Mobile Operator Giffgaff See 71 Percent Increase in UK eSIM Adoption
Mobile network operator giffgaff, which is owned by Telefónica and harnesses O2’s national UK virtual operator (mvno) platform, has published their 2025 Impact Report and revealed that eSIM adoption grew by 71% last year – helping more people get connected without the extra plastic – and they’re now home to a total of 4.26 million members (up from 4.11m in 2024).
Some of the report’s other highlights reveal that 66% of the phones giffgaff sold during 2025 via their website were refurbished (down from 67%) and around 17,000 members each month moved to a cheaper plan after opening the operator’s Best Plan Advice email, which is typically sent every month (this shows customers a summary of their recent mobile usage and suggests more cost-effective 4G/5G mobile plans).
The report also notes that 4,310 devices were taken in through the giffgaff recycle scheme (up from 2,649) and they donated 687 phones to help those most in need. You can find plenty more details in the full report below, including giffgaff’s progress on their emissions targets etc.
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Giffgaff’s 2025 Impact Report
https://static1.squarespace.com/../Impact_Report_25_v0.8.pdf
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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I wonder if people are choosing Esim or if it is being pushed onto them? I doubt very much if most are saying, I want a Esim.
My phone has a esim, but when I changed from my old phone to this one it was simple enough just to stick the sim card in. To go for esim I would have to contact my provider.
I am not saying I will not ever go esim, but it really makes little difference to me.
As for the helping more people get connected without the extra plastic, oh give me a break, it is nothing to do with extra plastic, it is to do with reducing costs. These companies are full of it.
I get that you refuse all progress and have to be cynical about everything but this is a win-win for both sides. Giffgaff’s customers are more likely to be using eSIM capable handsets and they don’t want to wait days for a SIM to arrive, especially with the way that Royal Mail now is. So it is unsurprising that they’ve seen rapid takeup.
Instant activation is a benefit. Instant replacement is a benefit. eSIMs, when implemented well, are a step up over plastic (and yes there’s an environmental benefit as well). You don’t always have to contact the provider. The Apple transfer process is literally effortless and some MNOs make it as simple as a button on their app to get a new eSIM barcode
Well said, Ivor. ‘I don’t want it, so nobody else must ever want it’. They must never travel, either.
There are also the security enhancements, from not just being able to steal a device and remove the physical SIM.
>> The Apple transfer process is literally effortless
Yep during my last upgrade (a few years ago now) it even automatically converted the physical sim in my old phone into an eSIM on my new phone. Didn’t even need to turn the house upside down looking for thing to open the SIM port.
I wouldn’t say customers are pushed. I signed up to them on eSIM a week or so ago to store a number and it’s worth noting that they require their app to install an eSIM: they do not do any QR codes.
Additionally another interesting thing, I had physical SIMs come through the post that I didn’t ask for yesterday to give to a friend .
For what it’s worth, I would never consider eSIM for my primary SIM. Royal Mail is fairly decent around here and I value having a physical SIM card just because it makes it easier to transfer to another device (which can be helpful if your phone decides not to turn on or you just want to use a different phone for a bit).
And for some operators, you have to go through some hoops to get eSIM anyways. If you don’t have access to your existing eSIM on Giffgaff, you have to order a physical SIM to then move back to an eSIM
Look on HotUKDeals, people ask for phones and one of their requirements is that it has eSIM support, if that isn’t indicative to what the great unwashed masses want then I don’t know what is
Personally as a techy person who appreciates the ability to swap devices easily the SIM card still rules despite it being easy to remove from a lost or stolen device
99% of providers keep your QR code in account now. I had an esim but I wanted to go to a phone that already had one for backup so I got a phyiscal sim – took 2 days to get to me.
I agree – but esim is also more secure, can’t use it if the phone is stolen unless phone is unlocked, which it won’t be.
It’s owned by VMO2, so not Telefónica per se. TEF have a 50% share indirectly as do LibertyGlobal
The immediate parent company is Telefónica UK Limited, but you’re right that further down the chain this does come under the wider VMO2 group banner. But were those two to ehumm.. separate, then it would still be with Telefónica. Ownership structures are fun.
The extra uptake of giffgaff eSIM may also be to do with the fact that they don’t send physical sims out internationally, with the exception of a few countries.
The giffgaff forums have also seen an increase of enquiries from users in China wanting a UK SIM, but then discovering the Chinese phones only take domestic eSIMs.