Have you heard about Circles.Life? No, it's not a sequel to The Lion King. It's a new telco, and it's taking the Australian mobile market by storm with competitive prices, big data allowances and some very attractive perks.
But how does its plans stack up? What do you get with them, and what kind of service can you expect? In this guide, we'll take a closer look at Circles.Life mobile plans in Australia.
What is Circles.Life Mobile?
Circle.Life is a new telco in Australia, offering coverage on the Optus mobile network. But while Circles.Life may be a new face in this country, it has been around on the international scene for a few years now. Launched first in Singapore in 2013, Circles.Life now has a presence in Taiwan, Indonesia, India and the Philippines.
A lot of telcos enter the mobile space claiming they're going to do things differently. But in the case of Circles.Life, the claim is more than just marketing hype. In its home market of Singapore, the telco set up a partnership with EZ-Link, essentially Singapore's version of the Opal or Myki card. Circles.Life customers earn 100MB of data for every 10 rides they take on public transport using their EZ-Link card, and get an additional 1GB of data every month for linking their Circles.Life number to EZ-Link through the EZ-Link app.
Of course, there are no guarantees Circles.Life will be setting up anything like that here in Australia. But just the fact that the company has done it elsewhere is exciting, and we'll be really keen to see if Circles.Life will be able to offer similar unique rewards for its Australian customers.
Circles.Life mobile plans
Unlike pretty much every other telco in Australia, Circles.Life doesn't offer a range of mobile plans. Instead, it offers a single base plan that you can then build on if and when you need to.
The base plan is 20GB for $28 per month, and is no-contract so you can leave at any time.
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amaysim
7-day UNLIMITED 10GB Plan
$10.00
Per 7 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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Once you have your base plan set up, you're free to customise it by adding an additional 20GB for an extra $10 per month. This is what Circles.Life calls "add-on data". You can claim "add-on" data as a once off, or set it up as something you get every month. But you can only claim it once per month. So that means you can't pay an extra $20 per month and get an extra 40GB.
Here's what your plan will look like with add-on data included:
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#1
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Pivotel
25GB Mobile Swift Plan
$11.45/mth
Min. cost $11.45
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#2
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SpinTel
Editor's Pick
$23 Mobile Plan
$12.00/mth
Min. cost $12
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#3
|
OnePass mobile
28 Day Plan - 22GB
$12.50
Per 28 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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#4
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Moose Mobile
Moose 23 SIM Only
$14.00/mth
Min. cost $14
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#5
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Swoop
30GB SIM Only 5G
$14.00/mth
Min. cost $14
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#6
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Lyca Mobile
Editor's Pick
Unlimited Plan S
$15.00
Per 28 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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#7
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iiNet
30GB Small Plan
$15.00
Per 1 Month Renewal
Link not supplied
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#8
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TPG
Editor's Pick
30GB Small Plan
$15.00
Per 1 Month Renewal
Link not supplied
|
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#9
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Kogan Mobile
Small Monthly Plan
$23.00
Per 30 Day Renewal
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#10
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Yomojo
Starter 29GB Plan
$24.90
Per 30 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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Circles.Life plans all start on the first day of the month, so be aware that if you sign up mid-month your first charge and first data allowance will be pro-rated. That means you might pay $14 for 10GB if you sign up halfway through the month. Then on the first day of the next month, you'll be charged the full amount of money for the full amount of data.
Add-on data is also pro-rated by the day of the month you buy it on - but only in terms of price. For example, if you were to switch on add-on data on the first day of the month, you would pay $10 for an extra 20GB to use anytime throughout the month. On the other hand, if you were to switch it on exactly halfway through the month, you would pay only $5 for the extra 20GB - but you would only have until the end of the month to use it.
If you don't need a full 20GB of extra data each month, you can customise your plan with "boost data" instead. This is a once-off purchase of 3GB for $6. Boost data is intended to be used as an emergency top-up if you run over your cap. You can add "boost data" to your plan as many times as you like during the month.
What makes Circles.Life plans different?
As if Circles.Life plans weren't already different enough, there a few more special features that we haven't covered yet.
The first is that all plans come with "bill shock protection". This is an extra 3GB on top of your plan each month to buffer you in case you should ever go over your cap. In practicality this means the Circles.Life base plan is actually 23GB for $28 per month.
The second is refer-a-friend rewards. For each new customer that you refer to Circles.Life, you'll get a bonus 20GB for one month on your plan. Your friend will receive a bonus 20GB for three months. You'll need to make sure your friends use your referral code when they sign up. You can find this when you log in to the Circles.Life app under "referrals".
The third special benefit that comes with Circles.Life plans is what the telco calls "surprise perks". As suggested by the word "surprise", Circles.Life doesn't specify what these perks are or when customers should expect to receive them. However, to give you a sense of what you might expect, Circles.Life recently surprised its Australian customers with a $40 discount code for Vinomofo, an online wine retailer.
How do you sign up for Circles.Life mobile?
The easiest way to sign up to a Circles.Life mobile plan is online. Check out plan options and click through to the Circles.Life website here:
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#1
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amaysim
7-day UNLIMITED 10GB Plan
$10.00
Per 7 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
|
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#2
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Pivotel
25GB Mobile Swift Plan
$11.45/mth
Min. cost $11.45
|
|
#3
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SpinTel
Editor's Pick
$23 Mobile Plan
$12.00/mth
Min. cost $12
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#4
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OnePass mobile
28 Day Plan - 22GB
$12.50
Per 28 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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#5
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Vodafone
$13 Prepaid Plus Recharge
$13.00
Per 7 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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#6
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Moose Mobile
Moose 23 SIM Only
$14.00/mth
Min. cost $14
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#7
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Swoop
30GB SIM Only 5G
$14.00/mth
Min. cost $14
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#8
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Boost Mobile
$14 Prepaid
$14.00
Per 7 Day Renewal
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#9
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Lyca Mobile
Editor's Pick
Unlimited Plan S
$15.00
Per 28 Day Renewal
Link not supplied
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#10
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iiNet
30GB Small Plan
$15.00
Per 1 Month Renewal
Link not supplied
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Once you reach the Circles.Life website, it's just a simple matter of completing the online application form. Be sure to supply your existing mobile number if you want to port it across to your new service.
FAQs
What happens if I want to cancel my Circles.Life plan?
Circles.Life plans are offered on a no-contract basis, which means you can cancel at any time without penalty. However, be aware that Circles.Life charges for the full month in advance (excepting any optional add-on or boost data). If you leave before the end of the monthly billing cycle, you won't be refunded for any unused plan days.
What happens if I go over my monthly data allowance?
Once you have used up all the data that comes with your monthly plan, Circles.Life's "bill shock protection" data will kick in. This is 3GB of extra data that comes free with your plan.
If 3GB billshock protection data isn't enough to get you through the month, you also have the option to add "boost data" which is 3GB for $6, or "add-on" data, which is 10GB for $20. You can add "boost data" to your plan as many times as you like during the month, but you can only use "add-on" data once per month.
If you use all your monthly plan data, boost data, add-on data and your 3GB of billshock protection data, and you fail to add any more boost data, you will be charged for excess data usage at the rate of $0.01/MB.
What network is Circles.Life powered by?
Circles.Life plans are offered on the Optus 4G mobile network.
What kind of SIM cards do Circles.Life use?
Every Circles.Life SIM card comes in three size options: mini SIM, micro SIM and nano SIM.
Does Circles.Life offer international calls?
Circles.Life plans don't come with international calls included. Instead, if you call overseas you'll be charged at pay-as-you-go rates. Rates vary from country to country, you can look them up on the Circles.Life app.
Does Circles.Life offer international roaming?
You can roam with a Circles.Life plan, but you will have to activate roaming via the app to do so. Circles.Life charges for roaming at pay-as-you-go rates which vary from country to country. You can look them up on the Circles.Life app.
However, for most popular destinations you'll find the rate is $1.50 per minute to make and receive calls, $0.50 per SMS and $0.01 per 10KB of data. We'd recommend buying a travel SIM or local SIM card at your destination if you intend to use your phone overseas.
Jacqui Dent
Editorial Strategist
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