Best International Calling Plans in the UK

When travelling or moving abroad, missing your home is natural, but thanks to advanced technology, staying away from home is now much easier due to fast communication channels. If you live in the United Kingdom and often make international calls, you must not overlook the most essential element – international calling rates.

Making calls abroad from the UK can be a bit pricey, but fortunately, almost every mobile network in the UK offers different calling bundles, which can help reduce this cost dramatically.

In this guide, we’ll focus on the best international calling plans in the UK, and you will find different ways to save enormous amounts of money without spoiling your budget. Furthermore, we’ll have a look over the international calling add-ons from the four major mobile networks in the UK that give you an opportunity to make low-priced international calls for a whole month. Next to this, we’ll also examine the features of PAYG International SIM deals available in the UK for making cheap calls abroad.

Cost of International Calling in the UK

The cost of international calling from the UK varies based on various factors. It usually depends on the destination you’re calling and whether you’re calling a landline or a mobile.

On average, international calling from a typical UK sim card would cost you £1.5/minute, but this cost can go up to £3/minute. Apart from this, a PAYG international sim card can bring down the cost to as low as 1p/minute. You can also avail the international calling add-ons that get you a particular bundle of international calling minutes.

PAYG International Sims Vs International Calling Add-Ons: What’s the Difference

Several mobile networks are presently working in the UK, offering local and international calling services. If you’re already a customer of any major mobile network in the UK, instead of paying a hefty amount in terms of rates, you can go for a PAYG (pay-as-you-go) international SIM or international calling add-on.

The international SIMs offer you different plans that contain texts, internet data, and local and international calling minutes. Although the most reliable mobile network for you will be the one that offers you the best value for the country you’re calling. Still, usually, the best international SIM-only deals come from Talk Home, Lycamobile, and Lebara.

On the other hand, you can choose international calling add-ons that give you texts and minutes for your desired international destination. For instance, you can select International Packs from EE, Internal Saver Add-on from Three, International Bolt-on from O2, International Minutes Add-on from Vodafone etc. Opting for add-ons will make your international calls from the UK relatively cheaper.

Interesting Read: App Vs. Sim Vs. Calling Cards – What’s the Best Option for Cheap International Calls?

PAYG International SIM Deals

PAYG International SIMs are by far one of the best solutions to cut your costs when making international calls. With PAYG international SIM, you can make cheap international calls from the UK without paying extra money. Always remember that these deals are different for each country. You can’t make calls anywhere you want with the same deal you bought for any specific country.

The list below shows different MVNOs offering the best PAYG international SIM deals to make cheap international calls from the UK.

Talk Home Mobile

Super Saver 5

If you make international calls occasionally and your data usage is relatively low, Talk Home’s Super Saver 5 is the best choice. For a price of just £2.5/month, this deal offers you 100 international calling minutes, 2 GB of internet data, 1000 texts, and 1000 local calling minutes. With such a great value yet a low price, this deal is Talk Home’s outstanding PAYG international SIM deal in the market.

Freedom Saver 15

With Freedom Saver 15, you tend to enjoy more and pay less. If you call less and spend more time over the internet, you will not get any deal cheaper than this. For just £7.5/month, you’ll get 50 GB of Data, 100 International Minutes, unlimited texts, and unlimited local minutes.

Data Saver Unlimited

This deal suits heavy users the best. For only £12.5 a month, the user gets 100 International Minutes,  Unlimited Data, texts, and local minutes. Talk Home Mobile now offers the greatest PAYG SIM-only deals at the cheapest pricing, allowing customers to get more talk time for less money.

Lycamobile

UK Plan Super

Lycamobile offers The UK Plan Super for only £9/month. This offer contains Unlimited minutes and texts locally, 8 GB of internet data, and 100 international calling minutes.

Go Unlimited

This SIM-only deal from Lycamobile offers 100 international calling minutes, Unlimited local texts and minutes, and Unlimited internet data for £25/month.

Lebara Mobile

3GB Plan

Lebara PAYG International SIM deals include a 2GB plan for £4.5/month. This deal offers 100 international minutes, 1000 mins and texts for local calls, and 2 GB of internet data. This plan is best for light users.

International Calling Add-Ons

All the major networks in the UK – EE, Three, Vodafone and O2 – offer international calling add-ons. Instead of getting a new PAYG SIM, people often opt for international calling add-ons from their existing network. International add-ons work like PAYG international SIM. The users get free minutes for calling internationally from the UK with a validity of 30 days. Whereas the calling cost varies depending on the destination, you’re calling.

Before buying the international add-on, you must ensure that the country where you want to call is included in your add-on. Otherwise, you might get yourself charged extra.

Here’s a list of a few international add-ons from the four major networks in the UK:

EE Add-Ons

The International Pack

EE’s international pack offers the customers very low-priced international calling rates from the UK. However, the calling rates vary according to the two factors: the destination where you’re calling, and whether the number is a landline or mobile. The international pack offers you 1000 international calling minutes for £10 a month. This pack works for both landline and mobile numbers and includes 50 countries.

The International Extra Pack

Opposite to its name, The International extra pack add-on from EE offers fewer minutes. It costs £20/month and offers 500 international calling minutes. However, the number of countries you can call to increases to 100, extending your options more.

Vodafone Add-Ons

International Saver Extra

Vodafone offers its customers a few of the best offers to make cheap international calls from the UK. The international saver extra add-on gets you 100 international calling minutes – landline and mobile – for only £3/month. However, you can increase the international calling minutes to 500 if you pay £7.50 a month. This add-on works for 100 countries.

Call Abroad Extra

With Vodafone’s call abroad extra, you can call your loved ones almost anywhere from the UK. This add-on offers 75 international calling minutes to 200 countries in £10/month. But if you want additional minutes in the same add-on, you can get it by paying £20 a month.

Three International Add-Ons

Call Abroad 100

With the Three’s Call Abroad 100 add-on, the user gets 100 international calling minutes in £5/month for landline and mobile numbers. The add-on is valid for 55 countries worldwide and auto-renews after its validity expiration.

Call Abroad Unlimited

As its name suggests, this add-on offers unlimited international minutes to make cheap calls from the UK. Priced at £10 a month, this add-on is valid for 55 destinations globally. Like Call Abroad 100, the Call Abroad Unlimited add-on also renews automatically after its validity expires.

International Saver

Suitable for customers who make frequent calls abroad, this add-on offers 3000 international calling minutes for landlines for £15/month. The range of countries you can call is not as broad as some other add-ons, but it includes the USA, China, Australia, and New Zealand.

O2 International Add-Ons

International Bolt-on

A standout add-on that we’ve noticed from O2 is its International Bolt-on. This add-on lets you make cheap calls abroad by offering 3000 international calling minutes on landline numbers for £10 per month.

Conclusion

With the help of modern communication channels, the world is shrinking day by day. Nowadays, connecting with your loved ones abroad is not as troublesome as a decade ago. The network giants are bringing different international calling plans to the market every once in a while to facilitate their customers in terms of international calling.

It depends on your needs which plan you opt for when making international calls to the UK, but as a gist of this article, we’ve tried to help you choose the best plans – PAYG SIM and add-ons – that fit your needs. It is best for users who make frequent international calls to stay out of a typical UK SIM. Such customers should instead go for MVNOs and PAYG international SIMs.

In terms of PAYG international SIMs, the best deal in terms of cost is offered by Talk Home. The Super Saver 5, for a price of just £2.5/month, offers you 100 international calling minutes, 2 GB of internet data, 1000 texts, and 1000 local calling minutes. Moreover, the EU roaming is also free in this deal. You can also check more of Talk Home’s PAYG sim deals in 2022.

For add-ons, Vodafone and O2 stand out the most since they have included a large number of countries in their plans where you can call. Among these two, Vodafone is taking the lead overall due to the availability of more international add-ons.

Remember, the market is still a muddle of terms and conditions that control which locations you may call. If you travel frequently, it can be more troublesome, so always check the tiny print of any agreement offer to see what your plan includes.