[ UPDATE 20/02/2023 08:00 ]: Check out our Best Unlimited Prepaid Plan for February 2023.
[ UPDATE 22/09/2022 12:00 ]: Check out our updated Best Prepaid Plans list for September 2022.
===
Getting a prepaid plan can be tough as there are heaps of options in the market. With competitive pricing and generous amount of data, sometimes it seems that prepaid offers greater value than the more expensive postpaid plans. If you’re considering signing up for a prepaid plan, here’s our prepaid guide for Malaysia.
For this list, we will be providing our recommendations based on different user requirements. Whether you’re into unlimited plans or if you prefer more high-speed data without speed caps, we’ve got you covered.
Best “Unlimited” plans
Almost all telcos are offering some sort of “unlimited” prepaid plan. While the word “unlimited” sounds appealing, do note that there’s a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) in the T&C that limits how much you can enjoy high-speed data. For the best value and generous “FUP”, here are our recommendations:
U Mobile U35
The U Mobile U35 prepaid plan at RM35/month offers unlimited calls, and “unlimited” data capped at 6Mbps and it comes with a FUP of 100GB per month. It also gets 3GB of hotspot data and there’s also 30 hours of speed booster which provides you with full uncapped speed. However, this speed booster can only be activated for 1 hour per day.
Xpax Unlimited 38
On Celcom, there’s the Xpax Unlimited RM38 plan where you can get unlimited calls, and “unlimited” data capped at 3Mbps with a FUP of 60GB per month. There’s also free 3GB of hotspot and 5GB of uncapped high-speed quota. With the current Raya promo, they are doubling the uncapped speed quota to 10GB.
Best value for money high-speed data plans
If you want real high-speed data without any speed caps, here are a couple of prepaid options to choose from.
Yoodo 20GB for RM20
If all you need is data and nothing else, Yoodo currently offers 20GB of data for RM20 a month. This is actually a promotion that has been running for a long time and essentially, you’re paying just RM1 per GB. You can even max it out to 200GB of data for RM98/month. In case you didn’t know, Yoodo runs on Celcom’s network.
Digi Prepaid Next 35
Over at Digi, there’s the Prepaid NEXT 35 plan at RM35/month which offers 30GB of high-speed data and unlimited calls. If you enable auto-renewal, you will get unlimited social data for TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook along with 3GB extra for hotspot usage. For the unlimited social data, it is capped at 3Mbps and there’s a FUP of 999GB, which is more than enough.
Long-lasting Prepaid plans
If you’re a casual user or just need a line that can last for a long time with no data wastage, here are a couple of prepaid options for your consideration.
Unifi Mobile Bebas Prepaid
The first option is Unifi Mobile Bebas Prepaid which offers no credit expiry as long as your line is active. The starter pack costs RM10 and comes with 3GB of data. As long as you make calls, send an SMS or use the internet every 90 days, your line remains active. The data is quite expensive with 2GB going for RM15 and 8GB going for RM50. But if you don’t really need so much data and if you can use it at least once every 90 days, this SIM will never expire.
Tune Talk Yearly Plan
The next option is Tune Talk as they have an annual plan that offers unlimited calls within Tune Talk and 120GB data for one year (10GB per month) at only RM200. According to the T&C, It’s bundled with 360 days of airtime validity, which means you don’t need to worry about reloads for almost a full year. If you do the math, that’s like RM16+ per month.
Hotlink Prepaid Pantas
Last but not least, there’s also Hotlink Prepaid Pantas which lets you buy data with one year validity. They are offering 8GB for RM15 and 20GB for RM30. This plan is actually a rebrand of the old Prepaid Internet 365 but with there’s a change in validity.
While the data can last a year, it doesn’t include the active period. You will need to top-up at least RM10 each month to keep the line alive and to use your data.
If you don’t want to worry about monthly reloads, there’s the option to keep the line active for 365 days. Just buy the RM30 add-on and you’re set for a year.
Most Flexible prepaid plan
Yoodo
If you’re looking for the most customisable prepaid plan, Yoodo should be on top of your list. It has a pretty good mobile app where you can pick from a preset or design your own preferred plan. It can start from as low as RM3/month for 50 SMS, RM5/month for 100 minutes of voice calls, or get 20GB of data for RM20/month. There are also other specific app add-ons like 20GB Facebook data for RM3/month or 20GB YouTube for RM7/month.
Like other telcos, they are also offering “unlimited” plans from RM35/month which also comes with 2GB roaming data, 6GB hotspot data and 100 minutes of calls. Yoodo allows you to change your plan at anytime and you don’t have to wait until the next renewal cycle.
Yoodo also has Voice over LTE and they even offer eSIM. With an eSIM, you can get the service immediately without waiting for the physical SIM card. It works with selected Android and iPhone models. If you’re using the newer iPhone models (iPhone XS, XR and above) that came with just a single physical SIM slot, this eSIM will enable your iPhone’s dual-SIM capability.
Best Roaming passes for prepaid
With the reopening of international borders, here are some roaming plans to have you stay connected overseas with your local SIM.
U Mobile Data Roam
U Mobile currently offers 5GB data roaming per day for RM10. This special rate is applicable for 12 countries which include Australia, Singapore, India, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and South Korea. The 5GB data roam promo is offered for a limited time from 15 April to 30th June 2022.
Digi Roaming Pass
Digi Roaming Pass is one of our favourite roaming pass and it’s offered in a wide variety of countries You can get 2GB data and 30 minutes of calls valid for 3 days for RM25. If you’re going to a country with a Telenor telco such as Dtac in Thailand, they will give you double with 4GB data and 60 minutes of calls.
Hotlink 5G Roaming
If you need 5G roaming, the best option right now is Maxis, and you can use your Hotlink prepaid to get 5G in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. It offers 1GB for RM10/day. But if you just need it for social and Whatsapp, you can get an unlimited social pass which costs RM20 for 3 days.
One big tip before roaming is to make sure data roaming in your phone is OFF until you activate a data roaming plan. If you accidentally left that on without a roaming pass, you might end up burning credit like crazy.
5G prepaid plan
Yes FT5G Prepaid
If you want to use 5G in Malaysia, there’s only one option and that’s Yes 5G. Their Yes FT5G Prepaid unlimited plan costs RM30/month which offers unlimited 5G with no quota restrictions. If you’re outside the 5G area, you will get Unlimited 4G that’s capped at 7Mbps along with 9GB of hotspot data. There’s also unlimited calls to all networks.
The unlimited 5G offer was supposed to end in March but they have extended it until further notice. Take note that 5G is now available at selected areas in Kuala Lumpur, Cyberjaya, Putrajaya, Selangor and Johor. Yes’ 4G coverage especially for indoor buildings isn’t that great, so I wouldn’t recommend it as your primary SIM card. If you want to give Yes 5G a try, they are currently giving away free 5G SIM with free unlimited 5G data that’s valid for 30 days.
Take note that Yes doesn’t support the iPhone. Recently, they have added more Samsung Galaxy models to its 5G compatible list including the newer Galaxy A series as well as the Galaxy S21 and S22 lineup.
Coverage varies depending on location
Regardless if a plan has the best value or the most data, or the cheapest option, the prepaid plan is useless if it doesn’t have good coverage. This is something that varies according to your location and for some users, there’s only one clear telco that’s usable for their daily needs.
One of the best ways to find out which telco is better, is to use independent tools like Opensignal which can display the average speed, latency of all the telcos in your area. Since this is a prepaid plan, you can give it a try and see if it fulfills your needs. If it sucks, just port your number to another telco.
What should you do if your telco sucks?
If your telco is not performing as expected, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) wants you to report it via the JENDELA Map. It’s available on their website or you can download the app that’s available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The MCMC said they will gather the feedback and expedite the complaint to the respective telcos. So hopefully, this means they will buck up and fix the problem quickly.
Take note that the prepaid plan details are correct at the time of writing and are subject to change as telcos may refresh their offering from time to time.
Related reading
- Annuar Musa: Malaysia’s average mobile speeds now exceed 40Mbps, over 7 million premises passed with fibre in Q1 2022
- Malaysia has over 7 million premises passed with fibre but what does that mean?
- Why is Malaysia taking so long to implement Fixed Number Portability?
- 5G in Malaysia: Why are we so far behind?
