If you're a frequent traveller or you’re booking a big summer holiday, having your phone to hand can help you with everything from translating to tanning. To make sure you don’t get stuck, it’s best to check whether roaming is included in your mobile plan before you go.
This guide is here to help you use your phone overseas, just like you would do at home - and help you avoid building up a hefty bill. Check out our 50 free roaming destinations worldwide or read on for more tips on staying connected while you’re away.
Roam free!
In 50 destinations worldwide, up to 30GB at no extra cost.
Roam faster!
Get faster speeds when roaming abroad with 5G available in 33 countries.
Limit extra charges.
Use our Bill Capping feature to limit extra charges when you're abroad.
What actually is roaming, and how does it work?
Your phone goes roaming when you travel overseas, and switch to another network provider. Once you’ve crossed UK borders, your phone will connect to the local mobile network, so you can text, call and browse the Internet as usual.
There’s loads that goes into making data roaming happen; your device needs to be compatible with both your UK network, and the network of the country you’re travelling to. All you need to do to get your handset working when you’re abroad though, is to make sure roaming is switched on. Your provider will connect for you, so you can use your handset as normal. It's that easy!
How to keep your data costs down abroad
Our roaming policy means you’ll get up to 30GB of free roaming abroad in 50 destinations if you’re an iD Mobile customer of iD Mobile. brought to you by Currys. If you’re planning a longer trip or you don’t have any data to spare, here are our tips on keeping your phone connected until you’re back on home turf.
Set a safety cap
If you’re concerned about overspending on your phone contract, you can set up a safety cap. This means your phone will stop roaming once it's used up the allowance you’ve set it. You can adjust your bill capping at any time, so if you’re using less data than expected, you’ll never go over budget.
Check charges if you do go over your limit
You can roam free up to 30GB in over 50 destinations with us, but it’s important to make sure you understand any charges if you do go over your limit. Get more advice on international and roaming charges.
Use ‘free’ video calling options
Sometimes, unexpected charges come from your overseas calls. A great way to avoid this is using ‘free’ calling options like Facetime or WhatsApp over Wi-Fi. As long as you’re connected to a free, reliable Wi-Fi connection, you can video call away to your heart’s content.
Use Wi-Fi when you can
Individual Wi-Fi networks connect to the Internet via local broadband connections, so your phone doesn’t need to connect to a different network. That means Wi-Fi is completely free to use while you’re abroad: but make sure to only ever connect to Wi-Fi signals you trust.
It’s also a great idea to turn off Wi-Fi assist, so you don’t encounter any unnecessary charges after your phone has disconnected from a weak Wi-Fi signal automatically.
Download ahead of time
If you’re prepping to binge your favourite show while you’re travelling, it’s best to download your episodes before you go. Streaming can put a dent in your data, so having your films and shows ready to go will help your allowance go further, and make sure there’s no lag while you’re watching them, too.
Similarly, downloading travel apps like Maps or Google Maps can help you navigate if you’re in a remote area with limited signal.
Download ahead of time
If you’re prepping to binge your favourite show while you’re travelling, it’s best to download your episodes before you go. Streaming can put a dent in your data, so having your films and shows ready to go will help your allowance go further, and make sure there’s no lag while you’re watching them, too.
Similarly, downloading travel apps like Maps or Google Maps can help you navigate if you’re in a remote area with limited signal.
Check which apps are eating up your data
Many apps work by running in the background, using data to deliver up-to-date information and a seamless experience. If you can’t work out where your data is going while you’re abroad, go into your phone’s settings, and turn off data to non-essential apps. This means you can use your day-to-day apps as usual, but your data won’t be wasted on those you don’t often need.
FAQs
Yes, if you connect to Wi-Fi, you can use your phone overseas without roaming. Just make sure the Wi-Fi you’re connected to is safe and secure.
No, using Wi-Fi will not result in roaming fees. Roaming fees only apply when using 5G or connecting to a network, whereas Wi-Fi uses a separate internet connection.