Tesco Mobile Grows to 5.9 Million UK Customers on Revenues of £1.23bn
Mobile operator Tesco Mobile, which is one of the UK’s largest virtual (mvno) mobile providers and harnesses O2’s national network, last week published their latest annual accounts to the end of 2025 and revealed that they are now home to a total customer base of 5.9 million (up 3.51%). The company’s revenues also climbed 11% to £1.23bn.
The provider, which has also recently been linked to discussions over the potential launch of full fibre broadband packages via the related Virgin Media and nexfibre networks (here) – possibly encouraged by giffgaff’s recent move into the same field, reported that their base now consisted of 4.6m postpay (up 7%) and 1.4m prepay (down 3.5%) mobile customers.
Tesco Mobile also reported having net assets of £26.37m (2024: £26.5m), with the small decline being impacted by profits and the payment of an interim dividend of £2.68m (2024: £0). The company’s operating profit for the year was £27.13m (2024: £24.14m), but after financial expenses and taxes they returned a total comprehensive loss for the year of -£1.593m (2024: income of £390,000).
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Finally, Tesco Mobile reported that they had total employees for the year of 366 (2024: 293).
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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Are they the largest MVNO?
Yes, just above Sky Mobile.
Why? I just looked at the prices of sim only and they are certainly not competitive and it is not monthly, but 12 or 24 month contracts.
I don’t know about pay monthly, but I did have a quick look and I did not see any difference to any others. Maybe it is the fact that it is tesco and people think they are getting something good or does Tesco offer points on their spy card?
I will stick with Smarty unless something goes wrong.
They have always been reputed to have good customer service so customers stay with them but I now find far more competitive offers from Lyca to EE on PAYG, whine Tesco have fallen behind since transitioning their PAYG platform last year.
I have just moved my 4 accounts from Tesco because the signal around my area is poor on 02 but mainly because of cost,they are no longer competitive. I moved to Mozillion and the signal is fantastic.
I wonder how much longer Tesco will continue to operate Tesco Mobile as a brand (directly or “licensed” in a “easy/Virgin” type of way.)
There has been a trend in the Tesco business in last decade to simplify the business back to being a British/Irish omnichannel retail & wholesale (Booker) grocery & fuel operator.
Most of the non-British/Irish shops have gone (and Tesco are public in wanting to to get rid of the rest, for a non-embarrassing price). Bank was sold. General merchandise reduced (and general merchandise ecommerce structured to be a capital light “margin” business).
I wouldn’t even assume that Tesco Ireland will remain long-term, if the right price was offered likely they would sell (even if a wholesale supply deal remains). Ditto Fuel.
They are not going to sell the UKs biggest MVNO. The business is growing and churn from MNO to MVNOs continues.
Next results for Tesco will grow to just over 6M, Sky and Lebara will also grow similar amounts.
VMO2 and VF3 both posted losses. The market is tough for everyone.
I don’t know. They only own 50% of Tesco Mobile, and it’s basically the 5th largest mobile network.
They might make an exception for it on the basis of profitability.
In overall Tesco terms, operating profit of around £30m for Tesco Mobile is a rounding error.
And a loss after tax and other costs (I suspect some tax mitigation is happening while returning cash to the wider Tesco group).
I suspect the profitability of the partner fees for Tesco Clubcard are significantly larger than Mobile, for example of how material the profit is.
(I haven’t checked latest annual reports to verify this, an experienced assumption).
Tesco likely could earn more with less trading/operating risk by selling most of the business while franchising the Tesco name for an annual fee (cf Virgin group/Easy group.), and distribute the money from the same as a dividend or reinvest.
And VMo2 or another o2 based MNVO might welcome the additional subscriber base–Sky Mobile (ex Comcast, now grouped into NBCUniversal) maybe, or VMo2 to bulk up giffgaff. Of course the reverse could happen (TM could absorb Sky Mobile to bulk up and make Tesco Mobile as market dominant as Tesco stores)