Pay As You Go Top-Up Guides
How to top up your PAYG SIM on every major UK network - online, app, voucher, in-store and auto top-up - plus current bundle prices.
Pay As You Go (PAYG) is the most flexible way to use a UK mobile, with no contract and no credit check. You add credit to your SIM whenever you want, then either spend it pay-per-use or - much better value if you use your phone regularly - turn it into a 30-day bundle of data, calls and texts. Every UK network has its own name for these bundles: EE Packs, O2 Big Bundles, Three add-ons, Vodafone Big Value Bundles, Tesco Mobile Rocket Packs, VOXI Plans, Lebara Plans and giffgaff goodybags.
The guides below cover all eight of the most-used PAYG networks in the UK. Each one walks through the five ways to top up - online, in the network's app, with a top-up voucher, in store, and via auto top-up - plus current bundle pricing, voucher amounts, and the most common questions PAYG users ask. If you find that you reliably top up the same amount every month, the cheapest option is usually a SIM-only contract; you can keep your existing number when you switch by getting a free PAC code first.
Top-up guides by network
EE
Topping up an EE Pay As You Go SIM is straightforward, and there are five ways to do it: online through your EE account, in the My EE app, with a top-up voucher from a UK shop, in person at an EE store or partner retailer, or by setting up auto top-up so credit is added on a schedule.
View EE top-up guide
O2
O2 is one of the four UK mobile network operators (MNOs), so its Pay As You Go customers are buying directly from the network rather than from an MVNO that resells O2 capacity.
View O2 top-up guide
Three
Three is one of the four UK mobile network operators (MNOs), and topping up its Pay As You Go SIMs takes only a few minutes whichever method you choose.
View Three top-up guide
Vodafone
Vodafone is one of the UK's four mobile network operators (MNOs), running its own masts and core network rather than reselling another network's capacity.
View Vodafone top-up guide
Tesco Mobile
Tesco Mobile is a UK mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that runs on the O2 network, jointly owned by Tesco and Virgin Media O2.
View Tesco Mobile top-up guide
VOXI
VOXI is a UK mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) owned by Vodafone, running on the full Vodafone network.
View VOXI top-up guide
Lebara
Lebara is a UK mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that runs on the Vodafone network, so its customers get the same coverage and 5G footprint as Vodafone direct.
View Lebara top-up guide
giffgaff
giffgaff is the largest Pay As You Go mobile operator in the UK and a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) running on the O2 network.
View giffgaff top-up guideThinking of switching from PAYG?
If you reliably top up the same amount every month, a SIM-only contract usually works out cheaper for the same allowance. Rolling 30-day plans start from under £4 a month, with no credit check needed on most MVNOs.