Getting an Australian phone number

Start with prepaid

Almost every newcomer should start on prepaid. The reason is simple: monthly plans usually involve a credit check, and in your first months in Australia you have no local credit history for anyone to check. Applications get declined, and it feels personal when it is not.

Prepaid has none of that. You pay up front, there is no contract, and you can switch providers whenever you like while keeping your number. Once you have been here a while, have a bank account and some payslips, moving to a monthly plan is easy if you still want to.

The three networks

Australia has three actual mobile networks. Everything else resells one of them:

• Telstra has the widest coverage by a long way, especially outside the cities and along regional highways. It is usually the most expensive, and it is the right answer if you will travel or work regionally.
• Optus is strong across the cities and most large towns, and generally cheaper than Telstra.
• Vodafone is often the cheapest and works well in urban areas, but coverage thins out faster once you leave them.

The money saving move is a smaller provider that runs on a big network. Brands like Boost, Belong and Aldi Mobile use the Telstra network, while others resell Optus or Vodafone. You get the same coverage as the parent network for less money, usually with less generous customer service.

Before you commit, check the provider's coverage map against the suburb where you will actually live and work. Coverage in Australia varies enormously between the inner city and a suburb forty minutes out.

What you need to activate

Australian law requires providers to verify your identity before a prepaid service is activated. You cannot buy an anonymous SIM here. In practice you need:

• Your passport, which on its own is normally enough for a newcomer.
• Sometimes an Australian address, though many prepaid activations accept a hotel or hostel address to begin with.

Activation is usually done online or in the shop and takes a few minutes.

Where to buy

• The airport, on arrival. Convenient and more expensive. Fine as a stopgap.
• Supermarkets and post offices, which sell starter SIM kits cheaply.
• Phone shops, where staff will do the activation with you. Worth it if your English is still finding its feet or you want someone to check the setup.
• Online, especially for an eSIM. If your phone supports eSIM this is often the fastest option, because you can order before you land and activate the moment you arrive.

Check your phone will work

Two things to confirm before you buy a SIM:

1. Your phone is unlocked. Handsets bought on a contract overseas are often locked to that carrier and will not accept an Australian SIM until the original provider unlocks them. Sort this out before you fly.
2. Your phone supports the right bands. Most recent phones sold internationally work fine in Australia, but some older or region specific models lose coverage. A quick search of your model plus Australia will tell you.

Keeping your number

Once you have an Australian number, you can take it with you if you change providers. The process is called porting, it is free, and it usually takes minutes to a few hours. Never cancel your old service first, because cancelling releases the number. Start the port with the new provider and let them pull it across.

Do this early

A local number unlocks a lot of other admin. You will want it before you open a bank account, when you apply for jobs, and when you start applying for rentals, because agents call rather than email. Pair it with a Tax File Number and a Medicare card if you are eligible, and the basics are covered.