Phone contract or buy outright with SIM-only? EE, O2, Vodafone, Three, iD Mobile and giffgaff compared

If you're after a new phone this autumn, the network shop isn't always the cheapest place to get it. On 22 October 2026 Which? worked out that Apple's new £1,999 iPhone Duo costs around £170 more through EE, O2, Three or Vodafone than through Apple's own 0% finance plan, and that long airtime contracts with fixed yearly price rises can add hundreds of pounds more.

So we've compared the two main ways to get a new handset: a phone-and-airtime deal from a network, or buying the phone outright (or on 0% finance) and pairing it with a SIM-only plan. We used Apple, Vodafone, giffgaff and Samsung's own websites on 22 October 2026, plus the prices Which? published that day for EE, O2, Three and iD Mobile. iD Mobile, Lebara and Mobiles.co.uk blocked our checks, Three's shop put us in a queue, O2's SIM-only page sent us to a sign-in screen and EE's plan list didn't load, so for those we've relied on Which?'s figures or left the prices out.

At a glance

• Apple direct: iPhone Duo 256GB for £1,999 outright, or £66.63 a month for 30 months at 0% APR.
• Vodafone: the same phone for £100 upfront plus £43.08 a month for 48 months, which is £2,167.84 for the handset alone, with airtime on top from £30 a month.
• EE and O2: £2,169.36 for the handset, according to Which?. Three matches Vodafone at £2,167.84.
• giffgaff SIM-only: unlimited data for £25 a month on an 18-month plan, or £35 a month on a rolling plan you can leave at any time.
• iD Mobile SIM-only: unlimited data seen for as little as £15 a month on a one-month plan, Which? says.

The handset: what you pay for the phone itself

On a modern network deal, the phone and the airtime are usually two separate agreements. Vodafone's iPhone Duo page shows a "Phone Plan" of £43.08 a month over 48 months after £100 upfront, and a separate "Airtime Plan" over 24 months. Add up the phone plan and you pay £2,167.84, against £1,999 from Apple. That's the £170 or so Which? found, roughly 8.5% extra, just for spreading the cost through a network.

Apple's own offer spreads the same £1,999 over 30 months at 0% APR through a Flexible Finance Account from Creation Consumer Finance. Bigger storage costs more: £2,199 for 512GB (£73.30 a month) up to £3,199 for 2TB (£106.63 a month). Remember that 0% finance is still credit, so you'll need to be accepted, and missing payments can cost you.

Which? also suggests looking at interest-free purchase credit cards, refurbished handsets and older models if £2,000 is more than you want to spend. The giffgaff website was selling refurbished iPhones from £169 with a 12-month warranty when we checked.

The airtime: network plans vs SIM-only

This is where most of the difference builds up. Which? found EE, O2 and Vodafone charging £37 a month for a basic unlimited data plan alongside the iPhone Duo, rising to £39.50 after 31 March 2027 and £42 after 31 March 2028. Over a four-year deal, it says, that's more than £1,000 more than a cheap SIM from a smaller network. Three's unlimited Lite plan starts lower at £26 a month, rising to £28.30 and then £30.60.

Vodafone's own pages showed the same pattern. Its unlimited airtime plan was £37 a month (down from £39), with every SIM-only plan we could see going up by £2.50 a month on 1 April 2027 and again on 1 April 2028.

Smaller networks are cheaper and, in giffgaff's case, steadier. Its 18-month plans run from 40GB for £8 to unlimited for £25, and giffgaff says there will be no mid-contract price rises on 18-month plans bought before the end of 2026. Its rolling plans cost more (unlimited is £35) but you can leave whenever you like.

Price rises: what the rules say

Since 17 January 2025, Ofcom has banned phone and broadband providers from putting inflation-linked or percentage price rises into new contracts. Any rise has to be set out in pounds and pence before you sign, along with when it will happen. That's why you'll see figures such as "£39.50 from April 2027" on network pages.

If a provider raises your price by more than your contract says, or by an amount it didn't set out, Ofcom says it must give you at least 30 days' notice and you then have 30 days to leave without exit fees.

Perks and trade-ins

Networks often justify a higher price with extras. Which? points to EE's entertainment add-ons, such as TNT Sports or Apple Music on some plans, and O2 Priority's early ticket access, rewards and discounted or free streaming. Vodafone's iPhone Duo page offered up to £855 off with an eligible trade-in. Those can be worth having, but only if you'd pay for them anyway. Work out the total cost of the deal first, then decide what the perks are worth to you.

Samsung's own site was also selling network deals, such as the Galaxy S26 256GB for £20 a month and £299 upfront on an O2 plan, with the monthly price rising in April 2027 and April 2028. It was offering £100 off the Galaxy S26 and S26+ with a trade-in, and £100 off the S26 and S26 FE when you pay with PayPal. We couldn't see its outright prices when we checked.

Where each wins and falls short

• Buying outright or on 0% with SIM-only was cheaper in every example we could check, and you can change network whenever your SIM plan ends. But you need £1,999 upfront or a 0% credit agreement, and you lose network perks and bundled trade-in deals.
• A network handset deal gives you the lowest monthly payment (Vodafone's handset plan runs over four years) plus perks and trade-ins in one place. But you pay more for the phone, and the airtime goes up every April.
• Smaller SIM-only networks such as giffgaff and iD Mobile were the cheapest for airtime. They use the big networks' masts, so check coverage where you live and work with a postcode checker before you switch.
• Refurbished or older phones cut the biggest cost of all. Check the warranty and the battery condition before you buy.

Your questions answered

Can I leave a phone contract if the price goes up?

Not if the rise is the one set out in pounds and pence when you signed. If your provider raises the price by more than your contract says, Ofcom says it must give you 30 days' notice, and you then have 30 days to leave without paying exit fees.

What happens when my network contract ends?

Ofcom says prices often go up when a contract ends, so watch for your provider's end-of-contract message. If you've paid off the phone, you could move to a cheaper SIM-only plan and keep the handset.

Is 0% finance from Apple better than a network deal?

On the iPhone Duo, Which? found it about £170 cheaper for the phone alone, and it leaves you free to pick any SIM. It's still credit, though, so only take it if you can afford every payment.

Ways to save

If you go SIM-only, giffgaff was offering 80GB for £10 a month on an 18-month plan (usually 25GB) and 40GB for £8 (usually 6GB), plus refurbished iPhones from £169; see our giffgaff voucher codes. Lebara had 5GB plans for £1.49 a month and 30GB for £2.49 for the first three months; see our Lebara voucher codes. iD Mobile was offering students £10 off a new phone plan and up to £70 for referring a friend; see our iD Mobile voucher codes.

For network deals, Vodafone was offering extra unlimited data SIMs from £16 a month on Vodafone Together and up to £855 off the iPhone 18 Pro Max with a trade-in; see our Vodafone voucher codes. Mobiles.co.uk had a Vodafone SIM-only plan with 70GB for £12 a month and £48 cashback; see our Mobiles.co.uk voucher codes. If you'd rather buy a Samsung outright, it offers students and 16 to 26-year-olds up to 15% off; see our Samsung voucher codes.

Sources: Which?: why buying a phone on contract could be a waste of money, Apple: iPhone Duo, Vodafone: iPhone Duo, Vodafone: SIM-only deals, giffgaff: SIM-only plans, Samsung: Galaxy S26, Ofcom: telecoms price rises, what are your rights, Ofcom: ban on inflation-linked price rises

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