Pros
- Data banking up to 500GB
- Local customer support
- Unlimited calls and SMS to 15 countries on selected plans at no additional cost
Cons
- No international roaming
MATE offers decent mobile plans on the Telstra wholesale network, with 5 options to match your data needs. Its higher data mobile plans are much more impressive thanks to lower prices when compared to other providers.
If you're looking to bundle your home internet and mobile plan, MATE also offers $10 a month off on its NBN plans if you sign up under a single account. This means you could have a MATE NBN and mobile plan starting from $69 a month, which is the price of some NBN plans on their own.
Some of the reasons you might enjoy signing up to MATE include:
There are plenty of reasons to love MATE, but keep in mind that:
MATE has a variety of postpaid plans, ranging from 12GB for $25 a month all the way up to 100GB for $45, so you're sure to find a data limit to suit your needs.
However, MATE's larger data plans perform more favourably, offering cheap data for under $1 per GB.
If you're after decent coverage, MATE is a solid choice as it runs on the Telstra wholesale 4G or 5G networks:
Yes, MATE offers a mobile plan that runs on the wholesale Telstra 5G network which covers 75% of the population.
You can reach out to MATE using any of the following methods:
You can also use its mobile app to manage your plan, update billing details and more.
Despite being a small provider, MATE offers a few handy features on its mobile plans.
MATE lets you bank any unused data at the end of the month, meaning you can save up to 500GB (depending on your plan) to use later on.
The data bank will empty if you downgrade your plan (e.g. going from its $50 plan down to $30), but not if you upgrade it.
Almost all of MATE's mobile plans come with unlimited calls and texts to 15 selected countries.
This can be a handy feature if you have friends or family overseas that you'd like to stay in touch with.
If you happen to have both a MATE NBN and mobile plan, you'll enjoy a $10 discount off your monthly NBN bill.
MATE's a solid provider, but depending on what you're after, you might want to consider some alternatives.
Moose Mobile has frequent promotions and affordable prices on its mobile plans, making it an excellent budget-friendly pick for most people. It was the winner for Best Postpaid Provider in the 2021 Finder Awards.
Boost Mobile is the only other provider (besides Telstra itself) that gives customers access to the full Telstra 4G network rather than the wholesale version. If you're looking for comprehensive coverage, it may be a better fit.
If MATE's mobile plans don't give you quite enough data to play with, check out Circles.Life on the Optus 4G network. It offers up to 160GB a month for a price that won't break the bank.
You can sign up to your chosen MATE mobile plan online and get the SIM delivered to your address for free.
What if I want to keep my current phone number?
During activation, you'll be able to choose to keep your current mobile number. MATE will handle the porting process, usually transferring your number within 1 business day.
If your current number is under someone else's name (a parent or a partner), it might involve a few more steps. Check our guide on how to transfer ownership of your mobile number.
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