EU roaming charges 2026: which UK network is cheapest?
O2 and giffgaff still let you roam in Europe for free. Three, Vodafone and EE charge most customers around £2 to £2.75 a day. On a week away that is up to £19 each. Vodafone's £16 8 day pass beats its daily rate. Or switch data off and use wifi.
Roaming in Europe used to be free for everyone with a UK phone. Since Brexit that is no longer guaranteed, and it shows. Three of the big four networks now charge most new customers by the day. O2 and a couple of smaller ones still let you use your plan for nothing.
So I went through every network's own roaming page this week and put the numbers side by side. If you are off on a cheap weekend in Spain or a day trip to Amsterdam, this is what using your phone will actually cost you.
What does each UK network charge to roam in Europe?
Here is the short version, straight from each network's own page, checked on 15 October 2026. Prices are for pay monthly or SIM only plans in their main Europe zone, which covers places like France, Spain, Italy, Portugal and Germany.
- O2: £0 a day. Your UK data works in O2's EU Roaming Zone at no extra cost, up to 25GB.
- giffgaff: £0 a day if you are eligible for its Roam Like At Home. Data is capped at 5GB per plan, then 10p per MB.
- SMARTY: no daily charge listed. Data comes out of your normal monthly allowance.
- Three: £2 a day if you joined or upgraded between 1 October 2021 and 17 December 2025. £2.75 a day if you joined or upgraded on or after 18 December 2025, from 1 April 2026. Some plans include roaming already. Fair use is 12GB a month.
- Vodafone: £2.75 a day in its Zone B, which is 48 European destinations including France, Spain, Italy and Germany. Zone A (Ireland, Isle of Man, Iceland, Norway) has no daily charge. Up to 25GB.
- EE: EE's own page says its packages start from £2.72 a day. The exact price depends on your plan, so check the EE app before you fly.
One thing to watch. The daily charges only kick in on days you actually use your phone abroad. Vodafone says you only pay on the days you roam. That means a day with data switched off and the phone on wifi should cost nothing.
How much does that add up to on a real trip?
Daily charges sound small. They stop sounding small once you multiply them. Here is what a short break and a week would cost, using each network's own prices.
- Day trip (1 day): O2 £0, giffgaff £0, Three £2 or £2.75, Vodafone £2.75, EE from £2.72.
- Long weekend (3 days): O2 £0, giffgaff £0, Three £6 or £8.25, Vodafone £8.25, EE from £8.16.
- A week (7 days): O2 £0, giffgaff £0, Three £14 or £19.25, Vodafone £16 with its 8 day pass (£19.25 paying daily), EE from £19.04.
- Two weeks (14 days): O2 £0, giffgaff £0, Three £28 or £38.50, Vodafone £21 with its 15 day pass, EE from £38.08.
For a couple both on Vodafone, a week in Spain adds £32 to the holiday, even with the passes. That is a decent dinner. On a day trip abroad it matters even more, because the roaming fee can be a real slice of what you spend on the ground.
Are Vodafone's passes worth it?
If you are away for more than five days, yes. Vodafone sells an 8 day European roaming pass for £16 and a 15 day pass for £21. They are one off, so they do not renew on their own. You text 8DAYEUROPE or 15DAYEUROPE to 40506 to buy one.
The maths is simple. Six days at £2.75 is £16.50, so the 8 day pass already wins on a six day trip. For anything over a week, the 15 day pass is the clear pick. For a weekend, just pay the daily charge.
Want to see where your money actually goes? BudgetBro tracks it in any currency, free.
O2 vs giffgaff: which free option is better?
Both cost nothing extra in Europe. The difference is how much data you get and how long you can stay.
- O2 gives you up to 25GB of your UK allowance in its EU Roaming Zone. That is loads for most holidays. It also lists 48 destinations, including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Gibraltar and the Canary Islands.
- giffgaff caps EU data at 5GB per plan, or less if your UK allowance is smaller. Go over and it costs 10p per MB from your credit, which is £1 for every 10MB. Roaming also has to fit in a 63 day window, and you need to have used giffgaff in the UK in the 63 days before you go.
- O2 has its own fair use rule. Using the service for more than 63 days in any four month period counts as unfair use, and then data is charged at £3.50 per GB.
For a normal holiday or a day trip, both are free. If you stream or hotspot a laptop abroad, O2's bigger cap is the safer bet. If you are on giffgaff, download your maps and music before you leave so 5GB goes further.
Should I switch network just to save on roaming?
My honest take: not on its own, unless you travel a lot. Four long weekends a year on a £2.75 a day network comes to £33 in roaming. That is real money, but it is less than the gap between some monthly plans.
Where it does make sense is when your contract is ending anyway. If you are on SIM only and out of contract, roaming should be one of the first things you check. A free Europe allowance is worth more than a couple of extra gigs at home if you go abroad every few months.
And if you are mid contract, look at your plan in the app first. Three says its Your Way Value and Complete plans either include roaming or come with Daily Go Roam passes. You might already have it and not know.
Is there a limit on how much I can be charged?
Yes. GOV.UK says there is a data spending limit of £45 per monthly billing period while you roam. Once you hit it, you cannot keep using mobile data abroad unless you choose to keep spending. You also get alerts at 80% and 100% of that usage.
Ofcom adds that networks must send you a message when you arrive in another country explaining the charges. You can also set your own monthly spend limit, and your provider has to warn you before you reach it.
What catches people out?
- Ferries and cruises. Ofcom warns that at sea your phone may connect to the ship's satellite network, and those charges can be higher than normal roaming.
- The Irish border. Ofcom says phones near the border in Northern Ireland can roam by accident onto an Irish network. Some networks do not charge for this, so check yours.
- Countries outside the zone. O2 charges £7 a day for its Travel Bolt On in some non EU countries. Turkey and Morocco are not on its EU Roaming Zone list, so check before you go.
How do I spend nothing on roaming?
Even on a network that charges by the day, you can get through a short trip for nothing. Ofcom's own tips are a good start.
- Turn data roaming off in your phone settings before the plane lands.
- Download offline maps, playlists, podcasts and shows at home on wifi.
- Use cafe, hotel and airport wifi for maps, email and social media.
- Avoid video, big uploads and attachments when you are not on wifi.
- Check your kids' phones and tablets too. They can run up roaming charges just as easily.
- Think about a local SIM or a travel eSIM for longer trips.
On a day trip, the easiest win is to save everything you need offline the night before. Your boarding pass in your wallet app, your map downloaded, your plan for the day written down. That way, if your network charges by the day, you can leave roaming off and only switch it on if you really need it. Our Day Trips plans are built for exactly that sort of trip.
So which network is cheapest for Europe?
O2 and giffgaff are the cheapest right now, because they charge nothing extra. SMARTY also takes Europe data from your normal allowance. Three, Vodafone and EE all charge by the day for most customers, at around £2 to £2.75. For a week away on Vodafone, buy the 8 day pass. For anything else, switch data off and lean on wifi.
Founders pay £19 a year for BudgetBro Day Trips, for as long as they stay. See the founders offer
Sources: Vodafone roaming, O2 EU roaming, O2 Europe, Three Go Roam, EE Travel Data Pass, giffgaff EU roaming, SMARTY EU roaming, GOV.UK using your mobile in the EU, Ofcom using your mobile abroad. All checked on 15 October 2026.
Photo credits: cover by Pedro Ribeiro Simões, CC BY 2.0.jpg). SIM card by BwDraco, CC BY-SA 3.0. Cafe wifi by Zorro2212, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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