Best mobile phone plans in Australia (June 2025)

Each month, we pick the best mobile plans from our database of more than 30 mobile providers. The categories include SIM-only (postpaid), prepaid, international calls, kids phone plans, iPhone plans, and Samsung Galaxy plans. Scroll on to discover the best mobile plans for March 2025.

Some of the best mobile phone plans in Australia are postpaid SIM-only picks. SIM-only plans let users pay at the end of the month. The more you pay, the more data you get. This month, Dodo has our pick for best SIM-only plan.

Plan basics:

• Data: 50GB
• Intro cost: $29 per month with no eventual price jump
• Total cost over first 24 months: $696
• Network: Optus 4G

Spintel's $29 Mobile Plan this month's pick for best SIM-only postpaid plan. It comes with a healthy 50GB and, while there's no introductory discount, this also means you don't have to watch out for an eventual jump in price. Speaking of which, $29 is a competitive ongoing price for this much data.

The plan is limited to 4G, which could limit coverage in some areas. But in terms of speed, it should perform similarly to 5G plans from other Optus MVNOs, given they all place speed caps on their plans.

For popular SIM-only alternatives from our database, the plans below have at least 30GB of data.

For us, the best mobile plans for prepaid users are ones that include enough data for everyday and heavy users, which is why we look for one with at least 30GB of data. This month, Felix has our pick for best prepaid plan.

Plan basics:

• Data: 50GB
• Intro cost: $12 recharges for four months, then $30 ongoing
• Total cost over first 24 months: $648
• Network: Vodafone 5G – capped at 150Mbps
• Prepaid expiry: One month

felix's 50GB Mobile Plan this month's pick for best SIM-only postpaid plan. It comes with a healthy 50GB and a four-month intro discount – though its ongoing price of $30 is also competitive for this much data.

The plan includes 5G, which isn't the norm in this price bracket. Admittedly, the Vodafone network does have the lowest 5G coverage, but if you live in a large population centre you should be fine. And these days 4G coverage is almost identical to Optus, so no worries there.

There are no overage fees for excess data. Instead, you're capped at 1.5Mbps for the rest of your billing period and can opt to purchase additional data if you need it.

For other prepaid inspiration, check out a list of popular mobile plans from our database with at least 50GB of data per recharge.

Some of the best mobile phone plans in Australia have international calls. And the best of those also have great base and extra inclusions for use in Australia. TPG is a regular monthly winner for best mobile plan with international calls because its 50GB plan doesn't tend to change much and is one of the few with unlimited international inclusions.

Plan basics:

• Data: 50GB
• Intro cost: $17.50/mth for first 6 months, then $35/mth ongoing
• Total cost over first 24 months: $735
• Network: Vodafone 5G (150Mbps)

The TPG 50GB Medium Plan is a prepaid plan that acts like a SIM-only one, thanks to monthly recharges. New customers pay $17.50 per monthly renewal for the first six, before the prepaid plan reverts to its typical $35 monthly recharge fee. TPG NBN customers can save $5 per month by bundling their internet with this prepaid plan. Whichever price you’re paying, this TPG prepaid plan includes unlimited talk and text in Australia, plus 50GB of Vodafone 5G data (capped at 150Mbps).

Specific to this category, this TPG plan also includes unlimited call minutes to 31 selected destinations: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Puerto Rico, Romania, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States of America, and Vatican City.

If this plan doesn't suit your needs, the list below includes other popular plans from our database with various international calling inclusions.

The best phone plans for kids give parents control over spending, which means prepaid over SIM-only. These prepaid plans offer a bit of data with unlimited talk and text in Australia. This month, Kogan has our pick for best mobile plan for kids.

Plan basics

• Data: 15GB
• Price: $20 per month – no eventual price jump
• Total cost over first 24 months: $480
• Network: Vodafone 4G
• Prepaid renewal: Monthly

The Kogan Mobile Small Monthly Plan is our current pick for best phone plan for kids. It has a decent data allowance and has a monthly expiry, meaning you only pay 12 bills per year, as opposed to the 13 with a 28-day plan. It also has no intro discount, which is a mixed blessing – on the one hand, you don't get any extra pocket change. But on the other, there's no eventual price jump to worry about.

But the lack of 5G shouldn't be a big deal – 4G is more than fast enough for phone usage and your little ones won't be disadvantaged when it comes to phone or SMS reception. This plan also supports eSIM devices.

For a look at more popular prepaid plans from our database, check out the list below.

If you’re in the market for the best mobile phone plans in Australia, pair a plan with one of the best smartphones – the iPhone 16.

There are only three real competitors when it comes to plans in this space: Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone. Barring special deals, Vodafone tends to offer the best data-for-dollar value. It also has great 4G coverage these days, thanks to a network sharing deal with Optus. But its 5G coverage is harder to gauge because the telco doesn't publish clear 5G statistics.

You can check out plan pricing for each iPhone model below, as well as more plan details.

Plan basics:

• Data: 100GB (apparently this is "small")
• Network: Vodafone 5G

The Vodafone $49 Small Plan is one of the best mobile phone plans in Australia if you’re looking to pair a SIM-only plan with an iPhone. This Vodafone plan comes with unlimited talk and text in Australia plus endless data. You normally get 50GB of base Vodafone 5G data, but this plan currently comes with 50GB of bonus data (100GB total per month).

In terms of price, it’s $39 per month for 12, 24 or 36 months, based on your handset repayment terms, plus the cost of the iPhone. While there aren’t any international inclusions, this Vodafone plan does have uncapped 5G speeds, eSIM and WiFi calling, plus the telco's great $5 international roaming.

Below is a list of 36-month iPhone 16 plans from Vodafone, Optus and Telstra, sorted by minimum total cost over the life of the plan.

Some of the best mobile plans in Australia are pairable with the most popular Samsung handsets, like the Samsung Galaxy S25. Vodafone offers the best data-for-dollar value here, compared to the plans from Optus and Telstra. If coverage is a concern, know that Vodafone has very similar 4G coverage to Optus these days, thanks to a network sharing agreement. But its 5G footprint is still smaller.

Plan basics:

• Data: 100GB
• Intro cost: $69.52/mth for 36 months
• Total cost over 36 months: $1,437.96 (Samsung Galaxy S25 256GB)
• Network: Vodafone 5G

The Vodafone $49 Small Plan nabs another win because of an ongoing deal that’s too good to ignore. Let’s recap. You get unlimited national talk and text and 50GB of base data. Vodafone is also currently offering 50GB of bonus data. If you burn through all those gigabytes, there aren’t any excess data fees, but speeds are capped at 1.5Mbps until your next billing month.

Instead of a $49 monthly fee, new customers pay $39 per month for the plan, plus the cost of the Samsung Galaxy mobile phone. The same perks for BYO device SIM-only users apply here: eSIM, WiFi calling, and a great international roaming optional extra. Optus and Telstra also let you pair a Samsung Galaxy S25 256GB (and other models) with an eligible SIM-only plan, but those bundles are more expensive.

For comparison, here’s a snapshot of popular Samsung Galaxy S25 256GB plans from our database, ranked by minimum total cost over the life of the plan.

The first question to answer before getting to which mobile plan is right for you is whether you’re using an existing mobile phone or want a new one. If you want a new one, you’ll either have to purchase a compatible prepaid handset or pair a SIM-only mobile plan with a new iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel or other option. New-model mobile phones can be bought outright or paid off over 12, 24 or 36 months from participating telcos like Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.

For those happy to use their existing mobile phone, choose between prepaid or SIM-only mobile plans. Prepaid plans are great for people who want to control their spending and aren’t overly interested in perks. While prepaid plans are paid in advance of use SIM-only plans are paid at the end of a billing month (except for Telstra Upfront plans).

SIM-only plans are always monthly offerings, but prepaid mobile plans have a range of durations. The ones we cover on this page are roughly monthly, which can be 28 days, 30 days, or an actual month. But you can also get short-expiry (e.g. 7 days) or long-expiry prepaid plans, which can last up to a full 365 days.

With SIM-only mobile plans, you’re more likely to find telcos that offer data banking or data rollover for carrying over unused gigabytes or capped plan speeds if you exhaust your max-speed allocation. Coverage is an important consideration, too. Telstra has the largest mobile network followed by Optus and Vodafone. The latter two are almost identical in 4G coverage, but Optus has the wider 5G footprint. If you live in a populous part of Australia, the chances are good you can pick between all three.

That trio may be the respective network owners, but there are dozens of telcos that use their networks to offer more competitively priced plans. Effectively, you might be able to get the coverage perks of the network you want without having to pay a premium for it.

Pretty much every mobile plan comes with unlimited national talk and text, but other features like international calls and messaging are rarer. It’s a similar story for international roaming if you like to travel and want the option to use mobile data abroad. There are a range of other perks to help separate closely competing plans, with eSIM being one of the better ones that uses a digital SIM rather than needing to wait for a physical SIM card to arrive.