Mobile phone costs

Millions of broadband, mobile and TV customers will see their bills increase this spring. Depending on your provider and when your contract started, your bill could rise by the rate of inflation plus a percentage on top, or by a specified amount in pounds and pence. Here's what's happening.

If you use your mobile abroad, your provider will now be forced to automatically send you clearer alerts about roaming costs under new rules from telecoms regulator Ofcom, which take effect from today (Tuesday 1 October). The change follows our long-running campaign for consumers' roaming rights to be increased after existing protections ended post-Brexit.

Broadband, mobile and pay TV firms will no longer be able to hit customers with inflation-linked price hikes mid-contract from January 2025, regulator Ofcom has confirmed. But, as MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) founder Martin Lewis has warned, the new rules will still allow for above-inflation price rises.

If you're still using a Plusnet Mobile Sim, you need to switch away as soon as possible – particularly if you want to keep the same phone number – as the provider is closing down this month.

"Terrible" inflation-busting mobile and broadband price hikes are to be probed by the Chancellor after Martin Lewis grilled him on the issue. In an interview with the MoneySavingExpert.com founder, Jeremy Hunt said he would write to the competition and markets watchdog and "get to the bottom of it".

Pay monthly Tesco Mobile customers whose contracts expired before 1 February 2023 will see their mobile bills increase this spring by 14.4%, the mobile provider has announced. Going forward, you'll also need a Clubcard to avoid mid-contract price rises. But affected users can sign up to a new plan or cancel penalty-free to avoid this year's hikes. Here's what you need to know.

Millions of O2 and Virgin Mobile customers will be hit with price hikes of up to 17.3% in April, the mobile providers' parent company has confirmed. Below we explain what's happening and what you can do about it.

Mobile phone users are likely to be burning through cash if they pay more than £10 a month on their bill, MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis has warned in the latest episode of The Martin Lewis Money Show. You can watch Martin explain it below, plus use our key links - Cheap Sim Finder tool, Cheap Mobiles tool and our Cheap Mobile Phone Insurance guide - to help you cut costs.

Newly merged O2 and Virgin Media have launched a new product called Volt, allowing eligible customers to get their mobile data allowances doubled and their broadband speeds boosted to the next level at no extra charge. To get it, you need to have Virgin broadband and an O2 mobile contract. While decent for existing customers, for most it's not worth switching to the firms just for the perks – we've full analysis below. 

Thousands of 1pMobile users who signed up to the pay-as-you-go provider before 1 January 2021 will need to spend at least £2.50 worth of credit on calls, texts, data or other services every 30 days from today. Fail to meet this spending limit, and you'll have a fee of up to £2.50 deducted from your credit.