How to switch mobile network and keep your number with one text
You no longer need to ring your old provider and sit through a sales pitch to leave. A free text gets you the code you need, and the switch should happen within a working day.
For years, leaving a mobile network meant phoning up and being passed to a "retentions" team whose job was to talk you out of it. Since July 2019, Ofcom's rules have let you start a switch with a single free text message. It works on every major UK network and takes a couple of minutes.
Step one: decide whether to keep your number
The text you send depends on whether you want to bring your number with you.
To keep your number, text PAC to 65075. You will get back a Porting Authorisation Code.
To get a new number with the new provider, text STAC to 75075. You will get back a Service Termination Authorisation Code.
Both texts are free. The reply should arrive within a minute.
Step two: read the reply carefully
As well as the code, the reply has to tell you about anything you will owe when you leave. That includes early termination charges if you are still within your minimum contract period, and any balance outstanding for a phone you are paying off.
This is the moment to stop and check. If you are only a month or two away from the end of a contract, it may be cheaper to wait. If the charges are higher than you expected, you have not committed to anything yet.
The code is valid for 30 days.
Step three: give the code to your new provider
Sign up with the new network, online, by phone or in a shop, and give it the code when asked. The new provider handles the rest. The switch should be completed within one working day, and you can pick a date that suits you.
You do not have to contact your old provider at all. Your old contract ends on the day the switch goes through, and you should not be charged for a notice period running beyond that date.
What about the phone itself?
Mobile providers have not been allowed to sell locked handsets since December 2021, so a phone bought recently from a network should work on any other network's SIM card. Older phones may still be locked to the original network. If yours is, ask the old provider to unlock it before you switch.
If you are still paying for the handset, those payments usually carry on until it is paid off, whether or not you keep the airtime contract. Check the reply to your PAC text and your contract for details.
Before you go. A few small jobs save hassle later:
- Back up photos and contacts, especially if you are moving to a new phone at the same time.
- Note down any services that text a security code to your number. If you keep your number, these will carry on working. If you take a new one, update your bank, email and other accounts first.
- Use up or note any credit on a pay as you go SIM, as it does not transfer.
Is it worth switching? Providers have to send you a notice when your minimum contract period is coming to an end, telling you what you are paying and the best deals they can offer. That message is a useful prompt. Once the handset is paid off, households on an old contract are often paying for a phone they already own, and a SIM-only deal can cost far less for the same calls and data.
