Networks that use EE: the best piggybacking providers ranked

We’ve tested it out and we can say for certain that BT offer the same coverage as EE (not every provider does as you’ll see further down). We said as much in our BT Mobile vs EE guide.

And you'll now get access to 5G data too on every plan with BT Mobile. We also believe that the old 30 Mbps speed cap on BT is gone. Their WiFi calling is as good as EE's too. And they have much better free hotspots.

For network quality and features, BT are a good choice. And they include some extra benefits. They offer .a handy EU roaming scheme (while EE have got rid of theirs) and BT’s Family plans are genuinely impressive

And that's before we've mentioned price. On SIM only, BT Mobile are almost always better value than EE, particularly for smaller data amounts. For phone contracts though, BT's range is a little thin on the ground.

BT Mobile SIM only deals

Prices here are for people who have BT broadband:

Add to that the fact that BT broadband customers get £5 off any SIM only or phone contract and BT’s value only goes up. Even if you don’t have their broadband, they’re a cheaper option than EE. BT are an excellent alternative overall.

Useful link: Read our full BT Mobile network review

EE don’t offer a proper pay as you go scheme, that lets you top up with credit to pay for your phone usage per minute, text and MB of data. You can buy monthly bundles, but that’s it.

Network-wise, 1pMobile use EE's full network off the shelf. You'll get the same coverage for 2G, 3G, 4G and even 5G. 1pMobile also now even have advanced features like WiFi calling.

And they offer all of this while at the same time having the cheapest pay as you go tariff in the UK:

1p per minute + 1p per text + 1p per MB data = £0 a month (0‑month contract)
See full deal

But the rate of 1p per MB of data can get expensive if you even just a moderate data user (1GB=£10). In that case 1p now also offer a couple of pretty great value pay monthly plans:

Best pay monthly SIM only deals on 1pMobile

There aren’t a lot of different deals available, but the deals they do offer make them the cheapest way onto EE's 5G network. Otherwise, they’re also the best choice for pay as you go.

Useful link: Our full network review of 1pMobile

With 1pMobile bringing out their new monthly deals, Plusnet are no longer the only way to get onto EE with a super-cheap pay monthly deal. But they are still a great value option in our eyes.

They offer mostly 1-month SIM only plans, with no real added features, just coverage through EE (2G, 3G, 4G only) and that's it.

Plusnet's latest SIM only deals

If you’re already a Plusnet broadband customer you can get an extra 2GB on top of your plan. Otherwise you can get these plans here:

For value, these pay monthly plans can actually work out as even better than 1p’s monthly deals, especially with the broadband customer data boost they offer. Their 1-month contracts aren’t quite as flexible, however.

From a network point of view though, being on Plusnet isn't quite identical to EE. They're on an older virtual operator system from the days of Orange and T-Mobile, with some 4G bands that you can't access.

These tend to be the ones that boost capacity in the cities and boost coverage in rural areas, so you might notice a difference. While there’s no speed cap on Plusnet, they don’t offer 5G. And 4G calling and WiFi calling are also missing.

Useful link: Read our full Plusnet Mobile review

Now we get onto the networks that don’t offer the same network experience as being on EE, as well as missing some key features on top of that. The first of such networks are To The Moon Mobile (TTM).

Like Plusnet Mobile, TTM are also missing 5G data, some of the 4G signal bands and they don't have features like WiFi calling or 4G calling. It's not the same experience as EE directly. There's no speed cap at least.

But while Plusnet make up for the lack of features with great value deals, TTM don’t. Looking at their confusing website then you’ll see there’s a massive combination of deals that make finding the best value deal overly complicated:

TTM's latest SIM only deals

They’re not a bad network if you can find a deal that suits you. But there’s typically better value available on networks with more features.

Useful link: See To The Moon's website

The last network on this list are IQ Mobile, a network we think most people haven’t even heard of. But they offer the same network experience as being on EE directly, and even offer 5G.

They offer a range of SIM cards, which are pre-paid for 3 months at a time. It's an odd way of going about things and we're not sure who this will appeal to - IQ say families.

In any case, we don’t think the price-tag is warranted considering what they offer. We imagine EE’s prices make it more difficult for smaller providers (MVNO) to use their network, hence the less than impressive prices.

Useful link: See IQ Mobile plans