Lyca Mobile vs Talkmobile: which low-cost network's best?

✔ Call signal is better on Talkmobile, 4G is better on Lyca

Both Lyca Mobile and Talkmobile are budget providers that piggyback off larger networks for signal. Talkmobile use Vodafone’s network while Lyca use EE’s, so what are the advantages and disadvantages of either?

Talkmobile hold the advantage for call signal (2G/3G), being on the joint-largest network for calls in the UK. Coverage for calls on Lyca is less widespread and indoor call signal blackspots tend to be a weakness.

For 4G data signal, it’s the complete opposite story. Lyca use the largest UK network for 4G signal. Talkmobile’s 4G coverage is also pretty good, but they fall behind Lyca here.

Best SIM only deals currently on Talkmobile and Lyca Mobile

It’s more important for a network to offer better 4G data signal as it gives you faster data speeds than 3G. But it’s also worth using both networks’ coverage maps below to check signal near you before joining either.

Useful link: Talkmobile’s coverage map | Lyca Mobile’s coverage map

✔ 5G in more locations on Lyca Mobile than Talkmobile

Both providers offer access to their hosts 5G networks on all plans at no extra cost. On Talkmobile you’ll get 5G in these 160+ UK towns and cities, while Lyca have 5G live in these 336+ locations.

But these numbers don’t tell the whole story. This is because Lyca’s hosts only declare a location as covered once 5G is available in 50% of its area, meaning you’ll get 5G in even more places than that.

Best current 5G SIM only plans on Lyca Mobile and Talkmobile

And Lyca tend to cover their 5G locations better than Talkmobile. So not only are you more likely to get 5G near you on Lyca, you’re more likely to stay on 5G on Lyca in places where both networks provide it.

Still, it’s worth using both networks’ coverage maps here before joining either. If one network provides 5G in your area and the other doesn’t, that should matter more than the national picture.

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

✔ 4G data speeds are typically faster on Lyca

You might assume that you’d get inferior speeds being on a budget provider like Talkmobile or Lyca Mobile vs joining their host networks. But that’s not the case. Both provide identical speeds to their hosts.

Network testers Opensignal indicate that typical 4G data speeds will sit below 31.1 Mbps on Talkmobile’s hosts and below 45.9 Mbps on Lyca’s hosts. But that’s just an average. What can you expect in real life?

Best SIM only deals on currently Talkmobile and Lyca Mobile

In our tests we got speeds as low as 5 Mbps on both Talkmobile and Lyca’s hosts. That’s much lower than Opensignal’s average, but we also got speeds as high as 110+ Mbps on Talkmobile’s hosts and 130 Mbps on Lyca’s.

We can see how Opensignal got their average. And while 4G data speeds will vary massively depending on your location, Lyca consistently work out as the faster of the two providers, with the fastest 4G speeds around.

Useful link: Check Lyca Mobile’s web settings here

✔ 5G data speeds are a big advantage for Talkmobile

While Lyca may come out ahead for 4G speeds, the opposite is true when it comes to 5G. We use Opensignal and Speedtest’s results to measure typical 5G data speeds and they show Talkmobile speeding ahead.

They show typical 5G data speeds between 138.7 Mbps - 162.63 Mbps on Talkmobile’s hosts with very healthy peaks of 354.83 Mbps. On Lyca’s hosts, speeds sat between 96.8 Mbps - 119.21 Mbps with peaks of 316.68 Mbps.

Best 5G SIM only deals on Talkmobile and Lyca Mobile

That difference will be more noticeable for filesharers or anyone who needs the fastest speeds possible. This will go smoother on Talkmobile, and shows they’re better at dealing with the higher number of 5G users.

We’d say that it’s more important for a network to have better 4G speeds, as you’ll likely be on 4G more often than 5G. But still, this is a nice advantage for Talkmobile that might sway a lot of people’s minds.

Useful link: Read Talkmobile’s guide to their 5G

✔ Only Talkmobile offer WiFi and 4G calling between them

You can run into indoor calling blackspots on either network. This is where WiFi and 4G calling come in handy by letting you connect to calls using WiFi and 4G signal where there’s no conventional call signal.

Between the two, only Talkmobile offer WiFi calling as a feature and they even let you send and receive SMS texts over WiFi and 4G too. But there’s no way to transfer from a WiFi to a 4G call without it dropping.

Best current SIM only deals on Lyca Mobile and Talkmobile

And the number of devices that Talkmobile support for WiFi calling is still small. If you’re on an old iPhone or Android device it can be a real struggle to get it working. Still, at least they offer it.

Lyca do let you join on an eSIM right away, which is potentially really handy. This is something Talkmobile don’t offer. But Talkmobile offer call forwarding while Lyca don’t. Overall Talkmobile take this one.

Useful link: Our guide to the best WiFI calling networks

✔ Talkmobile offer the better EU roaming scheme of the two

Talkmobile have brought back their inclusive EU roaming after having removed it for a short while. So you can now use your UK mins, texts and data in these EU destinations at no added cost on any Talkmobile plan.

While there you can use up to 5GB of your data allowance. Most users won’t get through that much on a short trip. But if you’re a heavy data user that might seem a bit restrictive.

Best current SIM only plans with EU roaming on Talkmobile

They don’t offer any inclusive roaming beyond the EU, but this isn’t really something we’d expect from a smaller network. Instead, you’ll pay at these steep rates for your usage so it’s best to limit yourself while there.

Talkmobile are an excellent value choice for short trips to the EU, which for most people should be good enough. At the very least they’re a lot better than some of the more expensive networks.

Useful link: See all of Talkmobile’s EU roaming destinations

✔ Lyca Mobile’s EU roaming is a bit more restrictive

Lyca Mobile also offer inclusive EU roaming on all their plans. So you can use your Lyca plan in these EU countries without paying anything extra. So what are the differences between them?

The main difference is that Lyca have different limits on your data usage depending on which plan you take. On bigger plans you’re generally less limited in how much data you can use abroad than on Talkmobile.

Best current EU roaming SIM only plans on Lyca Mobile

But the issue is that on smaller plans you’re even more restricted than you’d be on Talkmobile. And if you go over those limits you’ll have to take a data add-on or pay for your usage at their standard rates.

Lyca don’t offer any inclusive roaming beyond the EU, so you’ll have to pay at these hefty rates. We think Lyca’s data limits are a bit too restrictive for users on smaller plans, so we give Talkmobile the nod here.

Useful link: See all of Lyca’s inclusive EU roaming destinations

✔ Talkmobile offer more flexible spending caps

When you join on a pay monthly contract on any network, any extras you use will be added to your bill at the end of the month. Spending caps are an excellent way of making sure you don’t accidentally overspend.

Talkmobile let you set a spending cap anywhere between £0 - £100 in £1 increments. That lets you keep on top of how much you pay outside of your regular monthly plan. Or you can choose not to set a cap.

Lyca also let you set a spending cap on their monthly contracts (every network has to) but only let you do so in £5 increments. That lack of flexibility means you may end up spending more than you’d like on extras.

Best current SIM only deals on Talkmobile

In all, we really like the brilliant flexibility Talkmobile offer with their spending caps. The fact that you can so easily avoid accidental overspending makes them a fantastic choice if that’s a worry for you.

Useful link: Our guide to the most flexible spending cap schemes

✔ Lyca offer inclusive international mins on their plans

Lyca Mobile offer inclusive international minutes on their plans, making them one of the best UK networks for calling abroad. The amount of international minutes you get depends on which plan you take.

Best current Lyca Mobile plans with inclusive international minutes

You can get between 100 - unlimited international minutes, and typically the higher the cost of the plan the more international mins it includes. But their cheapest “Saver” plan doesn’t include any.

If you use up all your inclusive mins for the month, you can top up and pay at these rates. Calls to certain countries can be as low as 1p per min, which is much lower than Talkmobile’s lowest rate of 19p per min.

This all makes Lyca one of the best networks for international calling. And the fact you get inclusive international mins on such cheap plans means they’re still a great value option even if you rarely call abroad.

Useful link: See Lyca Mobile’s international calling rates

✔ Only Lyca let you join a phone deal directly between them

Lyca offer their phone contracts via a third party called Klarna. Your credit agreement (basically a loan) for your phone and usage plan (mins, texts, data) are on separate bills that make up your monthly payment.

This lets you can change or leave your usage plan each month while still paying off your phone. And you can pay off the rest of your loan whenever you want, which is handy if you want to upgrade early.

You can choose a contract length of 6, 12, 24 or 36 months so you can suit it to your budget. They’re also generally quite competitive on price, so have a look using our phone comparison tool here.

Talkmobile only let you take a phone by taking a SIM only plan and staying on it until they think you’re ready to upgrade. This can be good if you’ve got a poor or no credit history, but otherwise Lyca are better.

Useful link: Lyca Mobile’s full range of phone contracts