Lebara vs Vodafone: one network, two owners

How do Lebara and Vodafone compare at a glance?

The table pulls prices and price rises from our live deal feed, so it matches the deals on our comparison pages today. The roaming, eSIM and exit-fee rows come from each network's own pages.

Is Lebara owned by Vodafone?

No. Lebara is what the industry calls a virtual network: it has no masts of its own and pays Vodafone to carry its calls and data. Its homepage says so in plain words: "Lebara's network runs on Vodafone". Lebara has been owned by Waterland Private Equity since a deal announced in August 2024.

Vodafone is part of VodafoneThree, the group formed when Vodafone and Three merged. That group's own budget brands are VOXI, Talkmobile and SMARTY. Lebara isn't one of them, which is why its prices, plans and customer service are run separately.

Is coverage the same on Lebara and Vodafone?

In most places, yes. Both use Vodafone's masts. Ofcom's January 2026 figures for Vodafone's network show 4G reaching 97.4% of premises indoors and 86.7% indoors in rural areas, with 5G reaching 77.3% of premises outdoors.

The exception is mast sharing. Since the merger, Vodafone and Three have been switching on shared masts, 10,000 of them by April 2026 according to Vodafone. Vodafone names the brands whose customers benefit: Vodafone, Three, VOXI, Talkmobile and SMARTY. Lebara isn't on that list, so we don't assume a Lebara SIM can use Three's masts.

That matters only where Vodafone's own signal is weak and Three's is strong. Check your postcode on our mobile coverage map before you decide.

Which is cheaper, Lebara or Vodafone?

Lebara, at most sizes. When we checked our feed on 5 November 2026, Lebara started at £4.50 a month for 5GB on a 12-month plan, or £5 on a 30-day plan. Vodafone's cheapest plan was £7 a month for 16GB on a 12-month contract through a retailer, rising to £8.50 in April 2027.

For unlimited data, Lebara cost £25 a month on a 30-day plan and £22.50 on its 12-month plan. Vodafone's cheapest unlimited plan in our feed was £26 a month on a 24-month contract, rising to £28.50 in April 2027 and £31 in April 2028. Its 30-day unlimited plan was £47.

One detail in Lebara's range is worth a look before you commit for a year. Its 30-day plans were sometimes cheaper than the 12-month ones that day: 50GB cost £9 a month rolling in our feed, against £13.50 on the 12-month plan. Offers like that come and go, so compare both lengths. Our data allowance guide helps you pick a size.

Do you have to sign a contract?

Not with Lebara. Its 30-day plans let you "change your plan or cancel anytime", according to its homepage. It also sells a 12-month plan at 10% less than the standard 30-day price. Leaving that early costs the monthly price for each month left, reduced by VAT and any costs Lebara no longer has, under clause 14.2 of its terms.

Vodafone sells pay monthly SIMs on 30-day, 12-month and 24-month terms. The short option costs far more each month: its 30-day plans in our feed started at £27. Leaving a Vodafone contract early costs the charges left, less 2%. Our mobile exit fee calculator estimates either figure.

Can the price go up?

On Vodafone, yes, and it tells you by how much. Its SIM page says: "Each year, on 1 April, your monthly plan charge will increase". The amount in its terms is £2.50 for pay monthly airtime and data plans and £1.50 for its Basics plans. On a two-year contract that's £5 a month more by the second April.

Lebara's homepage promises "No yearly price rises". Its terms back that up: if Lebara changes its charges, the change "will not apply to existing Products or Services you have purchased from us", under clause 15.2. None of Lebara's deals in our feed carries a scheduled rise. Our price rise guide explains the rules that apply to both.

Will either run a credit check?

Lebara's own comparison table, dated 9 September 2026, lists a credit check as "Not required" for its SIM plans. Vodafone does check pay monthly customers, and it's candid about the result: "you might fail our credit check, even if a credit agency has given you a high score". Its Pay as you go Plus SIM comes with "no contract to sign or credit check to complete".

Which is better for calling abroad and for travel?

Here the two are built for different people. Every 30-day plan on Lebara's homepage included international minutes, 100 or 500 depending on the plan, when we read it on 23 September 2026. Its roaming covers the EU and India, with up to 30GB of data under its terms.

Vodafone's pay monthly plans include roaming in four places: Ireland, the Isle of Man, Iceland and Norway. Elsewhere in Europe you pay a daily charge unless your plan includes European roaming, or you buy a pass. Its published passes cost £16 for eight days or £21 for 15 days, and a 25GB monthly limit applies to roaming data. Calls from the UK to other countries are paid extras.

A week in Spain costs nothing extra on Lebara if you stay under its limit. With Vodafone's eight-day pass it costs £16, according to its roaming page. If you call family abroad every week, Lebara's included minutes save you a separate add-on. Our EU roaming guide compares every network's charges.

What does Vodafone add for the higher price?

Choice at the top end, mostly. Vodafone sells three tiers of unlimited data. Its plain Unlimited plan has "max download and upload speeds of 100Mbps", while Unlimited Plus and Unlimited Premier sit above it. Vodafone says some plans have restricted speeds and others are uncapped, so check the tier before you buy.

VeryMe Rewards gives pay monthly customers weekly offers. Pay as you go customers qualify too, if they've topped up at least £10 in the last six weeks, under the scheme's terms. Vodafone also discounts extra plans on the same account, and its broadband for pay monthly mobile customers. Every Vodafone SIM only plan can be an eSIM, and it has shops across the country.

Lebara keeps things simpler. Its terms allow tethering, so you can share your data with a laptop, and it runs a refer-a-friend scheme. On eSIM it's more limited: new customers needed an iPhone Air to start on one when we last checked.

How does customer service compare?

Both answer the phone, and Ofcom's 2024 customer service survey rated Lebara higher. Overall satisfaction was 91% for Lebara and 84% for Vodafone, against an average of 88%. On value for money the gap was wider, at 95% against 77%. Average call waits were short on both: 15 seconds for Lebara and 29 seconds for Vodafone, against an industry average of 1 minute 52 seconds.

Ofcom's quarterly complaints figures cover only larger providers, so Lebara isn't in them. Vodafone recorded 1 complaint per 100,000 pay monthly customers from April to June 2026, against an industry average of 2. Ofcom treats a gap that small as comparable with the average.

Why you might choose Lebara

• You want Vodafone's masts for a lower monthly price.
• You don't want a scheduled price rise or a long contract.
• You call abroad and want international minutes included.
• You travel in Europe or to India and want roaming included.
• You'd rather avoid a credit check.

Why you might choose Vodafone

• You want an unlimited plan above the 100Mbps tier.
• You live somewhere Three's shared masts could fill a gap in Vodafone's signal.
• You want an eSIM on any phone that supports one.
• You'd use VeryMe Rewards, or want shops you can visit.
• You'd put several plans, or broadband, on one account.

How do you switch between Lebara and Vodafone?

Your signal should change little, since both use Vodafone's masts. To keep your number, text PAC to 65075 from your current phone and the code arrives within a minute. Give it to your new network, and the switch completes within one working day under Ofcom's rules. Our switching guide covers each step.

Leaving a 30-day plan on either costs nothing. If you're mid-contract, our guide to leaving early sets out what each network charges.

Sources used

Prices, contract lengths and scheduled rises come from our live deal feed and refresh whenever the site updates. Everything else comes from the sources below, read on the dates shown.

• Lebara, read 23 September 2026: its homepage and terms and conditions.
• Vodafone, read 5 November 2026: SIM only, roaming, credit check and family plans pages, plus its network sharing explainer. Its international calls page was read on 23 September 2026.
• Ofcom: the Connected Nations Spring 2026 update for coverage, telecoms complaints data for April to June 2026, and the Comparing Customer Service report for 2024.