Three offers Pay As You Go ‘Data Packs’ with inclusive roaming in 71 destinations, 5G coverage, and Three+ rewards.

In the UK, Three offers Pay As You Go Data Packs that allow you to use your mobile phone with no contract and no credit check. All of their Pay As You Go plans come with inclusive roaming in 71 worldwide destinations, plus 5G coverage on what they claim is “the UK’s fastest 5G network”. You’ll also get exclusive Three+ customer rewards, plus discounts of up to 10% for setting your plan to renew automatically.

In this article, we’ll review Three’s Pay As You Go service, including all of their Data Pack bundles and the features that you’ll get on them. We’ll also look at the coverage available and how you can keep your current phone number when switching to the deals.

Prices From: £10 per month
Best Pay As You Go Deals:
Benefits:
  • Roam at no extra cost in 71 worldwide destinations (incl. USA, Europe & more).
  • Access to Three’s 5G network, with the fastest available speeds.
  • Exclusive Three+ offers from Cineworld, Caffè Nero, Uber Eats & more.
  • No contract, no credit check & extra savings with auto-renew.
Coverage: 4G & 5G coverage from Three (check postcode)

Data Pack Bundles

In the UK, Three offers ‘Data Pack’ bundles that are available on a Pay As You Go basis, with no contract, no credit check, and no long-term commitments. As well as letting you change your plan whenever you like, it comes with inclusive roaming in 71 destinations as well as exclusive offers in the Three+ app. This can save you money when you shop, eat and travel this summer.

The following table shows Three’s Data Pack bundles:

Network Data Monthly Cost
Three
  • Unlimited mins
  • Unlimited texts
12GB
data
£10.00
per month
No contract
See deal  
Three
  • Unlimited mins
  • Unlimited texts
40GB
data
£13.50
per month
No contract
See deal  
Three
  • Unlimited mins
  • Unlimited texts
80GB
data
£18.00
per month
No contract
See deal  
Three
  • Unlimited mins
  • Unlimited texts
Unlimited
data
£31.50
per month
No contract
See deal  

The prices shown in the table above include auto-renew savings. These are available when you set your Data Pack to automatically renew. If you’d like to buy a one-off Data Pack without the auto-renew feature, reduced allowances and higher prices may apply (e.g. you’ll be able to get 10GB data for £10, 30GB data for £15, 60GB data for £20, and unlimited data for £35 per month).

It’s also possible to buy a 3-month unlimited data pack for £90. This will cost you the equivalent of £30 per month, allowing you to save some money when you pay for three months upfront.

Three Pay As You Go Features

Inclusive Roaming

In our opinion, one of the biggest benefits of getting a Pay As You Go SIM card from Three is the fact that you’ll be able to use it at no extra cost in 71 worldwide destinations. This includes most European countries, as well as destinations further afield like the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Singapore, and more.

If you’re planning to travel abroad this summer, it’s a benefit that can save you significant amounts of money. For instance, on the other major UK networks, you’ll sometimes need to pay up to £2.47 per day to use your phone in Europe, and often around £7 per day to use it further afield (e.g. in the USA). With the inclusive Go Roam offer, you can therefore save between £17 and £49 over a one-week trip abroad.

With Go Roam, you’re able to use your UK allowances at no extra cost when you’re abroad. This includes calling and texting other UK phone numbers, and your mobile data (up to 12GB per month).

Three+ Rewards

Another way to save money with your Three Pay As You Go SIM card is by downloading their exclusive Three+ rewards app. This gives you a range of offers and discounts at high-street brands like Cineworld, Caffè Nero, Uber Eats, Zizzi, and Nike.

As an example of some of the offers currently available, you’re able to get a barista-made drink for just £1 at Caffè Nero each week. There are also £3 cinema tickets from Cineworld and £5 classic pizzas from Zizzi. This can save you a fair bit of money whenever you go out.

Alongside the offers and discounts, the Three+ app offers pre-sale tickets for various festivals, gigs and events across the UK. For instance, in the past, they’ve offered early access tickets to Live Nation festivals including Reading & Leeds, Latitude, the Isle of Wight festival, and more.

5G Ready Plans

All of Three’s Pay As You Go plans come with access to their 5G network, which covers more than 60% of the UK’s population. As long as you’re using a 5G-ready phone in Three’s 5G coverage area, this will allow you to access faster download speeds, compared to 4G.

According to the latest Ookla speed test data, Three claims to have the UK’s fastest 5G network. This is based on their 5G network having a median download speed of 226Mbps (Q3-Q4 2024). This compares to a median 5G download speed of 142Mbps on Vodafone, 95Mbps on EE, and 70Mbps on O2.

Another benefit is that Three gives their Pay As You Go customers complete access to their 5G network, without speed restrictions or slowdowns. This differs from some of the other major Pay As You Go networks, where speed limits may apply to Pay As You Go plans.

No Contract & No Credit Check

There’s no contract on Three’s Pay As You Go service. Instead, you can simply pay for it on a month-by-month basis, a bit like how you’d pay for other subscriptions like Spotify and Netflix. You also have the flexibility to change or cancel your plan each month. This is because there are no long-term commitments.

Because it’s a prepaid product, there’s also no chance of running up unexpected bills. In addition, there’s no credit check required. Instead, you get a hassle-free sign-up process and they’ll send out a new SIM card to you free of charge. It’s also open to everyone, including under-18s and new arrivals to the UK.

Auto-Renew Bonus

For convenience, there’s an auto-renew feature that you can use with your Three Pay As You Go Data Pack. With auto-renew, you’ll be able to save your payment details in your Three account. At the end of each month, Three will automatically renew the Data Pack for you, using the saved payment details. This saves you the hassle of needing to remember to manually renew your plan. Equally, it doesn’t tie you in to a long-term contract as you’re able to switch off the auto-renewal at any time.

As an added bonus for using the auto-renew feature, you’re able to get some extra data, plus savings of up to 10%. The following table shows the auto-renew bonuses available:

Standard 1-month Data Pack Auto-Renew Data Pack with Bonus
£10 for 10GB £10 for 12GB (2GB extra data)
£15 for 30GB £13.50 for 40GB (save 10% & get 10GB extra data)
£20 for 60GB £18 for 80GB (save 10% & get 20GB extra data)
£35 for unlimited data £31.50 for unlimited (save 10%)

Coverage

On Three’s Pay As You Go service, you’ll get access to both their 4G and 5G networks.

According to Three, they offer 4G coverage to 99% of the UK’s population, plus 5G coverage to more than 60% of the UK’s population. To see the coverage available where you live, you can enter your postcode on their website.

Check Three Coverage (three.co.uk) →

Some of the other major UK networks only offer 4G coverage to Pay As You Go customers. In addition, download speed limits may also apply on Pay As You Go. In contrast, Three offers 5G coverage to their Pay As You Go customers, with access to their fastest available speeds at no extra cost.

If you’re using a compatible device, you’ll be able to use Wi-Fi Calling and 4G Calling on Three Pay As You Go.

Keeping Your Phone Number

If you’re switching to Three’s Pay As You Go service, it’s a straightforward process to keep your current phone number.

To start off, order your new Pay As You Go SIM card from Three’s website. Once you’ve done that, you can get a PAC Code from your current network. This is available through your mobile network’s website or app, or by texting PAC to 65075.

When your new Pay As You Go SIM card arrives from Three, you’ll be able to fill out this form on their website. Once you’ve done that, your phone number transfer will be scheduled, normally for the next working day.

For step-by-step instructions on how to transfer your phone number to Three, please select your current mobile network from the drop-down menu below:

PAC Code Finder: Transfer Your Phone Number to Three

Select your current mobile network:

  More Options

More Information

For more information about Three’s Pay As You Go service, please see Three’s official website.

Your Comments 134 so far

We'd love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. So far, we've received 134 comments from readers. You can add your own comment here.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Ian,
      Thanks a lot for the heads up on this – it’s very much appreciated! I’ve updated the article to reflect the new PAYG allowances.
      Many thanks again,
      Ken

  • Ken said:

    Hi all,
    Just a quick note to let you know that the article above has been updated for Three’s new Pay As You Go plans. The comments below refer to their older Pay As You Go plans (from 2022 and before).
    Ken

  • Ken said:

    Although 3 have increased their PAYG rates from 12th July, if you have a Data Reward sim to get the 200mb free every month, you will still pay 3p for calls, 2p for texts and 1p for data. I have just checked this on my phone.

    • Mike replied:

      This only applies to existing customers. I have checked my sim card in my mobile broadband router and I am still receiving the 200mb data a month. It is no longer available to new customers. You can still buy a pre-pay data sim with the 321 rates for £10. Without the 200mb entitlement it is not worth it.

      RWG Wales offer a SIM only deal (piggybacking on EE). You buy a sim card pre-loaded with £15 and you get 750mb of data, 100 minutes and 100 texts free every month. If you go over your allowance it is 5p/min 5p/text and 1p/MB. Ideal for those who use their phone occasionally.

  • Miles said:

    Three have just hiked up their payg prices to 35p per minute a far cry from the 3/2/1 tariff that was so popular and really drove down the price of using a mobile. If you want three coverage Smarty £5/mth is the way to go.

  • Mike said:

    Three are to increase prices again! From July 12th the price of a call will increase from 10p/minute to 35p/minute, texts will increase from 10p/text to 15p/text & data per MB will increase from 5p to 10p.

    If you do not like the increase I suggest adding a bundle or moving to one of their pay monthly contracts or moving to another network 🙂

  • Mike said:

    Just received a text message from Three this afternoon. Anyone who is on the 321 pay as you go tariff will see prices increase from 16th February in line with their new supercharged tariff. The cost from 16th will be 10p a min, 10p a text and 5p per MB of data. I am not sure if this will apply to the Three Data Reward Pay As You Go Tariff though..

  • Rojer said:

    Lots of information to digest! What I can say is that British cell phone plans are definitely cheaper than American ones and there was no way we were going to pay the extortionant rates from AT&T!

    My wife and I did a European vacation last year (Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain) and we bought our SIM card in the USA before we left from myuksimcard. It was good to have it with us when we boarded the plane in Atlanta so we knew our cell numbers ready for use for Uber at London’s Heathrow airport.

    There are also vending machines for SIM cards in the arrivals area of the airport but the prices are sky high! Avoid at all costs!

    We are so looking forward to going back to London once this crazy covid settles down!

  • Ken said:

    Hi all,
    Just a quick note to let you know that Three have updated their Pay As You Go plans (we’ve updated the article above to reflect these changes).
    The £10 Data Pack now includes 5GB of data (previously 10GB).
    The £15 Data Pack now includes 10GB of data (previously 20GB).
    The £20 Data Pack now includes 100GB of data (previously 40GB).
    The £30 Data Pack still includes unlimited data (no change here).
    Ken

  • Daniel Glass said:

    Dear Ken,
    One issue with the new ‘supercharged’ sim from Three is that the 30 day packs are fixed for 30 days exactly. So if you need extra data you have to get a top up at more expensive rates. You cannot start a new 30 day plan like you could on the 123 tariff.
    I ordered a supercharged sim a couple of weeks ago and began a 10GB plan, but due to recent events I have discovered my data usage is much higher than normal. I will run out of data before the end of the 30 days. I had hoped the plan would cover my data needs with just one action per month.
    As a variable data user, depending on various factors such as location and work load, I have had to use mobile data to connect a laptop/tablet. Most of the time, with careful monitoring of the usage, I could manage to keep within the data add-on limit I purchased at the start on the 30 day 123 plan. The coverage was generally good enough at most locations, but sometimes I could not avoid running out before the 30 days were up, so I would purchase a new data add-on and the 30 days would restart. I could also purchase an add-on before the 30 days were over and it would be queued on the account so there would be no loss of service (on the new tariff, you have to wait until the 30 day time limit is up until you can purchase a new plan, meaning there is a short break while you organise it). Occasionally, I would not renew a tariff for a day or two as I had no data requirement. It was a flexible tariff which suited my usage.
    The initial bundles on the new plan are cheaper per GB, but more restrictive when you run out of data. To avoid this, it would be better to be sure how much I might need before I start the 30 days. However, this might mean spending more than I would need to. Also, the removal of the 123 plan means it is much more expensive to use it as a payg sim. There are cheaper options for light users.
    Overall, I think this new plan is great for heavy data users who know how much they use, but it is restrictive for my variable use, and for relatives who are light users on payg. Fortunately, we still have our old 123 sims, so we can use them pro tem, but I will have to re-evaluate whether to continue with the new sim or not. Of course, the current situation makes planning more difficult, so it’s back to doing a lot of research on the various options. I will use your site as one of my go-to options to keep up-to-date with current prices.

    Thanks for all the information.

    Regards,

    Daniel Glass.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Daniel,
      Thanks a lot for the feedback on this! It’s a shame that you aren’t able to renew your add-on early on Three’s new Supercharged Pay As You Go plan. It’s definitely worth feeding this back to them as I’m surprised they’ve “lost” the ability to do this in moving to a new range of bundles…
      Ken

      • Nick replied:

        Can you switch from a supercharged plan to 321 one, if you received a recent supercharged sim card ?

        It makes no sense to buy bundles every month if you are not using them. So with the new supercharged the price increase from 1p/MB to 5p/Mb

        I ask because you mentioned “If you’re ordering a Pay As You Go handset from Three, you’ll still be given a SIM card from Three on the 321 plan.” So the 321 plan hasn’t been phased out. At least not entirely.

          • Nick replied:

            Hi Ken,

            Thanks for the update. Do you know if you can port in a number to a three data rewards sim card ?

            I’m trying to salvage a very easy to remember number that I just got from Three 2 days ago. I like the 1p/MB, but the 5p/MB not so much.

            Do you know if I can transfer the number to a three contract and then back to a data rewards sim card ?

            I’m want to find the right combination that doesn’t require much top up (the rewards sim has 2 pound top up option which is great), doesn’t expire often and has great roaming even outside of the EU. ie US and US Virgin Islands.

            I should also mention that I’m not a UK resident.

            I want to use the number to receive and forward voip calls on occasion, and regular voice calls and text messages for 2 factor authentication. To my horror I’ve seen some (non uk banks I should say) not playing nice with voip numbers that have sms capabilities.

            I digress but the number of financial institutions and brokers that employ 2 factor authentication that isn’t tied to your mobile phone is countable in the hands of one finger on an international level. Sim swap fraud is on the rise. I mean using 2FA with TOTP with authy, google authenticator or the app of your choice. Fortunately some banks give the option to use a hardware token to generate passcodes.

            Personally I cover most of communication needs via voip and this is the primary reason I do not require much data to go on.

            I think Three has far the best roaming deal that I could find up until this point. All the other options for international sim cards are either more expensive, they require top up every so often, or they would be with a company that you won’t know if they are going to be in business five years from now.

            A possible suggestion. Make a page about the rwgmobile: the credit expiry, top up duration and roaming costs.

          • Ken replied:

            Hi Nick,
            Thanks for your comment. Yes, I believe it should still be possible to port your phone number into a Data Reward SIM card. Unfortunately, however, it wouldn’t be possible to use a PAC Code to transfer a phone number inside of Three. You can either ask their customer services team to do this for you, or you’ll need to port out to another network and then back in to the Data Reward SIM.
            Hope this helps,
            Ken

  • Mike said:

    Three have relaunched their pay as you go tariff. They’ve introduced a monthly data pack where if you pay £10 you will get 10GB of data. If you pay £20 you will get 40gb data. Unfortunately, they have scrapped the cheap 321 rates and now charge 10p a minute to call a landline and mobile, 10p to send text message and 5p per GB for mobile internet. I am not sure if existing pay as you go customer will be effected by this change but if it does happen I will be changing networks!!
    Their pay as you go DATA (internet with legs 200mb free data) tariff remain the same.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Mike,
      Thanks a lot for letting me know about this! I’ll get the website updated in the coming few days to reflect the changes to their tariff.
      Ken

  • alan jones said:

    Good article ken,but if ur a light user,why not put the data reward sim in ur phone? You still get the 321 rate,and add a bundle if you want,but you get 200mb a month free,no top up required,it auto renwews evert 30 days

  • Shirley W said:

    Hi Ken. I have been reading your blog on SIM cards in the UK as I will be traveling to the UK and USA for a month in total. Three’s pay as you go sim seems to be the best but the only problem is it cannot tether 😔

    My initial plan was to get a 30 days SIM card which I can use on my spare iPhone as a hotspot while I can still keep my own phone with my local sim just in case there is emergency call while I am not in my country.

    In my case can you suggest any other sim which I can get while I arrive at London next week? Thank you in advance your advise.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Shirley,
      Many thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, I’m not aware of a Pay As You Go SIM card that both allows you to use your phone in the US at no extra charge, and that also allows you to tether. It’s possible you might need two separate SIM cards for this (e.g. one in the UK and another one in the US). For the UK, I’d recommend giffgaff as a good SIM card for visitors. They allow you to tether at no extra charge, and have some rates in the UK.
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi John,
      Thanks for your comment. Technically speaking, I think it’s against the terms and conditions to tether on Three’s Pay As You Go service. I know Three does make use of some tethering detection, but I’m not sure how strictly they apply this and how regularly they do it.
      Ken

  • Emgee said:

    I use 3 on payg, but 3 are going to remove the free 150mb with the top up from May 23rd. This is a good feature. When I’ve run out of data, I can go on to the 3 site and purchase a monthly internet add-on, without using credit to do it. Now it’ll cost me to get add-ons, unless I can get to a free wifi place.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Emgee,
      Thank you for the heads up about this, and it’s a real shame that Three are removing the 150MB free allowance. I’ve updated the article above to reflect this information. I believe customers will instead receive a (measly) 10MB of free data when they top-up their account in the future.
      Ken

      • Emgee replied:

        Ken,
        Thanks for the information about the 10Mb allowance. That information wasn’t included on the text from Three. At least I’ll be able to log on to the website to buy the add-on after topping up.
        I’m not a heavy user, in general, except when I have some research to do. The 150 Mb often used to last several days, which has saved me money over the last nine years (as a Three payg customer) by delaying the beginning of the 30 day period.

  • William Grierson said:

    In your description for £10 bundles you say Asda has 1.5Gb and GiffGaff has 1Gb yet in the table it shows 3.5Gb and 2Gb respectively.
    The same as in the description for £15 bundles Asda 3Gb and GiffGaff 4Gb but in the table it shows 5Gb for both.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi William,
      Many thanks for the heads up about this! giffgaff updated their bundles very recently, so the £10 goodybag now includes 2GB of data (rather than the 1GB per month it previously contained). With regards to ASDA Mobile, they’re offering a time-limited promotion where customers get 2GB/month of extra free data until the 27th June 2017.
      I’ve just updated the information above to better reflect this (the comparison tables across the website are updated automatically, but sometimes I miss out on copy/content changes).
      Thanks again!
      Ken

  • Sushi said:

    I would like to use a Three pay as you go sim in my iPhone I am going to get. Outside home I would like to use for talk and text only (only in case of energency I will use email). There fore I would like to have internet set to off outside home. I do not want it to connect automatically in hotspots. At home I would like wifi connection on iPhone. How does this work? Also how do I set in my iPhone to work?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi there,
      Thanks for your comment. You can turn off mobile internet on your iPhone – this will stop it from connecting to the internet when you’re out-and-about, but you’ll still be able to use wi-fi when you’re at home. To do this, go to Settings followed by Mobile/Cellular. There should then be a toggle for disabling Mobile/Cellular Data.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Rutsee said:

    Hi,

    I have a question. If I use pay as you go, how frequent is it that I need to top-up?
    My situation is that I left UK to a country that three is not accessible, but I want to keep my number since I would go back to study (but maybe in 2 years time). I will not use any text, call and data. I just want to top up to maintain my number. Do I need to top-up every month? Or else I can just leave it a few months and top-up again?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Rutsee,
      Thanks for your comment. You can read more about this in my article on Pay As You Go inactivity and credit expiry. However, in short, you’ll need to top-up or make a chargeable activity at least once every six months to keep your Three SIM card active. Therefore, there are two ways to keep your SIM card active:
      1) You can simply use the SIM card to send a text message every so often. This will cost you something like 35p when you’re abroad in another country (the exact rate will depend on which country you’re in).
      2) You can add a top-up to the SIM card every so often. Three has a minimum top-up of £5 each time. Therefore, if you top-up once every six months, you’re looking at about £20 of credit over the next two years.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • miles said:

    Hi Ken
    I have recently transferred to 1p mobile which is 1p per min, text and mb which is super cheap. Its on the EE network so coverage is good and you have 2/3 and 4G access. Being EE you can use the sim in a 2G phone which is a major advantage over Three. The only disadvantage is that there is a minimum charge of £5 per month. For example if you use 125 minutes, 125 texts and 125 mb this will cost £3.75. At the end of the month you lose the remaining £1.25 which is unused and you will need to topup with another £5 for the following month. You manage the account online and topups are via paypal which is very easy.

    So far so good

    Regards

  • miles said:

    Hi Ken
    I use 3 payg at 3p/min, 2p/text, 1p/min which is unbeatable value in my opinion. I think its the best way to run a mobile phone in the UK. I buy sim free iphones and use a 3 payg sim.
    There are various other options out there with the Giffgaff £7.50 goodybag being a front runner which offers 250 minutes 500mb and unlimited texts. There are various online reviews comparing the 3 payg against giffgaff goodybags often saying GG is better value which I think is incorrect.
    The key issue is that the GG goodbags are time limited to 30 days and will expire whereas 3 payg credit never expires. This is key as regardless of how many minutes/texts/mb you may use on GiffGaff your credit expires after 30 day sand you need to topup again.
    With 3 payg if you topup with say £10 you can us this to suit your EXACT needs ie 333 minutes or 500 texts or 1GB of data or any combination and the credit never expires. Therefore your £10 is still available to you months after you topped up depending on how you use it. I find that a £10 topup usually lasts me 8-9 weeks which is unbeatable value.
    This is my opinion and It would be great to hear peoples views
    Kind Regards

  • Alan said:

    Hi, great site. I am using three PAYG with the 321 deal. I started checking my balance after each text and find I am being charge 4p per text not 2p. Request a delivery report is switched off. There is no itemized billing to let me investigate, any idea why I am being charged double the advertised rate?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Alan,
      Great question. Unfortunately, the only thing I’m able to think is your text message might possibly be going over the 160 character limit (or sometimes 80 characters if you’re using a foreign smartphone configured to use double-byte encoding). I assume you’ve already double-checked to make sure this isn’t the case – nevertheless, you’re probably best off contacting Three Customer Services and asking them to check the charges for you.
      Ken

  • Ian said:

    A very useful explanation of 3 mobile – many thanks. My specific question is how much does it cost to check voice mail from the USA, if on payg with a feel at home add on. The 3 website says to call +447782 333 123 when abroad, not simply 123, so I’m wondering if it is more expensive than 3p per min.

  • Alex Finch said:

    I’ve been on 321 for years. It is really annoying that they don’t provide itemised bills. It makes it impossible to work out whether it really is a good deal or not because you can’t work out where your money went. I think it is but I do wonder some times.

  • Helenback said:

    Hi. I am thinking of going onto one of the Three sim only packages. If the deal has, say 200 minutes included, what would I be charged if I went over and above the 200 minutes? Many thanks.

  • Aziz Ahmed said:

    Hi Ken,
    Great informative article. Thank you!

    I purchased PAYG sim while in London less than a year ago. I did not use the sim after the 30-day expiration. I am planning another trip to Europe. Can I still use the 3 Mobile sim after topping up with a voucher and purchasing a add-on?

    Thank you,
    Aziz

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Aziz,
      Thanks for your comment. In theory, Three reserves the right to terminate your SIM card if you don’t use it for a period of 6 months. For this reason, it’s possible your Pay As You Go SIM card will no longer work (always worth giving it a go however as they won’t always close the account straight away). If your account has already been closed, you’ll need to buy a new SIM card and add-on.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Frank said:

    Came across your excellent site via Google. I’ve obtained a Three pay as you go sim and intend moving from giffgaff because I am a light user. I would like more data at a cheaper price than with giffgaff, where I have to purchase minutes and texts on a goodie bag which I never use. My question is, if I just stick with the 321 tariff can I use the phone in France (at a higher cost) or do I have to buy an add on? I won’t be using it much, just to check emails. I wouldn’t be streaming or anything like that.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Frank,
      Thanks for your comment. Yes: you can use your handset in France without a bundle but you’ll pay the out-of-bundle rates listed in this table (likely to change on the 30th April due to forthcoming changes to EU roaming). As you say, it’s a bit more expensive than using your phone in the UK but will probably be fine for very light usage. If you’re going for more than a few days, it might be better value to buy the a £10 All-in-One bundle to save on these charges.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Jim said:

    Ken, this site is excellent, THANKS!
    I am traveling to London from the US and the 3 PAY as U Go look perfect. Looks like I need to go to a Three store to get a Sim card? Are they free and is there a minimum top up? Was hoping to do 5 pounds as I will be getting 1 per each of the 4 family members.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jim,
      Thanks for your comment. Yes, the SIM card from Three is free to obtain as long as you top-up the SIM card at the same time (if not, it’ll cost you £1 for the SIM card). You can obtain one from a Three retail store upon arrival. For a £5 top-up, you’ll need to do this online (this may require you to have a UK-based credit card). I believe the minimum top-up is £10 in a Three retail store.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Tom said:

    Hi Ken, great article!

    I’ve been on the 321 deal for some time now and for me it works really well! One thing I would say to people who are comparing to this deal is that you really need to look at your actual usage rather than averages… when I compared my average usage to a cheap giffgaff plan, the 321 deal came off worse. But when I looked at what I would have actually paid in each individual month, then 321 was better. This is because if you’re on a monthly plan you never see the benefit of a month where your usage is low and also you get stung with a higher rate should you go over and above your plan allowance.

    Another reason 321 works for me is that I’m on Wi-Fi at home, work, friends houses, pretty much everywhere I go! And by using WhatsApp for calling and messaging I rarely get charged at all on my actual plan. (As an aside, even if you’re not on Wi-Fi then a WhatsApp call uses less than 1mb of data per minute of call, so it’s still cheaper than using the normal phone service and getting charged 3p a minute).

    I’m not saying 321 is for everyone, but it’s worth assessing just how much of your data usage is on Wi-Fi. As by making a few changes to the way you communicate, this deal can really save you some money!

      • John Hadley replied:

        Thanks Ken, I’ve forwarded your excellent site to my partner who has now got a 321 sim for her iPhone 4s as it seems the best value. Actually, she is having a problem activating the sim as it happens although her iPhone is unlocked. Is this a common problem?
        Many thanks

        • Ken replied:

          Hi John,
          Thanks very much for getting back to me. Is there a problem activating the SIM card itself or are you getting a ‘SIM Not Valid’ error as discussed on this page? The latter would indicate that your iPhone 4S isn’t unlocked (otherwise, it’ll be a problem specific to the SIM card).
          Hope this helps,
          Ken

  • Dodger said:

    This is a rip off 3—-get with it…..I get for 10 pound ultd tx 500mins,gig of data on giffgaff and if ppl from another network ring me I get the mins they use added to mine…..you used to have a deal with ultd data…where’s that gone….and also I have applied to you for a contract phone,I couldn’t after one check even access your page,it blocked me,I have never had a contract,yet you wouldn’t give me a chance… Reply that….bet ya won’t

  • Jane said:

    Hi Ken,

    I’ve just joined 3 PAYG and noticed that I was being charged an extra 1p per text – making it 3p a text rather than 2p. Searching around for the reason, I found out that 3 charges 1p for a text delivery confirmation (I think it’s actually 1.2p). I turned this off and my texts were being charged 2p as expected. Today, I just noticed I’ve been either charged 3p for one of my texts or I’ve been charged 1p for using the internet despite that I’m still within my 150MB allowance from my top up. Is there another hidden charge that accounts for this extra 1p? I know it’s a small amount but I’m just curious if there is another hidden charge somewhere and why I’ve incurred this unexpected cost?

    Thanks

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jane,
      Great question! Unfortunately, I’m not sure exactly where the 1p might be going – does it tell you in the My3 interface? It might be worth trying to get an itemised bill from Three so you can see where the money has actually been spent.
      Ken

      • Jane replied:

        Thanks for replying, Ken. My3 only tells me my remaining balance and there is no itemised call details. I’ll keep an eye my credit in case I get any more of these unexpected charges and contact 3 if necessary – I just thought if you knew about any other hidden charges like the charge for text delivery (the first I’ve ever encountered!).

  • Leigh James said:

    really informative, thanks 🙂

    Can I ask a question that I can’t seem to find the answer to? I just wondered what the price is when calling a three mobile PAYG phone from a landline. This information seems much harder to come by.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Leigh,
      Thanks for your comment. The cost is set by your landline provider so it really depends on which company you’re using for your landline. It may also depends on the time of day you’re calling (e.g. whether it’s an evening or weekend).
      The cost of calling a mobile phone from your landline will normally be the same regardless of which mobile network it’s on (i.e. calling a customer on Three Pay As You Go will cost the same as calling a customer on EE, O2 or Vodafone).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Chris said:

    I don’t understand this deal, seems like terrible value compared to a normal contract.

    I use typically 1gb of data and 300mins a month

    1gb = £10
    300 min = £9.00

    Total £19

    At the moment I am on 4gb and 600 mins allowance rolling contract with Three for that amount a month.

    Which is a much much better deal.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Chris,
      Thanks for your comment – agreed that the 321 deal isn’t very good for moderate to heavy users (a SIM-only contract will almost always work out to be better value). I think the 321 tariff is a good choice for light users & people who mainly use their phones in an emergency (e.g. if you were to use less than 200 minutes per month and less than 500MB of data).
      Ken

  • Russ said:

    I have a contract ending in a few days (don’t use it much). I am thinking about 321 as an option, but before I do it I was hoping you could answer a question about if it would work while I’m on holiday in Holland and Germany. Maybe I wouldn’t need to use it for phoning out (but if I did, do the same rates apply?) and would people be able to contact me as normal?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Russ,
      Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, the 321 rates do not apply when you’re abroad in other countries. In Holland & Germany, you’ll pay 16.6p/minute for outgoing calls and 4.4p/minute for incoming calls. For more information, see the pages on Holland and Germany.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • SID said:

    Hi. Am currently on a Virgin contract and quite frankly am paying too much for the small amount of use that I make of the phone and considering going back to PAYG. However, it is a toss up between Three’s 321 and Giffgaff. Prices lean towards 321 but with Giffgaff, I do like the (1) the balance notification after every call/message sent and (2) that you can have an auto top up set so that similar to Oyster cards, when you get down to £3, the system automatically tops up the balance.

    Does Three’s 321 do the same?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi there,
      Unfortunately, I don’t think Three has an auto top-up feature (you can read more about their top-up options on this page). The good news, however, is you can register a debit or credit card – it’s then simply a matter of calling 444 and following the options to top-up your handset.
      Ken

  • Dennis Tate said:

    Great prices from 3 payg plans.
    Wife is off to Spain with grand daughter, got her the 100 mins bundle for £10 so she can use the feel at home plan to ring me in the UK.
    I’ve bought the 321 bundle,to talk and text her.
    It will only cost me 3p a minute to talk to her and 2p a text while she is in Spain. What a bargain compared to my own network Virgin. For me to call on this it’s around 90p a minute. Well done 3 network.

  • Nao52 said:

    I have been on 3 payg for some time now. On the face if it, it is exceptional value. However my big gripe is that I cannot check number of texts sent or cost of calls made, unless I keep a personal log or check my balance after every call. My credit seems to run out more quickly than I would expect as a very low user and I cannot confirm where the credit has been used. How do I know I have actually used it ?
    My husband is on Virgin payg (more expensive I know) and can instantly see every text/call when he logs into his account . Surely this is a basic service that 3 should be providing ?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi there,
      Yes, unfortunately, I don’t think Three provides an itemised bill on their Pay As You Go service 🙁 Have you tried contacting Three Customer Services on 333? It’s possible they might be able to get this information for you.
      Ken

  • Kelvin said:

    Hi Ken,

    Your advice re tethering for PAYG customers now seems to be out-of-date (according to your own link). Data, whether used via tethering or the phone itself, is charged at 1p/MB and requires no add-on.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Kelvin,
      Thanks for your comment. Sorry, I wasn’t able to find the link where it says tethering is now permitted on Pay As You Go tariffs. According to Three’s help article (Personal Hotspot on your phone): “Our [Three] Pay As You Go plans don’t allow you to use Personal Hotspot”. Do let me know if there’s something I’ve missed!
      Thanks,
      Ken

      • Paul replied:

        I realise this conversation dates back a year or so, but I’m letting you know that I have no problem tethering my phone (Motorola Moto G) with my tablet and I am on 3 PAYG.

  • Mel Hutson said:

    I am thinking of getting a 321 SIM card. I am a fairly light user, mainly a few texts and phone calls here and there.
    I would like to keep my mobile number. One of the reasons (apart from their charges) for wanting to leave my current provider is that I cannot access my account to change my direct debit details over to my new bank.
    Their system lets me look at my bill but not interact in any way; I go round and round in circles where they tell me my password is wrong.
    Anyway, my problem is that I cannot get access to get a PAC Code either. Any ideas?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Mel,
      Thanks for your comment. I know this won’t be particularly helpful as a response but the thing to do would unfortunately be to gain access to your account somehow (find out what your network requires e.g. could you present proof of your ID in their store?). The security check is an important mechanism built in to requesting a PAC Code – it ensures that no one else is able to steal your phone number. You’ll need to re-gain access to your account before you’re able to request a PAC Code from the network.
      Ken

  • Andy K said:

    Hi Ken,
    I’m thinking of getting a three 321 sim as I am a fairly light user.

    However, I also travel a lot in France and Italy, so am interested in the ‘feel at home’ feature.

    In earlier responses, you warn that data while abroad is at 10p/mb rather than the normal 1p. This doesn’t appear to tie up with the website which claims ‘don’t pay a penny more’.

    Have they changed the deal now or have I missed some small print.?

    Thanks
    Andy

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Andy,
      Thanks for your comment. It is possible to use the Feel At Home offer on Three Pay As You Go. However, you can’t do this at the normal 321 rates: you’ll need to buy a Pay As You Go add-on. There’s more information over on this page. The reasoning behind this: Feel At Home allows you to use UK allowances abroad in another country. However, with 321, there’s no inclusive allowances for you to actually use abroad. This is why you need to buy an All-in-one bundle – so you’ll actually have allowances to use when you’re abroad.
      Hope this helps in answering your question!
      Ken

  • peteypablo said:

    Ken I wanted to ask with the add on allowances from three ie the 15 pounds 300 mins unlimited data 3000 texts option, am I right in thinking the 300 mins isn’t actually 300 mins and is just 300 calling units rounded to the nearest min?

    If I make 300 1 second calls that is my whole allowance gone?

    I find this really bad and ofcom should do something about it as it is not really ‘300’ mins.

    Does this apply to pay monthly or sim only or are they charged per second?

  • James said:

    Ken me and my wife bought 2 Sony Experia phones in northern Ireland (uk)we put the 321 sims in. Topped up €20 and bought the £10 add on,when we went over the border to the republic of Ireland,we couldn’t phone each other,though we could text and call our republic landline,now we have two phones that can’t call each other? What should we do.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi James,
      Thanks for your comment. With the Feel At Home offer, you should be able to call and text each other totally free of charge. It’s a little strange you aren’t able to do this in the Republic of Ireland. I would, however, just double-check you’ve input each other’s number with a preceding +44 at the start (e.g. 07123 456 789 should be saved in your phone as +44 7123 456 789). Some mobile networks get a little confused when you don’t have this prefix and when you’re travelling abroad. If this still doesn’t help, your best bet would probably be to call Three customer services on 333 (free).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Stephen said:

    Hi Ken

    I have a question regarding calculation of data usage. Do you know whether uses Kb or Mb as the minimum usage? In other countries, you may use only a few Kb but there is a minimum charge based on 1 Mb each time there is a data connection. So if there are apps running in the background you could chalk up a lot of Mb even if it is a few Kb each connection.

    Thanks.

  • stephanie said:

    I went into my nearest 3 phone store to enquire about the sim card for 321 price plan and was told they would give me a 16 digit number and I would have to top up in their store? Would this be every time I want to top up? Can I not go to any shop that does phone top ups and punch in the digit numbers like I currently do with vodaphone? The price plan sounds enticing but not sure if I fancy the inconvenience of having to go into town every time I want to top up. Thanks

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Stephanie,
      Thanks for your comment. Three gives you a plastic swipe card the size of a credit card: the card has a 16-digit number on the front: you can use it to top up your phone easily. There’s no need to remember the 16-digit number – indeed, you don’t even need to use it to top up your phone. You can top up in the same way you did at Vodafone (e.g. online, at the supermarket, at a bank ATM, etc).
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

      • steph replied:

        hi ken, Thanks for your reply but I’m sorry little confused, with my previous phone I could go into any shop and as for a top up and they would give me a voucher and I would tap in the digits myself, I don’t want to top up online, or with a credit card, I would like to pay by cash. Can I still pay by cash?, and do I have to specify that I want to top up with the 321 plan or do I just swipe the plastic card and pay cash. Thanks

        • Ken replied:

          Hi Steph,
          Yep – you’re still able to top up a phone using vouchers on Three. See this help article for more information. The benefit of using a plastic card is simply that the top-up will happen automatically (you don’t need to faff around with codes). Voucher top-ups start from £10 per time.
          Hope this helps!
          Ken

  • Rikki said:

    Hi Ken, a couple of questions:

    Does it cost money to browse the internet using your own wifi? So for example if I wanted to search something up on Google, will that affect my data allowance of 1p/mb?

    Also, will it cost money to use applications such as Instagram and Facebook if you use your wifi. For example, if you wanted to browse a little bit on Instagram, will that affect my data allowance of 1p/mb.

    Kind Regards,

    Rikki

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Rikki,
      Thanks for your comment. Any data used when you’re connected to a Wi-Fi network will not be charged by your mobile network operator (in fact, it bypasses your network operator entirely and they won’t even know you’re accessing the internet). The same principle applies regardless of what you’re doing on the internet (browsing, Facebook, Instagram, etc are all free when connected to Wi-Fi). Hope this helps!
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Margaret,
      You can indeed switch to using wi-fi (you’re only charged when using the mobile internet… using your home wi-fi is free on the tariff). By the way, this is true of any UK Pay As You Go tariff (they’ll all allow you to switch to using wi-fi).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Annie_p said:

    Hi Ken….I have an iphone4s contract ended with 02 on 20th Dec ’14….I want to go on PAYG….As I’m retired I’m mostly in the home pull most of my data from my Internet provider….I rarely use texts using mostly Facebook Messenger…..neither would I use the phone too much for phone calls except when I’m out of the home……This Three 123 sounds ideal for me …..would you agree……please…..

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Annie,
      Definitely agreed that the 321 SIM card could be a good choice based on your usage (if you need information about transferring your phone number from O2 to Three, you can see this article I prepared earlier). The only other network I might also consider is giffgaff (10p/minute, 6p/text and 20p/day for 20MB of internet). They’re slightly more expensive compared to Three but you get to keep the same level of coverage as you have on O2 (so no difference to what you’re getting currently). You can order a free SIM card via this link.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Saba,
      Yep – it’s still possible to get 300 Three-to-Three minutes as a £5/month add-on on Pay As You Go. Full details of the bundle can be seen on page 4 of the Three Pay As You Go price guide. You can buy the add-on by logging in to the My3 website (or you can visit mobile.three.co.uk from your smartphone web browser when connected to 3G).
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

  • Hon said:

    Hello, Im planning to join Three on your 321 PAYG. But could you answer a few questions for me first:

    -does the first top up still has to be £10 minimum?
    -do I still get the 150MB free data and does it expire in 30 days after the top up?
    -if I travel to Hong Kong (which is a “Feel At Home” destination) do I need to make some settings on my phone or call some numbers for it to work or does it work straight away when I arrive in Hong Kong?
    -if I do get the 150MB of free data every time I top up would they be usable in Hong Kong or is it UK only?

    Also I am from the UK and when I plan to go to Hong Kong I will be using my 321 PAYG sim, I know it is free to receive calls but how are the callers charged if they phone me, and what numbers do they need to dial? So if people call me from the UK do they need to pay extra to phone me and do they just call me like they would from the UK or do they need to add 00852 to it? Also do the people in Hong Kong need to pay extra charges to phone me when I am in Hong Kong as well, and do they just dial my UK number or do they need to add 00852 to it?

    Thank you very much and sorry if it is a bit confusing.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Hon,
      Thank you for your questions about the 321 tariff. I’ll answer each of them in order:

      Does the first top up still have to be £10 minimum?
      Yes, the first top-up must be £10 or more. Subsequent top-ups have only a £5 minimum if you use a debit/credit card and buy the top-up via Three’s website. Through all other channels (e.g. buying a voucher in-store), the minimum top-up is £10 at all times.

      Do I still get the 150MB free data and does it expire in 30 days after the top up?
      Yep, you still get 150MB of free data whenever you top-up. This will expire after 30 days (you would then pay 1p/MB for all further usage).

      If I travel to Hong Kong (which is a Feel At Home destination) do I need to make some settings on my phone or call some numbers for it to work or does it work straight away when I arrive in Hong Kong?
      You’ll be opted in to ‘Feel At Home’ automatically (there’s no need to change any settings). Do be aware, however, you’ll be charged 10p/MB rather than 1p/MB if you use your phone abroad without an ‘All in One’ bundle. My recommendation is to buy a £10 bundle (this gives you 100 minutes, 3000 texts and 500MB to use in Hong Kong). Alternatively, the £15 bundle gives you 300 minutes, 3000 texts and 25GB of data. You’ll need to enable data roaming on your handset before the internet will work in a Feel At Home country.

      If I do get the 150MB of free data every time I top up would they be usable in Hong Kong or is it UK only?
      The 150MB of free data is only usable when you’re in the UK. The ‘Feel At Home’ offer is only available when you buy an ‘All in One’ bundle with your Pay As You Go credit.

      How are the callers charged if they phone me, and what numbers do they need to dial?
      Other people will still call your normal UK number (there’s no need to change the international prefix). For anyone calling from the UK, they’ll still be charged the normal UK mobile rates (they can use their inclusive UK minutes to call you when you’re abroad). Do be aware that your friends in Hong Kong will still need to call a +44 number (they’ll be charged international rates for calling the UK). Also, it won’t be free for you to call a +852 number (the ‘Feel At Home’ minutes can only be used when calling a UK number).

      Hope this helps to answer your questions!
      Ken

      • Hon replied:

        Thanks for your reply sir but I have some more questions for you.
        1. I presume all add-on’s works in Hong Kong so I want to buy an add-on called “500MB”, but can I use this in Hong Kong, also when I go to Three’s page with the 500MB add-on it says “120MB for you to use the internet on your phone” so when I buy the add-on do I get 500MB or 120MB to use?
        2. If I top up just like 10 days before I go to Hong Kong would they use the add-on allowance that I just bought 10 days ago or the 150MB free data allowance (which isn’t usable in Hong Kong) that came with the top up?
        3. If I want to top up £5 can this be only done on three’s website and not on any cash point machines, as I have bought a £10 voucher for my first top up and now I want to top up £5 online but it says that it needs to register my card and take £10 (not £5) to verify my card details which I don’t really like?
        4. When I want to call someone in Hong Kong and I am in Hong Kong as well would they need to pay roaming charges or is it free for them to receive my calls?
        5. Finally, if my family also has the exact same three’s 321 sim card, and if I call them on it would the charges come from my allowance if I have them and is it free for them to receive my calls again?

        Sorry if it is a bit confusing again but I just wanted to confirm these facts as the three’s website is not very helpful.

        Thank you very much sir.
        Regards
        Hon

        • Ken replied:

          Hi Hon,
          Thanks for your comment. To answer each of your questions in order:
          1. The add-on with 120MB of data is actually an entirely different thing (it’s the 50p Internet Daily add-on). I recommend buying either the £10 or £15 All-in-One bundles (you should see these as a separate option).
          2. It should automatically use the allowances from your add-on when you’re travelling in another country.
          3. Unfortunately, yep, it’s only possible to make £5 top-ups on the Three website. In order to link your credit card to the account, the first top-up is £10 (subsequent top-ups can then be £5). You can get around this limitation by choosing the option to “Top-up another account” (you can enter your own phone number on that form).
          4. Your friends and family will pay the normal charges for receiving an incoming phone call from a UK-based number. In most countries, this means it’s free to receive the call (not quite sure how it works in Hong Kong as I believe you normally pay to receive phone calls as well).
          5. Yep, if you and your family all have All-in-One SIM cards, you can call and text each other using your Feel At Home allowances. It’s free to receive incoming calls when using the Feel At Home offer.
          Hope this helps to answer your questions!
          Ken

  • Barbara Fisk said:

    I think that this 321 tariff sounds great but I cannot find out if there is a minimum call charge or call set up charge, I know some mobile companies do this. Can you help please. Thanks

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Barbara,
      On Three, the length of all phone calls will be rounded to a full minute – you’ll then be charged for the usage at 3p/minute. There isn’t a separate charge for setting up the call. To give a few examples:
      – A 1 second phone call will be charged as 1 minute (3p)
      – A 59 second phone call will be charged as 1 minute (3p)
      – A 70 second phone call will be charged as 2 minutes (6p)
      If you’d like to go back to the original source, read the small text on page 2 of their Pay As You Go price guide.
      Hope this helps to answer your question!
      Ken

  • Jan said:

    Hi Ken
    I’m a very light user and have just received an iPhone 4s as a birthday gift, I am currently on O2 payg and have turned auto updates off as it was using up all my credit I am now considering changing to Threes 321 payg however Threes network coverage for my area is showing pale blue for indoor coverage, would installing Threes in touch app be advisable to overcome any indoor issues. Thanks Jan

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Jan,
      Thanks for your comment. If you go with Three, then I’d certainly install the inTouch application. Do note however, you will still experience reduced battery life when choosing a network with poor indoor coverage. The inTouch app also provides a less satisfactory experience compared to normal calling. So if possible, I’d still try and find a network which offers indoor coverage for your home. Take a look at my article on coverage for more discussion on this issue – a potential option for you could be getting a SIM card from giffgaff (free). The coverage is identical to O2 but costs are substantially lower.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

      • Roza Elfassy replied:

        Hi, So is it cheaper to take a giff gaff bundel , or three 321 fir calls & texts, when visiting uk for bussinness 4 times a year?

        • Ken replied:

          Hi Roza,
          It would depend very much on how you actually use your phone (i.e. the length of time you stay in the UK and your mobile usage during that period). With the giffgaff bundles, you’d obviously be paying for a whole month at a time. With 321, you’d only pay based on your usage and your credit should remain until you visit the UK next (providing of course you don’t allow the SIM card to be inactive for 6 months). If your visits to the UK last for under 2 weeks, I’d say 321 is probably going to be cheaper. If you’re coming for more than 2 weeks and using your phone fairly often then giffgaff goodybags may work out to be cheaper.
          Hope this helps,
          Ken

    • Ken replied:

      Hi KGB,
      Thanks for your comment. There’s no reason technically why the 321 SIM card wouldn’t work in a tablet. However, this is prevented by section 5.3 of Three’s PAYG terms and conditions:

      5.3 Each SIM may only be used in Devices:
      (b) which are in the Device category it was provided to you for, for example, you must not use a SIM for a
      phone in a tablet or dongle

      For the Nexus 7, you’ll need to get one of Three’s mobile broadband tariffs. It’s £10.49 for 1GB of data (this works out at only slightly more than 1p/MB).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Gavin said:

    I put my Mum on this tariff. Used to put £20 on a mouth on her phone, when on T-mobile standered pay as you go. Now £10 pound lasts her over a month. T-mobile did do bundles which would of worked out about the same, but where to complicated for her. So this simple package sued her well. Only problem she has is topping up, so have to type in E vouches into her phone. On Tmobile she was given a card that would topup her phone automatically, but not available on There. However the saving are worth the hassle.

    Also had to get her a new phone a Three only has a 3g network and her old phone would only work on 2G. Got her the Nokia C1 and suets her well with a big screen, and transitional numeric keypad.

  • Alex said:

    I switched yesterday from an Orange contract to Three’s 321 PAYG, as it works out cheapest for my usage. I had to top-up £10 for the first top-up though subsequent top-ups can be as low as £5. With my initial top-up of £10 I got 150Mb free as mentioned in Ken’s article but I was surprised to also receive 600 free texts; both lasting 30 days. I am also pleased with Three’s coverage where I’m living, quite a fast connection. So I recommend Three.

  • Judy said:

    Hi Ken,

    I’ve just moved from Ovivo to Three 321. Though a very low user, I think the charges for data could be higher than you suggest. I’ve been told that (once my initial free data allowance has expired) I will be charged 1p each time my phone contacts the internet (e.g. to synch email) so that, for example, I could be charged £1.00 if my phone makes contact 100 times, even if the total data consumption is only, say, 2MB.

    If this is right, if on a 321 tariff, you need to switch off any autosynch and, to keep control, switch off the data connection, only switching it back on when needed.

    It may be I’m wrong: it was possible to read and send emails on my phone using the mobile phone signal before there was any credit on the phone.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Judy,
      Thanks for your comment. I’m not aware of any minimum charges when your phone connects to the internet. On most smartphones today, an always-on connection will be maintained to the internet. Hence, there wouldn’t be a new data session when syncing your e-mail, checking the weather, etc. If the total data consumption is 2MB, you should only be charged 2p for all of the usage.
      With regards to being able to read and send e-mails without any credit, this is a rather interesting situation! It shouldn’t be possible (unless you were using wi-fi at home). Alternatively, there’s the 150MB of free data every time you top-up your SIM card. You may have been using the free data allowance included on a previous top-up.
      Hope this helps!
      Ken

      • Judy replied:

        Many thanks for your reply. My free allowance has now expired, so I’m able to confirm you are right about the charging. So far I’ve just used the phone for checking emails and sending the odd email and have not yet spent my fist penny. It seems the telephone help people at Three gave me duff advice.

          • Ken replied:

            Hi John,
            Three will charge 1p to your account after you’ve used 1MB of data. There’s no charge for the amount of time spent connected to the internet.
            Hope this helps,
            Ken

          • Judy replied:

            It’s working well for me. I mostly use the phone for checking emails and I only get charged when total use adds up to 1MB. I think it’s a bargain for low users. (Though not as good as Ovivo which I was on before and free.)

  • Phil Dudd said:

    Hello Ken
    Thankyou in advance for your support, indeed for all your work on this informative site.
    My question is with regards to 0845 0870 numbers. etc…
    i was caught out a while ago when i used all my top up for a bundle and found that i needed separate credit for these type of numbers.
    specifically my question is with regards to:
    three 321 tariff, and orange (any animal pack)
    do you know how they stand with these numbers.
    To date i’ve only found vodafone support these unlimited for an extra payment of around
    £2-3/month
    thankyou

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Phil,

      Thanks for your comment!

      With regards to Three, you can check their special call prices via this link. For 0845 and 0870 numbers, it’s a rather hefty 35p/minute 🙁

      For Orange, the Pay As You Go price guide can be found via this link. On page 16, you’ll see it costs 12p/minute to call 0845 and 0870 numbers.

      With regards to cutting costs, it’s definitely good to find a non-geographic number (e.g. your bank might list a number you’re able to use when calling from outside the UK – you can often use this number within the UK too). There’s also websites such as SayNoTo0870. Finally, most government departs have switched to using 0345 – using the new number should save a ton in calling costs.

      Hope this helps!

      Ken

  • gill hutson said:

    Well hubby is paying 35p per minute with orange. Hope his phone is unlocked and if so will go on to this great tarriff rates for occasional user.

  • Jim said:

    Just ditched Virgin’s “Simply 8” (eight pence for calls and for texts). Going with 321 or staying with Virgin? A no brainer.

  • Pete Forman said:

    I don’t think that this is a new tariff as such, it is a reduction of the rates for the existing “Pay As You Go on Three”. That said, new customers would be buying a 321 SIM.

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