iD Mobile Coverage and Network Review

iD Mobile is a mobile network owned by the Carphone Warehouse that uses Three’s network. It offers a range of great value Pay Monthly, Pay As You Go and SIM Only plans.

But it really stands out due to the fact that plans come with data rollover, spending caps and free EU roaming - we'll cover those things in detail below.

iD Mobile 3G coverage reaches roughly 98% of the UK population, while 4G coverage reaches over 91% of the UK population. All plans come with 4G at no extra cost and deliver average downloads speeds of 18.92 Mbit/sec.

Summary

Pros	Cons
Affordable and flexible plans	Tethering not supported
Data rollover	Maximum 10GB data allowance
4G at no extra cost	Free EU roaming only, not worldwide

Our Rating

Coverage

As iD Mobile uses Three’s network as you'd expect it has the same coverage as Three.

Meaning iD Mobile has over 91% UK population coverage with 4G and around 98% 3G. Three is also aiming to achieve 98% population coverage in 2017, so iD Mobile coverage is improving all the time. 

Use iD Mobile's coverage checker below to find out more about iD Mobile coverage in your area, including signal strengths and details on both indoor and outdoor coverage.

iD Mobile Coverage

Network Type	Coverage by population
4G	91%
3G	98%
2G	N/A

Towns and cities with partial or full coverage include but are not limited to: Aberdeen, Birmingham, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bradford, Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Coventry, Derby, Dundee, Durham, Edinburgh, Exeter, Glasgow, Gloucester, Huddersfield, Ipswich, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Luton, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Preston, Sheffield, Southampton, Southend On Sea, Stoke On Trent, Swindon, Watford and York.

That's a very small subset of locations and the full list is growing all the time, so expect 4G from iD Mobile in your area soon if you don't have it already.

Network Speeds and Frequencies

iD Mobile uses standard 4G, which is around 5 times faster than a standard 3G network. You can expect average 4G download speeds of 18.92Mbit/sec and average 4G upload speeds of 9.8Mbit/sec. That’s enough to smoothly stream high resolution videos and music, rapidly download apps and quickly upload pictures.

• Average Download Speed: 18.92 Mbit/sec
• Average Upload Speed: 9.8 Mbit/sec

iD Mobile uses 800MHz and 1800MHz bands for 4G, as well as the 2100MHz band for 3G. The 800MHz band helps with indoor and rural coverage, while the 1800MHz helps meet data demands in congested areas. You can find in depth details of those bands in our 4G frequencies guide.

• 800MHz used for 4G
• 1800MHz used for 4G
• 2100 MHz used for 3G

Plans

iD Mobile has a range of plans available from as little as £4 per month. All plans come with free roaming in the EU, data rollover and spending caps, but tethering is not permitted.

Free Data Rollover

All plans come with data rollover, meaning that unused data is carried over to the next month. That’s a great feature because it means you are less likely to run out of data!

Spending Caps

iD Mobiles plans are perfect for those who want to control their spending. They come with a spending cap that's pre-set at your credit limit, but can be changed to as little as £5.

What that means is that once your allowance is used up you won’t spend more than a set amount each month. They are great for parents looking to control their child’s spending or for those fearful of unexpected bills.

Free Roaming Abroad

iD Mobile plans give you free roaming abroad in 50 countries, so are perfect for those who regularly travel to foreign countries. When abroad in a destination you can use texts, calls and data allowances like you would at home.

Free roaming is available in Austria, Azerbaijan, Azores, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Islands, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, French Guiana, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guadeloupe, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madeira, Malta, Martinique, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Réunion, Saint Barthélemy, Saint-Martin, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Vatican City.

Data Cushion

ID Mobile now offers a Data Cushion on select tariffs. It's only available on handset plans with 2GB of data, and even then only for a subset of phones, so keep an eye out for it.

This gives you 10GB of extra data which you can dip into at any point during the 24 months of your contract. That means if you use up all the data you have one month you'll have 10GB (or however much of your Data Cushion is left) to cover you until the next month.

SIM Only Deals

All Plans Include: Capping, Data Rollover and Roaming
	500MB data 500 minutes 5000 texts	£3.99 a month See Deal
	2.25GB data 250 minutes 5000 texts	£5 a month See Deal
	2.5GB data 500 minutes 5000 texts	£7 a month See Deal
	3GB data 500 minutes 5000 texts	£10 a month See Deal
	6GB data 2000 minutes 5000 texts	£15.00 a month See Deal
Compare iD SIM Only Deals

Data Only Plans – For Tablets and Dongles

Data Only plans are for tablets, dongles and MiFi. That’s because they come with a data allowance, but no inclusive texts or minutes.

They are available on 1 or 24 month contracts.

Pay As You Go

iD Mobile also offer a trio of Pay As You Go bundles which come with a combination of texts, data and minutes. Bundles last for 1 month and can be setup to recur each month.

Once your allowance runs out you’ll enjoy low rates of 3p per min, 2 per text and 1p per MB of data. And if you prefer you can top-up and use your allowance without a bundle.

Conclusion

iD Mobile is a robust, good value 4G network. Its major strengths come from the low prices and the extras you get from the plans – whether that’s free roaming abroad or rolled over data. If either of those things are important to you it’s one of just a small number of suitable networks.

Those looking to tether should consider looking elsewhere though, while those living in rural areas should check coverage before joining iD Mobile.