Boost Mobile prepaid plans

2019 Finder Awards

Winner: Best Prepaid SIM (Under $40)

Boost Prepaid (20GB $30 plan)

With Boost's $30 plan, not only do you get 20GB of data on a 28-day expiry across Telstra's network but data rollover means it's easy to take advantage of what you pay for.

How we chose the winners

Boost Mobile prepaid phone plans

Boost Mobile's prepaid plans explained

Many telco providers offer a huge range of plans, which is fine if you want specific extras, but Boost has long sold itself as an easy to understand provider with just a few plans on offer at any given point in time.

Most of Boost Mobile's prepaid plans operate on a 28-day basis before your credit expires. Prepaid plans can be a great way to control your mobile spend because if you use up all your data, you're not charged excess fees for usage. Instead, your data access is simply cut until you recharge. You also don't have to worry about standard national calls and texts with Boost Mobile since all of its plans offer unlimited access for those calls and texts.

• Read more about Boost Mobile's prepaid plans

  Currently, there are six price tiers to select from:

  • $70 recharge, which includes 65GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period
  • $50 recharge, which includes 40GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period
  • $40 recharge, which includes 30GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period
  • $30 recharge, which includes 20GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period
  • $20 recharge, which includes 5GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period
  • $10 recharge, which includes 3GB of data as standard with a 28-day expiry period

  However, Boost Mobile frequently runs special offers for bonus data above these pricing tiers as it's keen to stay competitive within the budget provider space.

Boost Mobile long-term prepaid plans

2019 Finder Awards

Winner: Best Prepaid SIM (Long Life)

Boost $150 12-month Prepaid SIM

The $150 Boost SIM card will give you 80GB of data over 12 months plus data-free Apple Music streaming and unlimited local, national and international calls to 25 destinations.

How we chose the winners

Boost Mobile's long-term prepaid plans explained

Along with its standard 28-day plans, Boost Mobile offers longer 6-month and 12-month prepaid plans. These plans come with larger data caps you can use as you wish throughout the expiry period, whether that be portioning the use out month-by-month or simply using it all as you need it. They also all include unlimited standard calls and text plus an allotment of international calls to select countries.

Four long-term plans are currently available:

• $100 recharge with 6-month expiry, which includes 60GB of data
• $200 recharge with 6-month expiry, which includes 150GB of data
• $150 recharge with 12-month expiry, which includes 80GB of data
• $300 recharge with 12-month expiry, which includes 240GB of data

How does Boost Mobile compare?

• Highly competitive pricing
• Long-term expiry plans are handy for those with inconsistent data use
• 28-day expiry on standard plans is going to cost you more in the long run

Boost Mobile is a well-known name in the budget mobile space, but it's not alone in owning that category, with many potential points of comparison.

Boost Mobile's plans operate on the Telstra 4G Mobile network, but in a slightly different way to other Telstra MVNOs. Boost did have the distinction of being the only 4G-capable Telstra-based MVNO for a period, but that's now open to other Telstra wholesale providers such as ALDImobile and Woolworths Mobile.

Where Boost differs is that it advertises access to the entire Telstra network, which means it stretches a little further in rural and regional areas than other Telstra MVNOs, all of whom advertise support from "parts of" the Telstra network. If you don't travel much in the more remote parts of Australia, this may not be a huge distinction for you.

• Telstra MVNO comparison

  Here's how Boost's prepaid plans compare against the prepaid offerings from Woolworths Mobile and ALDImobile to give you a comparative Telstra MVNO picture:

• Budget prepaid plan comparison

  However, that's not the only comparison point you could make because there are many other MVNOs on competing networks in the budget space. If you were looking to spend $30 or less on a prepaid plan from providers on any network, here's how Boost Mobile compares:

Why should you consider Boost Mobile?

Many low-cost MVNOs sell themselves purely on that low cost, and while this is definitely a conversation that Boost wants to be a part of, it's not the only reason to consider it.

Boost Mobile sells a small quantity of prepaid mobile phones, typically priced well under $100 outright. As you'd expect, they're not the fanciest models, but they're perfectly adequate communication devices. If your own needs are modest or if you're buying a phone for a less-demanding relative or one of your children, it's a good option.

Boost Mobile also provides a data rollover facility as long as you recharge at least $30 before your 28 days are up. Any unused data from your previous recharge will roll over into the next recharge, where it will then expire at the end of that period.

If you need a little extra data, Boost Mobile sells a $5 add-on that ups your data by 500MB on a one-off basis. The only other add-on you can buy is a $15 boost that provides you with unlimited calls to Canada, China, Germany, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, the UK and the US while your general credit is still live, as well as a $15 credit for calling other destinations.

Boost Mobile prepaid recharge options

Running low on credit on your Boost Mobile plan? There are a variety of methods you can choose from to recharge your plan:

• Recharge online

  You can recharge any Boost Mobile plan from the Internet at Boost Mobile’s recharge portal. Major credit cards as well as PayPal are accepted, and you can set up a recurring recharge if you’d prefer to save yourself the hassle of manually recharging in the future.

• With the Boost Mobile app

  If you’re an iOS or Android user, Boost Mobile also provides an app that lets you easily check your balance and recharge when needed. The app is free to download for iOS (download here) and Android (download here) devices.

• From your phone

  If you’d prefer to recharge over the phone, you can do so simply by dialing #111# from your Boost Mobile connected handset.

• From your phone browser

  Boost Mobile provides a dedicated mobile browser interface for recharging, which you can access at care.boost.com.au.

• Via voucher

  Recharge vouchers for Boost Mobile prepaid plans are available at major retailers and you can redeem them via any of the methods detailed above.

How to contact Boost Mobile

Alex Kidman

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Alex Kidman is the tech and telco editor at Finder. He's been a technology writer with experience spanning more than 20 years, writing and editing at Gizmodo, CNET, PC Magazine, Kotaku and many more. Alex has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of New England and a serious passion for retro gaming.

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