TPO Mobile review: how we rated the former mobile network
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You can no longer join The People's Operator as they have ceased trading in the UK. Here's a historical look at what they offered. Last updated: October 8th 2019.
Notice
The People's Operator have closed
This page is no longer maintained, as TPO Mobile have ceased trading in the UK. You can't join them any more.
Everything on this page should now be considered for historical reference and will not be updated, unless The People's Operator re-launch at some point in the future.
If you're looking for a cheap 1-month deal on the Three network, can we recommend that you read our SMARTY review and iD Mobile review, to see if they could be right for you instead of TPO?
Useful link: See all our mobile network reviews here
Overall rating
SIM Sherpa only rates The People’s Operator as average
(2.5 / 5, others more appealing)
"It feels harsh to give TPO an average review because their charitable giving scheme is a noble one, and will help good causes. But we have to be brutal and review them as a mobile network, not a charity.
The People’s Operator’s plans are uber-basic and don’t come with (m)any frills. They aren’t even the very cheapest on the market anymore. So if you wanted to donate, you could join someone else cheaper and donate the difference instead."
Below, we look in detail at the coverage, speeds, benefits and extras you can expect on TPO Mobile.
The 3 best bits
1) 10% of your plan cost goes to charity
2) Decent coverage and 4G speeds
3) Cheap SIM only plans with no credit check
The 3 worst bits
1) Tethering not allowed
2) No extra benefits
3) Not cheapest plans any more
In our TPO Mobile review 2018
Reviewing TPO's mobile network
Coverage: access an award-winning network with TPO
✔ TPO SIMs tap into Three's mobile networkCheck TPO coverage
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
If you join The People’s Operator, your SIM card will connect to the Three mobile network to bring your phone signal. TPO aren’t owned by Three, they just use their network.
Three is the smallest of the four mobile networks in the UK. But it has doubled in size in the last 8 years. And it still offers some decent coverage statistics:99%population coverage for 3G and99%for 4G.
TPO Mobile customers get the same strength signal as Three’s, so the odds are you’ll be able to get a decent signal where you live. But we’d recommend double-checking before you buy to avoid disappointment.
Use The People’s Operator’s official coverage checker under the link below to check your signal in the places you know you’ll be using your phone (hint, don’t just check your home address).
Useful link: Check your local TPO Mobile signal on their official network map
Our rating:
★★★☆☆ (good)
Rank:
Joint 4th
(out of 4 places)
WiFi calling: The People’s Operator don’t offer it
✔ TPO's rivals iD Mobile do have WiFi callingSee iD's scheme
from iD Mobile's help guide
(opens in new window)
We told you no frills means no frills with TPO. They don’t have WiFi calling enabled on their network either.
WiFi calling is a useful feature if you regularly use your phone somewhere that conventional mobile signal cannot reach, but does have a WiFi router. Examples are in certain buildings or underground.
We’ve rated the best WiFi calling networks in the UK here. And it’s actually TPO’s host network Three that gets our top ranking. Their inTouch WiFi calling scheme works on a large number of phones.
The People’s Operator’s low-cost rivals iD Mobile also offer WiFi calling but on fewer phone models
Useful link: Three's inTouch WiFi calling scheme
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
Not as good as:
Three, Vodafone, EE, O2, iD
Same as:
All others
WiFi hotspots: no free access on TPO Mobile
We think it’s important to understand all features that are on offer with other providers, even if you’re not getting them on The People’s Operator. We hope this helps you decide whether each network is right for you, or not.
Another feature you don’t get with TPO is access to a free WiFi when you’re out and about. This is something you will get on these mobile providers.
It can be an important benefit for some people, because it’s an easy way to keep your mobile data consumption down. So you can choose a smaller, cheaper plan (using public WiFi on those networks doesn’t use up your data).
At the same time, it’s worth saying there is now so much free WiFi around anyway, you could find it’s not something you’ll miss on TPO.
Useful link: TPO's charges for extra data on pay monthly
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
Not as good as:
BT, Virgin, O2, Sky, EE, Three, Vodafone
Same as:
All others
Tethering: you can’t use your phone as a hotspot on TPO
✖ No tethering allowed on TPO MobileRead all TPO terms
This is where the network services that The People’s Operator offer dry up. You can’t tether on TPO Mobile.
Tethering, if you’re unusure, is when you use the mobile signal on your phone to create a mini WiFi hotspot around you. You can then connect tablets, iPads and laptops to this to get access to the internet.
TPO say it’s to keep their network free for regular users, which is fair enough. Tethering does tend to use more data than just browsing the internet on regular phones.
If you know you want to tether, and you’re looking for a cheap network that uses the Three network, it’s worth taking a look at SMARTY, who do allow you to tether. iD Mobile also use Three but don’t allow tethering either.
Useful link: Read all terms and conditions on TPO
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
Not as good as:
Most other networks
Same as:
iD Mobile, Virgin Mobile
TPO Mobile's benefits review
Unique benefit: TPO donate 10% to a charity you choose
✔ 10% donated to charity at no extra to youFind your cause
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
This is the reason The People’s Operator exists. They were set up as a way to make an ordinary purchase that practically everyone makes into one that contributes to good causes. It’s a great idea.
When you first sign up to your deal, you get to choose one of hundreds of charities to donate to (see latest list of causes here). Each month, TPO donates 10% of the cost of your plan to that cause, at no extra cost to you.
It’s a noble scheme but it’s worth doing some sums before you jump in, if you want to donate to charity:
10% of a £7.50 plan is 75p. 10% of a £15 plan is £1.50. If you can find a SIM only plan that gives you the same mins, texts and data, 10% or more cheaper than TPO, you can donate that difference directly yourself.
That way, you and the charity are both better off. For the charity, TPO is only the best choice if no other SIM plan is 10% cheaper or more. So check prices first.
Useful link: Compare all SIM only deals
Our rating:
★★★★★ (best choice)
Rank:
1st place
(out of 14 providers)
Better than:
All other networks
Roaming: TPO are no better or worse than most networks
✔ Roam Like Home in the EU with TPOHow roaming works
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
It's now a requirement of all mobile networks in the UK that they make the cost of using your phone in the EU the same as using it at home.
For pay monthly deals, it means that calls and texts back to the UK and data used in the EU, just come out of your plan's regular allowances. So won't cost you extra.
This is what happens on TPO Mobile. It's effectively free roaming within the EU (read their article here).
It's not our best-rated free roaming scheme, because it basically offers just the bare legal minimum (our favourite is still Three's Feel-At-Home free roaming in 71 destinations worldwide).
But overall, when TPO's plans are low-cost in the first place, it's a useful benefit.
Useful link: See all TPO roaming costs
Our rating:
★★★☆☆ (good)
Rank:
Joint 6th
(out of 14 providers)
Not as good as:
Three, EE, Vodafone, O2, BT
Same as:
Most others
Spending caps: TPO Mobile's deals are technically capped
✔ You don't get to control the cap yourselfHow all billing works
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
Some networks now offer what tend to be called "Capped Contracts" or similar.
These are plans that let you set a spending limit on top of your plan's usual cost that you can't overshoot. If you try using a service that would cause you to overspend, the network blocks it temporarily.
These prevent you from getting a surprise bill if you've used services that cost extra (like roaming, going over your data limit etc). They're particularly handy if you're taking out a contract for someone else.
We rate Tesco Mobile's scheme as the best because it lets you set the limit yourself voluntarily as little as £2.50. Or have no limit at all. On The People's Operator, you don't get the choice:
Each plan comes with a credit limit of £20 you can spend on top of your normal monthly charge. And you can't control the limit yourself. As a result, we can only really give TPO an average rating.
Useful link: TPO's guide to credit limits and overspending from their help section
Our rating:
★★☆☆☆ (average)
Rank:
TBC
Not as good as:
Tesco, Plusnet, iD, BT
Better than:
All others
Data rollover: TPO Mobile don't let you keep unused data
✔ TPO's rivals SMARTY pay you back for unused dataGuide to discounts
at SMARTY.co.uk
(opens in new window)
In our mobile network reviews we think it's worth listing the things you don't get as well as what you do get. This way, we can help you decide if you're getting everything you'd want out of your mobile deal.
One thing you don't get on The People's Operator is a feature generally known as data rollover (read our guide here). This is when a network lets you keep unused data at the end of the month for future use.
TPO don't offer this so get a poor rating in this category.
Our favourite of this type of scheme is from the new network SMARTY, who actually pay you back the cost of your unused data as a discount off next month's bill. It means you can never be on the wrong plan.
Useful link: Networks that offer data rollover
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
(out of 14 providers)
Not as good as:
SMARTY, Sky Mobile, iD, Virgin
Same as:
All other providers
Customer rewards: no real loyalty schemes on TPO Mobile
In this category, we look at how mobile networks look after their existing customers with extras that go beyond your actual mobile deal.
It's not something The People's Operator focus on. We'd say the main thing keeping customers with TPO is the 10% monthly donation to charity that we mention above.
The networks with the best reward apps are O2's Priority and Three's Wuntu.
Other schemes we like are ones where you get payment or rewards for getting your friends to join. giffgaff pay you £5 for each friend. Or SMARTY reward you and your friend with a free month each.
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
Not as good as:
O2, Three, giffgaff, SMARTY and more
Same as:
Most others
Free streaming or social media data: TPO Mobile have none
By now, you're probably getting the impression that TPO Mobile are very low-frills. And that's fair enough because it's not like you're not paying a fortune for their plans.
But another thing we're starting to see from other networks, and you don't get with TPO, is free unlimited data for particular usage. Either for streaming or for social media. So it's worth mentioning.
Three have Go Binge with unlimited Netflix and Apple Music streaming (as well as others). EE have 6 months' free Apple Music streaming data. Both are nice ways to get more from your phone.
Or if you're more of a heavy social media / messaging user, you might be interested in two networks, who have unlimited social data included in their deals: VOXI (Facebook, Twitter, SnapChat and more) and Virgin (Twitter and Facebook Messenger only.
Useful link: Our guide to networks offering free data
Free subscriptions: don't expect anything from TPO
✔ Some networks get you free content
With SIM only plans starting under £10 a month, it's no wonder TPO Mobile also don't have room to offer this next extra that some of the pricier networks offer: inclusive subscriptions to entertainment services.
On Vodafone's most expensive plans you can choose a subscription to either Spotify Premium, a NOW TV pass or Sky Sports Mobile TV.
While EE have 6 months free Apple Music and at least 3 months free BT Sport app access with all their pay monthly plans.
Both of these are designed to offer something different to help justify the higher prices on those networks. We'd recommend thinking whether you're interested in paying more for more or not.
Useful link: Compare TPO SIM only pricing with other networks
Our rating:
★☆☆☆☆ (poor)
Rank:
Joint last
Not as good as:
EE, BT Mobile, Vodafone
Same as:
All others
Family / shared plans: all TPO's deals are the same price
The final thing we look for in all our mobile network reviews is whether the provider offers discounts or incentives for people taking out more than one contract for family members.
This is another area where The People's Operator have nothing to offer (although you could say their deals don't need much discounting.
We'd say the best network at this is BT Mobile, whose Family SIMs give you a discount off the regular price on extra SIMs you add to your main deal.
Tesco Mobile's Family Perks are decent too.
Useful link: Our guide to shared mobile plans
TPO Mobile deals and plans
What type of deal are you interested in?
Choose an option to skip to the right section:
Special offers running on TPO Mobile
Here are the latest promotions on SIM only or phone contracts.
✔ Discounted data-only SIM deals for tablets
You don't often see The People's Operator offering discounts on their SIM only plans, because they're generally low-priced in the first place.
At the moment though, if you're after a data-only SIM for a tablet, TPO do have two discounts available:
Get 512MB of 4G data on a 30-day plan for £3.99 £3.49
or
Get 1GB of 4G data on a 30-day plan for £7.49 £5.49
That's 50% more data for the same low price of £5 a month.
SIM only plans
Plan
Data: (0MB+)
Minutes: (0+)
Phone contracts: TPO Mobile don't do smartphone deals
The People's Operator are strictly a SIM only provider. And we can't see that changing any time soon.
But we will update this section should they start offering handsets.
In the meantime, if you're looking for a smartphone contract, we've developed a new contract comparison tool that you can use to compare pricing on the UK's main mobile networks.
We've included practically every phone available on the market so give it a go.
Useful link: Use phone contract comparison tool
Pay As You Go: TPO's PAYG SIMs are pretty cheap
✔ Decent per min, text and MB rates on PAYGGet a free SIM card
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
If you know you don't need a full monthly plan of minutes, texts and data, The People's Operator pay as you go SIM is a decent option, and still comes with the benefit of giving 10% to charity.
Order one of their free SIMs here, top up with credit and you'll pay for what you use at a rate of 4p per min, 3p per text and 2p per MB data (see all other rates here).
These are cheap-ish rates compared to other providers. Although, there are still cheaper options from Three and O2, who both charge 3p per min, 2p per text and 1p per MB data.
Or there are monthly pay as you go bundles that are more expensive than their pay monthly counterparts but have the benefit that you can't overspend on extra charges (see latest bundle pricing here).
Useful link: Full details on TPO's pay as you go SIMs
Mobile broadband: TPO Mobile have some seriously cheap data-only SIM plans
✔ Excellent pricing on SIMs with small data allowancesSee tablet SIM deals
at thepeoplesoperator.com
(opens in new window)
Most budget operators like TPO don't tend to offer data-only SIMs, so it's good to see The People's Operator have a small range of well-priced tablet SIMs (from £3.99 a month!).
You're not going to get a huge amount of data (at our last check 6GB was the biggest). But if you just need a backup SIM to put in your tablet every now and then, TPO make a good, cheap choice.
Their data SIMs have the benefits access to Three's fast 4G and TPO still donate 10% of the monthly cost of your plan to a charity of your choice.
Useful link: TPO's data-only tablet SIMs
TPO Mobile customer service reviewed
Customer service: we've not got data on TPO yet
✔ TPO don't have enough customers yetRead Ofcom's report
We can't give you an expectation of what customer service is like on The People's Operator yet, because they've not made it into Ofcom's official complaints data.
Ofcom are the government's regulator of the telecoms industry.
We use Ofcom's data because it's a good indicator of mobile providers with rubbish customer service: if someone can't get their problem service, it's Ofcom they go to.
Our problem is Ofcom only publish data for mobile networks with over 500,000 customers, which TPO don't seem to have hit yet. Therefore we can't see how they compare with others.
Once TPO hit that number, we'll update this section with Ofcom's findings.
Useful link: Read Ofcom's latest telecoms report