What a year it has been for Malaysian telcos. We saw mobile and internet plan prices come down while data quota and internet speed increased. Staying connected has never been cheaper. That being said, we also saw telcos introducing more variations of their products, increasing the options for consumers like you and us. So the question now becomes: Which plan has the best offering?
To help you choose the best mobile and internet plan that fits your budget and needs, the tech experts at SoyaCincau.com, consisting of Alex, Hanif, Chapree, Putra, Sam, Aisyah, and Duke, have curated a list of the best mobile and internet plan released in 2024 and awarded them Gold, Silver, or Bronze.
Naturally, we had to define some parameters to help narrow down our nominees. Therefore, only plans launched between 20th November 2023 and 1st November 2024 were considered.
Now without further ado, we present, SoyaCincau Awards 2024: The Best Telcos of the Year:
Read the rest of our Awards
Once you’re done reading this list, check out our other curations for SoyaCincau Awards 2024!
- The Best Phones of the Year
- The Best Tablets of the Year
- The Best Gadgets of the Year
- The Best EV of the Year (Coming Soon)
- The Best and Worst in Tech
Prepaid Plan of the Year
Bronze: Uni5G Wow 35
One rare feature that the Uni5G Wow 35 plan offers that’s rarely seen in other telcos is data rollover, a feature that allows you to bring forward your unused data to the following month.
But doesn’t Uni5G Wow 35 come with unlimited data without speed throttling? So what’s the need to roll over your data? That’s where it gets interesting. What you will be rolling over isn’t the unused data, but the unused Fair Usage Policies (FUP).
Uni5G Wow has 50GB of FUP for 4G/5G or just 5G only. If you don’t finish using it by the end of the month, it will be brought forward to the following month.
Let’s say you have 40GB of 4G/5G FUP data balance, you will get that 40GB of data from the previous month once your next quota refresh takes place, together with the new month’s 50GB, totalling 90GB of data. The rollover feature is also valid for monthly data hotspot quotas. In the case of the Uni5G Wow 35, you get 10GB of monthly hotspot quota.
However, there’s one crucial piece of information that’s missing here. What is the limit for data that can be rolled over? That isn’t stated in Unifi’s FAQ. On top of data rollover, the Uni5G Wow 35 plan also offers unlimited calls.
With this unique offering from Unifi in 2024, we award the Uni5G Wow 35 plan with the Bronze medal in the Prepaid of the Year category.
Learn more about the Uni5G Wow 35 here.
Silver: Hotlink Prepaid RM25
When Yoodo was still around, it offered 20GB for RM20 and when the promo ended, you still got 30GB for just RM20, which is still great value for money. Now that it’s gone, it’s got a new successor, albeit an indirect one, from Hotlink, bearing the torch it once carried by offering 60GB for just RM25.
Out of the 60GB of data, you get 30GB for 4G/5G, while there’s also an ongoing promo that offers an additional 30GB exclusively for 5G. When the promo ends, you still get 30GB for just RM20, which is great value for money.
Technically speaking, CelcomDigi does provide some interesting offerings too, but they are not clearly listed up front. You will need to dig through their FAQ and TNC to find them. They are advertising just two out of tenths of great plans as if they are trying to only popularise these two plans. Why CelcomDigi? Customers are supposed to be given the choice to make their own decisions right?
Due to Hotlink’s interesting offerings and their transparency, we award them with the Silver medal for the Prepaid of the Year category.
Learn more about the Hotlink Prepaid RM25 here.
Gold: CelcomDigi SpeedStream RM59
In our opinion, the CelcomDigi SpeadStream series of plans offer the best value for money for users in 2024. Therefore it deserves to be the Gold medalist for the Prepaid Plan for the Year category.
That’s because, in a single package, you get to pick one streaming service – Disney+ Hotstar, iQiyi, or Viu. We’ve decided to pick the RM59 option as it includes Disney+ Hotstar, a streaming service that’s more universal.
The base price of Disney+ Hotstar is RM24.90. So, if we subtract RM24.90 from the plan price of RM59, we get RM34.10. At this price, you get 65GB of high-speed internet. When the quota is fully used up, you get 200GB of 12Mbps internet instead. Also included is 15GB of mobile hotspot and unlimited calls.
Isn’t all of these worth the money? What other plans offer such value?
Learn more about the Celcom Speedstream plans here.
Postpaid Plan of the Year
Bronze: Yes Power 35
For just RM35, the Yes Power 35 postpaid plan offers a whopping 150GB of 4G and 5G data with no speed cap. On top of that, you can utilise the 150GB quota for hotspot usage and it comes with unlimited calls to all networks. For extra savings, you can add on a Sooka subscription for as little as RM25/month.
On top of that, Yes 5G now lets you add 999GB of data for just RM1. So that’s a lot of data for not so much money. Yes Power 35 deserves the Bronze award for having a clear-cut budget postpaid plan with a generous amount of data and a discounted video streaming bundle.
Silver: Hotlink Postpaid 70
Taking second place is Hotlink Postpaid 70 plan at RM70 a month. This postpaid plan offers 300GB of data (150GB 4G/5G + Bonus 150GB 5G) which covers hotspot usage. There’s no speed cap and it also comes with unlimited calls to all networks.
As an added bonus, the postpaid plan offers free data roaming in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. This means you can enjoy up to 300GB data for roaming which is great if you travel often to our neighbouring countries.
Gold: U Mobile Family 128
Finally, the Gold Award for the best postpaid plan goes to U Mobile Family 128. This is the perfect postpaid plan if you want loads of data for your family and free roaming. For RM128/month, nothing beats this family postpaid plan in terms of value as you can get a total of 4 SIMs with shared 1,000GB of data and unlimited calls to all networks.
In addition, U Mobile also provides free 15GB of data roaming in 63 countries which is shared among the four SIMs. On top of that, U Mobile even provides free incoming calls while you roam in the 63 countries, so you won’t have to worry about bill shocks if you answer a call while travelling overseas.
If you do the math, the U Mobile Family 128 plan costs just RM32 per line per month, with a shared quota of 1000GB. The plan is certainly a no-brainer for families with a huge appetite for mobile data.
Broadband Plan of the Year
Bronze: Time 200Mbps
Time has up the ante by offering double the speed at no extra cost. Its base RM99/month 100Mbps plan is now offering 200Mbps download and upload speeds which is currently the best value for money entry-level fibre plan in Malaysia.
For greater flexibility for renters, Time now offers its fibre broadband plans with multiple options including 12-month and no contract.
Learn more about the Time 200Mbps plan here.
Silver: Yes 5G Wireless Broadband
For users who can’t install fibre, Yes 5G Wireless Broadband is one of the best alternatives in Malaysia. Leveraging DNB’s 5G network with 80% population coverage, it offers unlimited 5G data with uncapped speeds and a free router for only RM99/month on a 24-month contract.
The telco has recently upgraded its wireless 5G router, while existing Yes 5G postpaid users can sign up for the wireless 5G broadband plan for just RM75/month.
For greater peace of mind, Yes 5G also offers a 7-day return policy where customers can cancel and return the router if they are not satisfied with the experience.
Learn more about Yes 5G Broadband here.
Gold: U Mobile’s U Home 5G
U Mobile takes the top spot this year as the telco offers the best value for money wireless 5G broadband service. U Mobile’s U Home 5G broadband plan now bundles a free WiFi 6 5G router on a 24-month contract for only RM68/month.
Although U Home 5G’s “unlimited” plan comes with a 1000GB FUP, users can easily add on 1TB of data for only RM30/month.
On top of that, U Home 5G subscribers can add on Sooka Premium with a discount or add on a Samsung 4K TV from as little as RM65/month on contract.
Learn more about U Mobile’s U Home 5G here.
Telco of the Year
Bronze: Unifi
Unifi retains its position as a convergence telco covering home fibre broadband, mobile and video content. Besides having the largest fibre footprint in the country, the provider’s Unifi TV offering provides access to over 10 streaming platforms for one single price.
The telco has also refreshed its mobile offering with more data, while its prepaid offering has been upgraded with data rollover and uncapped speeds. In terms of coverage, Unifi has also expanded its footprint by tapping into Maxis’ infrastructure via MOCN sharing and domestic roaming agreements.
Learn more about Unifi here.
Silver: CelcomDigi
Two years after the merger, CelcomDigi has revamped its product lineup with unified plans across Prepaid, Postpaid and Fibre. The telco has increased its value proposition with more data and a variety of mobile plan options and content/data add-ons to cater to different users.
CelcomDigi is also the first provider to offer Fibre-To-The-Room in Malaysia and they are the only telco to offer FTTR for free on contract with its 1Gbps home fibre bundle.
When it comes to the network, it is still undergoing a massive network modernisation exercise to integrate existing sites under Celcom and Digi. It aims to hit 75% completion by the end of this year with the end goal of having 18,000 5G-ready sites by 2025.
Learn more about CelcomDigi here.
Gold: Maxis
While Maxis is positioned as a premium brand, the green telco has revamped its entire mobile lineup with more data including higher Fair Usage Policy and double the speed for its prepaid offering.
Maxis Postpaid plans priced from RM109 are now upgraded with unlimited data, while its Hotlink Prepaid and Postpaid Plans at RM35/month now come with 100GB of data. What stood out the most is the simplicity of the plans with clear and upfront information about applicable speeds and the Fair Usage Policy for its prepaid plans, to help customers make informed decisions.
Besides offering fibre broadband options from 100Mbps to 2Gbps, Maxis offers an extensive list of device bundle options covering all major phones including Apple, Samsung, and Google Pixel, as well as smart home appliances, and PS5 and 4K TV bundles. In terms of network, Maxis remains one of the most consistent and most reliable in Malaysia, as verified by Opensignal.
Learn more about Maxis here.
Conclusion
We think it’s clear that no matter which telco or plan you choose, you can be sure you’re getting some of the best plans available in Malaysia today. The plans we listed come with enough quota and perks to meet anyone’s needs in this digital age. In 2025, we are curious to find out how these telcos will be able to top their current offerings and outdo plans from competitors.
What do you think about our winners? Do you agree with our selection or do you think we choose wrongly? Let us know in the comments and don’t forget to check out the rest of our SoyaCincau Award winners.
