SIM only plans, help please.

[highheelsandwitcheshats]

My contract is up at the end of December. I've got a Pixel 2, and I'm happy with it so I thought I'd save some money and go for a sim only plan. My head is spinning now though.

I currently have 3GB a month with unlimited texts and calls (not that I use either much). I do get through it, but I don't use social media. Mostly web browsing, podcasts and music if I've forgotten to download before I go out. I'm on O2. Husband has had previous issues with 3 so they're not rated in our house. I was leaning towards giffgaff but a few reviews have commented on awful customer service.

I'd like to spend no more than £15 a month but would like as much data as possible on a decent network.

Does anyone have any recommendations please?
What is your experience of 12 month sim only deals compared to no contract/1month ones?

Thanks.

Hi. EE regularly do 20Gb for £20 offers and I just signed up for 30GB for £21. May be slightly over what you want to pay but obviously it's a good deal. Hope this helps

Easy! I'm with O2 and have a three sim only contracts for the DCs and me. None of them are over £12 pm and we all get way more than 3gb. I get 30, DD gets 15gb and DS gets 9gb. On O2 there's an online chat thing. I did it through that. Spell out what you want and what your budget is and they'll tell you what the deals are.

ID Is very cheap and you can cancel the plan anytime you like.

Giffgaff are fantastic. Never had a problem with four of us using them.

I get 3gb per month on Talkmobile for £7.50, with unlimited texts and calls. They use the Vodafone network so they have good coverage too.

I have an 02 SIM.
9GB, 12 month contract, unlimited everything,£15 a month

DP has just got a good deal with Sky which uses the o2 network. £10 a month, few Gb of data.

Recently kitted out my parents in law with smart phones and sim only pay monthly with Id. They haven't had any problems.

Honestly there are hundreds of these deals about.

Tesco, Superdrug and 3 all do 4GB unlimited texts and minutes for £10.

You should think about whether it's important you cap your bill, or whether you can use the data to tether or roam abroad.

I'm on 02 and pay £13 for 2gb, definitely need to shop around!

Who is your husband with?

I pay for DSs phone contract, and have my sim only as an 'add on'. Only £5.99 a month for me with EE, as they have the best coverage here..

EE, 2GB data, unlimited mins and texts £7.00 per month. Perfect for my usage :)

GiffGaff have been great but not had to call them for anything. I use the app and my sim only plan auto-renews every month. The great thing is that I can up/decrease the plan every month. So when we went camping, I got the £20/month plan to give me loads of data, mostly I buy the £10/month one. I do like the flexibility of the GiffGaff plans.

Tesco £10 for O2 service

I recently got a Virgin sim for £6 ,2gb, unlimited texts etc

Giffgaff the best.

Wait until your contract is just about to end. Request your PAC code. Then your current supplier will call you or you call them and they’ll offer you deals that you can’t access otherwise. This happened to me last Friday. I requested my PAC code to port my number over as I’d seen a better SIM only deal with vodaphone. Within hours EE were on the phone offering me deals far far cheaper than any advertised online. I settled for a 12 month contract with unlimited calls and texts and 10GB for £12 a month - and no hassle or changing SIM card or payment details or ensuring old contract had ended properly. I was very pleased.

I would recommend Giffgaff too. They use the O2 network.

I've been with them for four years without any problems.

Find a friend who is with them, so they can recommend you to them and get a cash reward. Then you can do likewise for someone else and get a cash reward too.

I'm with Smarty, £10 a month 4gb data and unlimited calls/texts, but the best thing is if you don't use all of your data they take the money off your next month. Monthly direct debit, no contract.

I use Asda mobile, £7.50 a month usually, I'd go for £10 if I knew I'd be using maps a lot.

Signal is always fine, never had any problems.

*I'd go for £10 if I knew I'd be using maps a lot this month, e.g. When we're on holiday...

Have a look at smarty sim. 4gb for 10 pounds.

The great thing is that I can up/decrease the plan every month. So when we went camping, I got the £20/month plan to give me loads of data, mostly I buy the £10/month one. I do like the flexibility of the GiffGaff plans

This I like the sound of!

@Jellykat (awesome name). My DH is with Sky. He showed me some of their offers and they didn't seem as competitive as others.

@MeanMrMustardSeed
That's a great tip, thank you. My contract is up.on December 31st, so I need to give notice at the end of November.

Thanks all, I appreciate the replies.

The week before your contract ends go on money supermarket and the other price comparison websites and compare phone deals to find the cheapest one which has what you want (it doesn't matter who).
Then phone up your provider and ask for a puk code (this is what you need to change companies and keep your phone number). They will ask why you want it, at which point you say that you saw x deal for y cost. They will then give you counter offers and try and match it.
You need a deal you've seen to give you the negotiating price (they'll be checking to confirm that it exists). They'll probably match it.
I discovered this trick accidentally, and now do it yearly.