A prepaid SIM, called pay as you go in the UK, is a plan you buy before you use it rather than one you are billed for afterwards. There is no credit check, no term and nothing to leave, and the trade-off is that the price can change at the end of each period rather than being fixed for a year or two. It is the simplest product in this market and, on the published figures here, not the most expensive one either.
How prepaid differs from a contract
A contract fixes a price for a term and allows the seller to raise it during that term, which most UK sellers do each April. A prepaid plan fixes nothing and ties nothing: you buy a bundle, it runs for 30 days or a month, and at the end you buy it again or you do not. Lycamobile's published ladder is the clearest example in this record, with UK Plan Unlimited at 12.5 GBP over 30 days and UK Plan Super Extra at 7.5 GBP for 75 GB, both with no credit check. What you give up is certainty about next year's price; what you keep is the ability to walk in 30 days.
What pay as you go actually costs now
The old assumption that prepaid is expensive is not what the published pages say. Lycamobile's 12.5 GBP unlimited is the cheapest unlimited figure in this record, below SMARTY's £20 rolling, Ecotalk's £22.00 and the £23 published by both Vodafone and Utility Warehouse. At the cheap end, 75 GB for 7.5 GBP over 30 days is more data per pound than any monthly rung published here. Prepaid stopped being the expensive option some time ago and the sellers who compete on it are the ones printing their prices.
What to check before you buy one
Check whether the bundle rolls automatically or expires, because an expired bundle on a live SIM can bill at out-of-bundle rates. Check what happens to unused allowance at the end of the period, which is almost never published. And check the fair usage and roaming caps: Lycamobile prints a fair usage policy on its unlimited allowances and a 35 GB roaming data cap on the unlimited plan, which is more disclosure than most of this market offers and is exactly the sort of number to ask every other seller for.
Questions people ask about what is a prepaid sim card
What is a prepaid sim card?
A SIM you pay for before you use it, called pay as you go in the UK. No credit check, no term, and nothing to leave; the price can change at the end of each period rather than being fixed for a year.
What do sim only deals pay as you go cost?
Lycamobile publishes UK Plan Unlimited at 12.5 GBP over 30 days and UK Plan Super Extra, 75 GB, at 7.5 GBP. Those are the cheapest published figures in this record at both the unlimited and the large-allowance end.
Is pay as you go more expensive than a contract?
Not on the published figures here. The cheapest unlimited plan in this record is a 30 day pay as you go plan at 12.5 GBP, against £23 for a 24 month contract at Vodafone.
What should I check before buying a prepaid bundle?
Whether it rolls or expires, what happens to unused allowance, and the fair usage and roaming caps. Lycamobile publishes a fair usage policy and a 35 GB roaming cap; most sellers publish neither.