1pMobile

1pMobile sells SIM-only mobile plans in the United Kingdom, operating as a MVNO on the EE network. All tariffs are prepaid bundles that run from 30 days to 12 months; the headline 1p tariff lets voice, text and data each cost 1 pence per unit, while larger bundles sit in the budget-to-mid range (£5-£20 month). The company trades exclusively online through its own website and ships SIMs by post; there is no physical retail presence. The brand’s core promise is “no contract, no credit check, keep your number,” backed by EE’s 4G/5G coverage. Customers pre-load a minimum £10 every 120 days to keep the account alive, giving de-facto low usage for £2.50 month. 1pMobile was among the first UK operators to advertise a true pay-as-you-go rate of 1p per MB/min/text after most rivals withdrew such micro-rates. Typical buyers are light users—seniors, backup-phone owners, festival goers, IoT trackers and cost-conscious parents—who want national-network reliability without monthly commitment. The appeal is control: spend only when the phone is used, top-up online in seconds, and cancel anytime. 1pMobile competes in the ultra-low-cost segment against other online-only MVNOs and supermarket brands. It differentiates by keeping the legacy 1p unit rate alive, requiring only a £10 quarterly top-up, and leveraging EE’s top-tier coverage instead of the lower-priority bands used by many budget hosts.