Network | Minutes | Texts | Data | Monthly Cost |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30GB | £10.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 20GB | £10.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 8GB | £10.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 6GB | £10.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 5GB | £10.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £10.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £10.00 No contract |
![]() | 500 | Unlimited | 4GB | £10.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 50GB | £12.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30GB | £12.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £12.00 24 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £12.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 10GB | £12.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £13.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30GB | £14.00 24 months |
From £15/month
The following deals start from £15/month and offer coverage from Three:
Network | Minutes | Texts | Data | Monthly Cost |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 100GB | £15.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 100GB | £15.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 50GB | £15.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30GB | £15.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 20GB | £15.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 15GB | £15.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 10GB | £15.00 No contract |
![]() | 1,000 | Unlimited | 8GB | £15.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £16.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £16.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 4GB | £16.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £17.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 20GB | £18.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £19.00 1 month |
£20/month and more
The following deals are available from £20/month with coverage from Three. At this price point, you can normally get unlimited data on Three.
Network | Minutes | Texts | Data | Monthly Cost |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £20.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £20.00 12 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £20.00 6 months half price 24 months |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £20.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 50GB | £20.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 12GB | £20.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £24.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 30GB | £24.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £26.00 1 month |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | 36GB | £27.50 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £30.00 No contract |
![]() | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | £35.00 No contract |
Traditional Pay As You Go
The lowest Pay As You Go rates with coverage from Three are available when you join Three directly on their 321 plan. Here, you’ll pay 3p/minute, 2p/text and 1p/MB with no need to top-up your phone every month (you just need to use your SIM card at least once every 180 days in order to keep it active). You’ll also be able to roam abroad at no extra charge in 71 destinations when buying an All-in-One bundle.
iD Mobile also offers a Pay As You Go service with the same 3p/minute, 2p/text and 1p/MB rates as Three. You’ll get the same coverage as customers on Three but without some of the other additional customer benefits like Go Roam or Pay As You Go Rewards.
More Information
For more information, please see our full guide to mobile phone coverage in the UK. For more information about specific price plans, see the Three, iD Mobile, SMARTY and Superdrug Mobile websites.
Grahame Thomson said:
We are currently in Gozo, Malta and have been unable to connect to 3 since yesterday lunch time….we purchased a 12 gb bundle on Thursday and currently c9 gb left….all we get when we try to connect is cannot connect to server try again later. Seriously not impressed with the service. I do hope our month will be extended by this delay.