• Pay monthly
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		Price	Free usage	Top ups	Speed (Up to)
Sponsored link	545 reviews	3 Mobile PAYG mobile broadband topped up with 1GB data Only £29.99 - including 1GB data (valid for 1 month) data worth £10 Standard dongle with latest HSPA+ technology				Go Check coverage>
1	301 reviews	£29.99	90 days' usage included data worth £45	£2/day £7/week £15/30 days	4.5Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Pay up front - 90 days' data included	Extras: 90 days' usage included; then pay per day. Unlimited browsing: No extra charges over 1GB/mth fair use limit but peak time downloading/streaming may be restricted.
2	545 reviews	£29.99	1GB data included data worth £10	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Standard PAYG + 1GB data	Extras: PAYG with 1GB data included (valid up to 1 month). High-speed HSPA+ dongle (up to 21Mb).
3	545 reviews	£99.99	12GB data included data worth £120	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Premium PAYG + 12GB data	Extras: New high-speed HSPA+ dongle (up to 21Mb) with 12GB data included (valid up to 12 months). Rotating head allows dongle to sit vertically for increased efficiency.
4	545 reviews	£20.49	3GB data included data worth £30	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Mobile broadband SIM PAYG + 3GB data	Extras: Mobile broadband SIM. PAYG with 3GB data included (valid up to 3 months).
5	545 reviews	£134.99	12GB data included data worth £120	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	MiFi PAYG + 12GB data	Extras: New high-speed HSPA+ PAYG MiFi router (up to 21Mb) available in black or white with 12GB data included (valid up to 12 months). Connects up to five devices to the internet at once, wirelessly.
6	266 reviews	£24.99	60 days' usage included	£15/2GB/30 days	3.6Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	TopUp and Go + 60 days' usage	Extras: 500MB data included. Additional data costs £5 for 250MB. 30-day money back guarantee.
7	545 reviews	£39.99	3GB data included data worth £30	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Standard PAYG + 3GB data	Extras: PAYG with 3GB data included (valid up to 3 months). High-speed HSPA+ dongle (up to 21Mb).
8	301 reviews	£8.33 + VAT	plus £10 initial minimum top-up	£2/day £7/week £15/mth (inc VAT)	4.5Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Business Pay per day	Extras: Choice of black or pink dongle. £10 minimum initial top up. Unlimited browsing: Fair use policy 250MB/day, 500MB/week, 1GB/month - No extra charges if you exceed fair use limit, but peak time downloading/streaming may be restricted.
9	FREETop-up data 111 reviews	£35.74	2GB data included data worth £15.32	£2.04/200MB/day £10.21/1GB/30 days £15.32/2GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go 0800 198 1356 Check coverage>
	Pay and Go + 2GB data	Offer: FREE double data top up every thrid time you top-up Extras: Includes 2GB data plus unlimited Wi-Fi access valid for 1 month. Dongle available in black, pink or white.
10	545 reviews	£39.99	1GB data included data worth £10	£2.99/500MB/day £10/1GB/30 days £15/3GB/30 days £25/7GB/30 days	7.2Mbmax speed	Go Check coverage>
	Premium PAYG + 1GB data	Extras: New high-speed HSPA+ dongle (up to 21Mb) with 1GB data included (valid up to 1 month). . Rotating head allows dongle to sit vertically for increased efficiency.

Guide to pay as you go broadband

Also referred to as PAYG broadband, pay as you go broadband does exactly what it suggests: you pay for a certain amount of broadband usage and when it's used up, you top it up with some more. As mobile broadband is supplied by the same companies, it should come as no surprise that the mobile ISPs use the same principal for pay as you go broadband as they do for pay as you go mobile phone deals.

Some kind of pay as you go broadband is now offered by all five of the major mobile broadband suppliers - Orange Broadband, O2, 3 Mobile Broadband, T-Mobile and Vodafone. However, so far Virgin Media and BT have resisted this particular market. While they all use slightly different phrases to advertise their products (such is the way in marketing, we're afraid), there are essentially two types of pay as you go broadbanddeal: paying for either time or actual usage in GB.

Pay per GB

With these packages, you buy a set amount of GB and, when it's gone, you simply buy some more. Everything you do on the internet uses up a certain amount of data, and this kind of deal measures that and charges you accordingly. This kind of pay as you go broadband is perfect for occasional users who don't use much data but equally never really know when they'll need to use up their allowance.

Pay per day

If you know you'll be needing to use your pay as you go broadband on certain days - perhaps for certain days at work, or on the weekends - pay per day deals may be a better option. There are still limits on your usage, but these are pretty generous: if you're simply using it to check emails (unless you're downloading massive work files!) or surf the web, you shouldn't get too close to them.

Pay per month

If you like the idea of having a contract, but can't (or don't want) to commit to a long-term deal, a couple of the pay as you go broadband suppliers offer rolling one-month contract deals. These tend to work out a little more expensive than the longer deals, but offer the positive sides that a contract brings.

Which is the best pay as you go broadband package for me?

If you look at the comparison table above, you should find all the information you need to make sure you get the right deal for you. Here are a few pointers to get you started:

Hardware

Don't worry too much about the dongle, as there shouldn't be too much difference between them at the moment: there will be more important distinctions to make. However, be aware that if you look at the 3 SIM-only deal, be aware that you'll need a dongle to go with it!

You might also want to look at MiFi, or mobile Wi-Fi units, which are also available on prepay now. These use your mobile broadband signal through a Wi-Fi unit, meaning you can share your signal between several Wi-Fi capable devices at once. They're a little more expensive than dongles, but can be really useful - especially as home broadband back-up.

Package

If you already have a mobile phone with one of the pay as you go broadband suppliers, and get a good 3G reception, it may be worth sticking with what you know: mobile broadband uses the same signal as your mobile, so it's a pretty good indicator. If your mobile doesn't get a great signal, or you're thinking of switching mobile broadband providers because you're not happy with the reception you're getting, scroll up to the top left of this page and check out the mobile broadband coverage checkers for each ISP.

Monthly price

This should be pretty self explanatory, but do look out for any prices that have a bit of red text below them - this indicates special limited time pay as you go broadband offers that may well be worth cashing in on.

Speed

You will generally see that this 'up to' speed is advertised at 'up to' 7.2Mb. However, in our experience, the average speed - no matter which UK network - will be closer to 2Mb. The thing that will effect speed most of all is coverage, so be sure to check each mobile broadband supplier's coverage checker to see who will best supply the areas you'll most likely use the service in. 

Pay as you go broadband really should be used for occasional use and/or as a back up to fixed-line, unless you're spending a lot of time in a postcode that fixed-line broadband can't reach.

Contract

As discussed above, here you'll find out whether a deal is strictly pay as you go broadband or a one-month rolling contract deal.

Downloads

This details the allowance you will be given, measured in GB, for each pay as you go broadband deal. If you're unsure as to how much usage you will need to cater for, check out our  mobile broadband usage guide: what will I get for my gigabyte?

Extras

Here you'll find any little extra snippets of info we think are worth mentioning to help you make the right decision. this can be anything from free Wi-Fi access to details of how to top up pay as you go broadband.

Go!

Once you've decided on which pay as you go broadband deal is best for you, click the 'go' button to be taken directly to the ISP's website and away you go - you should be up and running with mobile broadband very soon.

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Top 5 Mobile Broadband Help Guides

• Mobile Broadband Beginners Guide
• Mobile Broadband Coverage
• Mobile Broadband Download Limits
• Using Mobile Broadband Abroad
• Mobile Broadband Awards

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