Lebara vs Vodafone: what are the differences in networks?

✔ 4G/3G/2G signal is the same between the two providers

Vodafone are one of the main four UK mobile networks and Lebara are a smaller provider that piggyback off Vodafone’s network for signal. That means coverage for calls and data is the same between the two.

For call signal (3G/2G), you get access to the joint-largest network on both with 99% of the UK’s population covered. You’ll rarely lose call signal entirely unless you’re somewhere geographically strange.

You also get widespread 4G data signal on both (see 5G here). You’ll get 4G basically everywhere in urban areas and even in rural areas, though speeds do suffer in the country.

Best current value SIM only deals on Lebara and Vodafone

It’s reassuring to know you’re not getting an inferior network experience by joining a budget provider. It’s worth using either networks’ coverage maps below to see how good signal is in your area before joining.

Useful link: Vodafone’s coverage map | Lebara’s coverage map

✔ 5G data signal is also the same on both networks

Lebara get full access to Vodafone’s rapidly expanding 5G network and offer this on all plans. Vodafone offer it on most plans, except their cheapest “Basics” plans. You’ll get 5G in the same 160+ locations on both.

That does put them in joint-last place for the sheer number of locations across all networks. It’s worth checking if your local area is covered as that’s more important than the national picture.

Vodafone tend to be quite good at covering their 5G locations, but this does depend per location. Typically you’ll get 5G in more populated areas and places like transport hubs, but rarely in less populated areas.

We like that you get full access to Vodafone’s 5G on Lebara. And while they have the lowest number of 5G locations, Vodafone are still working on expanding it to more areas, so they may catch up soon.

Useful link: Our guide to the best 5G networks

✔ Lebara get access to Vodafone’s best 4G data speeds

In our real life tests we have found that there are no hidden built-in speed caps on Lebara, meaning you’ll get the same 4G data speeds as you would on most of Vodafone’s plans.

According to independent network testers Opensignal’s latest report, Vodafone provide typical 4G data speeds of 27.9 Mbps. That puts them in third place for typical 4G speeds across all networks.

But in real life we got speeds as high as 110+ Mbps on Vodafone, which is faster than the top speeds we got on Three and O2. But speeds slowed down to 5 Mbps in rural areas, so we can see how it all averages out.

Best current SIM only deals on Vodafone and Lebara

While Lebara’s plans have no speed caps, Vodafone’s Unlimited and Unlimited Lite plans do. For full speed unlimited data you have to take a premium Unlimited Max plan, which you don’t have to worry about on Lebara.

Useful link: Which Vodafone plans have speed limits?

✔ 5G data speeds are also identical between them

Lebara also get full speed access to Vodafone’s 5G network on all their plans, while Vodafone’s speed caps on their Unlimited and Unlimited Lite plans also apply to their 5G data speeds.

According to Opensignal and Speedtest by Ookla, Vodafone’s typical 5G speeds sit between 114.3 Mbps - 146.19 Mbps with peak speeds up to 315.35 Mbps. That puts them in second place of all networks.

Their speed results have actually been going up over time and it’s good to see their speeds getting healthier. They’re not the fastest, but if you’re a mobile gamer or file sharer you’ll like the speeds you get on both.

In all, you’ll get the same data speeds in the same locations on both on most plans.

Useful link: Our guide to the best 5G networks for coverage and speeds

✔ Vodafone offer a few more network features than Lebara

Even with Vodafone’s excellent call signal, it’s still possible to run into indoor calling blackspots. This is where WiFi calling and 4G calling come in handy, by letting you connect to calls with WiFi and 4G data.

Both Lebara and Vodafone have basically the same WiFi calling scheme. They both let you send SMS texts over WiFi and 4G, transfer calls from WiFi to 4G without them dropping and support the same devices.

But as Vodafone are a larger provider, they’re able to offer more extra network features. Firstly, they offer call forwarding which lets you redirect incoming calls to another number. Lebara don’t offer this.

And Vodafone also let you join on an eSIM. And Vodafone support visual voicemail, which displays all your voicemails and lets you sort through them one by one. Lebara don’t offer either of these.

Useful link: Our guide to the best WiFi calling networks

✔ Lebara still offer inclusive EU roaming on all plans

Unlike many other UK networks, Lebara have kept their inclusive EU roaming scheme in place. You can still use your plan in these 42 EU/EEA countries and even in India at no added cost.

While there you can use up to 30GB of your data allowance if your plan’s bigger than that. That will be more than enough for most users, even for a longer trip. It makes them one of the best networks for EU roaming.

Apart from India, Lebara don’t include any other worldwide roaming destinations. To roam beyond their inclusive countries you have to pay at these hefty rates. We wouldn’t expect a smaller network to offer this.

Still, we think more people will care about EU roaming and for that Lebara are a fantastic choice. The roaming in India is a nice addition, making their roaming scheme really impressive in our eyes.

Useful link: See all of Lebara’s inclusive roaming destinations

✔ Vodafone only include roaming as a premium benefit

Vodafone only include EU and worldwide roaming as benefits on their premium Xtras plans. On any other plan you’ll have to pay £2.25 a day to roam in their EU destinations and £6.85 in their worldwide destinations.

You can get inclusive EU roaming on their non-unlimited plans with 3 Xtras or their more expensive unlimited plans with 3 Xtras. This lets you roam in these 51 EU countries without paying a daily rate.

The only plan with inclusive worldwide roaming is their unlimited data 3 Xtras deals, letting you roam in these 83 EU and worldwide countries. This can be good if you’re a long haul traveller.

While abroad you can use up to 25GB of your allowance. Vodafone may be the better choice for worldwide roaming and offer decent flexibility, but are a much more expensive choice for roaming in the EU than Lebara.

Useful link: Our guide to the best EU and worldwide roaming networks

✔ Lebara offer nice rewards for referring friends and more

If you know someone who’s looking for a new plan you can both get extra rewards for referring them to Lebara. All you need to do is send them a tracked link where they can take their plan.

Once they’ve been on Lebara for 2 months, you’ll both get your rewards. The amount you get is usually worth twice what your friend paid for their plan, so if they took a plan worth £15 you’ll both get £30 back.

Lebara also now offer special offers for joining them. These include discounts on new devices or some other services that you might find useful. It’s nice for getting a bit of extra value out of your plan.

In all, Lebara do a lot to reward your loyalty as a customer and it’s really impressive considering they’re already one of the cheapest networks. It’s another great part of joining them.

Useful link: Read more about Lebara’s refer-a-friend scheme

✔ Vodafone offer some nice special offers for your loyalty

By joining Vodafone on any of their pay monthly or PAYG plans you’ll get access to their VeryMe app. This gives you special offers on food and drink, high street shopping, entertainment and more.

These offers change now and again and often include things like free coffees or snacks or prize draws for free holidays, subscriptions, discounts and vouchers.

All you need to do is download the VeryMe app, log in and you’ll see all your special offers displayed. If you don’t like what’s available you can wait until the offers refresh.

In all, it’s a nice scheme for helping you get a bit of extra value out of your plan. But this is also something Lebara provide, while Vodafone don’t offer any refer-a-friend rewards.

Useful link: Our guide to the best customer loyalty rewards schemes

✔ Vodafone’s family plans are good for saving money

If you’ve got family members or a close knit group of friends who want a new plan, you can add them onto your account to save money overall. Vodafone give you 15% each extra plan you add.

You can add up to 9 extra SIM only deals on top of your plan and get the discount on all of them. And even a few of their phone contracts also get the 15% discount when you add them (see which ones do here).

It also lets you manage all your deals in one place, which is handy for managing content restrictions, data add-ons and so on. Lebara let you add up to 4 extra SIMs, but you don’t get a discount for this.

In fairness, we would argue the discounts are more necessary on Vodafone due to their higher costs. But those savings and the added convenience might just make Vodafone look a bit more appealing.

Useful link: Our guide to the best family plan schemes

✔ Lebara offer much more flexible plans than Vodafone

Lebara offer two kinds of SIM only plan. You can either take a more flexible 1-month deal or a 12-month contract. Both are more flexible than Vodafone’s plans as you don’t need to pass a credit check to join Lebara.

On their 1-month deals you’re free to switch your plan at the end of each month or leave Lebara altogether whenever you want. So if you need more data or want to pay less per month you can switch plans to do so.

Best current value 1-month SIM only deals

And you won’t accidentally overspend on extras outside your plan as you have to top up with credit to use these on Lebara’s 1-month plans. So you can only use what you’ve already paid for.

Vodafone only offer similar flexibility on their Pay As You Go monthly bundles, but these are much more expensive than Lebara’s 1-month plans. So Lebara take the win when it comes to flexibility.

Useful link: Our 30-day rolling plan guide

✔ Lebara include international mins on all their plans

Lebara include a different number of inclusive international mins to these EU and worldwide countries on all plans. The amount you get depends on the plan you take, but generally the more you pay the more you get.

You can get between 100 - unlimited inclusive international mins on your plan. The fact that you get inclusive international mins on even their smallest plan makes them a great value option for calling abroad:

Lebara also have some of the cheapest international calling rates of all networks, with calls to some countries at just 1p per min. So you don’t have to worry too much if you get through all your inclusive mins.

That all makes Lebara the best network for calling abroad in our eyes. Vodafone do offer some bundles of international mins (see costs here), but they’re quite expensive on top of Vodafone’s already expensive plans.

Useful link: Our guide to the best international calling networks