Monthly really MORE than PAYG?

[Anonymous]

My contract is up in Jan and I've worked out that paying monthly (even if I buy the phone up front) it works out 54 pounds more at the end of the 2 years than buying on PAYG and topping up a tenner a month for 2 years. Is this right? If so I cannot see why anyone would want to pay monthly. Especially as you're stuck for 2 years. Oh, and it seems to be cheaper to pay for calls on PAYG than monthly if you go over the limit too (not that I will). 

They keep calling me to upgrade but I'm not answering until I know what I want to do as I don't want to be talked into something. If I do answer, do they offer you a shorter contract than the 2 years? I've never stayed on the same network for the length of more than one contract before lol.

[Peanut]

You could potentialy buy your phone outright (or keep your old one if you're happy with it) and go onto a Sim Only contract which is probably the cheapest way to go. 

[Cleoriff]

@Anonymous It really does depend on which sim free tariff you choose. Personally I bought my phone outright and went for a 4G tariff Unlimited calls and texts and 3gb of data. I pay £20 a month...I could have had that on a 12mth contract or over 30 days....(I chose the 12 month)  .

I am paying £10 less a month than I was 3 years ago. There are cheaper tariffs about but I stay with O2 as it suits my needs

These are the sim only tariffs available https://www.o2.co.uk/shop/sim-cards

[Anonymous]

@Cleoriff @Peanut

Thanks for replying!

Sorry, to clarify, I'm looking at getting the Lumia 735 as my iphone 4s can barely function after 2 long years. I had a Lumia previously and never had problems with memory like I do this one. 

It's 140 for the handset on PAYG and then ten pounds a month so that's a total of 380 (presuming the handset lasts 2 years which the last did not)

VS

144 for the handset on pay monthly (no idea why it's an extra 4 pounds) and then 13.50 a month so that's 468

88 pounds more on pay monthly.

Seriously though if I've worked that out wrong please say because it's entirely possible haha.

[Cleoriff]

I really forgot to mention... before I changed to contract I was paying vastly more on PAYG over a year.

I admit I travel a lot to Spain and found whilst away I was constantly topping up.....This was the reason I changed to contract...

[Anonymous]

Yes, that's a good point. Happily for my bank balance (but sadly for my self-esteem), I have very few friends haha. My passport is invalid and my children don't have one so the furthest from home we've been in 7 years is the west country. I mainly use wifi to be honest, bit of data to send receive e-mails on the commute to work, a few text messages and the odd call to my mum.   My life is not one of glamour  

[Cleoriff]

The sim only tariffs I linked to start at £9.50 a month...but not much data with that. The next one is £12.50. However @Anonymous this is really down to personal choice and usage. If you are happier on PAYG and it suits your needs then stick with that.......just buy the phone outright...you can always change your mind later and move to a simplicity sim only tariff... You can even look at Tesco deals. They use the O2 network and work out quite cheap..

[MI5]

For your potential low usage, PAYG is definitely the best option for you.
Having a contract is more beneficial to high use and foreign travel where you can use Tugo, but as this doesn't apply, stay with PAYG.

[jonsie]

You definitely don't need a contract for your limited use. It makes sense to save money and you've obviously done the maths so go with that option if the upfront cost isn't an issue. 

[Anonymous]

Thanks @jonsie and @MI5  I will go back to PAYG.