Koodo Mobile buyer's guide: Plans, perks, and more

If you’re over the painful prices and inconvenient limits, it’s time to get away from Canada’s largest mobile networks. The country made a push to encourage competition among carriers in the late 2000s, and it’s working out so far. Koodo Mobile is one of the best carriers to come out of this push, and it’s easy to see why. Here are the best Koodo Mobile phones, plans, and so much more.

See also: The best Canadian phone plans

No matter your reason for switching carriers, we’ve got you covered on this page. We’ll keep you updated on Koodo itself and even give you tips about some of the top competitors up North. Ready to “Choose Happy?” Let’s get to it.

Koodo Mobile at a glance

Telus launched Koodo Mobile back in 2008, though it wasn’t the first MVNO from Canada’s third-largest carrier. Koodo took over where Amp’d Mobile failed, targeting younger users with low-cost plans. The name Koodo comes from the ancient Greek word kudos. That may not help you choose a plan, but it’s always cool to know where a name comes from.

Koodo’s catchy name and reliance on the robust Telus network have helped it gain a nationwide presence. Koodo Mobile is also credited with influencing the plan structures of both Fido Mobile and Virgin Mobile Canada. Unfortunately, despite its reliance on Telus, Koodo still does not offer 5G access in December 2021. Of course, you can buy 5G-ready devices from Koodo, so it should only be a matter of time before this changes.

You can check out Koodo’s entire nationwide network and compare it with top competitors right here.

Post-paid Koodo Mobile plans

Tab plans

Koodo is best known for its Tab plans. They’re an easy way to get yourself connected when you buy a new device. You can get unlimited talk and text, as well as up to 15GB of data, and it all starts for as little as CA$30 per month. All plans include shock-free data, which means that Koodo will send you a handy heads-up whenever you get close to your data limit. You’ll also find that Koodo loves to run promos where you can get mountains of extra data at no additional cost.

Of course, the real reason you might want to pick a Tab plan is for the Tab itself. You can essentially pay your way to a new phone upgrade with an investment of up to CA$33 per month over 24 months. Lower Tab plans allow you to put up to CA$15 into your Tab, and you can use that money every time your upgrade rolls around.

Highlights:

• Invest in your next device with the Tab
• Get unlimited talk and text with up to 15GB of data

Best for:

• Users who want to upgrade every two years

Bring your own device plans

If you already love your device but still want to join Koodo, bring it with you. You don’t have to worry about paying for a Tab; you’ll have to cover your monthly costs. Even better, Koodo doesn’t look down on you with less service or higher prices. Your options start at just CA$15 per month for 250MB of data and unlimited incoming texts, or you can spend a bit more to take limits off of your talk and text.

On the data side, options top out at 15GB, just like the Tab plans. Even though you’re not paying into your next device right away, the BYOD plan does mean that you can pop your SIM into a new device whenever you please.

Highlights:

• Save money and only pay for service
• Change phones whenever you want

Best for:

• Users with the money to switch phones often

Prepaid Koodo Mobile plans

Base plans

Koodo Mobile essentially offers several different versions of the same basic prepaid plan. Almost all options include unlimited Canada-wide talk and text. You can pretty much choose your data capacity, too, up to 5GB per month. Koodo will make the data deal just a little bit better with Top Up when you sign up right now. Top Up is just Koodo’s way of saying that you’re refilling your account.

Highlights:

• Bonus data with automatic Top Up
• Talk, text, and data at low prices

Best for:

• Users who don’t want a post-paid plan

Booster add-ons

Koodo’s singular prepaid plan might not be perfect for your needs, and that’s where these Booster options come in. They offer easy, affordable ways to kick your talk, text, or data into high gear. If you need more data, you can grab as much as 1GB of Canada-wide connection for CA$30 per month. Smaller caps cost less, or you can add up to 500MB in the US for CA$20 per month.

If you’re looking for talk or text instead, the same CA$30 fee will get you a whopping 600 minutes on the phone. The same amount of money will also net you 900 minutes of long-distance dialing, which is just right for friends abroad. You can’t put CA$30 into text messages, but CA$20 gets you 1,000 roaming US text messages, which is more than enough for a vacation abroad.

Learn more and perfect your prepaid plan at the button below:

Which of Koodo Mobile’s plans is right for you?

If you’ve gone through all of Koodo Mobile’s plans, only one thing remains — choosing the right one for you. Unfortunately, we can’t say which one is the best as it varies by user. Your best way to save money is by bringing your own device, but the Tab plans are a great way to work towards a brand-new device every 24 months. Of the Tab options, the Tab Plus plan is the best way to hack the most money off of the price of your next device, paying out at up to $504 after 24 months.

On the prepaid side, your main decision depends on how much data you want. Most plans offer unlimited talk and text, but you’ll have to jump to the CA$30 per month plan if you want 500MB of data. Overall, the prepaid plans work if you stay on Wi-Fi most of the time, but you’ll want to turn to the Tab if you need lots of data.

Koodo Mobile vs the competition

If you’re still not sure whether Koodo is right for you, it might help to take a peek at the competition. In this case, that means a quick look at the top MVNOs from Bell, Rogers, and Shaw. We’ve set up comparisons against Fido Solutions, Virgin Mobile, and Freedom to help you choose.

Fido Solutions

While Fido sticks to simplified names, the general structure should feel familiar. After all, it did model its plans after Koodo’s options. In fact, the data caps are pretty much the same across the board. Most of the challenge comes down to which network you prefer and what you expect in customer service. Fido relies on the Rogers network for service, and it reaches 97% of all Canadians.

Highlights:

• Low prices, decent data caps
• Rogers’ large nationwide network

Virgin Mobile Canada

Owned by Bell Mobility, Virgin Mobile takes a simple approach when it comes to plans. Everything is built for the millennial subscriber, right down to the MyBenefits and MyPeeps perks. MyBenefits allows you to rack up discounts and benefits on food, clothing, and more, while MyPeeps is all about you and your friends. You can set up multiple lines of service on the same bill, and you’ll get unlimited calling between them all.

Highlights:

• MyBenefits and MyPeeps perks
• Similar prices, slightly more extensive network

Freedom Mobile

Freedom is the home of the Big Gig Unlimited plan, and it’s one of the few carriers that tends to do its own thing. You’ll find much larger — and more expensive — data caps when you switch to Freedom, though the Freedom plan is a solid alternative. It is a bit lower on the data, but the talk and text should do nicely, and you can’t beat the prices.

Freedom Mobile may also be changing hands as part of Rogers’ purchase of Shaw Communications, but we’ll have to wait and see what the future holds.

Highlights:

• Huge data caps with the Big Gig Unlimited plan
• Savings on talk and text with the Freedom plan

Want a full-service Koodo Mobile alternative?

We’ve already compared Koodo Mobile to top MVNOs, but what if you’re looking for Canada’s top carriers? If you want even more options and coverage, then the Big Three might be your best bet. In this case, we’ve chosen Rogers, Bell, and Telus because each is the owner of one of our popular MVNO picks. Let’s see what each has to offer.

Rogers Wireless

Rogers is the way to go if you want service almost everywhere. It’s also the parent company to Fido Solutions. You can take advantage of Canada’s largest 5G network, and you can even get a free tablet for a two-year agreement. Even better, Rogers Infinite offers a large pool of sharable data at reasonable prices. You can save an extra CA$15 per line every time you add a device.

Bell Mobility

If you’re looking at Bell, the first thing you might notice is that it offers a ton of plans. You can go Unlimited, or you can choose to Connect Everything. There even are promotional plans on top of that. Depending on what you choose, you’ll either get unlimited access to Canada’s fastest 5G network, or you’ll get a nice pool of data to share between your accounts. Bell also offers a long list of connected device plans so you can connect your whole house to the internet.

Telus Mobility

The last competitor to consider is Telus Mobility. Like we mentioned with Koodo, it shares the same nationwide LTE network as Bell, so you at least know that you’re getting great service. All plans include unlimited talk and text, so it comes down to how much you want to share your data. If you go for either Peace of Mind or Peace of Mind Connect, you’re pretty much able to keep your data to yourself and your own devices. However, if you head for the Simple Share plan, you can split a pool between your family and friends.

What phones can you use on Koodo Mobile?

Most of Canada’s phone providers offer increasingly similar lists of devices, and Koodo is no exception. You can grab all of the latest flagships from Samsung, Apple, and Google. Koodo also carries a few TCL options like the 20 Pro 5G if you want something a little less mainstream.

See also: The best phone deals

If you love your current phone and want to stick with a BYOD plan, we can’t blame you. As long as your phone is unlocked, add a plan and a free SIM card to your cart, and Koodo will do the rest. You’ll just have to make sure that your current device is compatible with Koodo Mobile’s bands. Here’s a quick table showing what you need: