How can I reduce or avoid roaming charges? | iD Mobile Community
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How can I reduce or avoid roaming charges?

  • March 16, 2022
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iD Mobile
iD Mobile Employee

 

Want to keep your bill low while travelling? Here are our top tips to help you avoid unexpected roaming charges:

 

Set or adjust your Bill Cap.

 

Setting a Bill Cap is the best way to relax while you’re away, knowing you won’t come home to a surprise bill. It acts as a safety buffer, automatically stopping any extra charges once you reach a limit you’ve chosen.

This is especially helpful if you’re travelling outside our inclusive roaming zones, or if you’re visiting an area near a border where your phone might accidentally connect to a more expensive network. It takes seconds to set up in the iD Mobile app, and you can change it whenever you like.

 

Please note: Regardless of your Bill Cap settings, we also have a worldwide £45 data roaming limit in place to protect you from excessive usage charges. If you reach this limit, data will stop working until you contact us to remove it.

 

 

Check for Add-Ons.

 

If you are travelling to a Roam Beyond destination (like the USA, Australia, or Canada), standard roaming rates can be expensive. The best way to avoid these costs is to buy a Roam Beyond add-on before you fly.

These start from just £5 and give you a set allowance of data to use, which works out much cheaper than paying per megabyte.

Check if your destination is included in Roam Beyond here.

 

Turn off Automatic Network Selection.

 

If you are travelling on a ferry, a cruise ship, or near an international border, your phone might automatically connect to a wildly expensive satellite network or a non-inclusive country's network.

To stop this "Inadvertent Roaming," you should manually select the network you want to use.

 

iPhone.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Mobile Services’ (or Mobile Data).
  3. Tap ‘Network Selection’.
  4. Turn the ‘Automatic’ toggle OFF.
  5. Wait for the list to load and select the local network manually.

 

Samsung Galaxy.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Connections’.
  3. Tap ‘Mobile Networks’.
  4. Tap ‘Network Operators’.
  5. Turn ‘Select automatically’ OFF.
  6. Wait for the list to load and select the local network manually.

 

Other Android phones.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Network & Internet’.
  3. Tap ‘SIMs’.
  4. Turn ‘Automatically select network’ OFF.
  5. Wait for the list to load and select the local network manually.

 

Download Offline Maps.

 

Map apps use a lot of data. Luckily, both Google Maps and Apple Maps let you download areas to your phone while you are on Wi-Fi, so you can navigate later without using your allowance.

 

Google Maps.

  1. Open the Google Maps app while connected to Wi-Fi.
  2. Search for the city or area you are visiting.
  3. Tap the name or address of the place at the bottom.
  4. Tap the three dots icon (More) and select ‘Download offline map’.

For more help, check out the official Google guide.

 

Apple Maps.

  1. Search for a location.
  2. Tap the Download button (if available) or tap More then Download Map.
  3. Adjust the area you want to save and tap ‘Download’.

 

Disable Wi-Fi Assist (iPhone).

 

If you have an iPhone, there is a hidden setting called Wi-Fi Assist. This feature automatically uses your mobile data to boost your signal if your Wi-Fi connection is poor. This can lead to unexpected roaming charges even when you think you are using hotel Wi-Fi.

  1. Go to Settings > Mobile Services.
  2. Scroll right to the bottom of the page.
  3. Turn the Wi-Fi Assist toggle OFF.

 

Enable Low Data Mode.

 

This feature stops apps from refreshing in the background and using data when you aren't looking.

 

iPhone.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Mobile Services’.
  3. Tap ‘Mobile Data Options’.
  4. Tap ‘Data Mode’.
  5. Select ‘Low Data Mode’.

 

Samsung Galaxy.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Connections’.
  3. Tap ‘Data Usage’.
  4. Tap ‘Data Saver’.
  5. Switch the toggle to ON.

 

Other Android phones.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Network & Internet’.
  3. Tap ‘Data Saver’.
  4. Check that the 'Use Data Saver' toggle is turned on.

 

Switch off Data Roaming.

 

If you are travelling outside of our 50 Inclusive Roaming Destinations and you don't have a Roam Beyond add-on, we highly recommend turning Data Roaming OFF entirely.

 

Please note: Turning off Data Roaming means you won’t be able to use WhatsApp, Email, or Social Media unless you connect to Wi-Fi.

 

iD Mobile app.

  1. Tap ‘Plan’.
  2. Tap ‘Manage your iD services’.
  3. Switch the ‘Roaming’ toggle OFF.

 

iPhone.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Mobile Services’.
  3. Tap ‘Mobile Data Options’.
  4. Switch the ‘Data Roaming’ toggle OFF.

 

Samsung Galaxy.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Connections’.
  3. Tap ‘Mobile Networks’.
  4. Switch the ‘Data Roaming’ toggle OFF.

 

Other Android phones.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap ‘Network & Internet’.
  3. Tap ‘SIMs’.
  4. Switch the ‘Roaming’ toggle OFF.
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