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- Giffgaff has cut the price of its 18-month unlimited data plan from £25/mth down to £15/mth for Black Friday
- Unlike some other plans, which only get you the discounted price for the first few months, this plan guarantees the price for the full 18-month contract
- Giffgaff is our favourite mobile network of the year, earning the highest overall score in our annual mobile network awards and receiving a five-star review
It’s not often that I’ll recommend a lengthy contract for a SIM-only deal but this offer from Giffgaff is simply too good to pass up. Cheap unlimited data plans are relatively commonplace during Black Friday – with several of Giffgaffs competitors offering them for the same price – but the difference here is just how long you get the deal price for.
I’ve scoured through all of the competition and even the ones that offer unlimited data for this price or less don’t stick to that price for long. The general rule appears to be three months at the discounted price and then it reverts to the pre-deal cost – which is considerably more than this.
So while I maintain my hesitations about locking in to long mobile contracts, there’s no denying that the value for money being offered here is better than you’ll get from any other network. If you need oodles of data and you’re happy to stick with the same company for a while, Giffgaff’s unlimited data plan is too good to pass up.
Is Giffgaff a good network?
Giffgaff is currently our favourite mobile network, earning a full five stars and the Best Buy award in our 2025 review. Beyond that, Giffgaff also proved to be the nation’s top choice, too.
In our annual Mobile Network Awards, decided by a representative survey of the UK public, Giffgaff emerged as the best overall, as well as being named the best network for speed and being highly commended in the best customer service, most recommended and best for SIM-only plans categories.
It’s not hard to see why Giffgaff is so popular; data plans are consistently some of the cheapest around and customers are clearly very happy with the speeds provided. Being fast and cheap is a winning combo in the mobile network game.
Another big perk of choosing Giffgaff is that it’s one of only a few networks that still offer free roaming in select locations. Specifically, you can take your data to any of 38 countries, including the entirety of the EU, as well as destinations like Iceland, Gibraltar and Norway.
Are there any drawbacks?
The only issue with the free roaming is that it has a data cap of 5GB for the month. So if you’re away on a long trip, you could find yourself exceeding it quite quickly. You can still use your data after that point but it’s charged at 10p per MB, which quickly adds up. By comparison, Smarty’s free EU roaming limit is 12GB, giving you more breathing room if you’re spending long stints on the continent.
Otherwise, the only point to bear in mind here is that you’re locked into a contract, which is something I generally try to avoid when recommending SIM deals. The good news on that front is that Giffgaff at least gives you the flexibility to change your data allowance without affecting the length of your contract.
That means that, say six months in, you decide you no longer need unlimited data, you can bump your allowance down to a cheaper tariff without having to start the 18 months over again.
If you’d like to snatch up a bargain handset to go along with this SIM-only plan, I’ve been scoping out the best Black Friday phone deals. For even more discounty goodness, our central Black Friday deals hub has the latest and greatest offers on everything from headphones and laptops to coffee machines and mattresses.