Vodafone has been a major player in the Telecoms market since 1982. In fact, the first two mobile phone calls made in the UK were made through the Vodafone network! Nowadays the network has around 19.5 million customers in the UK alone which accounts for around 21% of the market. How well does this mobile giant perform when it comes to customer service, network coverage, sim only and pay monthly plans? Would you like to learn how Vodafone rewards or My Vodafone works? Read on for everything you need to know about Vodafone UK.
Vodafone UK: how well does it perform?
UK telecoms regulator Ofcom conducts independent studies on mobile phone networks and home broadband that give us an insight into network performance and customer experience. In its 2018 report Vodafone scored 93% on customer satisfaction, tying with EE mobile and beaten only by Giffgaff. What did customers like about the network? Where does it flourish and where does it flail? We’ve broken down our network analysis into three main areas so that you can be the judge.
1.Network coverage and download speed
In terms of coverage, Vodafone’s 4G network covers 99% of the UK population which is on par with their competitors (excluding the Three mobile network which scored slightly higher at 99.8%). All things considered 99% coverage is a good score in the UK mobile network realm.
Ofcom reported that Vodafone customer satisfaction with signal strength was 87%, which is the industry average. Fellow mobile provider O2 received the same score, Three scored below the industry average with 82%, EE, Giffgaff, Tesco Mobile and Virgin Mobile all scored higher than Vodafone.
Mobile Network | 4G Coverage Across UK Population |
---|---|
O2 | 99% |
EE | 99% |
Three | 99.8% |
Vodafone | 99% |
One area where Vodafone really shines download speed. The Vodafone network provides one of the fastest average 4G download speeds - at 21.9 Mbps - among the four network infrastructures in the UK, surpassed only by EE.
Mobile network | 4G coverage across UK population |
---|---|
O2 | 15.16 Mbps |
Three | 18.8 Mbps |
Vodafone | 21.9 Mbps |
EE | 29 Mbps |
We can’t talk Vodafone network coverage without mentioning its 5G network! Vodafone is the second cab off the rank when it comes to launching 5G in the UK (second to only EE mobile).
The Vodafone 5G network is now live in Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bolton, Bristol, Cardiff, Gatwick, Glasgow, Lancaster, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newbury, Plymouth, Stoke-on-Trent and Wolverhampton. In late 2019 Blackpool, Bournemouth, Guildford, Portsmouth, Reading, Southampton and Warrington will receive 5G Vodafone coverage too.
2.Customer service
When it comes to the average number of complaints received about a provider by Ofcom Vodafone was responsible for 32 complaints per 100,000 subscribers, which is the second highest amount among major providers and way above the industry average. Only Virgin mobile had a higher number of complaints at 41. Once a complaint was handled by Vodafone 54% percent of those surveyed were happy with the outcome (2% below the industry average).
When it comes to the average number of complaints received about a provider by Ofcom Vodafone was responsible for 32 complaints per 100,000 subscribers, which is the second highest amount among major providers and way above the industry average. Only Virgin mobile had a higher number of complaints at 41. Once a complaint was handled by Vodafone 54% percent of those surveyed were happy with the outcome (2% below the industry average).
Vodafone UK’s customer service receives a rating of 1 out of 5 stars on customer review site Trustpilot. It is important to note however, that other networks perform the same with EE, O2 and Tesco mobile also receiving 1 out of 5 stars overall.
3. Plans - the possibilities are unlimited
Vodafone pay monthly plans are divided into two categories: itsRed plans its unlimited plans. If you use your phone a lot, Vodafone’s unlimited plans are the golden ticket to preventing nasty phone bills. It’s worth mentioning that Vodafone is one of only 5 phone companies out there with unlimited data plans.
Vodafone offers the following unlimited plans:
- Unlimited Lite (£23) - ideal for social media, streaming music and browsing.
- Unlimited (£26) - gaming, downloading and updating apps, photo and video calls, streaming quality TV and movies.
- Unlimited Max (£30) - hotspotting, multiplayer gaming, share photos and videos, streaming live TV and sport in Ultra HD, super-fast downloads.
If you’re signing up to Vodafone and you’re looking to get the most out of your phone we recommend its unlimited options. With an unlimited plan you don’t have to worry about being hit with surcharges for exceeding data, calls or text allowances. Whether it’s unlimited calls to catch up with your friends and family or unlimited data usage for streaming your favourite content on the go, Vodafone has you covered with no limits.
Need a new mobile phone?If you’re getting a new handset from Vodafone and you want to pay it off in installments you’ll need to be on one of their pay monthly plans.
Vodafone rewards: what are the benefits?
Using the My Vodafone app you can get your mitts on a bunch of awesome rewards also known as VeryMe rewards. The perks you get are tailored to your likes with rewards from brands like Asos, Costa Coffee and Greggs, and tickets to shows and events on offer as well. Vodafone releases weekly giveaways and little gifts that change depending on what you’re into.
Vodafone is not the only mobile service provider or telecoms company to offer a rewards programme to its customers, with companies like O2 offering the same sort of thing. But if a Vodafone prepaid or postpaid option works for you it’s great to know that there are juicy perks that come along with being a customer of this particular phone company!
So who is eligible for VeryMe rewards? You’re eligible if you’re a:
- Pay monthly Vodafone customer
- Vodafone pay as you go customer that tops up at least £10 per month
Vodafone login - My Vodafone
With My Vodafone, customers can upgrade their device, check out the latest offers, top up their prepaid credit, manage their data, text or calls usage and pay their bills.
How do you access My Vodafone? The first option is to download the app to your apple or android device. The My Vodafone app has a 4.3/5 star rating from customers on the App Store which is a pretty great indicator of its quality. If you’d rather access My Vodafone on your computer however, you can do so on the Vodafone UK website.
Regardless of which mobile network you are with we recommend gaining access to your online account in order to stay on top of your usage and payments. By monitoring usage some consumers find that they are actually paying more than they need to with their existing plan because they are not using their full allowance.
Trouble Logging in?
If you’re unable to access your account, don’t worry, we’ve got your back! Needless to say if you can’t log in it’s most likely due to the fact that your username or password is wrong.
If you don’t have an account you can register for one by clicking ‘Register for My Vodafone’ under the purple button that says “Register with my device number”. You’ll need your mobile phone number handy as you’ll need to enter it to complete the registration process.
If you’ve forgotten your password and you need a new link sent you your email address, you’ll need to take the following steps and you’ll be good to go:
- Click on ‘forgotten your password’ and enter your username.
- From there you’ll be sent a new link to log in.
If you’ve forgotten your username you follow the same process by clicking on ‘forgotten your username’ and you will need to provide the following to recover your account:
- Your Vodafone phone number.
- Your pin code or memorable word.
Vodafone SIM only
Can you get a Vodafone SIM without buying a handset? Yes, yes you can. If you’re keen on being a pay monthly customer you can choose either a Vodafone unlimited plan or a Red plan. If you’re interested in a pay as you go) top up option, charges will look slightly different. Let’s take a look at these charges.
Vodafone Pay as you go SIM charges
When topping up your vodafone SIM card you have two options to choose from. The first is Pay As You Go 1 where you get unlimited texts and calls once you’ve spent £1 per day. Before you hit the £1 mark you’ll be charged 20p per minute, 20p per text and 20p per 50MB of data.
Need more data to get yourself through the day? Well the second option with Vodafone prepaid mobile could be the right one for you. The Vodafone Big Value Bundles give you enough data for social media, streaming and browsing, the more you pay the more mobile internet you’ll have.
£5 Top up | £10 Top up | £20 Top up |
---|---|---|
Unlimited Minutes,Unlimited Texts, 500MB of 4G Data, Capped at £1 a day. | Unlimited Minutes, Unlimited Texts, 500MB of 4G Data, Capped at £1 a day. | Unlimited Minutes, Unlimited Texts, 500MB of 4G Data, Capped at £1 a day. |
£5 Big Value Bundle | £10 Big Value Bundle | £20 Big Value Bundle | £30 Big Value Bundle |
---|---|---|---|
100MB data, 150 minutes, 250 texts, total rollover, 100 rewards points | 3GB data, 250 minutes, unlimited texts, total rollover, 150 rewards points | 10GB data, 1000 minutes, unlimited texts, total rollover, 250 rewards points | 40GB data, 1000 minutes, unlimited texts, total rollover, 250 rewards points |
Monthly Data Rollover
If you don’t use all of your mobile data on a Vodafone big value bundle it won’t go to waste as you’ll be able to use any left over data in the next 30 days! Just be mindful of the fact that you can’t rollover your data twice, meaning that you have to use your excess data in the 30 days following the rollover otherwise you’ll lose it.
Vodafone top up: how does it work?
So you’ve seen the prepaid recharge options above, including pay monthly 1 charges and big bundles but how do you actually top up your Vodafone pay as you go SIM?
Here’s a list of all of the ways you can top up however if you require more information why not check out our dedicated Vodafone top up guide.
Vodafone prepaid mobile top up methods:
- Top up online - to top up online you’ll need to enter your phone number, choose the amount that you want to top up and then enter your payment details.
- Top up with the MyVodafone app - download the app from Google Play or the App Store. Once you’re logged in, you'll be able to top up from there.
- Activate your voucher - you can also use the Vodafone website to activate a voucher bought in-store by entering your mobile number and voucher code.
- Over the phone - if you have a voucher, you can top up over the phone by dialing 2345 free from your phone.
Vodafone customer service contact
If you’re looking to get in touch with the Vodafone customer service team you have a few different options at your disposal. Take a look at the contact methods below to find the one that works best for you.
Want to speak to a real person? You can contact Vodafone’s customer service over the phone by calling one of the following numbers:
- Free from a Vodafone mobile - call for free by dialling 191.
- From the UK - 03333 040 191 (standard call charges apply).
If you prefer to speak to someone online, Vodafone has an online chat function through which you can ask questions.
Vodafone contact directory and hours
If you’re looking to reach Vodafone but not for customer service enquiries, here are some numbers that may be useful to you.
- Consumer sales - call 08080 408 408.
- Business sales - call 08080 996 777.
- From abroad - call +44 7836 191 191.
Ok, so you have the right contact numbers for what you need, but depending on what you’re asking for the opening hours may vary.
Query Type | Opening Hours |
---|---|
Lost and stolen | 24/7 |
Pay monthly | 24/7 |
Pay as you go | Mon - Sun 8am - 9pm |
Upgrades, consumer sales or leaving Vodafone | Mon - Sun 8am - 9pm |
Business sales | Mon - Fri 8am - 8pm |
Vodafone mobile - Selectra’s verdict
For the most part Vodafone is on par with its competitors, with the exception of download speed for which the network is a clear front runner. Vodafone’s customer service falls short compared to other major providers but it has been showing steady improvement in this over the years. During our mobile network analysis we came to the following conclusions about Vodafone mobile’s pros and cons overall:
- Vodafone customer service ratings from Ofcom are lower than some of their competitors.
- Vodafone mobile coverage is no better than that of its competitors.
- One of the fastest 4G network download speeds.
- One of the few providers offering unlimited mobile data options.
- The provider offers a fantastic rewards program.
- Customer’s can manage their account through a handy web portal/app.
Vodafone Mobile 2020
Vodafone Coverage: Does the Network Measure Up?
Vodafone Top Up 2019: Follow These Easy Steps