Explanation of Rates Calling International Freephone via Access Numbers

All providers listed here are offering low cost telephone calls from a fixed UK landline to the landline and mobile number in another country or the United Kingdom (sometimes it's cheaper to call another UK number this way). All providers, compared on Call Rates Scanner website, offer low cost calls by means of providing fixed line access numbers. These access numbers (non geographic numbers) have to be dialled prior to dialling the actual phone number in International Freephone that you wish to call. All listed providers do not require any subscription or a contract, prepayment or PIN to remember - you just dial the access number and then full international number in International Freephone, i.e. the long number starting with 00800. There are other ways to call International Freephone, however this site currently only compares the kind of low cost international call providers that offer no-subscription access numbers. This type of low cost calls service is also known as instant access, dial through or call through. Note that, although the access numbers presented here will also work with UK mobile phones, it is normally cheaper to use them for international calls made from a fixed UK landline. There are other cheap call providers that optimise for calls from a mobile. Usually they require some form of subscription or initial set up.

Related help topics:
Call costs for access numbers to International Freephone
Phone line provider access charge
FAQ & Related Information for Calling International Freephone from UK

When you're calling International Freephone from the United Kingdom phone line (landline or mobile) via access numbers, you are charged in two parts, access charge and service charge (see this Ofcom article for more information). The access charge part of the call cost is going to your phone line company (BT, Talk Talk, Sky, Virgin, etc.), and the service charge part of the cost is going to the the owner of the access number that you use to call International Freephone, in this case it is the provider of low cost international calls (e.g. one of 74 providers compared on Call Rates Scanner website ).

The access charge for calls to 08 and 09 numbers is different for each phone line company. The access charge tariffs for landline or mobile phone line providers is listed in help section, Phone line provider access charge. The service charge for calls to 08 numbers is between 0p and 15p per minute. The service charge for calls to 09 numbers can be as little as 5p per minute and can cost over 1 pound. The value of service charge is fixed to each access number and rarely changes. The table that compares all available rates on International Freephone page lists access numbers and their respective service charge. When you see call rates for International Freephone, you also need to add the access charge. More on this below in help section below, Phone line provider access charge, and in the general help pages, Call charges explained..

Let us illustrate the above by an example. The access charge part of the price - the part that is retained by the telephone operator - varies between telephone operators of your landline (such as BT, TalkTalk, Sky, Virgin, etc.), their call plans, type of an access number called (e.g. starting with 0870 or 0845 or 0911, and so on). For example, BT charges 11p access charge (as of July 2016), Sky charges 11.5p (as of April 2017), Virgin charges 11.25p (as of November 2016), whereas TalkTalk charges 7.5p.

To summarise, if you make a call to International Freephone from a BT landline, using 5 p/min access number and it takes you 1 minute to dial your destination number, after which you wait for someone to pick up the phone for another minute before giving up - you may be charged 11p + 5p + 5p = 21p just for trying. On the other hand, if you do the same but manage to talk to someone on the other end for 5 minutes, then you will be charged 11p + 5p + 5p + 5x5p = 46p for 5 minute call (which works out as 9.2 p/min).

Related help topics:
Phone line provider access charge
How free are inclusive minutes to 0845, 0870 access numbers to call International Freephone
How much are you charged to make a call and by whom?

Related Government Articles:
Call costs guide - Ofcom
Call charges and phone numbers - GOV.UK
Ofcom | Ask us - Telephone - What is UK Calling?

Below are the access charge tariffs for landline and mobile phone companies as well as public payphone. This is one of the two parts of the call cost for dialing the access number for low cost calls to International Freephone. The tariffs are for non-business users and inclusive of VAT. Please note, companies constantly adjust their charges, visit your phone line provider web site (links are provided in the tables below) for up to date access charge tariffs to non geographical service numbers.

Related help topics:
Call costs for access numbers to International Freephone
How free are inclusive minutes to 0845, 0870 access numbers to call International Freephone
How much are you charged to make a call and by whom?

Call charges can be confusing. Help section, Call costs for access numbers to International Freephone, explains how each charge is divided in two parts which you pay to your phone line provider (such as BT, TalkTalk, Sky, Virgin, etc.) and the low cost international call provider (the holder of 08 access number which you dial prior to dialing your number in International Freephone). Call Rates Scanner does not charge you anything. This is a free comparison site - it simply compares providers of low cost calls and aims to present the cheapest prices and access numbers in a convenient way. For example, page with cheap calls to International Freephone shows access numbers from all providers, ordered by price, and includes additional information such as sound quality of a call and reliability of each low cost call provider. The page can also switch to the mode of free inclusive calls via 0845 and 0870 access numbers, which is useful if you have inclusive calls package with your phone line provider. In this case, the international call to International Freephone may be completely free.

But who pays for numbers that are included in your call plan package? Ultimately you do. You are probably paying an additional monthly charge for inclusive minutes package or you were offered a deal that bundles other services and throws in unlimited minutes to all or some of these numbers: 01, 02, 03, 0845, 0870. Once you have paid for the package, the calls are truly free. Normally, you are not charged either service charge or access charge of the call you make. This is a subject to several legal points (calls must not last longer than 59 minutes, fair usage policy applies, etc.). However, the basic answer is that calls to access numbers that start with 01, 02, 03, 0845, 0870 are completely free to subscribers of the inclusive calls package. Most landline providers (and some mobile line providers) offer two packages: inclusive calls to national numbers (01, 02, 03) and inclusive calls to national and premium numbers (01, 02, 03 and 0845, 0870), the latter may also be called service numbers.

Careful, there is an increasing number of landline providers who try to exclude 0845 and 0870 access numbers from their "inclusive minutes calling plan" if they discover that the number is one of the access numbers (or dial through numbers) used to make international calls to International Freephone or other destinations abroad. For example, BT has a clause in their calling plan, saying that the plan excludes "calls to dial-up internet, calling card and dial-through access numbers". The reality, however, is that they don't keep track of such numbers. Moreover, low cost call providers regularly rotate the numbers. Therefore, this clause is more akin to get-out clause, allowing phone providers to charge the user again, who is already paying for the inclusive calls package. However, phone providers must prove that this 0845 or 0870 number dialed was used as dial-through access number. This means that you have to be aware that you potentially may be charged full price by your landline or mobile phone provider for those numbers.

Related help topics:
Call costs for access numbers to International Freephone
How much are you charged to make a call and by whom?
How to find free calls to International Freephone with inclusive minutes to 0845, 0870 numbers
How to make free calls to International Freephone with inclusive minutes to 0845, 0870 numbers

All providers that Call Rates Scanner compares, offer cheap calls via direct access numbers which need to be dialled prior to dialling the actual phone number in International Freephone. This means that there is no need to sign up, register or remember any PIN codes. Any of the access numbers, shown on this website, allow you to make cheap international calls anytime with no account or pre-payment. Just find the correct access number for International Freephone and dial whenever you want. You must have the bill payer's permission before calling. The calls will appear on your normal bill from your phone company (BT, Virgin, Talk Talk, etc.), usually split by access charge and service charge. If there is an international destination on your bill rather than the access number, this means that you have not used the benefits of calling International Freephone by dialing access number first. You must dial one of the relevant access numbers prior to dialing the number in International Freephone to take advantage of cheap calls. More information on this can be found in general help section How to make a call using access numbers?. Usually, calling International Freephone from the fixed UK landline is the cheapest way. This is because access charge of the call is normally cheaper for fixed landline providers. You can still call International Freephone from the mobile phone, however the access charge is usually higher than that of a fixed landline. Usually, but not always. Some mobile providers are cheaper than some of the landline providers. Access charges by each provider are listed in help section, Phone line provider access charge. You can also make a call to International Freephone, using 08 and 09 access numbers from the payphone, but the pricing structure is very different so the total call cost would much higher, especially for calls that last around 5 minutes or less, and especially if access number used starts with 09 (please refer to help section, Payhone provider, for detailed pricing). If you have inclusive minutes package with your landline or mobile line provider, then calls may be free.

Related help topics:
Call costs for access numbers to International Freephone
How much are you charged to make a call and by whom?
Landline provider access charge
Mobile provider access charge
Payhone provider charges
FAQ & Related Information for Calling International Freephone from UK