What counts as a core feature
A mobile plan's core features are the parts of the deal that stay the same whatever you pay: the network generation, whether the SIM lives in your phone or on an eSIM, what happens when you travel, and the extras such as wifi calling, hotspot sharing and multi-line discounts. These are the details most often tucked into small print, so they are worth reading before you look at any price.
Most of the brands here already list 5G, which means ticking that box tells you very little. 019 Mobile, 1&1, 1pMobile, 2degrees, 3 Denmark, 4ka and 50plus Mobiel all support it, so the useful comparison sits around it. Start your shortlist with our mobile networks rankings and keep a note of which features each provider actually lists.
eSIM and sim-only: the baseline worth checking
An eSIM lets you activate a plan without a physical card, which suits anyone changing phone, travelling or keeping a light number for data. Every brand here that publishes a feature list offers one, including 019 Mobile, 1&1, 1pMobile, 2degrees, 3 Denmark, 4ka and 50plus Mobiel. You can narrow the list with our eSIM plan rankings.
Sim-only is the other side of the same test. It takes the handset out of the bill so you can keep the phone you already own. The same providers all sell a sim-only option, so the amount you finally pay is driven by data and roaming rather than by a new device. If your phone is a few years old, a sim-only plan is often the cheapest way to keep it.
Wifi calling is where these plans genuinely differ
Wifi calling lets a phone fall back to your broadband connection where there is no mobile signal, such as a basement, a lift or a thick-walled house. 1pMobile, 2degrees and 4ka all support it, and 3 Macau lists it too.
50plus Mobiel is the exception in this group, which makes it the clearest worked example of why a checklist pays for itself. Because wifi calling is not offered there, anyone living in a building with weak indoor signal can rule it out at the start rather than after a long trial. The 2degrees review and the 4ka review cover what the same feature looks like in practice on other networks.
Hotspot sharing and multi-line discounts for shared households
Hotspot sharing lets you connect a laptop or tablet to the phone's data allowance. 1pMobile and 2degrees both list it, so either can serve as the household's backup internet on a train or in a holiday let.
Multi-line discounts matter when several people each want their own number. 1pMobile and 2degrees list one, and so do 3 Denmark and 4ka. When you compare, look at the cost per line rather than the headline total, because the discount is what changes what the household actually pays each month.
Data rollover and signing up without a credit check
Data rollover is for irregular use: data you do not spend carries into the next month instead of expiring. 2degrees offers it on its prepay plans, while 50plus Mobiel does not, so a household with a single heavy month and several quiet months gets more help from 2degrees than from 50plus Mobiel.
The other detail that decides who can sign up is the credit check. 1pMobile does not run one, which matters if you have a limited credit history or would simply rather not hand over personal details. The 1pMobile review is a sensible read if you have been turned down by another provider before.
Roaming reach and home coverage
Roaming is the easiest figure to compare and the easiest to misread, because it only matters if you travel. 2degrees and 3 Denmark have the widest lists here, at 100 countries and 100 countries. 019 Mobile offers 49 countries, and 1pMobile offers 46 countries. Read the list rather than the headline, and check that the countries you actually visit are on it.
Coverage at home is a separate question. 4ka reports population coverage of 97%, a useful headline, but a national number says little about a single street or a single tower. The 019 Mobile review is a good place to look for what the network means day to day, and asking which towns and buildings you need is more useful than any average.
Weigh price last, with the billing period in view
Once the shortlist is short, price becomes the deciding factor. Compare it with the billing period and the plan name still in view, because the same figure can sit on a rolling monthly plan or on a longer commitment, and the total you pay is not always the headline. Our cheap cell phone plan rankings list plans with their terms attached so you can trade a larger data allowance against a shorter or longer term.
A method that works: write each provider's core features on a single line, mark the ones you would really use, then let price break the tie between the survivors. That keeps a generous roaming list or a rollover promise from steering you towards a plan you will never lean on, and it gives you a short, clear reason for the choice when someone else in the household asks.
Questions to ask before you commit
Ask whether your provider's network reaches your building and the streets around it, rather than relying on a national figure. Ask whether the eSIM will activate on the handset you already own. Ask what the price covers, whether it applies to the whole term or only the opening period, and how a plan is paused or changed if your needs shift.
Write the answers down next to your feature checklist. The provider that answers all of these plainly and offers the features you actually use is almost always the better value, even if another plan looks richer on paper.