Three international roaming FAQs

Since October 1, 2021, Three has implemented daily roaming charges for pay monthly customers who joined or upgraded on or after that date in their "Go Roam" destinations.

How much does it cost to roam on Three? 

If you want to use your phone abroad, here's the deal with Three: They charge you £2 a day for Go Roam in Europe and £5 a day for Go Roam Around the World.

But, if you're a pay monthly customer whose plan started before October 1, 2021, you're in luck. You won't face these charges. And pay-as-you-go Sims still get free roaming. Plus, you're safe in the Republic of Ireland and the Isle of Man – no daily charge there.

With Go Roam in Europe, you can use your UK allowances for calls, texts, and data, as long as you stay within Three's fair use limit. If you go over, they've got special roaming rates for you. Go Roam Around the World lets you use your UK allowances for calls and texts, but no data limit is set.

For places not part of Go Roam, standard roaming rates apply. Oh, and remember, just getting inbound calls in Go Roam spots might get your account suspended.

If your Three pay monthly started before 1 October 2021, Three should have written to you confirming that your plan is exempt from the daily charge

Which locations are covered in Go Roam on Three?

• Aland Islands

• Australia

• Austria

• Azores

• Balearic Islands

• Belgium

• Brazil

• Bulgaria

• Canary Islands

• Chile

• Colombia

• Costa Rica

• Croatia

• Cyprus

• Czech Republic

• Denmark

• El Salvador

• Estonia

• Finland

• France

• French Guiana

• Germany

• Gibraltar

• Greece

• Guadeloupe

• Guatemala

• Guernsey

• Hong Kong

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Indonesia

• Isle of Man

• Israel

• Italy

• Jersey

• Latvia

• Liechtenstein

• Lithuania

• Luxembourg

• Macau

• Madeira

• Malta

• Martinique

• Mayotte

• Netherlands

• New Zealand

• Nicaragua

• Norway

• Panama

• Peru

• Poland

• Portugal

• Puerto Rico

• Republic of Ireland

• Réunion

• Romania

• Saint Barthélemy

• Saint Martin

• San Marino

• Singapore

• Slovakia

• Slovenia

• Spain

• Sri Lanka

• Sweden

• Switzerland

• Uruguay

• US Virgin Islands

• USA

• Vatican City

• Vietnam

What is Three's fair usage policy?

Three imposes a 12GB fair usage cap for all customers on a monthly contract when roaming abroad, and 9GB for those on pay-as-you-go. This means that if your allowance is less than this, you’ll have your normal limit imposed.

But if you normally enjoy more data than this, you'll need to stick within the fair usage cap or risk paying more. Three's fair usage policy also extends to how long you're roaming for.

Using your phone in any of the countries listed above for two months or more in any rolling 12-month period will put you outside Three's fair usage policy, and your roaming will be suspended.

What is Three's fair usage policy in Europe?

Three’s Go Roam in Europe gives you up to 12GB of your data allowance. Make sure you are aware of how much data you are using because any usage beyond this fair use threshold within your allocated limit might incur an additional fee. 

Calls to standard landline or mobile numbers, as well as texts sent within the Go Roam in Europe locations or back to the UK, have no fair use limits.

Three Fair Use Policy in Around the World destinations

If your data allowance goes beyond 12GB, you can use up to that amount every month. But, just like in Europe if you go over this limit within your allowance, you might face an extra charge.

The good news is for unlimited text packages, you can send up to 5000 texts back to the UK (both landline and mobile numbers) each month, except if you're on a pay-as-you-go plan, in which case it's 3000 texts back to the UK per month.

If your allowance is 3000 minutes or more, you can use up to 3000 minutes for calls back to the UK, including standard mobile and landline numbers every month.

If you are worried about not having enough data when you are outside of Europe, you can also get a Data Passport from Three for £5, which gives you unlimited data until midnight (UK time) on the day of purchase.

Can you hotspot with your device while roaming?

If you have an Unlimited data plan, you can use your device as a Personal Hotspot while roaming in the EU. For Essential plan users, the option to use your device as a Personal Hotspot is available by either switching to a different plan or purchasing an Add-on.

Is Three good for roaming?

Unfortunately for Three, it operates in a realm of free-roaming services from other providers. O2 for example has free roaming as a standard feature, along with an extensive range of locations covered.

Vodafone offers free roaming on select plans and is expanding its coverage to more places than other major UK networks. EE also has free roaming included in select plans and is available as an affordable add-on for others.

Three, however, has an extra charge for roaming on all its pay monthly plans. This marks a notable change from Three's previous strong position in roaming, but they still offer affordable roaming in a decent selection of places.