Revealed: The hidden cost of using your phone in Europe – here's which providers offer truly free roaming and how to avoid getting stung

Offering to let you "roam like at home" in Europe has become a selling point for many mobile firms. This should mean you can use your normal allowance of calls, texts and data without paying extra.

But MSE can reveal that Asda Mobile, Giffgaff and Lycamobile, plus iD Mobile for the majority of existing customers, severely limit how much of your normal data allowance you can use abroad under strict "fair use" policies – despite offering inclusive roaming.

Meanwhile 12 other firms – more than half of which supposedly offer inclusive roaming – also have caps (though they're less restrictive). See our firm-by-firm round-up below to check your provider's policy.

In addition, some providers don't make these fair use policies clear when you sign up, while others don't explain these caps in the texts you're sent when you arrive in Europe. 

If you're looking for a new mobile plan or handset, use our Cheap Mobile Finder to compare the latest deals.

'Fair use' data caps: firm-by-firm roaming policies

When you use your phone in Europe (the exact list of countries and regions included under 'Europe zones' can vary by provider, so check first), how much data you can use may be limited by your network's roaming fair use policy. 

To help you avoid getting caught out, we've researched and compiled the policies of over 20 different major mobile providers, ordered from most to least restrictive:

Outside of Europe, inclusive roaming isn't typically offered and charges and add-on bundles vary by provider. 

In the UK, there aren't prescriptive fair use caps in place for data use, though providers may curb what they deem to be 'excessive' use. 

Some providers aren't very transparent about these caps and charges in Europe – so double check before you go

We found that European data roaming caps aren't always clear when you sign-up

Our research shows that two of the providers with the most restrictive policies – Asda Mobile and Lycamobile – don't make fair use caps initially clear on their websites when you sign up, as shown in the screenshots below.

Meanwhile iD Mobile, which recently changed its policy so that customers joining or upgrading on or after 21 June 2023 have a much less restrictive cap (something the provider now makes clear on its website), previously did not make this transparent.

We also found that the texts you get on landing in Europe don't always clearly explain data limitations

When you land, if you have signal, your network will instantly send you a text message outlining the country you've landed, what part of your allowance you can use and if there's a fair use policy in place.

It should also tell you what charges you might incur if you exceed these or do something that's not included, for example, a daily charge if roaming isn't included as part of your plan.

However, we've uncovered that some providers with fair use data policies in place don't tell you in the text message when you arrive what this limit is. This includes 1pMobile, Giffgaff, iD Mobile, Lycamobile, O2 and TalkMobile. 

Mobile providers are allowed to set their own data roaming limits - though some have promised to make 'welcome texts' clearer

Roaming rules that covered minimum fair use data limits fell away at the end of the Brexit transition period and telecoms regulator Ofcom does not have the power to stop mobile providers charging customers for using their services when travelling.

However, Ofcom did tell us that it is currently looking into the options for roaming protections for mobile users. This won't cover prices but will consider transparency and customers having access to information that helps them make informed decisions.

When we put our findings to the four providers with the most limiting roaming policies, Asda Mobile, Giffgaff, and Lycamobile told us they believe their caps to be sufficient for the majority of users. However, Giffgaff has agreed to make this cap clearer in its welcome message to customers arriving in Europe. iD Mobile said users on older contracts can upgrade to new plans after six months to benefit from its higher data roaming cap.

Meanwhile, 1pMobile has also changed its welcome text, after we got in touch, to explicitly warn users about its 14GB European roaming cap. O2 told us it believes its roaming fees are clear and transparent, while TalkMobile would only say that customers who need more information on using their phones in Europe should get in touch.

How to keep roaming costs down

If there is a fair use data cap in place, some networks will voluntarily automatically text you once you've used 80% of your data allowance and then again at 100% of your allowance. But not all providers do this, so we've a host of other ways to try to keep data roaming costs down.

Before you go away:  

• Set a data use cap. Android users can do this in their phone's setting (see below). iPhone users can't do this in their phone's settings. However, you can ask your mobile provider to set a spend cap.

• Check how much data you have to use. If your network has an app (most do) you should also log in to check how much data you have left. It won't tell you how much roaming data you've used once overseas though.

Once away:  

• Only use Wi-Fi. If you're worried about exceeding your allowance abroad, the easiest thing is to turn roaming off completely and rely on local Wi-Fi networks, for example those potentially offered by your hotel. See our quick roaming tips for more.

• If you need roaming, turn on your handset's low data or data saving modes. If your roaming is switched on, it'll naturally use data in the background, even if you're not using your phone. Low data or data saving modes help stop or limit background data use, but you have to turn it on in your settings. The process varies depending on if you're using an iPhone or Android, but we've instructions on this below.

• Check your roaming usage using your phone's settings. You can also use your phone's settings to check your data use - and this will work while you're overseas. The process varies depending on if you're using an iPhone or Android, but we've instructions on how to turn it on for both below.