5GB SIM Only Deals in the UK

Is 5GB enough for you?

5GB is a sensible starting point if you spend most of your time on Wi-Fi and use mobile data mainly for messages, email, maps, browsing and occasional music or social media. It is less forgiving if you regularly watch video, make long video calls or use your phone as a laptop hotspot away from Wi-Fi.

It is your mobile usage that counts, not total screen time. Ofcom recommends checking actual usage in your existing provider's account before choosing an allowance. Its mobile package advice also stresses full contract cost, coverage and out-of-bundle charges.

These are practical decision bands, not statistics about how much every app uses. Check at least a few ordinary billing periods where possible.

Which 5GB SIM should you choose? Start with the network

The current 5GB comparison includes offers from independent providers and major-network brands. Coverage is the first filter: a cheaper deal is poor value if calls fail indoors or mobile data barely works on your commute.

These are selection routes, not a fixed ranking. The offer cards are the source of truth for current availability, prices, terms and network classification. Compare at least two plans on a network that works for you; sharing the underlying network does not guarantee identical speeds, roaming, Wi-Fi Calling, calling features or customer support. In particular, do not pay more for a direct-network 5GB card without checking whether its extras, service conditions or support make the difference worthwhile for you.

If none of the exact-5GB offers fits, keep your preferred coverage and widen the search to EE-network SIMs, Vodafone-network SIMs, Three-network SIMs or O2-network SIMs. Those pages compare other data allowances on the relevant network, so they complement rather than replace this exact-5GB list.

You can check local coverage with Ofcom's Map Your Mobile. Look at home, work and the places you actually travel. Then use the network filter above, open Full plan details, and follow View Deal to confirm the final conditions and order through the existing provider route.

Can a larger SIM plan cost less than 5GB?

Buying exactly 5GB is not automatically the cheapest way to get at least 5GB. Providers sometimes price a higher-data plan close to, or below, a smaller one. Special introductory offers and rewards available elsewhere in the market can also change the result. DealPriceCheck compares a selected set of providers, not every UK tariff or exclusive promotion.

Use this three-part test:

1. Start with the live 5GB card. Look at the real price you pay, not only a promotional first bill. If it has a minimum term, use its stated total cost and check any scheduled rises.
2. Compare a larger allowance on the same network. Open 10GB SIM deals and, if relevant, SIM deals under £10. An extra 5GB may cost very little; it might also buy nothing useful if you never need it.
3. Consider the cost of going over 5GB. If you sometimes buy an add-on, compare the actual likely spend with a bigger plan. Check whether extra usage is stopped, charged from credit, billed separately or handled by a data add-on; providers do not all behave the same way.

A real excess-data trap to check: On the official 1pMobile 5GB product page reviewed on 19 October 2026, data above the 5GB bundle was charged from usage credit, and its automatic top-up policy could add £10 of credit when the balance fell below £2. That is a credit top-up, not a £10 price for an extra data bundle. Check the current top-up and spending controls on the final provider checkout; if you need spending to stop at 5GB, do not assume a 30-day tariff does that automatically.

Illustrative calculation — not a live tariff quote: a steady £5 plan costs £60 over twelve calendar-month payments, while a steady £6 plan costs £72. The extra allowance therefore costs £12 more over that period. If you reliably use under 5GB, keep the £12; if you would otherwise buy extra data costing more than £12 over the year, the larger plan could win. This example excludes upfront fees and price changes, and 30-day renewals must be counted by their actual billing dates rather than assumed to equal calendar months.

The better metric is the bill for the data you will use, not the lowest advertised price per GB. A huge unused allowance does not save money.

Rolling 5GB SIM or a 12- or 24-month plan?

A 30-day rolling SIM can make sense if you are testing coverage, may move house, want to change data allowance or dislike a long commitment. It is not the same as a contract with no terms: check notice requirements, auto-renewal and how cancellation works.

Nor does the phrase 30-day rolling by itself prove that a product is PAYG, prepaid or exempt from credit checks. Those are separate features of the particular provider arrangement.

A longer agreement may be worth considering if its full price is better and you are confident about both coverage and your data needs. Yet a long contract is not automatically cheaper. The live 5GB cards show different term lengths, including some direct-network offers whose value depends on their wider features rather than data quantity alone.

For the flexibility-first comparison, use no-contract SIM deals. If predictable monthly bills matter more than the lowest first payment, see SIMs with no annual price rises. For contracts entered into from 17 January 2025, Ofcom prohibits inflation-linked or percentage-based core subscription rises written into new contracts; specified rises can still apply where properly set out in pounds and pence. Do not assume every SIM price is frozen.

How much EU roaming data does a 5GB SIM include?

It may be excluded altogether, capped below 5GB or included up to your full 5GB — but the roaming figure is not automatically extra data. Distinguish your UK data allowance from the provider's EU roaming fair-use ceiling. Some products may sell a separate roaming add-on, which you must evaluate on its own terms. For the data included in your ordinary 5GB bundle:

• A card can show a roaming ceiling higher than 5GB. That does not create free additional data beyond the 5GB included in the ordinary bundle. You can only use data you actually have, subject to the provider's destination and fair-use rules.
• A card can show a roaming limit below 5GB. In that case, you may be able to use only part of the UK allowance while travelling, even if you have data left at home.
• Some providers include roaming only in specified destinations or attach a fair-use or long-stay policy; others require an add-on. An absent roaming badge on our card is not proof that the provider never offers roaming — check its exact plan terms.

This distinction is especially important with 5GB because one trip can use much of a small allowance. As one concrete provider example, the published spusu 5 contract summary reviewed on 19 October 2026 said that up to 3GB of the 5GB plan allowance could be used while roaming in the EU. That 3GB is a subset of the 5GB, not an additional 3GB. The figures describe that dated contract document, not a promise about every future spusu plan.

If travel is central to your choice, use UK SIM deals with EU roaming for a broader comparison. Do not confuse roaming while abroad with the cost of calling another country from the UK: those are separate services.

What is the difference between 5GB, 5G and eSIM?

The terms look similar but describe different things:

• 5GB is the amount of mobile data in the plan.
• 5G is a type of mobile network connection. Having a 5GB SIM does not by itself tell you whether 5G is included or supported by your phone.
• eSIM is a digital SIM option. It does not add data or automatically mean the plan includes 5G or roaming.

Use the live 5G and eSIM filters if these features matter to you. Check compatibility with both the exact provider offer and your handset; where a badge is missing or qualified, do not assume the feature has been verified. If connection technology matters more than the amount of data, compare 5G SIM deals. If your main buying need is digital activation rather than 5GB specifically, compare eSIM deals instead.

How can you make 5GB last the month?

Spread evenly over a 30-day period, 5GB is roughly 167MB a day. Real usage is uneven, so this is a budgeting illustration rather than a daily cap.

Before choosing a tariff:

1. Check usage in your present mobile provider's account for recent completed billing periods. That is usually more reliable for plan billing than a phone's accumulated counter.
2. On an iPhone, open Settings → Mobile Data to see app usage; check when the statistics were last reset, because the displayed period may not match your monthly plan. On a Google Pixel, go to Settings → Network and Internet → Internet, tap the Settings icon beside your operator, then App data usage. Other Android menus vary.
3. Find any recurring spikes caused by automatic photo backups, app updates, high-quality video or laptop tethering. Prefer Wi-Fi for large downloads and offline content when convenient.
4. Where available, set a data-usage warning and a provider spend cap or usage limit. A warning is not necessarily a spending stop: confirm what happens at 5GB with the supplier.

If you frequently have to restrict normal use to make the allowance last, 5GB may be a false economy. Our data usage calculator and guide to choosing your allowance can help, but the live 5GB cards above are where to compare and buy an exact 5GB tariff.

Switching to a 5GB SIM and keeping your number

You normally do not need to change your phone number when changing UK mobile provider. For one number, text PAC to 65075 from your existing SIM, then give the code to the new provider. If you want a new number instead, text STAC to 75075. Ofcom says a PAC is valid for 30 days, and your current provider should tell you about any early termination charges when you request it. See Ofcom's switching guidance.

Before placing the order through View Deal, check that your handset accepts the SIM or eSIM, that your existing contract can be left, and that the new provider can supply the coverage and features you need. Keep access to your old number while the transfer is arranged, particularly if you rely on it for banking verification.

5GB SIM only deals: frequently asked questions

Are the listed plans exactly 5GB, or at least 5GB?

This page is for offers with exactly 5GB of UK data in DealPriceCheck's current selected catalogue. A 10GB plan, even if cheaper, belongs on the 10GB comparison. Provider availability and prices change, so the live cards and their check dates take priority over any historical examples.

Is 5GB enough for WhatsApp, maps and Spotify?

It can be, particularly if you download playlists and maps on Wi-Fi and do not make frequent video calls or watch much video over mobile data. Audio quality, autoplay and background downloads change consumption. Check your actual recent mobile use rather than trusting a generic number of hours.

Do 5GB SIMs include unlimited UK calls and texts?

Not necessarily. Some 5GB plans have capped minutes or text allowances, while others include unlimited UK calls and texts. The data allowance alone does not establish the calling allowance. Inspect the provider's final plan details, including international, premium-rate and other excluded numbers.

What happens after I use all 5GB?

It depends on the exact product. Your data might stop, you might need to buy another bundle, or extra usage might be chargeable. Check the provider's excess-data rule and spending controls before you buy. This is particularly important on a small allowance.

Are 5GB deals always cheaper than plans with more data?

No. Promotions and provider pricing can make an offer with more data cost a similar amount or less. Compare the total expected spend, the network and terms, not just the allowance. Our all SIM-only deals page lets you widen the search if the exact-5GB cards do not offer the best fit.