Southern Phone Plan
Review and Comparison
- Australian based customer support
- Postpaid plans - much less hassle to manage
- On Optus 3G/4G network
- Carbon Neutral - Certified by Climate Active
Frequently Asked Question About Southern Phone?
Does Southern Phone sell 5G plans?
Yes, Southern Phone offers 5G SIM Only plans using the Optus 5G network. These plans are separate from Southern Phone’s 3G/4G plans, and they cost more.
Do Southern Phon sell mobile broadband plans?
Yes. Southern have a strong range of Mobile Broadband plans and, as with their voice+data plans (for smartphones), their mobile broadband plans (for dongles, tablets, and laptops) use the Optus 3G and 4G Plus network.
Should I get a 12-month contract from Southern Phone?
Asking this question is a bit like asking whether you should get tickets to see Elvis Presley live. Whether you should or shouldn’t doesn’t matter, because you can’t.
Currently, month-to-month plans are all that SouthernPhone offers. The only exception are their phone-included plans, which last 24-months.
Use the latter option if you do not have (or want a new) mobile device.
Do Southern Phone have a self service app?
Yes, they do. And that’s a good job. Our own research shows that installing the self service app is the single best thing you can do to improve how you feel about your phone company. (Essentially, the less need you have to call any customer support line to find out usage information or check some bill feature, the happier you’ll be).
Southern Phone sell postpaid plans. What is postpaid?
Postpaid plans are plans you pay for after you’ve used them. To get a postpaid plan, you’ll need to pass a credit check. With Southern Phone, your first bill arrives 10 days after they activate your service. Afterwards, you need to pay your bill each month (if you continue to use them.
Can I keep my existing phone number if I move to Southern Phone?
Yes, you can. Learn more here.
Some online reviews are bad for Southern Phone.
That’s true. We saw those too and some of them are bad. Southern phone has a plan in place to fix the customer service issues raised by people who complained in those review.
Our trial experience of Southern Phone’s Australian-based customer support is that they’re actually very good. It’s usually people who are unhappy with the service that leave some of the very bad reviews; they’re never removed and there is a little bit of interfering with customer review numbers in every industry – with telco being one of the biggest examples. Although there is a possibility that Southern Phone has put so much into their app, person-to-person help has fallen by the wayside.
What's good
- Australian based customer service and support
- Established brand with multiple products including fixed
- All plans comes with unlimited Australian Voice and SMS
- Option for 4G Plans, 5G Plans, Business Plans, and Data-Only Plans
What's bad
- Southern Phone offer only postpaid plans
- Charge $10 for extra data – overage (max 3GB)
Southern Phone – Should You Go With Them?
60 Second summary
Southern Phone offers various month-to-month SIM plans, as well as some plans that come with a phone.
- You’ll mainly find SIM Only phone plans from Southern Phone. But, they also provide mobiles phones, both new and refurbished.
- Southern used to be one of the few phone companies to offer you connections to either the Optus or Telstra Mobile networks, but they now focus on Optus alone for SIM Only plans.
- Southern offers both fixed and mobile telecommunications services – something which is likely to make them appeal to older Australians.
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This Month’s Hot Offers
Everything you need to know about Southern Phone’s plans
Southern Phone (they’re based in Southern NSW) are a tried and tested Australian telco brand. The company was known as one of the few to offer plans on both the Optus and Telstra networks, but have since focused on the Optus network alone for SIM Only plans. Southern focus mostly on the over 50s age group, although their plans will (obviously) work in anyone’s phones. So how do they compare?
Like SpinTel, Southern Phone are a full-service telco offering multiple products including NBN fixed broadband and fixed voice (also known as landline) services. Again, like SpinTel, Southern operates in the incredibly competitive area of Optus network resellers. It’s becoming a crowded place with Moose and Amaysim, both providing plans with slightly different allowances and features on the same network.
Interestingly, Southern has a unique business model. Until recently, they were owned by 35 county councils and returned profits to them – a form of co-operative. However, since 2019, Southern Phone has been owned by AGL energy.
On data pricing, they are ‘there or thereabouts’ (i.e. competitive with other telcos) – but, to be frank, there are often better data inclusions out there, on the same networks at the same price.
Key facts you need to know about Southern Phone
- Yes, you can keep your number:
If you already have a phone service with another phone company, (and a phone number by which everyone knows you), you can transfer across to Southern and keep your current number. - Southern Phone sell the Optus 3G and 4G networks:
Southern Phone used to be rare in that they sold SIM Only plans on two different networks at the same time. Most providers have SIMs on a single network. Other companies which still do it include CMobile and Think Mobile. (They sell both Vodafone and Telstra plans at the same time.) However, Southern Phone now sells the Optus 3G, 4G, and 5G network alone for SIM only plans. - Southern Phone now sell the Optus 5G network:
Like many other MVNOs in Australia, Southern Phone now sells 5G plans. The telco resells the Optus 5G network with simple, straightforward 5G plans that cost more than their 3G and 4G plans. - All Southern phone plans have unlimited voice and SMS:
Almost all phone plans now offer Unlimited voice calls and SMS sent between Australian phones communicating with other Australian numbers. - Postpaid plan provider:
All Southern Phone plans are postpaid. We have an article explaining the difference between prepaid and postpaid plans. Postpaid plans are generally seen as more convenient than prepaid plans and, in some sense, fairer because they bill you for the service on the same day of each month. - They sell Mobile Broadband too:
Southern Phone are one of the rising number of telcos which offer 4G Mobile Broadband bundles for use in dongles, tablets, or other dedicated data-only devices. - Extra data is $10 per GB:
If you reach your allocated data limit, Southern Phone will charge you $10 per extra GB, up to a maximum of 3GB. This is now common practice for postpaid plan providers. - Bundled mobile phones:
You can buy your next mobile phone directly from Southern Phone and pay it off in installments. Many will find this a convenient way of tying together your phone and plan, although you might be better off going to a dedicated phone provider for range and price.
Helpful things to think about when considering Southern Phone
- What is ‘overage’?:
Overage is the name given to any costs you sustain, taking a phone plan from a company, which are not in the original plan. For example, you might have a plan with 2GB of data. If you use 2.5GB of data in any month, you’ll be charged $10 for the extra data – and that’s overage. Southern Phone will only add 3GB of extra data, no matter what plan you’re on. In practical terms, this is not something that will affect many people. If you’re that far (3GB) over your data allowance, something is seriously wrong and you need to change up plans – which you can do at any point. Southern will also, like every phone company, send you SMS messages when you get near your data allowance (at 50%, 85% and 100%) so you can avoid this happening. - They charge a port-out cost of $8:
When terminating your Southern Phone service, you’ll incur an $8 fee. It’s uncommon for phone providers to charge for cancellation nowadays. While this fee isn’t prohibitive, like the overage section mentioned earlier, it’s worth noting.
What’s different about Southern Phone?
- 5G plans:
Southern Phone offer 5G plans. The MVNO separates its 5G plans from 3G and 4G plans, so if you’d like faster speeds on your Southern Phone plan, you’ll have to pay extra. - International calls:
$50 call credit for standard international call for most plans, except on their Large plan, which offers $300 call credit.
Conclusion
Southern is competitive on mobile data plan inclusions but they’re not always the best in the market. With Southern Phone focusing on its green plans to use the Optus network, you won’t have the same coverage if you go to Telstra or Boost.
It’s worth mentioning that Southern Phone’s customer support is located in Australia, where most of Telstra’s support is offshore, under the Boost and Telstra brands.
Comparing Southern Phone’s Mobile Broadband Pricing
You can compare Southern Phone’s Mobile Broadband pricing on our data plans page.
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This Month’s Hot Offers
