Updated September 30, 2026 · TariffCue Editorial Team
Lycamobile vs sim.de
What sets them apart
| Compare |  Lycamobile |  sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | £3.50 | €6.99 |
| Reference plan prices | National Plus: GBP 5 per month, 30 GB, 30 days; UK Plan Unlimited: GBP 12.5 per month, Unlimited, 30 days; UK Plan Smart: GBP 3.5 per month, 5 GB, 30 days | 25 GB: 6.99 EUR/month, 25 GB, 1 month; 50 GB: 9.99 EUR/month, 50 GB, 24 months; Unlimited on demand: 19.99 EUR/month, unlimited, 24 months |
| Unlimited plan price | £12.50 | €19.99 |
| EU roaming | Fair use | Included |
| Markets | GB | DE |
| Host network | Not confirmed | 1&1 |
| Roaming countries | Not confirmed | 33 |
| Credit check required | No | Not confirmed |
Same on both: Seller type (Mvno), SIM-only (Yes), 5G (Yes), eSIM (Yes).
We earn a commission when you sign up through links on this site. Partner status can affect where a brand appears in our rankings.
Key differences
- Lycamobile scores higher overall: 9.2 vs 8.9.
- Billing: only Lycamobile offers Prepaid.
- Billing: only sim.de offers Contract.
- Contract length: only Lycamobile offers 12.
- Markets: only Lycamobile offers GB.
- Markets: only sim.de offers DE.
Our verdict on each
Lycamobile
Lycamobile suits UK readers who want a prepaid sim only line, 5G and an eSIM without a credit check or a long handset contract. It scores 9.2 overall, and entry pricing starts at £3.50 a month on a rolling monthly basis.
sim.de
sim.de suits people in Germany who want a cheap sim only line with a monthly option and a fixed contract choice on the same tariff sheet. It runs on the 1&1 network, and its entry price of €6.99 sits well under the market median for entry pricing.
Score breakdown
| Area | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | 9.4HigherEntry pricing of £3.50 a month and unlimited data at £12.50 a month back a strong cost score. | 9.1Entry at €6.99 and unlimited at €19.99 both sit under the site medians of €9.30 and €23.19. |
| Offer | 8.9Sim only plans, 5G, an eSIM, prepaid and rolling billing and terms of 1, 12 and 24 make for a flexible, low commitment lineup. | 9.0HigherSim only, 5G and Esim are available, with included roaming across 33 countries and terms of 1 and 24. |
| Trust | Not confirmed | 8.4Run by Drillisch Online GmbH since 2014, an mvno on the 1&1 network with support on email, chat and phone. |
Positions in our rankings
| Ranking | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| SIM-only deals | 6 of 416 | 24 of 416 |
| Cheap cell phone plans (MVNOs) | 3 of 137 | 14 of 137 |
| Phone plans with eSIM | 20 of 389 | 35 of 389 |
Availability and regulation
| Country | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Not confirmed | Germany |
What we checked
Lycamobile
- lycamobile.co.uk: 12 facts, checked September 30, 2026
sim.de
- sim.de: 17 facts, checked September 30, 2026
Every fact side by side
| Fact | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | Prepaid, Rolling | Contract, Rolling |
| Contract length | 1, 12, 24Covers more | 1, 24 |
| Legal entity | Not confirmed | Drillisch Online GmbH |
| Headquarters | Not confirmed | Germany |
| Founded | Not confirmed | 2014 |
| Support channels | Not confirmed | Email, Chat, Phone, Help centre |
Broadband
| Fact | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| Technology | Not confirmed | Fttc, Fttp |
| Top download speed (Mbps) | Not confirmed | 1,000 |
| Upload speed (Mbps) | Not confirmed | 5.8 to 40 |
| Setup fee | Not confirmed | €49.99 |
| Router | Not confirmed | FRITZ!Box 7510, 7630 or 7690, from 4.99 EUR per month, optional |
| Address checker | Not confirmed | https://www.sim.de/glasfaser |
Where each stands against the rest
| Fact | Lycamobile | sim.de | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roaming countries | Not confirmed | 33lowest quarter | 100 |
Median across 176 listed providers.
Pros and cons
Lycamobile
Pros
- Entry pricing of £3.50 a month and unlimited data at £12.50 a month place it near the top of our price-from and unlimited tables.
- A credit check is not required, which is a shorter route to a live line than a provider that scores applicants first.
- Billing runs on prepaid and rolling terms and plan terms come in 1, 12 and 24, so a reader can start short and stay flexible.
Cons
- Roaming in Europe runs on fair use terms rather than being included, so regular travel calls for another plan.
- Lycamobile is an MVNO by mvno, where GETESA, Lonestar Cell MTN and yesss! are listed as networks, so readers set on a network seller should compare those instead.
- The entry price ranks 79 of 258 on our price-from list, so the lowest starting price in the comparison sits elsewhere.
sim.de
Pros
- Entry pricing of €6.99 is below the site median of €9.30
- The Unlimited on demand plan costs €19.99, under the site median unlimited price of €23.19
- Contract terms run 1 and 24, so a plan can sit on a monthly term or a longer one
Cons
- The Unlimited on demand plan is tied to the longer of 1 and 24, so unlimited data is not offered on a monthly term
- Service runs in DE only, so the tariffs are not offered outside that market
- As an mvno, sim.de sells on the 1&1 network rather than owning it, unlike the network operators getesa, yesss! and Lonestar Cell MTN
Who each suits
Lycamobile
Who it suits
- UK readers wanting a cheap prepaid data line: sim only plans from £3.50 a month, sold in the United Kingdom, with no credit check.
- Readers who want 5G or an eSIM but not a handset bundle, and who can live with plan terms of 1, 12 and 24.
- Holders of a spare phone or tablet who can manage fair use roaming and a set data allowance.
Who should look elsewhere
- Readers who want European roaming included in the price: Lycamobile runs roaming on fair use terms, and GETESA, Lonestar Cell MTN and yesss! are the alternatives to weigh instead.
- Anyone who insists on buying from a network rather than an MVNO, since GETESA (network), Lonestar Cell MTN (network) and yesss! (network) all sell as networks while Lycamobile is an MVNO by mvno.
sim.de
Who it suits
- People in DE who want a data heavy sim only line without paying for a handset
- Travellers from DE who want roaming included and reach across 33 countries
- Households that want one provider offering both a short monthly term and a longer fixed contract
Who should look elsewhere
- Buyers outside DE, since the service is a single market
- People who want a handset bundled with the tariff, as the plans are sim only
- Buyers who want unlimited data on a rolling monthly basis, since the Unlimited on demand plan sits on the longer of 1 and 24
Country by country
| Country | Lycamobile | sim.de |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Yes | No |
Questions about each
Lycamobile
What is the cheapest Lycamobile plan?+
UK Plan Smart is the entry plan, priced at £3.50 a month for a set data allowance. It is a sim only offer, so no handset is needed, and a credit check is not required. National Plus costs more for a larger allowance, while UK Plan Unlimited is the option for a reader who would rather not watch data.
How much does the unlimited plan cost?+
UK Plan Unlimited is quoted at £12.50 a month. On our unlimited price list Lycamobile ranks 44 of 173, so unlimited data is priced below the middle of the field. The figure is the same throughout, with no promotional opening rate listed for the plan.
sim.de
How much does a sim.de sim only plan cost to start with?+
The cheapest way in is the entry data plan at €6.99 per month, and it can run on a monthly term rather than a long contract. The larger data plan and the Unlimited on demand plan sit on the longer of 1 and 24 instead.
How much is unlimited data on sim.de?+
The Unlimited on demand plan costs €19.99 per month, and it is tied to the longer of the contract options, 1 and 24. That price sits under the site median unlimited price of €23.19, but the commitment is the part to weigh.
Other options to compare
Other matchups
- Lycamobile vs Very Mobile
- Lycamobile vs HoT Hofer Telekom Austria
- Lycamobile vs Cricket Wireless
- Lycamobile vs O2 CZ Datamanie
- Lycamobile vs Simpel
- Lycamobile vs TextNow
- sim.de vs RED by SFR
- sim.de vs hollandsnieuwe
- sim.de vs Abissnet
- sim.de vs EarthLink
- sim.de vs Kinetic
- sim.de vs Odido Thuis
- sim.de vs toob
- sim.de vs Frontier Communications
- sim.de vs OiSTER
- sim.de vs Optimum
- sim.de vs YouFibre
- Lycamobile vs Astound
- Lycamobile vs MobileX
- Lycamobile vs yallo
- sim.de vs nju Mobile
- Lycamobile vs MasMovil
- Lycamobile vs Budget Thuis Internet
- Lycamobile vs Twigby Mobile
- Lycamobile vs Kyivstar
- Lycamobile vs T-Mobile Polska
- sim.de vs ho. Mobile
- Lycamobile vs Budget Energie
- Lycamobile vs PremiumSIM
- Lycamobile vs Lyca Mobile Ireland
- sim.de vs 1pMobile
- Lycamobile vs Lyca Mobile
- sim.de vs Eni Plenitude
- sim.de vs 1pBroadband
- sim.de vs Singtel
- sim.de vs EE Store
- sim.de vs beeline
- sim.de vs Vectra