Pay As You Go SIMs

To keep your Pay As You Go number active, you must use it for at least one chargeable activity - like making use of existing top-up credit or Data Pack allowance, adding top-up credit, buying a new Data Pack, or making telephone call, sending a text, or using the internet on Three’s mobile network - every 180 days.

You’ll still get unlimited minutes and texts for the rest of the month, but you’ll be charged our standard rate for any data you use. This will be taken from your existing credit. As you can only buy 1 Data Pack at a time, you'll need to wait for it to expire before you can get a new one.

No. With a Pay As You Go SIM card on Three, there’s no contract. Data Packs only last a month and there’s no commitment to buy another one. You can go back to using your credit like normal, or buy another Data Pack for the next month. You can even set up auto-renew so you’re always topped up.

Use the Three app to buy a Data Add-on, or use your credit for data at our standard rate.

When you set up auto-renew on a Data Pack, you'll get additional bonus data, on us, each month when you auto-renew, which means you can get extra data when you auto-renew on the Three app.

You can activate auto-renew on our app or My3 when you buy a Data Pack. If you already auto-renew and want to get this promotion, it’s easy. First, turn off auto-renew and wait for your Data Pack to expire. Then select a promotional Data Pack and reactivate auto-renew. Until 1 February 2024, you can get 50% extra data when you auto-renew on the Three app with our Winter Data Deal.

If you need a Pay As You Go SIM for a mobile device that only uses the internet – i.e. it doesn’t make calls or send texts – like a tablet or a Mobile Broadband hub, then you wouldn’t use a Pay As You Go phone SIM like the ones shown above, you’d need a Pay As You Go Data Only SIM. Take a look at our range of Pay As You Go Data SIM deals.

Ordering a free Pay As You Go SIM on Three is easy. All you need to do is complete our free SIM form, and sit back and wait for your SIM to arrive. Then you can add a Data Pack when you’re ready.

Pay As You Go SIMs give you freedom and flexibility, as you only pay for what you use – you’re not tied into a monthly phone contract. Pay As You Go phones and SIM users have recently used Data Packs, which give you a fixed amount of data for a fixed price for a month, which you can renew each month. But this isn’t the same as a contract, as you can opt-in and opt-out of your Data Pack each month. Traditional Pay As You Go users use credit, where you add money to your Pay As You Go account, which gets used up as you make calls, send texts, and use data. You can then top up as you go along.

When you receive your Pay As You Go SIM, insert it in your phone, and you’ll receive a text message telling you your SIM is ready to use. The best thing to do is to register on the Three app, so you can keep an eye on your usage and your spend. The SIM is automatically activated as soon as you make a call, send a text, or use your data.

Yes, if you don’t use your Pay As You Go SIM for 18 months, then it will expire. Make sure you make a call, send a text, or use your data within this time to keep your SIM active.

Yes! As long as you’ve activated your Pay As You Go SIM in the UK before you head abroad, you can use your UK allowance in any of our Go Roam destinations at no extra cost. Activate your SIM by making a call, sending a text, or using your data in the UK before you travel.

There are lots of ways to top up your Pay As You Go SIM. You’ll get the best value by adding a Data Pack and setting up auto-renew. You can do this on the Three app. You can also use the Three app to add traditional credit that you can use as you go along. Alternatively, you can top up online, or you can buy a voucher from a participating retailer, or you can top up by phone: dial 444 free from your Three phone, or +447782 333 444 if you're using another phone.