The best SIM only mobile deals

Save money on your mobile phone with a SIM only tariff.

Nearly everyone has a mobile phone, be it the latest Apple product or an old brick-style model, and paying for calls, texts and data can take up a lot of our monthly outgoings.

Whether you're a heavy or light user, with a monthly contract you're committed to paying a certain amount out every month and if you're struggling to do this, an easy way to reduce your mobile phone bill is to switch to a SIM only deal.

What is a SIM only deal?

SIM only deals have been becoming increasingly competitive over the last few years. The major advantage to them is that you’ll get many more texts, minutes and internet usage for your money compared to a standard contract.

The major benefit is you avoid being tied into a long contract. The longest time you'll have to sign up for is 30 days – so there's no risk of being stuck on a 12, 18, or 24-month contract. This means you're in a good position should something better come along, as you'll typically only need to give a month’s notice before you switch. 

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So what’s the catch? When you apply for a SIM only deal you won't get a new phone. Therefore you need to be in a position to either pay upfront for a new phone or keep your existing model.

This is why these deals can be good and bad. They are generally cheaper than signing up to a longer contract, but you need the money in the first place to buy a phone.

If you've got an old model you're selling this will help to offset the costs of a new phone. A look on a comparison site such as Sellmymobile will give you an indication of how much your old model will make you. 

Top offerings from Tesco

Tesco has several competitive SIM only deals. For just £7.50 a month, you can enjoy 250 minutes and 5,000 texts but no data. If you sign up for a 12-month contract at the same monthly price you'll also get 500MB of data thrown in and if you’ve got a Tesco Clubcard, you’ll also earn Clubcard points on your bill. 

Of course, this is just one of Tesco’s offerings. The table below shows four more SIM only deals from the supermarket:

These are pretty great deals – after all, for just £10 a month, you can get 250 minutes, 5,000 texts and 500GB of data. So this is a really easy way for you to keep your mobile costs to a minimum.

But if you compare these across the market they're not the best, for example Virgin Media and giffgaff offer tariffs which include unlimited data from £10.

The best deals

The table below highlights some of the best SIM only deals from the top providers:

Virgin Media

Virgin Media is a good option for people who use their phones a lot for emails and web surfing.

It offers one of the best SIM only deals when it comes to data allowances as for just £10 you can get unlimited data. The 'Big Data and Texts' tariff offers, unlimited data, 300 texts and £10 of airtime while the 'Big Talk' tariff includes unlimited UK landline calls,120 UK mobile minutes and £10 airtime.

For those wanting more calls and texts, packages start at £7 as shown above, and if you're a Virgin Media customer with a broadband, TV or landline service set up you can get even cheaper deals and free calls to other Virgin mobiles. 

O2

The O2 SIM only deals start at £13.50 but this is for light users only and if you regularly use data on your phone this wouldn't be suitable. As soon as the data allowance rises so does the price, rather steeply, so this one is best if you use your phone more for calls and texts instead. 

Vodafone

The cost of the cheapest Vodafone SIM only deal is competitive although as with O2 this is very basic. In each range there are options for 30 and 90 day contracts along with 12-month deals and the longer you sign up for the more you'll get for your money. 

T-Mobile

The T-Mobile contracts start at £10 and for this you'll get a basic 250MB, 300 minutes and 5,000 texts. The benefit of choosing a T-Mobile card is you choose the allowance you need. For example, if you need to up the data on this basic package to 750MB you'll add on £5 so it becomes £15 a month. This gives you the flexibility to choose exactly how much you need and as it's a 30-day package you can change it from month-to-month depending on your circumstances.

Orange

Orange has a lot of SIM only deals on offer and you can select pretty much the exact package you want from the different options available. However, nearly all are significantly cheaper if you choose a 12-month option and the pakages are generally more expensive than other providers on the market. T-Mobile for example has a better basic package for £10 a month offering more monutes and more data. 

3

One of the cheapest deals around, 3 is a fierce competitior in the SIM only sphere. For less than £10 you can get 500MB of data, one of the cheapest deals with this kind of allowance around. Increase this to £12.90 and you've immediately got 'all-you-can-eat-data' plus a healthy 5,000 texts included.

Giffgaff

Giffgaff is a clear winner when it comes to SIM only deals. The fact you can get unlimited internet access from £10 blows every other deal out of the water. If you require a higher allowance for minutes then you'll need to increase the package accordingly. It also has a £5 deal which gives you unlimited texts and free calls to other giffgaff users if you're on a really tight budget. 

Worth noting

With SIM only deals you have the flexibility of changing how much you pay on a monthly basis depending on what you're using your phone for. Nearly all of the 12-month deals provide more but this is because it's more beneficial to the phone provider to secure a customer over a longer period, as opposed to just one month.

Ultimately, your decision should be based on how much you can afford each month and how many minutes, texts and data you use each month, plus whether you need added extras such as international calls.

Finally, when it comes to the new iPhone 5, a traditional SIM won't work so make sure you get a nano SIM. These aren't very widely available at the moment but giffgaff is expected to release some soon and right now it has a video showing how with a bit of DIY you can cut a traditional SIM to fit your new iPhone.

If you're on the look out for a new phone contract, our article will show you how to make the most out of your old mobile so why not consider going SIM only and see what you can save?

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