Vodafone international calls are one of the most reliable ways of communication whenever we miss our friends and relatives who are away from our homes. We just simply grab our mobile phones and contact them.
You can spend long hours talking to your loved ones abroad without the fear of receiving a costly bill.
“The Company caters its services to over 18 million people, with a 4G network coverage of 99%”.
Vodafone Group has its mobile operations in 26 countries, with partnerships in 55 countries and fixed broadband operations in 19 markets.
How to Make Vodafone International Calls
Unable to make Vodafone Global Calling? To make a phone call outside of United Kingdom, you need to follow some steps. These steps are mentioned below:
(a) Activate International Calling. First, you need to activate the Global Calling first on your phone. The process of activation is to send an SMS to the Company from your Vodafone phone and send it to 2345.
The format of SMS is shown below:
SMS Format: Send <INTERNATIONAL> to 2345
(b) Placing the Call. To connect to any country, first, you should know the country code(Access Code) of that country. To make the call do the following.
- First, know the Access Code(or called Exit Code): For UK it is 00
- Find the country Code. Example 91 for India
- Area Code of the Town/City. For Delhi 11 for Chennai 44
- Add the phone number to it.
- So, the format will be like this. 00 9111 xxxxxx
Vodafone International Calls Charges (Standard)
Before making using your phone for Global purposes, it is a good idea to know the applicable rates.
This will not only help you make the call smoothly but also avoid sudden bill shock.
A table of its worldwide charges is shown below for your ready reference. Do note, however, that charges may vary a little per country.
WORLDWIDE CALLING
| TYPES | RATES |
|---|---|
| European Union (EU) and Europe Economic Areas (EEA) (Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) destinations for Pay monthly and SIM-only plans | 19p per minute |
| Other European destinations | £1.50 per minute |
| Rest of the world | £2.00 – £ 3.00 per minute |
TEXT MESSAGES
| TYPES | RATES |
|---|---|
| EU and EEA (Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway) destinations for Pay monthly and SIM-only plans | 6p per message |
| Rest of the world (up to 160 characters) | 35p per message |
VIDEO CALLING
| TYPES | RATES |
|---|---|
| Worldwide | Cost varies per country |
Vodafone UK International Call Saver
It is often confusing when you want to make a foreign calling. You can be worried about the rates or sudden bill shock.
To make things easier for you, we have provided the best available plan from Vodafone to make your worldwide Calling worry-free.
Note. As per Company terms, this calling service is payable either on a “monthly” or “pay as you go” basis.
The plans that we are going to discuss may be availed by any customers across the country. Once availed, a customer will get a reduced rate when he communicates outside the UK.
1. Monthly
The standard charges range from 19p – £ 3 per minute for landline and mobile calls. But if you want to save on your calling costs, you can opt for the Company’s Saver plans.
They are as follows:
| Plan | Free Minutes | Destinations | Mob & Landline | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saver 100 | 100 | 100 | Yes | £ 3 |
| Saver 500 | 500 | 100 | Yes | £ 7.5 |
| Call Abroad 75 | 75 | 200 | Yes | £ 10 |
| Call Abroad 200 | 200 | 200 | Yes | £ 20 |
| 100 Inter SMS | 100 worldwide SMS | — | — | £ 5 |
Activation:
- Saver 100 : ADD INTNL100 to 40506
- Saver 500 : ADD INTNL500 to 40506
- Call Abroad 75,200 : Using my Vodafone App
- 100 Inter SMS : INTTEXT to 97886
2. Pay as You Go
For pay as you go, the standard rates start from 19p – £ 1.50 a minute for landline and mobile while 25p for SMS.
However, you can opt-in for the “International opt-in” plan which allows you to make calls at a reduced rate. The best part is this plan is free to opt for.
Using this opt-in plan, you can call 200 countries at a rate of 1p per minute for both landline and mobile. Also, there is no limit on the number of minutes.
Vodafone Saver Bundles Terms
Before choosing any bundles, first, make sure you have selected the right bundle according to your usage type.
Do not go for Saver 100 if you want to call more than 100 minutes.
Make a rough calculation of your prospect usage and choose any one of them. Remember, the company has strict rules in selecting the plans, and they are:
- Exhaust of Free Minutes. After the exhaust of your opt-in bundle, you will be charged the standard rates. So, make sure you keep an eye on the free minutes.
- Vodafone International. If you need a maintain a large number of calling to other countries outside of the UK, you can go for this plan. This is a business plan and it helps you to make calls at much-reduced rates.
- Saver Bundle Rule. You cannot opt the ‘Saver Plans’ more than once. For example, if you opt for “Saver 100” you can apply for “Saver 500” at the same time. But you cannot apply “Saver 100” again”.
- Opting Out. Any saver plan that you opted-in, will be automatically renewed the next month. To opt-out of any saver bundle, just SMS REMOVE INTL100 to 40506 or REMOVE INTL500 to 40506 in case you opted for Saver 500.
What is Vodafone International?
Have family members lived outside permanently? If so, you may need to ring them regularly.
Hence, in this case, the “saver plans” will not serve your purpose. You will need pay as you go plans. Since ‘pay as you go’ is costly a bit, the company has released the “Vodafone International” opt-in plan.
The benefits of using this plan are:
- There are no limits on the number of minutes to call.
- You can call almost all the major countries of the planet.
- Reduces rates start from 1p per minute for mobile & landline.
- Free to opt, no monthly charge.
Activation & De-Activation. To opt-in for this plan send an SMS “INTERNATIONAL” to 2345. The plan will get activated and you will get a notification from Company for activation.
To de-activate you can send an SMS STOPINTERNATIONAL to 49500.
Countries Included
Before confirming any plan make sure your plan includes the country which you want to call. Contact support staff and check the country of your requirement.
For easy reference, we have mentioned the major countries that you can call with “pay as you go’ plans and International Saver plans.
| Angola | India | Pakistan | Argentina | Indonesia |
| Australia | Iran | Poland | Austria | Israel |
| Portugal | Bahrain | Italy | Ireland | Bangladesh |
| Japan | Romania | Belgium | Jordan | Singapore |
| Canada | Kenya | Slovenia | China | Korea – South |
| South Africa | Colombia | Kuwait | Spain | Cyprus |
| Lithuania | Sri Lanka | Czech Republic | Malaysia | Sweden |
| Denmark | Malta | Switzerland | Egypt | Mauritius |
| Taiwan | Estonia | Mexico | Thailand | UAE |
| Finland | Namibia | France | Nepal | USA |
| Germany | Netherland | Venezuela | Greece | New Zealand |
| Vietnam | Hong Kong | Nigeria | Hungary | Norway |
Things to Keep in Mind
These services are only available to individual customers and for personal use only. Business customers, on the other hand, have different standard charges and policies about international plans.
Vodafone International does not apply if you call:
- To the UK
- To premium-rate and non-geographic numbers
- Internationally outside the Global Roaming destinations
It is also not available to the following:
- Text and picture messages
- Video calls
Charges for Incoming Calls?
As a thumb rule, no operators will charge you for incoming calls from around the world. But to make a call you must have to pay the predetermined charges unless you opt for a saver plan.
If you are a Vodafone customer, you need not think about charges for an incoming call from your friends or relatives residing in a different country.
However, if you feel you got charged to contact the support staff as they will let you know the exact reason for the charge.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Are International Calling on Vodafone free?
No, global calls on Vodafone are not free. Either you have to go for “Saver plan” or go for “pay as you go” plan.
2. Which is better “Saver plan” or the “Pay as you Go”?
It depends on your usage. If your usage is low, you can opt for a saver plan. If not go for “pay as you go”.
3. Do you need to pay for “Saver Plans” monthly or it is one-time purchase?
If you opt for a ‘saver plan’ you will be charged every month automatically unless cancelled. So, if you buy this plan for one time use, make sure to deactivate it immediately after use.
Conclusion
Vodafone International Calls are economical if you take any saver plan. Our advice will be not to call any global number until you have selected any plan. This will help you to avoid any costs and bill shocks.
Moreover, if want to go long term for the worldwide call on Vodafone, our recommendation will be to go for “Vodafone International” Go as you go Plan.
Kevin has over five years of experience working in various Tech startups and providing Technical solutions. He has contributed to many Tech publications and websites. Check out more about him here.