Is it possible to get a SIM card (phone line) but no monthly fee?

[Charlie626]

DM has an iPad and a brick phone with a decades old Orange tariff that doesn’t require a monthly top-up to use.

She’s keen to get WhatsApp but doesn’t want to get a smartphone because quite frankly it’s difficult enough for her to navigate around the brick phone and iPad. She also doesn’t want to get involved with having to top up every month to stay connected.

Back in the day you could just get a true PAYG SIM card which I could put in my old iPhone purely to set up a WhatsApp account that can then be transferred to her iPad.

Am I right in thinking you can’t get these any more?

We've got this we use for an android tablet, as it's the only thing that seems to last more than one month any more:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/EE-PAYG-card-preloaded-120GB/dp/B09BFXRM4C?th=1
I don't think you can get a PAYG which doesn't have any kind of basic fee, which is a real pain for a lot of people.

Can't you use her existing SIM if you just want to set up the account?

https://www.1pmobile.com/

ds rarely uses his phone so I got a sim from here. His came with £40 worth of data/texts for the year but can be topped up if needed.

No, it’s a normal sized SIM card which doesn’t fit in smart phones these days.

get a new mini / micro sim and transfer the number?

I have a true PAYG sim for my own business phone (mainly incoming calls). It’s via Asda
https://mobile.asda.com/rates-and-charges

GiffGaff have a geinuinely payg setup - it's possible to buy a monthly plan but if you just want to have a number for incoming calls and never make calls or use mobile data then you can do that

You do have to make a call or a text couple of times a year to keep it active

Also just to add, when I founded my business a few years ago, I wasn’t sure payg still existed like this. MSE has the best deals to suit your needs, this is why I chose Asda.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mobiles/best-pay-as-you-go-sim-cards/

I’ve got a PAYG SIM with EE in an old iPhone. I stuck some credit on it to start with but never top it up. I only use it to WhatsApp with XH about our DC.