The Best $10 A Month Phone Plan In Australia
- Cheap prepaid plans with lots of value
- Unlimited talk, SMS, and MMS
- Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone networks
Frequently Asked Questions About $10 Phone Plans
Who offer the best $10 phone plans?
MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators) offer the most $10 a month phone plans. These smaller companies resell the larger telcos’ networks (Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone) at some really good rates. While bigger telcos may target high end customers, MVNO’s have carved out a niche for value-seekers.
Here’s a look at some of the best $10 phone plans out there:
- Yomojo Kids Plan for $9.90 – Gives you 200 minutes of talk time, along with unlimited SMS. You also get 1GB of data.
- Amaysim $10 plan – This plan usually costs $15, but Amaysim is offering the first three recharges for $10 per 18-day expiry, after which the recharge reverts to $15 per. This plan includes 4GB of data, unlimited talk and text, and unlimited data banking. The promo ends 19 July.
How much data can I expect in a $10 plan?
If you’re a data-heavy user, look elsewhere – $10 plans are not built around lots of data. In a way, you get what you pay for, but you’re really getting a lot for your money. These plans usually come with unlimited talk and text, which is worth a lot.
It doesn’t end there, though. While you won’t get a lot of data on these plans, you will get enough for the basics – email, browse, etc. A $10 plan will give you around 1GB or 2GB of data at the most, but even this was unheard of just a few years ago. As data continues to increase in phone plans, perhaps we’re eventually going to see $10 phone plans with more than 2GB of data.
Who should get a $10 phone plan?
A $10 phone plan is great for parents who want a cheap plan or their kids. The unlimited talk and text can really come in handy, and the small amounts of data can keep kids data usage in check. Some of these plans also come with some great software to monitor your kids’ usage. Also, if your kid wants more data they can purchase it themselves while you just cover the base $10 cost. Extra data usually costs around $10 per 1GB.
If you’re a “candy bar phone” (cheaper phones that are used less often) user, then a $10 plan is perfect for you. You’ll get enough talk and text inclusions, and some data to keep you going when you need it.
Are there overage charges on $10 plans?
The $10 plans we cover are prepaid, and so you’re in control of all data usage. Whenever you exhaust your plan inclusions, they stop working. You would have to recharge or purchase add-on packs to use them again. In other words, you can’t incur overage charges.
What is the $10 phone plan’s expiry?
While most $10 plans have either 28-day or 30-day expiry, you should double check before you purchase one. Some might come with a shorter expiry. For instance, Boost Mobile offers a $10 plan with a 7-day expiry. The selling point of that plan is that it comes with more data – 3GB – but it only lasts for a week before you’ll have to recharge.
How do I know if my data usage is low enough for a $10 plan?
We’ve written about several ways to monitor and manage your data usage. This can really help you know how much data you use every month, and help you manage your data usage. When you’re sure of what you need, you’ll know if a $10 plan is right for you.
To read about monitoring and managing your data usage, read these articles:
What's good
- MVNOs reselling the Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone networks
- Cheap prepaid plans with lots of value
- Unlimited talk, SMS, and MMS
- SIM Only plans - bring your own phone
- Great for kids and candybar phone users
What's bad
- Not for data-heavy users
- Extra data might be expensive and defeat the purpose
- Might lack a lot of extras like entertainment
Now is the best time to get a cheap phone plan
You don’t have to shell out a lot of money for a phone plan. If all you want is to make calls, text, and you’re not a data-heavy user, there are several cheap phone plans for as low as $10.
We’ve done the research for you and put together the best $10 phone plans out there. We found that MVNOs are the best place to look if you’re in search of value at such a low cost. We’ve also found a lot of trends in the market today that show you just how popular these types of phone plans are. In a nutshell, you’re not alone – many Australians are looking for the best cheap phone plans.
But what qualifies as cheap? Perhaps phone plans that cost $30 or less fall into this category, and we’ve written about those as well. But with the current economic climate taking a beating from the coronavirus pandemic, Australians plan to spend less and there’s a growing interest on how to save even more money on phone plans.
In fact, this has been the case long before COVID-19 – Australians have been leaning towards more of a value approach to phone plans. Over the past year, the plans costing between $10 and $20 have received the most interest. Plans costing over $40, on the other hand, have had virtually no interest at all.
Plans ranging from $10 to $20 are the most popular.
There are also phone plans that cost less than $10, and they’ve also been quite popular. But the $10 plans on this page fit a broader category for several reasons. The most important is that you’ll get unlimited calls, SMS, and MMS. We’ll tell you all about it.
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What you’ll get in a $10 phone plan
Don’t expect anything fancy on a $10 phone plan – just focus on the basics. But even at that, you’ll be getting a lot of value for your money. You’ll have to bring your own phone, of course, which really gives you a lot more options to switch to whichever network you please, whenever you please.
Here’s a quick look at what you can get on your $10 phone plan:
- SIM Only plans – bring your own phone and plug in any telco’s SIM
- Unlimited calls, SMS, and MMS
- Small data inclusions for the basics – browse, email, social media, etc. – and options to add more data.
- As low as $0 introductory offers (SIM starter kits) for the first month, then $10 afterwards
- Prepaid plans – let’s face it, you get the most value when you pay upfront
Who should get a $10 phone plan
Again, these $10 phone plans pack a lot of value if all you want is the basics – calls and text. You’ll get enough data to browse, check email, and other basics, as well as data packs for more if you need it. So ask yourself how much data you really use and go from there.
We asked Australians how much data they need per month
Around 14 percent of Australians use 1GB of data or less per month. Another 10% use around 2GB of data. These are the data inclusion ranges you’ll get in a $10 phone plan – anywhere from 1GB to 2GB of data. Such low-data users will find a lot of value in these plans.
If you’re not sure of how to figure out your data usage, there are many ways to find out. We’ve written about it, so check out our guides for checking your data usage on your iPhone or your android. In the meantime, the chart below shows you how much data each type of internet activity will likely consume per month, so you can get an idea of what you use and need.
How much data each internet activity is likely to consume per month.
A lot of telcos now provide self-service apps and online self-service to help you monitor and manage your data usage – read about how to do this on Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone. This comes in really handy if you’re worried about exceeding the small data inclusions in a $10 phone plan. You might be able to set a cap that alerts you when you’ve used a certain amount of data, or average your monthly usage so you have a better idea of how much data you really need.
Also, if you’re a parent looking to cover the first $10 of your kids’ phone bill and let her/him pay the rest, then you’re in the right place. We know kids use up a lot of data, but parents just want them to be able to keep in touch. A $10 plan gives parent what they want from their kids (calls and texts to keep in touch) and also gives kids the ability to add more data if they want.
Who should avoid a $10 phone plan
If you’re a data-heavy user, you might want to look at other plans. You won’t get a ton of data in a $10 phone plan, and you’ll have to keep purchasing additional data to add – the going rate for extra data is around $10 per 1GB, which obviously isn’t worth it.
Heavy data users will find value in higher tier plans, but you don’t have to go too high. There are some pretty good plans with lots of data that cost $30 or less – check them out.
Also, if you’re big on entertainment content in a phone plan, it’ll be difficult (but not impossible) to find that in a $10 phone plan. However, there are some available, such as OVO and their OVOPlay inclusion on their $9.95 plan.
Things to look out for $10 phone plans
While shopping for a $10 phone plan, you should keep a few things in mind:
- First, be sure to check how much the telco charges for extra data.
The going rate is $10 per GB, so anything more than that is a bad deal. You might even find a promo for less. - Choose a prepaid plan so you can manage your data usage properly.
A postpaid plan (if any exists for $10) will allow you to exceed your plan data and incur overage charges automatically. But a prepaid plan will cut off your data as soon as you use up the plan data. - A $10 plan can surprise you with extras, so look out for these when shopping. For instance, kids plans might come with some useful software to help you manage your kids’ phone usage.
- Look out for introductory offers on starter SIM kits.
They usually come cheaper than the ongoing plan, even as low as $0 sometimes, and may even include more data. So keep in mind that when you recharge, you won’t be paying that same introductory starter SIM rate and your data inclusion might reduce. You won’t get an ongoing allocation of more than a GB or two. - Don’t forget to check the plan’s expiry.
Some telcos offer short expiry plans for cheap, while others offer normal expiry. For instance, Boost Mobile offers a $10 phone plan that has a 7-day expiry – that means you’ll have to use up the inclusions in a week and then recharge.
Summing up
Data inclusions have been increasing in phone plans over the years, and we’re likely to see this happen to $10 plans as well. We’ve already started seeing telcos like Amaysim offer promotions that discount their $15 plan to $10 per recharge, including 4GB of data.
The truth is that the $10 plan has dragged down the value in the whole telco industry. It has ‘anchored’ people’s thinking at price points which are lower than they ever used to be. TPG first rolled out the $10 plan idea, and then Amaysim launched similar plans in response, and the rest is history.
However, TPG got boggled down in court with the ACCC over their merger with Vodafone, and so their $10 plan never really kicked off. But although the telco has since scrapped its $10 plan, TPG now has a very attractive promo to match that price point. The telco’s $20 per month plan is now on promo for $10 per month for the first 6 months – a 50% discount. This plan includes 12GB of data and the promo expires 1 June of this year. TPG’s 50% discount applies to all of their SIM only plans.
Regardless of how it started, the fact is that the $10 plan is now a reality in Australia. And, most importantly, it’s good for consumers. You now have the option of spending less and getting the inclusions you want – unlimited talk and text and some data – and adding to it if you like.
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