Save £100s on your mobile bill with easy network ‘swap’ trick & hidden cashback

BRITS will soon be stung by the nasty surprise of a mobile bill increase – but there are easy ways you can save.

Most mobile providers increase their contract prices at the end of March or the start of April, so expect to be tightening your belts in a few weeks.

As The Sun’s Assistant Technology and Science Editor – and a keen money saver – I’m always on the lookout for ways to cut the cost of pesky mobile bills.

Here are the very best hacks I use myself to prevent costs spiralling.

These largely focus on SIM only contracts, which work best if you own a smartphone outright or you’ve already paid yours off.

1. Switch to a piggyback network

The UK only has four mobile networks – EE, Vodafone, Three and O2 – and their contracts tend to be the most expensive.

All those other smaller networks (officially known as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator) piggyback on the masts used by the big three.

For example, Lebara uses Vodafone‘s network, and Giffgaff is on O2.

These generally offer near identical coverage as the main providers for substantially cheaper.

Of course, the smaller firms tend to be no thrills, so you won’t get perks like free food and Disney+.

But if you’re really not fussed about the extras, you can save quite a bit by switching.

Don’t forget, you can keep your number and easily transfer it by requesting a PAC code via text message from your current provider by sending PAC to 65075 – just ensure you’re out of contract.

So, if you’re happy with the network connection you have but want to lower the price, consider switching.

Here’s a list of the piggyback operators and the main networks they use.

Be sure to check their terms and conditions for any network usage limits.

• 1pMobile – EE
• Asda Mobile – Vodafone
• Ecotalk – EE
• giffgaff – O2
• Honest Mobile – Three
• iD Mobile – Three
• IQ Mobile – EE
• Lebara Mobile – Vodafone
• Lyca Mobile – EE
• RWG Mobile – EE
• Sky Mobile – O2
• SMARTY – Three
• spusu – EE
• Superdrug Mobile – Three
• Talk Home Mobile – EE
• Talkmobile – Vodafone
• Tesco Mobile – O2
• Utility Warehouse – EE
• VOXI – Vodafone
• Your Co-op – EE

And here are some deals and prices you can get currently:

• Lebara Mobile – 10GB for £1.60 per month (for the first 7 months) with free roaming in the EU and India. 30 day rolling contract so you can cancel anytime. Runs on Vodafone.
• Talkmobile – from £5.95 per month for 15GB with free roaming in the EU. Runs on Vodafone.
• iD Mobile – from £6 per month for 10GB. 30 day rolling contract so you can cancel anytime. Runs on Three.
• Tesco Mobile – from £7.50 per month for 2GB. Runs on O2.

2. Cashback to pay your bill

Everyone is well aware of cashback sites these days, but you can easily earn without lifting a finger via your mobile bill, too.

AirTime Rewards automatically detects purchases from selected retailers once you’ve signed up and attached your bank card.

When you reach a minimum of £10 it can be used to pay your mobile bill.

I’ve often got my monthly bill for free this way, all just from my regular shopping.

The retailers you can earn from change from time to time, but currently, it includes big names like Morrisons, New Look, Ikea, Asos, Currys, Pret, TG Jones, Superdrug and many more.

AirTime Rewards is only available on selected networks:

• O2
• EE
• Three
• Vodafone
• giffgaff
• Lebara Mobile
• Lycamobile
• Now Mobile 

Open the app each month to unlock bonus cashback too (for example, you can get an extra 50p added to your account if you make two purchases in a month).

3. Going direct isn’t always cheapest

While many things are cheaper when going direct, that’s not necessarily always the case for mobile contracts.

Sure, if you speak to your current mobile provider, they might be able to give you a special offer.

But failing that – and if you want to cut out the chat – shop around and make use of comparison sites.

USwitch.com is a great option which often has exclusive deals not available directly from networks.

When I switched last year, I managed to get a deal for Vodafone via mobiles.co.uk.

This came with a cashback offer of £10.80 every few months.

It’s a bit of a faff but only takes five minutes – every 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th you have to send in a bank statement confirming you’ve paid your bill and they send you a cheque in the post.

Across the year, this will save me £54.

Just be sure to set reminders on your phone, as you only get a certain amount of time to redeem the cashback each period.

4. Club together and save

Some networks offer you a saving if you have multiple SIMs under one account, which is ideal for households and families.

For example, O2 Multisave offers 20 per cent off each additional SIM and 1pMobile gives you a whopping 50 per cent off each too.

5. Roaming done right

Travel can be expensive business for your mobile if you’re not careful.

If you can manage with Wi-Fi only, that’s obviously the cheapest way to go.

But if you really need or want data when abroad, there are some options to avoid a nasty bill shock.

Firstly, some networks offer roaming at no extra cost, though most are for EU countries only.

• O2
• giffgaff
• iD Mobile
• Lebara
• Lyca Mobile
• SMARTY
• Tesco Mobile
• Talkmobile
• Asda Mobile
• 1pMobile
• Talk Home Mobile
• spusu
• Honest Mobile

Each network has different usage limits for roaming, so be sure to check before.

If your network doesn’t offer free roaming don’t bother with their add-ons, these tend to be quite pricey.

Instead, get a roaming eSIM.

These are virtual SIMs (i.e., you don’t need to change a physical SIM) that work alongside your existing SIM while you’re away.

I’ve used Holafly and Maya in the past.

Prices very much vary based on where you’re going, how much data you want and how long for.

But as an example, Maya offers unlimited data to use in Australia for £12.99.

By comparison, my main network Vodafone charges £7.86 a day for 25GB.