Lebara review
Updated September 30, 2026 · TariffCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 30, 2026
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Our verdict
Lebara suits buyers who already have a handset and want only the SIM, since Sim only is listed as yes and the entry price sits at €2. Billed on prepaid and contract terms and hosted on KPN, it is a straightforward pick for shoppers weighing cheap SIM only plans.
Key facts
- Best for
- Holders of an existing phone who want the lowest entry price on a SIM only plan.
- Seller type
- Mvno (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Host network
- KPN (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- SIM-only
- Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Price from
- €2 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Founded
- 2001 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
- Billing
- Prepaid, Contract
- Official website
- lebara.nl
Pros and cons
Pros
- Lebara's entry price of €2 sits under the €6.99 median for sim only deals, so the cheapest way in is among the lower figures on the list.
- Sim only is listed as yes, so the entry plans cover the SIM alone and a handset bundle is not part of the starting price.
- Billing is listed as prepaid and contract, so top up buyers and longer commitment buyers are served from the same range.
- Trading since 2001 and hosted on KPN, the brand carries a longer operating record than a recent launch would.
Cons
- Billing is listed as prepaid and contract, so a contract element comes with the range rather than a purely rolling monthly bill.
- Sim only is listed as yes, which serves an existing handset well but leaves a buyer with no device to source a phone elsewhere.
- Coverage follows the host network, KPN, so the footprint is a decision the brand does not make on its own.
- GETESA, Lonestar Cell MTN and yesss! are each listed as network, so buyers who prefer the network itself are pointed to a different set of options.
Who it suits
- Shoppers who already hold a compatible phone and want the lowest entry figure on a SIM only plan.
- Prepaid and contract buyers who want both billing styles from one provider, since billing is listed as prepaid and contract.
- Households content with the footprint of the KPN network rather than shopping a network's own range.
Who should look elsewhere
- Buyers who want the network itself rather than an mvno: GETESA, Lonestar Cell MTN and yesss! are each listed as network.
- Buyers who need a plan that bills month to month only: prepaid and contract pairs prepaid with contract, so a term sits somewhere in the Lebara range, and yesss! is the network seller worth checking on billing terms.
- Anyone without a handset: a Sim only plan, listed as yes here, covers the SIM rather than a device, so buyers with no device yet should ask Lonestar Cell MTN or yesss! what they include before switching.
The company behind it
Lebara is headquartered in the United Kingdom and has been trading since 2001. That combination matters when a household is weighing a long standing name against newer sellers: the plans sit behind an operating history rather than a recent launch. It also tells you what kind of counterparty you are dealing with, which matters more over a relationship that runs month after month than for a purchase you make once.
How Lebara compares
- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.7
- 9.3 vs 8.6
- 9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.8
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 8.8- 9.3 vs 9.4
- 9.3 vs 9.4
9.3 vs 9.3
9.3 vs 9.2
9.3 vs 9.2- 9.3 vs 9.2
Budget Thuis Mobile
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.1
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 8.8- 9.3 vs 8.8
9.3 vs 8.7
9.3 vs 8.7
9.3 vs 8.7
9.3 vs 8.6- 9.3 vs 8.6
9.3 vs 8.6
9.3 vs 8.6
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.5- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.5
- 9.3 vs 8.0
- 9.3 vs 8.0
- 9.3 vs 8.0
- 9.3 vs 8.0
Frequently asked questions
How much is the cheapest Lebara plan?+
The entry price is €2 and Sim only is listed as yes, so that figure buys the SIM rather than a phone. Across the sim only deals on this page, entry prices for the plans listed sit at €3.43 to €14, which places Lebara in the lower part of the field.
What happens to the price when a contract ends?+
Billing is listed as prepaid and contract, so a contract element is part of the range and the monthly figure is worth rechecking once it ends. Across the brands listed here, prices after a contract period centre on €43, with the middle of the range running €35 to €52.46. Entry price and renewal price are separate lines on the bill.
Can I buy prepaid, or do I have to take a contract?+
Either: billing is listed as prepaid and contract, covering both prepaid and contract billing, so top up buyers and longer commitment buyers are served from the same range. Prepaid is the more common billing style in the sim only deals list, with 81.1% of the brands in that group and 60.5% on a contract.
Which network does a Lebara SIM run on?+
The host network is KPN, and Lebara is listed as an mvno, so the coverage a subscriber gets comes from that host. The company is headquartered in the United Kingdom and has been trading since 2001, which is useful context when a household is weighing a long standing brand against newer sellers.
Do I need a new phone to start?+
That is the trade-off with this plan set, and it cuts both ways. Sim only is listed as yes, so the entry plans cover the SIM alone and an existing handset moves across to the KPN network. Anyone starting without a device has to buy a phone separately before the SIM is of any use.
Is Lebara a network or something else?+
It is listed as an mvno. The alternatives here, GETESA, Lonestar Cell MTN and yesss!, are each listed as network, so the field pairs an mvno with the 3 network sellers listed alongside, which gives readers who want to buy from the network itself a short list to work through.
Where does Lebara sit on price against other brands?+
On entry price Lebara ranks 36 of the 258 brands compared on that measure, and the entry figure of €2 sits well under the 9.7 cost score it carries. The overall score on this page is 9.3, with the offer part at 9 and the trust part at 9.2.
How does that entry price compare with the other lists here?+
Lebara's entry figure of €2 sits under the median in each comparison it appears in: €6.99 for sim only deals, €6.99 for cheap cell phone plans and €6.02 for prepaid plans. A low entry point is not the same as a low ongoing bill, so the contract side of prepaid and contract still matters.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebara checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Billing, Founded, Host network, Headquarters, Seller type
“provides pay-as-you-go and contract-based mobile SIM cards”
- lebara.nl/nl/sim-only.html checked September 30, 2026
Backs: Price from, SIM-only
“Vanaf EUR2 per maand”
Compiled from 2 source pages, checked September 30, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Reference plan prices, Unlimited plan price, Contract length.
Lebara
Holders of an existing phone who want the lowest entry price on a SIM only plan.