Mate mobile plans: a comparison of the Australian telco’s offerings

Mate is an Australian-owned telecommunication company that was founded by twin brothers in 2016. The company was built on the promise to be a telco that "Aussies can trust" and it now offers a wide range of mobile and internet plans to thousands of customers all over the country.

There are multiple perks that come with signing up for a Mate mobile plan. For starters, all of its mobile plan offerings provide access to 5G and all plans run on Telstra’s wholesale network which, while not technically full access, still covers 98.8% of the population.

Mate also lets customers bank unused data, with up to 1,000GB able to be stored on all mobile plans.

If you’re in the market for both a new mobile and internet plan and you want to save, it’s worth noting that Mate allows customers to bundle a mobile and internet plan and save $10 per month on the total bill.

Mate mobile plans comparison

In terms of mobile plans, Mate offers six postpaid options, starting from $30 per month. Two of these - Top Mates and Elite Mates - are exclusive offers that you can see below.

• Top Mates - 42B for $35 per month
• Elite Mates - 120GB for $49 per month

Here are the details and general pricing for Mate’s regular mobile plans.

• Good Mates - 15GB for $30 per month
• Better Mates - 45GB for $38 per month
• Best Mates - 60GB for $42 per month
• Soul Mates - $160GB for $58 per month

What is Mate’s mobile coverage?

Mate’s mobile plans run on the Telstra wholesale network. This means that it uses parts of Telstra’s full, main network and claims to cover 98.8% of the population. So, no matter where you are located, you should get coverage with a Mate mobile plan. To find out if your area is covered, you can check Mate’s coverage map.

Are Mate’s mobile plans good value?

Mate’s mobile plans are generally pretty good value, especially its big data plans because the price you pay per GB ends up being very competitive when compared with similar plans from other providers.

As mentioned above, Mate also offers two exclusive plans (Top Mates and Elite Mates). These plans cost only a little more than the standard options but include significantly more data. For example, the Best Mates plan costs $42 for 60GB, while the exclusive Elite Mates plan is just $49 and doubles your data allowance to 120GB. If you're a heavy data user, one of these exclusive plans offers much better value.

Out of the six plans offered by Mate, we have chosen some that we recommend, and others that we suggest you steer clear of if you are looking for the best-value phone plan.

Recommended plans:

• Top Mates | $35 | 42GB | 1 month expiry
This plan is an ‘exclusive plan’, meaning that only those with the specific link can sign up for it. For only $35 per month, you get 42GB of data which is pretty decent. This plan also offers 5G access, however speeds are capped at 150Mbps. If you don’t use all the included data, you can also keep up to 1000Mbps in your data bank.

• Best Mates | $38 | 90GB (for the first six months, then 45GB | 1 month expiry
This plan costs a few dollars more than the plan mentioned above, but for the first six months you can get double the data allowance, giving you 90GB per month. This plan already offers okay value, but during the first six months, it’s much more appealing.

• Elite Mates | $49 | 120GB | 1 month expiry
Mate’s other ‘exclusive plan’ is its Elite Mates plan. Costing $49 per month, this plan comes with 120GB of data, making it very good value. If you need over 100GB of data and want to be on a plan that runs on the Telstra Wholesale Network, this plan is worth considering. Just remember that to sign up for this plan, you will need the exclusive link.

• Soul Mates | $58 | 320GB (for the first 6 months, then 160GB) | 1 month expiry
This is Mate’s biggest mobile plan and, while $58 a month sits at the premium end of the range, it offers excellent value if you use a lot of data. For the first six months, you'll get double the usual data allowance, boosting it to a huge 320GB per month. After the introductory period, the plan reverts to 160GB per month, which is still a generous amount of data for the price. Better yet, any unused bonus data can be banked, with up to 1000GB rolling over. This plan also comes with faster speeds than Mate's cheaper options, with download speeds capped at 250Mbps instead of 150Mbps.

Plans to avoid:

• Good Mates | $30 | 60GB (for the first six months, then 15GB) 1 month expiry
This plan usually costs $30 per month for just 15GB of data, which isn't particularly competitive given you can find plans with much larger data allowances for a similar price. That's why we wouldn't normally recommend it. However, for the first six months, you'll get 60GB per month, making it much better value. Once the introductory offer ends and you've used any remaining data in your data bank, we'd recommend switching to a plan that offers more data for the same monthly price.

What is Mate's best mobile plan?

Everyone has different needs when it comes to mobile plans, so it’s hard to choose a ‘best’ plan. So, in order to pick one Mate plan to recommend above all the others, we have assessed all of the providers’ plans and chosen one that we believe offers the best value and would suit the most people’s needs.

With this in mind, we have to recommend one of Mate’s exclusive plans, the Elite Mates plan. As mentioned above, this plan is only available to those with access to the link. This plan costs $49 for 120GB of data, equating to a very competitive $0.41 per GB. It also provides access to parts of Telstra’s 5G Network and allows for data banking of up to 1000GB. While $49 per month may be on the more expensive side, if you need a lot of data, it represents great value. Based on the telcos we monitor, we haven’t come across many other providers offering 120GB of data for less, especially on the Telstra network.

Should I sign up with Mate?

Here’s a breakdown of the reasons we think someone would benefit from a Mate mobile plan, and reasons why someone would probably be better off looking elsewhere.

Reasons to sign up

You want to be able to rollover unused data: Not all providers allow customers to rollover unused data. Not only does Mate allow this, but it allows customers to rollover up to 1000GB (depending on the plan you choose), so you don’t have to worry about wasting data that you don’t use

You want to bundle multiple services: Mate allows customers to bundle a mobile plan and an NBN plan and save $10 per month ongoing. So, if you are willing to switch to a Mate NBN plan, you can save.

You want a free subscription to beIN Sports: Mate is offering a free subscription to beIN Sports (usually costing $14.99 per month) to all new customers who sign up for a mobile plan. While this may not seem like enough reason to sign up for a mobile plan, it is a great additional perk, especially if you are a sports lover. While the selection of included sports might not quite rival some of the heavy-hitter providers in Australia, you may discover something new!

Reasons not to sign up

You want to bundle a device with a mobile plan: Mate only offers SIM-only mobile plans. If you’re hoping to get a mobile SIM plan and a new phone, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

You want a prepaid plan: All of Mate’s mobile plans are postpaid, no lock-in contract plans. If you’d prefer greater control over your mobile plan, a prepaid may be a better option as you’ll only pay for what you know you’re going to use. You can check out our prepaid vs postpaid plan comparison guide to help you decide which option is best for you.

Mate mobile plan FAQs