Optus Network Providers: What are the best phone plans on the Optus network?

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The Optus phone network is home to more mobile service providers than any other, meaning you have plenty of choice if you’re looking for a plan with Optus coverage. While Optus owns and operates the network, the telco giant sells the use of its infrastructure to numerous smaller mobile carriers which are known as mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs).

So, if you’re thinking of switching plans, but love the speed and service you’re currently receiving with the Optus network, you may want to consider one of these many third-party providers. We’ve reviewed some of the best providers and their SIM-only mobile plans on the Optus network to help see you through. Read on for all the details, or jump straight into our mobile phone comparison tool to find a great deal.

Best mobile plans using the Optus network

Optus might not be the cheapest telco around, but if you’re looking to save money on your phone bill, you can choose a cheap phone plan from one of the many MVNOs on the Optus network. Many of these MVNOs have plans for under $10 with generous inclusions and if you’re big on data, you’ll be able to find big data inclusions for $30 and under.

Phone Providers on the Optus Network

If you’re looking for great value for money on a mobile plan, there are over ten standout providers on the Optus network all jostling for your attention, including Optus itself, as well as well-known telcos such as Amaysim, Dodo and iPrimus. But did you know there are many more telcos to choose from?

The leading mobile providers that use the Optus network include:

• Moose Mobile
• Southern Phone
• Amaysim
• Dodo
• Vaya
• Catch Connect
• Circles.Life
• Yomojo
• iPrimus
• Coles Mobile
• SpinTel

Moose Mobile

Moose Mobile is one of the cheapest Optus network providers, with a range of month-to-month plans. Typically, Moose Mobile’s plans are some of the cheapest on the market when it comes to what data you get for your money. Keep an eye out for any discounts for new customers as this telco is known to drop plan prices to as little as 1c or free! The below table includes links to a referral partner.

Moose Mobile was awarded the 2021 and 2022 Canstar Blue Customer Satisfaction awards for Postpaid Mobile SIM-Only Plans.

• Reasonably cheap unlimited, month-to-month plans
• Parental controls available on Moose Mobile app
• Good amount of data for your money

Southern Phone

Southern Phone was founded in 2002 with an ethos around serving regional communities, however in recent years it was bought by engery and telecommunications provider, AGL. It offers a range of postpaid phone plans, both SIM-only 4G and 5G plans, along with plans bundled with a new smartphone. All of its postpaid plans come with unlimited standard national calls and texts, with international calls available on select plans. There are seven standard month-to-month plans to choose from, with the X Small, Small, Medium and Large 4G plans and Small, Medium and Large 5G plans. The below table includes links to a referral partner.

Southern Phone was awarded the 2023 Canstar Blue Customer Satisfaction award for Phone On A Plan Providers.

• Month-to-month plans available
• International call inclusions on select plans
• Range of mobile phones available

Amaysim

Amaysim is one of the best-known and most popular Optus network providers out there, delivering great value on all of its SIM only prepaid plans. Amaysim offers four prepaid plans with 28 day expiry, along with a short-term plan and two long-term plans over 12 months. Amaysim is owned by Optus after it was acquired in 2021, although its plans are considerably different from the more expensive plans Optus provides. The increasing price points simply reflect the additional data as well as international inclusions, making these plans easy to compare. While the lowest-level plan offers good value for money, the 120GB plan is the one that really shines at $50, which is less than $1 per 1GB over 28 days. Every Amaysim plan includes unlimited data banking, storing your unused data for when you need it later, and the three more expensive plans include 5G network access. The below table includes links to a referral partner.

Amaysim won the 2023 Canstar Blue award for Most Satisfied Customers Prepaid Mobile SIM-Only.

• 120GB of data for $50
• Unlimited data banking on all plans
• Plans expire after 28 days instead of 30

Dodo

Best known as an internet provider, Dodo also offers a small but competitive range of postpaid mobile plans. Dodo’s mobile arm includes four plans on month-to-month no lock-in contracts, with no setup fees. Its cheapest plan is priced at a low $10 per month for unlimited talk and text to national numbers, unlimited international texts and MMS, and 2GB of data. Dodo’s three larger plans also include 500GB of data banking and some international call credit (the amount of call credit varies between the plans). The table below includes links to a referral partner.

• Cheap $10, 2GB plan
• International call and text inclusions
• Simple month-to-month plans with unlimited standard national calls and SMS

Coles Mobile

All three major grocery chains in Australia provide phone plans (ALDI and Woolworths both operate on the Telstra network), but Coles Mobile stacks up well against its rivals. Coles has prepaid plans, as well as two postpaid SIM-only options. All plans include unlimited standard national calls and SMS with data, with postpaid plans starting at 45GB for $35.  Plans also include unlimited standard international calls to selected countries, and data banking.

• Three prepaid plans, which run over 30 or 365 day expiry
• Two postpaid plans with generous data
• Extras include international calls and data banking of up to 500GB

Vaya

Vaya has a reputation for providing value-packed phone plans at some of the cheapest prices around. The small, budget telco has a concise range of month-to-month phone plans. All plans have unlimited standard national calls and SMS and as for data, there are some fairly generous inclusions across all plans, especially if you want a plan with big data as you can pick up 64GB for $56 per month.

• 64GB of data on the $56 plan
• Month-to-month plans only

Catch Connect

Catch Connect might be an unfamiliar name, but you’ve probably heard of the online retailer ‘Catch’ before. The company’s telco offshoot offers a range of prepaid phone plans with plans available over 30, 90 and 365-day expiry periods. Plans start at $17 with 10GB of data over a 30-day expiry and go up to $200 with 200GB of data over a 365-day expiry.

Choosing a plan over 90 or 365 days may save you some money, but users must also be cautious not to use their whole data pool before the three months or a year is up! It’s also worth noting that all plans include unlimited standard national talk and text. You should also keep an eye out to see if there are any discounts on offer as the telco is known to offer generous discounts for new services every now and then. The below table includes links to a referral partner.

• Discounts by prepaying for 90 or 365 days upfront
• Unlimited standard national calls and SMS on all plans

Circles.Life

One of the newer MVNOs to hit the Aussie market, Circles.Life is a Singapore-based telco making waves internationally. As Singapore’s fastest-growing telco, the company has expanded to Taiwan, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and now Australia as of 2019. Circles.Life offers a simple approach to postpaid plans with one month-to-month plan available for $28 per month with 20GB of data. You can then add more data on to that plan, with 40GB of data for $38 per month. You might find offers such as discounts or bonus data from time to time, so keep an eye out. The table below includes links to a referral partner.

Circles.Life won the 2023 Canstar Blue award for Most Satisfied Customers Postpaid Mobile SIM-Only.

• One base plan with options to add more data for additional cost
• $28 includes 20GB of data as standard
• Month-to-month, no lock-in plans

Yomojo

Yomojo is staking its claim in the prepaid sector with some solid phone plans. The prices are reasonable but you might find more data with other providers. Although they do offer a solid Kids Plan at $9.90 for 1GB of data and 200 minutes of standard national calls and you can get 5GB of data for under $20. Its biggest data offer is 70GB for $45.90. You can also stand to save a bit for the family if you choose to bundle two or more SIM cards.

• 35GB of data for under $30 (over 30 days)
• Family Bundles allow you to combine plans and save
• Kids plan for under $10

iPrimus

Owned by the same company that runs Dodo, iPrimus might be more of a familiar name when it comes to broadband plans, but you will find three simple SIM-only phone plans to choose from. While iPrimus has plans which are more of a middle-price than other Optus providers, it does offer fairly generous data and international call inclusions for the price. All plans are on 12-month contracts and your international call and data inclusions will increase the more you spend.

• Three postpaid 12-month plans at mid-level prices
• Generous data inclusions on all plans
• International call inclusions on all plans

SpinTel

SpinTel has been around for quite a while, but that doesn’t mean it has lost touch when it comes to mobile plans. The telco has a small range of SIM-only postpaid plans on month-to-month plans with data starting at 5GB and going up to 120GB. While there is a $10 SIM card activation fee, this is sometimes waived for new customers. The most expensive plan includes 5G access, in addition to 4G network coverage.

• Month-to-month plans only
• Unlimited standard national SMS on all plans
• 5G access on selected plans

Optus

Of course, we couldn’t write a review of phone plans on the Optus network without mentioning the network operator itself. It goes without saying that the telco giant provides a fairly comprehensive range of phone plans – especially when including prepaid and postpaid options. The postpaid SIM-only plans from Optus start at $49 per month for 30GB of data, and go up to $89 for 360GB. Postpaid phone plans from Optus also include ‘endless’ data — once you’ve used up your included data amount, you can keep using your data but at the capped speed of 1.5Mbps.

Optus does have even more plans on offer, including prepaid (over both long and short expiry periods), in addition to a range of phone on a plan options. You can pick up the latest devices from the big players, including iPhone and Samsung phones, select your payment period (12, 24 or 36 months) and bundle with a postpaid plan. Many of the plans will include access to data-free sports streaming and other entertainment extras.

• Impressive data inclusions at mid-range price points
• Build-your-own plans provide the ultimate phone plan flexibility
• Range of plans and devices to suit all needs

Who offers the best value on the Optus network?

If you’re after the best mobile plans using the Optus network, there truly is a huge selection of great value offers to choose from. This article doesn’t include all of the plans available from all providers, so there are even more plans available for you to choose from.

When it comes to postpaid plans, it’s hard to beat Moose Mobile, Southern Phone and Vaya at different price points and for different reasons. If prepaid is what you’re after, you’ll find great value with Amaysim’s top-level plans if you’re data hungry, while Catch Connect has a simplified selection of plans on different expiry periods.

But, if you’re after a new phone on a plan, Optus is hard to beat with its selection of premium smartphones from the big names. Optus has some of the best deals when it comes to decent value for what you pay for a mobile plan.

When it comes to choosing your phone plan, it really comes down to what you want for your money, and what your needs really are, along with whether you want prepaid or postpaid. If you’re not a big data user, you can easily go for one of the cheaper plans, but if data and extras is what you need, you’ll be looking at the pricier end of the spectrum. There’s also great value on offer on the mid-level plans, so it helps to shop around.

Optus, while generally more expensive, does have the widest range of plan types and some of the most generous inclusions around, so you’ll need to weigh up whether low prices or plan inclusions are what you’re after. However, if you want to explore more plan options across other mobile networks, Canstar Blue allows you compare mobile phone plans from over 30 other providers to help you find the right mobile phone plan for you.