Why is iD Mobile so cheap: what you do and don't get

The network experience hasn’t been made worse

iD Mobile use Three’s network for coverage rather than paying to run their own mobile network. When we tested signal on iD vs Three in our review, we found no differences between the two.

And the same went for speeds as well. We found no evidence of any built-in speed limits on iD. So you get full access to Three’s excellent data speeds on low cost plans.

That includes access to Three’s blistering fast 5G on every iD plan. These also include similar WiFi calling and 4G calling (VoLTE) to their hosts with brilliant extra features like eSIMs.

Best current 5G SIM only plans on iD Mobile

So you don’t get a worse experience with iD Mobile just because they’re a budget network. And because they don’t have to pay to run their own network they’re able to keep their costs low.

Useful link: Check coverage using iD Mobile’s signal map

You don’t miss out on decent extra benefits either

You might think that iD keep their prices low by stripping away all of their added benefits, but that’s not the case. For a budget network, iD include an impressive number of handy benefits at no added cost.

iD still include EU roaming on all their plans which is something their hosts actually don’t offer as standard. You can use your plan in these 50 EU and non-EU countries at no added cost.

Best EU roaming plans on iD Mobile

On top of that, iD also include data rollover on all plans. This lets you hold onto any data you didn’t get through at the end of the month, giving you another chance to use it up in your next month.

These are benefits that most larger networks don’t even offer. So it’s not like you’re getting fewer benefits for joining a budget network like iD either. You can see all that they offer in our review here.

Useful link: Read iD Mobile’s guide to their data rollover

They were set up by Carphone Warehouse to offer cheap deals

Though iD Mobile are a fully fledged brand themselves, they were originally set up by Carphone Warehouse to sell cheap phone contracts onto - after O2, Three and EE all pulled out of selling with them.

Carphone Warehouse, now part of Currys, specialise in buying loads of phones cheaply and selling them on either their own brand iD Mobile, or via Vodafone. So it’s in their interest for iD Mobile to be competitively priced.

Best current SIM only deals on iD Mobile

And even though their main interest is selling phones, the low prices filter through to SIM only too. If you’re going to set up a network, you might as well get customers who don’t want a phone from you as well.

The more customers iD attract on SIM only, they also have a bigger pool of people to sell phone contracts to in the future. There are now 2 million iD Mobile customers, so the strategy is working.

Useful link: See iD Mobile’s full range of phone contracts

iD don’t have to pay for stores or customer call centres

One final way in which iD keep their prices down is by not paying for stores or call centres. Bigger networks like Vodafone pay a lot for brick-and-mortar stores where people can buy phone deals, but iD don’t.

Best SIM only plans currently on iD Mobile

You can still get an iD phone deal from Carphone Warehouse in most Currys stores. This is also a good way to get help with your phone or any part of your contract directly from a real person if you need.

That’s good considering iD no longer offer over-the-phone customer service with human agents. Instead they’ve moved to a fully automated system which some customers have complained about, but is much cheaper to run.

If you need help without going into a store you can talk to a human agent using their online chat. Having fewer customer service options is one of the trade offs of joining a cheaper network.

Useful link: See iD Mobile’s customer service page