The best mobile phone plans for kids and teens in 2025

• Best phone plan for younger kids
• Best phone plan for tweens
• Best phone plan for teenagers
• Postpaid mobile plans with "Endless" data
• Mobile network coverage considerations
• Best Optus plan for kids
• Best Vodafone plan for kids
• Best Telstra plan for kids
• How to pick a kids phone plan
• Kids phone plan FAQs

Data is the main feature mobile phone plans compete over, given unlimited talk and text are standard across prepaid and postpaid configurations. Effectively, there’s money to be saved for cheaper plans. We figure younger kids need the least data, tweens need a bit more, and teenagers are likely to need the most.

Before you scroll on to our picks for the best phone plans for kids, here’s a list of the cheapest monthly mobile plans in our database:

Unlike their older peers, pre-tween kids should have lighter data needs. That’s why we reckon the best phone plan for kids under nine has around 10GB of data at most – though sometimes bigger-data plans cost less, so we're not treating this as a hard cut off. 10GB is plenty for younger kids in terms of general web surfing, music streaming and occasional video streaming.

This month, our plan pick is the Kogan Mobile Small Monthly Plan. It comes with 15GB of data for $20 per monthly recharge, plus unlimited calls and SMS in Australia. This plan is light on frills, and rarely comes with any special offers beyond a discount for the first month for new customers. But the lack of timed deals also means it's much simpler to keep track of costs.

Plan basics

• Data: 15GB
• Unlimited standard national talk and text
• Pricing: $20 per month (first month is $10 off)
• Total cost over first 24 months: $490
• Network: Vodafone 4G
• Plan type: Prepaid, 30-day renewal

For comparison, here’s a list of popular prepaid plans from our database with at least 10GB of data:

Compared to younger kids, tweens aged nine to 12 will likely crave more data as they get closer to becoming teenagers. Still, that extra data shouldn’t cost a whole lot more.

For this category, we've looked at plans with at least 20GB of data, then ranked them by their total cost over the first 24 months after signing up.

This month, our plan pick is the TPG 25GB Small Plan. This plan comes with unlimited national talk and text, plus 25GB of data. The first six months are half off, but the standard pricing is still cheap compared to other plans in this category.

Basic details

• Data: 25GB
• Unlimited standard national talk and text
• Intro cost: $12.50/mth for first six months, then $25/mth ongoing
• Total cost over first 24 months: $525
• Network: Vodafone 4G, capped at 150Mbps

For comparison, here’s a list of popular prepaid plans from our database with at least 20GB of data, ranked by their total cost over the first 24 months.

The best phone plan for a teenager is one that offers a good chunk of data without breaking the bank. That's why, while it's well above the national average, we’ve set the data minimum at 40GB for this category, favouring the cheapest prepaid plans in our database. But we still favour prepaid plans to avoid bill shock.

This month, our plan pick is the TPG 50GB Medium Plan. It normally costs $35 per month, but new customers can nab it for $17.50 per recharge for the first six months. You’ll get 50GB of data on the Vodafone network, plus unlimited standard talk and text in Australia.

Basic details

• Data: 50GB
• Unlimited standard national talk and text
• Intro cost: $17.50/mth for first six months, then $35/mth ongoing
• Total cost over first 24 months: $735
• Network: Vodafone 5G

The TPG 50GB Medium Plan is a great place to start for teens in need of plenty of data. Prepaid recharges start at $17.50 per month for new customers before reverting to $35. Afterwards, jump over to the identical iiNet 50GB Medium Plan for the same intro pricing. Both plans come with 50GB of Vodafone 5G data, capped at a reasonable 150Mbps speeds. While a speed cap might sound bad, 150Mbps is fine for the vast majority of what you'd do on the phone and is more than the max speed of an NBN 100 plan, which you can run a whole household off.

For comparison to other big-data prepaid plans, here’s a list of options from our database with at least 40GB.

So far, we've focused on prepaid when it comes to kids phone plans because they remove the possibility of unexpected fees for going over data limits. But some SIM-only postpaid plans are also overage-fee-free.

Instead of automatically charging you when a data limit is reached, Endless data mobile plans (also called "infinite" and sometimes "unlimited") simply slow your internet connection for the rest of the current billing period. So you can technically keep using the internet as much as you want – albeit with a very slow connection.

How slow? It depends on the provider. The "fastest" slowed speed is a maximum of 2Mbps, which is a snail's pace in today's terms. And the slowest Endless data restriction in our database is a paltry 256kbps, which is pretty much enough for text-based messaging and not much else.

Of course, in a pinch you can opt to purchase data top-up packs from these providers, which will return your connection to full speed for the rest of your billing cycle, unless you manage to go over that limit, too.

If your kid is constantly hitting their data cap and you want them to maintain access to messaging services, but don't necessarily want to increase their data allowance or buy data top-ups, consider if an Endless data plan might be a good option.

These are the providers in our database that offer Endless data on their mobile plans:

And here’s a list of popular postpaid plans from our database that have Endless data.

Endless data is rarer among prepaid providers. Generally, you’d be expected to buy a data add-on or recharge again to get more data. Felix Mobile and Vodafone are exceptions to that rule, offering 1.5Mbps post-cap speeds for their plans. The priciest Felix plan has unlimited data capped at 20Mbps. Here’s a look at popular prepaid plans from our database with endless data.

There are three main networks in Australia – Telstra, Optus and Vodafone – with Telstra separated into the main retail network and the smaller Telstra Wholesale Mobile Network, which most Telstra MVNOs use. Here’s a look at how the Australian mobile networks compare.

The important thing to note is the most populous areas of Australia typically have solid coverage from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone networks. It’s really only when you head out of the bigger cities that coverage might get patchier, particularly for Optus and Vodafone. Use the interactive map below for an idea of how coverage looks in areas of interest, in terms of Telstra, Optus and Vodafone 4G and 5G coverage.

In terms of how coverage relates to a phone plan for kids, we recommend looking for one that operates on a network with coverage in the areas where your kid spends most of their time. If you want to play it safe, go for a plan on the Telstra network. But if you’re in a city that has great Optus or Vodafone coverage, you might be able to save money by choosing a plan on one of those mobile networks.

The Optus Prepaid $35 SIM may not be as cheap as some of the options above, but it’s got some solid features. New customers get 40GB of data for the first three recharges, before it drops to its typical 20GB limit. Any unused gigabytes can be rolled over (up to 200GB). As is the trend, unlimited talk and text is included for Australia.

Optus doesn’t have as large a 5G network as Telstra, but its 4G network doesn’t lag too far behind. We advise checking out the starter pack version of this Optus prepaid plan for a potentially cheaper opener. For comparison, here’s a list of popular Optus prepaid plans and starter packs from our database.

The $35 Prepaid Plus Recharge is the cheapest ongoing prepaid plan if you want your kid to be on the Vodafone network. Vodafone’s 5G network is smaller than the respective Optus and Telstra 5G networks, but the 4G network is effectively comparable to Optus these days. This Vodafone prepaid plan costs $35 per 28-day recharge for 25GB of data, plus unlimited talk and text.

Once that 25GB is used, there’s a 1.5Mbps data cap until the next recharge but zero excess data fees. If your kid doesn’t use up all 25GB, there’s a 200GB data bank to take advantage of. If it’s available, we advise checking out the starter pack version of this Vodafone prepaid plan to save money on the first recharge. For comparison, here’s a list of popular Vodafone prepaid plans and starter packs from our database.

The Telstra $39 Pre-Paid Mobile plan is a steep price to pay for 15GB of base data. The 40GB bonus data on the first three recharges helps, though, alongside data rollover to store unused gigabytes. You'll also get unlimited calls and texts to standard Australian numbers, plus access to the wide-reaching Telstra network that covers 99.7% of the population.

If the key consideration when getting a plan for your kids is making sure they have reception wherever they go, Telstra is the provider you'll want to stick with. Otherwise, consider Boost Mobile or start with a Telstra prepaid starter pack if there’s a good deal going.

The widget below shows off the most popular Telstra plans from our database.

We prefer to stick with prepaid plans because they’re a great way to avoid bill shock and control costs actively rather than reactively. With prepaid, there’s a fixed upfront price. The plan you choose should also be shaped by the usage scenario. For younger children, there might be no need for data, though no-data plans are rarer nowadays. Tweens and teens will benefit from plans with data. The older they get, the more data they’ll likely want.

It’s best to aim for ‘monthly’ prepaid plans that have at least 28-day recharges. Bear in mind that 28-day prepaid plans need 14 recharges to get through a full year, while 30-day plans need at least 13. Monthly prepaid plans are closer to postpaid plans and only need 12 recharges per year. Where possible, avoid prepaid plans with auto top-up; if you can’t, pick a plan where auto top-up features can be disabled.

Try to avoid contracts. It’s not just a case of kids not being able to sign contracts – they have to be 18 to even attempt that – no-contract plans offer flexibility and help eliminate potential exit fees. Thankfully, contracts aren’t as common for mobile plans these days.

Another option to consider is family plans, like the ones offered by ALDI Mobile for its prepaid plans. These plans have a single data limit shared by multiple users, and the account owner can set usage limits if one member is using more than their fair share.