Compare the best phone lease, rental and subscription deals from UK retailers, updated daily. Lease a brand-new iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel from a low monthly fee with zero upfront cost, no large credit agreement, and the option to upgrade or return the device at the end of your term.
Phone leasing (also called phone hire, phone rental, or a phone subscription) is a fast-growing alternative to a traditional 24 month airtime contract. Instead of paying a network for a bundled handset and SIM plan, you rent the device only and bring your own SIM. Specialist lease providers like Raylo dominate the UK market, with terms of 12, 24 or 36 months and prices starting from under £6 a month for refurbished handsets and around £15 a month for entry-level new phones.
Browse current lease deals below, or compare with our pages for SIM-free outright purchases, pay monthly contracts and refurbished phones to decide which payment model gives you the best total cost for your budget.
Phone leasing explained: rent vs hire vs subscribe vs buy
Phone lease, phone rental, phone hire and phone subscription all describe the same basic product: a fixed monthly fee for the use of a handset, with the device returned at the end of the term unless you choose to extend or buy out. The terminology varies by retailer (Raylo says lease and subscription, some review sites say rent or hire) but the legal structure is the same regulated consumer hire agreement under the Consumer Credit Act.
Lease pricing is driven by the residual value of the device at end of term. A 12 month lease on a brand-new flagship costs more per month than a 36 month lease on the same handset, because the depreciation curve matters more in the first year of a phone's life. Refurbished phones lease much cheaper because the residual value has already dropped, so a Grade A refurbished iPhone 13 can lease from around £8 a month against £20+ for a new iPhone 17.
Lease vs phone finance is the question worth thinking about. Phone finance (sometimes called installment purchase, pay monthly own, or 0% APR finance) is a credit agreement where you pay off the handset over 12 to 36 months and own it at the end. O2 calls this Sim Free Financing, Currys calls it flexpay, and Apple offers a Flexible Finance Account through Creation Financial Services. The total cost is fixed and the device becomes yours. Lease, by contrast, is open-ended: you never own the device, so the total monthly payments don't add up to the phone's purchase price, and at the end of the term you return it, upgrade, or extend on a rolling monthly plan.
Lease vs SIM-free outright is the other comparison. If you can pay the full handset price upfront and combine it with a cheap SIM-only plan, the total 24 month cost is usually 15 to 25 percent lower than leasing the same device. The trade-off is the upfront cash and the obsolescence risk: if you upgrade phones every year, leasing or subscribing locks in the depreciation cost rather than absorbing it on resale.
Lease vs network contract from EE, Vodafone, Three or O2 is closer than it looks. A bundled contract is just a finance agreement (Device Plan) plus an Airtime Plan in one bill. The handset side is effectively a 24 month finance deal at 0 percent APR, and the airtime is sold separately. Leasing strips out the airtime so you can pair the device with the cheapest SIM-only plan on the market, which often beats the bundled equivalent on total monthly outgoings if you're a low-data user.
Eligibility for a phone lease in the UK requires being 18 or over, having a UK address, a UK bank account for Direct Debit, and passing a soft credit check at signup (a hard credit search is only logged if you accept the agreement). FCA regulation applies to all major lease providers, so the same consumer protections that cover credit cards and loans cover your lease.
Insurance, damage and fair wear and tear are the small print to read carefully. Standard lease agreements assume the device is returned in the same condition it was sent, allowing for fair wear (light scratches on the back, normal screen wear) but charging for damage beyond that (cracked screens, water damage, missing accessories). Optional insurance from around £6 a month covers accidental damage, loss and theft and is worth taking if you're hard on devices.