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Pay as you go SIM deals come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but the thing they all have in common is that they do not come with a long contract. The deals we’re talking about here require you to commit to no more than a month at a time.
This is the most flexible way of using a mobile phone, as there’s no contract involved at all. You simply top up your account and are charged a pre-set amount for every text you send, every minute of calls you make and every megabyte (MB) of data you use.
If you don’t use your phone all that often and even a modest 30-day data package seems like it’d be too much for you to get through in a month, a classic pay as you go set-up is probably for you. Be warned though, that even with this type of deal credit rarely lasts forever – check with your provider but at the very least you’ll need to use your phone every six months or so to keep your account active.
The next step up, commitment-wise, from a classic pay as you go deal is a pay as you go bundle. These can be bought using your credit and give you an allowance of data, minutes and texts. Buying a bundle is generally better value for money than standard pay as you go, but you need to be sure you’ll use the data as bundles only last a month.
Some pay as you go bundles renew automatically at the end of the month, making them a bit like a 30-day SIM deal. Some providers even offer features like data rollover, where you get to keep your unused data to use the following month. But you can cancel whenever you like, and with most providers if you don’t have enough credit in your account to pay for you bundle there’s no punishment, you just don’t get the bundle that month.
These are SIM only contracts that you sign up to and pay for monthly via direct debit, but you’re only ever tied in for a month, so you can cancel whenever you like. These deals tend to be pretty good value for money, although if it’s simply the most bang for your buck you’re after then you may want to consider a 12-month SIM deal.
30-day SIM deals often come with unlimited texts and minutes plus a decent data allowance. There are also data SIMs available if you’re looking for something to pop into your tablet.
For those of you who really do not use your phone all that often, what you’re looking for isn’t just a pay as you go deal, but one that you don’t have to top up very often – one you can rely on being ready to use even if it’s been in a drawer for months (although you might want to give it a charge, first).
Thankfully, such pay as you go deals do exist. The first thing to say is if the situation above sounds like you, don’t get sucked into buying a pay as you go bundle – they may offer better value for money but they all expire after a month. Here are just a few of the pay as you go tariffs with long or no expiry dates.
Vodafone's SIM only Pay as you go 1 tariff is designed for people who use their phone on some days but not at all on others. On days you don’t use your phone you won’t be charged at all, but any days where you use your phone you are charged a flat fee of £1 for unlimited minutes and texts, plus you get 50MB of data to use until midnight. If you use all your data, you can buy an additional 50MB for a further £1, however this too must be used by midnight the same day, after which it will expire. You need to keep your phone active by using it at least once every 180 days.
Asda Mobile lets you top up the following amounts in-store using your top-up card: £5, £10, £15, £20, £25, £30, £40 and £50. Alternatively, you can top up using a debit or credit card multiples of £1 up to £30.
Asda charges 4p per minute, 4p per text and 4p per MB of data (in the UK). Your top-up won’t expire as long as you use your phone to make a call, send a text or use some data at least once every 180 days. After 180 days you will only be able to receive incoming calls and after 360 days your SIM will be cancelled.
Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of getting a pay as you go SIM deal.
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