Alternative to mobile phone contract
Discussion
Dear PH,
Is it possible to have a true 'pay as you go' type setup on a mobile phone these days? By that I mean you pay £5 / £10 / £20 which gives you however much data / texts/ minutes to use, then once that is gone you have to top up again. i.e. if you are skint and are coming to the end of your data/minutes etc, you can just put the phone down and not pick it up again until you have enough money to top the old girl up, and until you choose to top up, you don't get charged anything.
All 'pay as you go' tariffs seem to still be some form of monthly contract:
https://shop.ee.co.uk/sim-only/pay-as-you-go-phone...
I am trying to reduce the regular, unstoppable drain on my monthly finances and getting out of the phone contract is one part of this.
Ta
Is it possible to have a true 'pay as you go' type setup on a mobile phone these days? By that I mean you pay £5 / £10 / £20 which gives you however much data / texts/ minutes to use, then once that is gone you have to top up again. i.e. if you are skint and are coming to the end of your data/minutes etc, you can just put the phone down and not pick it up again until you have enough money to top the old girl up, and until you choose to top up, you don't get charged anything.
All 'pay as you go' tariffs seem to still be some form of monthly contract:
https://shop.ee.co.uk/sim-only/pay-as-you-go-phone...
I am trying to reduce the regular, unstoppable drain on my monthly finances and getting out of the phone contract is one part of this.
Ta
RogerDodger said:
I have a GiffGaff sim that you simply top up with "goody bags" when you run out of credit. If you don't top it up, it doesnt work.
Hmm.The goody bags, only last a month - don't they?
If you put your phone down on the first of the month and didn't pick it up until, say, the first of the next month the goody bag will have been renewed and you will have been charged.
'Pay as you go' must still be out there but unless you're a very light user I can't see it being cheaper than a rolling month arrangement like GiffGaff.
I have been on GiffGaff for many years now, currently paying £15/month for 9gb of data, unlimited minutes and texts.
It must be said, I recently wanted a new phone and checked the GiffGaff option against a contract and the GiffGaff route wasn't any cheaper- however I did it anyway because as RogerDoger says, If I run out of data or attempt to roam somewhere I shouldn't, the phone simply won't work. There is no risk of unexpected, hidden or stealth expenses.
My decision to go down this route really paid off when I scored an overseas assignment with work. I simply took the SIM card out for the duration, put it back in again 18 months later, paid my £15 and continued as if nothing had happened. Try doing that with a conventional contract!
Also this way you don't have to deal with a phone which locks you onto a particular network. Personally I have no idea why people tolerate that particular feature.
The biggest saving of all when divorcing the cost of the phone from the network cost has been getting away from the 18 or 24 month contract duration. I paid £630 for an phone and GiffGaffed it for 4.5 years until the phone was finished. I have now paid £690 for a replacement phone. If I had been on a contract there'd have been a lot of shenanigans in that 4.5 years- getting the phone unlocked at the end of the contract duration, requesting a PAC code, transferring to another network etc etc or just doing what everybody else does and just upgrading every two years for the convenience and spending no much less than £40 a month for the rest of time.
Even though there is no saving compared to a 24 month contract, it works for me, I can manage it all myself and have full visibility and control over my usage and costs... and month 25 is just another £15... and so is month 40...
I have been on GiffGaff for many years now, currently paying £15/month for 9gb of data, unlimited minutes and texts.
It must be said, I recently wanted a new phone and checked the GiffGaff option against a contract and the GiffGaff route wasn't any cheaper- however I did it anyway because as RogerDoger says, If I run out of data or attempt to roam somewhere I shouldn't, the phone simply won't work. There is no risk of unexpected, hidden or stealth expenses.
My decision to go down this route really paid off when I scored an overseas assignment with work. I simply took the SIM card out for the duration, put it back in again 18 months later, paid my £15 and continued as if nothing had happened. Try doing that with a conventional contract!
Also this way you don't have to deal with a phone which locks you onto a particular network. Personally I have no idea why people tolerate that particular feature.
The biggest saving of all when divorcing the cost of the phone from the network cost has been getting away from the 18 or 24 month contract duration. I paid £630 for an phone and GiffGaffed it for 4.5 years until the phone was finished. I have now paid £690 for a replacement phone. If I had been on a contract there'd have been a lot of shenanigans in that 4.5 years- getting the phone unlocked at the end of the contract duration, requesting a PAC code, transferring to another network etc etc or just doing what everybody else does and just upgrading every two years for the convenience and spending no much less than £40 a month for the rest of time.
Even though there is no saving compared to a 24 month contract, it works for me, I can manage it all myself and have full visibility and control over my usage and costs... and month 25 is just another £15... and so is month 40...
The Mad Monk said:
Hmm.
The goody bags, only last a month - don't they?
If you put your phone down on the first of the month and didn't pick it up until, say, the first of the next month the goody bag will have been renewed and you will have been charged.
Only if you have it set up to auto-renew. The goody bags, only last a month - don't they?
If you put your phone down on the first of the month and didn't pick it up until, say, the first of the next month the goody bag will have been renewed and you will have been charged.
Hoofy said:
They call them "classic PAYG": https://amzn.to/2XRixRx
I think this is closer to what the OP wants than GiffGaff. I have both, with the former being for an out of hours emergency number. If going for the O2, then you should explicitly request to being removed from premium numbers etc. It's an opt-out rather than opt-in. My 7 year old managed to incur a £3 charge by clicking on some of the handset pre-loaded games.
I find GG better than O2 in terms of visibility of usage. I've been with them a number of years - probably longer than any other service provider.
IMO Giffgaff is the best option for teenagers with phones. Give them a goodybag that auto renews and configure one £10 auto topup. Fire and forget for me, they can't run out and not be able to make an emergency call unless they're epically stupid, if the phone is nicked my maximum exposure is about twenty quid.
deadtom said:
Dear PH,
Is it possible to have a true 'pay as you go' type setup on a mobile phone these days? By that I mean you pay £5 / £10 / £20 which gives you however much data / texts/ minutes to use, then once that is gone you have to top up again. i.e. if you are skint and are coming to the end of your data/minutes etc, you can just put the phone down and not pick it up again until you have enough money to top the old girl up, and until you choose to top up, you don't get charged anything.
All 'pay as you go' tariffs seem to still be some form of monthly contract:
https://shop.ee.co.uk/sim-only/pay-as-you-go-phone...
I am trying to reduce the regular, unstoppable drain on my monthly finances and getting out of the phone contract is one part of this.
Ta
You want a PAYG SIM pack. All the supermarkets sell them. Usually costs a quid for the SIM and then buy a top up voucher or top it up via the automated card payment number and you have credit for that amount until you've used it all up. Most networks require you to either make or receive a call on the number in 6 months or you risk losing the number and credit. I have an old O2 SIM here that hasn't been topped up in around 10 years (!) and it still has the balance of the original £30 top up on it. I just call the number from my contract mobile so it rings and registers a missed call then switch it off and put it back away for another 6 months Is it possible to have a true 'pay as you go' type setup on a mobile phone these days? By that I mean you pay £5 / £10 / £20 which gives you however much data / texts/ minutes to use, then once that is gone you have to top up again. i.e. if you are skint and are coming to the end of your data/minutes etc, you can just put the phone down and not pick it up again until you have enough money to top the old girl up, and until you choose to top up, you don't get charged anything.
All 'pay as you go' tariffs seem to still be some form of monthly contract:
https://shop.ee.co.uk/sim-only/pay-as-you-go-phone...
I am trying to reduce the regular, unstoppable drain on my monthly finances and getting out of the phone contract is one part of this.
Ta
. The call and text costs are unsurprisingly not cheap when compared to a contract with 'free' minutes, but it's only used for receiving calls and texts when I'm advertising stuff for sale with the occasional text reply which costs 10p iirc.If you want to keep your existing contract number and on the same network, let the contract run out then bell up the provider and give them the 30 days notice to cancel the contract (otherwise it just rolls on). Once your cancellation period has run its course your number will default back to PAYG and you'll have to top it up manually if you don't take out a PAYG contract.
Edited by Lemming Train on Monday 29th April 17:33
Thanks all, I probably should have mentioned that I was hoping for EE to offer something like that as I get 20% off EE stuff through work.
I am not totally averse to staying on a contract, especially as it does look like the 'per unit' cost is much higher on PAYG, but especially now that I rarely ever use data it seems silly to pay regularly for something that I am not using regularly.
I will have a nose around the suggestions though.
thanks
I am not totally averse to staying on a contract, especially as it does look like the 'per unit' cost is much higher on PAYG, but especially now that I rarely ever use data it seems silly to pay regularly for something that I am not using regularly.
I will have a nose around the suggestions though.
thanks
deadtom said:
Thanks all, I probably should have mentioned that I was hoping for EE to offer something like that as I get 20% off EE stuff through work.
I am not totally averse to staying on a contract, especially as it does look like the 'per unit' cost is much higher on PAYG, but especially now that I rarely ever use data it seems silly to pay regularly for something that I am not using regularly.
I will have a nose around the suggestions though.
thanks
I have much the same issue Tom. I've been with I am not totally averse to staying on a contract, especially as it does look like the 'per unit' cost is much higher on PAYG, but especially now that I rarely ever use data it seems silly to pay regularly for something that I am not using regularly.
I will have a nose around the suggestions though.
thanks
As mentioned: Three 3-2-1 is true PAYGo.
O2 also have PAYG Classic at the same rate. Both can be topped up online or with a code from any of the supermarkets or top-up shops. Neither require a monthly top-up.
Both work long term, but require a 'chargeable event' like a call or a text every six months to keep the number alive.
Three also have their free data sim which is on 3-2-1 PAYG, and gives 200MB data month for free.
O2: https://www.o2.co.uk/help/pay-as-you-go/classic-pa...
Three: https://www.three.co.uk/Free_SIM_MBB/Order
True PAYG works out cheaper when the phone is used mainly for occasional calls or texts. Both the services listed can also have top-up data or call packs applied for the months when usage is heavier. Online registration is required for both.
O2 also have PAYG Classic at the same rate. Both can be topped up online or with a code from any of the supermarkets or top-up shops. Neither require a monthly top-up.
Both work long term, but require a 'chargeable event' like a call or a text every six months to keep the number alive.
Three also have their free data sim which is on 3-2-1 PAYG, and gives 200MB data month for free.
O2: https://www.o2.co.uk/help/pay-as-you-go/classic-pa...
Three: https://www.three.co.uk/Free_SIM_MBB/Order
True PAYG works out cheaper when the phone is used mainly for occasional calls or texts. Both the services listed can also have top-up data or call packs applied for the months when usage is heavier. Online registration is required for both.
OP - yes, o2 still do it. MrsC bought one last week as she's setting up a (very) small business which will need a phone but doesn't want to put her own number out. £30 for the phone and £10 top up. Lasts until it's gone then you top up again. Simple PAYG, which was exactly what she was looking for. Zero strings attached that I'm aware of.
I agree, it did take a little hunting down to find.
I agree, it did take a little hunting down to find.
The Mad Monk said:
RogerDodger said:
I have a GiffGaff sim that you simply top up with "goody bags" when you run out of credit. If you don't top it up, it doesnt work.
Hmm.The goody bags, only last a month - don't they?
If you put your phone down on the first of the month and didn't pick it up until, say, the first of the next month the goody bag will have been renewed and you will have been charged.
Perhaps it's not a goody bag, and just a "top up"? I very very rarely have to top it up.
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 30th April 09:29
I don't live in the UK, so I have a PAYG sim in my (dual sim) phone that I only activate when I land, and switch off again when I leave. It's an EE card, and I have my EE account set up on my phone.
I can either top up my EE account, and it will automatically renew my £10 monthly pack, or if there is insufficient money in the account, then it will be disabled until I buy an over the counter top up voucher at the airport when I land. I have a little EE credit card thing that I hand over at Smiths in the airport, with a tenner, and the phone comes back on again.
At the moment I'm back and forward every month or two, so I let it autorenew. If I expect to be away for a while I'll just let it run out until I get back.
I can either top up my EE account, and it will automatically renew my £10 monthly pack, or if there is insufficient money in the account, then it will be disabled until I buy an over the counter top up voucher at the airport when I land. I have a little EE credit card thing that I hand over at Smiths in the airport, with a tenner, and the phone comes back on again.
At the moment I'm back and forward every month or two, so I let it autorenew. If I expect to be away for a while I'll just let it run out until I get back.
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