Mobile Overview

This article is meant to act as a brief and simple guide to mobile operators in Austria. It is intended for new arrivals or those weighing up the upgrade/switching options. Especially for new arrivals, a mobile phone is called a “Handy” and also in Austria you need some form of ID (e.g., passport) to get a mobile phone number

Main Operators

There are 3 main mobile operators in Austria:

Provider	Other or Old Names
A1	Telekom Austria, UPC
Magenta	T-Mobile
Drei	One/Connect Austria/Orange,Tele2, Hutchison Drei.

The main operators do have retail stores and some can provide support to customers in English.

Note: Some of these providers offer telephone, internet, mobile and TV packages.

MVNOs and Branded Resellers

There are many Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) and branded resellers in Austria. These use one of the three main operators as a backbone, but may offer different tariffs and services (e.g., some have different customer care and roaming coverage).

Your contract may be with one of the main operators or it may be with a separate company.

The link below gives a good overview of who’s who (in German)

RTR Provider Overview (DE)

Some of the major MVNOs are HoT (Magenta or Drei for Internet only), Spusu (Drei), Lidl (Drei), Yesss (A1), Bob (A1), S-Budget (Magenta). Some of these are online only, however you can buy the SIMs in some stores (e.g. Hofer, Lidl, Spar, Mediamarkt). Customer support does tend to be in German, but some may speak English if you are lucky!

5G and General Coverage

5G is still being rolled out in Austria and as such coverage is not nationwide, 4G coverage in the cities is quite good.

You can use a coverage map such as the following as an indicator as to your likely signal strength.

RTR Network Coverage Overview

Nothing beats first-hand experience though! A little trick is if you have a mobile that is allowed to roam in Austria, try switching networks and doing a Speedtest to see what coverage you get (check data allowances though)

Roaming

The UK has now really left the EU and as such Austrian mobile operators are at liberty to include or exclude the UK in their packages. UK mobile operators are also at liberty to do the same.

In Austria, A1, Drei and some of their affiliated MVNOs and branded resellers have broken ranks and now charge roaming fees in the UK.

In the UK EE, Vodafone and Three also seem to have started to introduce changes; the situation with some of the affiliated MVNOs is unclear. Networks associated with Virgin Mobile-O2 currently include EU roaming but Fair Usage Caps apply. Giffgaff & Virgin Mobile-O2 SIMs have been known to activate in Austria.

Definitions of “EU Roaming” do seem to be quite flexible especially around EEA members and the UK so be careful! Switzerland in particular needs to be checked before you travel there.

Fair Usage Caps also apply with some networks or they may reduce some data limits when roaming, so please check.

Play close attention to Terms and Conditions changes, Marketing emails or SMS messages from the mobile operators.

People are advised to set roaming limits, check before you leave and don’t ignore those SMS Welcome to messages as it could be costly.

Useful Tips

These are some useful tips in no particular order.

Brexit has happened; the UK is no longer in the EU - Don’t ignore marketing and SMS messages related to Roaming. Charges may apply and at short notice, so consider setting roaming limits. Ignoring “Fair Usage” caps could be costly!
Consider switching off data if you are roaming or at least until you are sure of the costs and don’t stream films on data.
Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome offer in-built translation for websites. DeepL is also quite good.
Buying an unlocked phone and a SIM only tariff may be cheaper in the long run and allows greater flexibility.
Amazon is not always the cheapest for unlocked phones; shop around!
Dual SIM phones are very handy if you want to maintain a UK phone number and an Austrian one. eSims are now available on some networks too.
MVNOs should be considered as they sometimes offer good value and better tariffs.
The main operators offer bundled packages and discounts which may work out cheaper as a whole.
Be careful of minimum term contracts and ask about cooling off periods.
Check coverage in your area as it may be variable.
Stock Android phones or those from major manufacturers (e.g. Apple, Samsung) may be more likely to keep getting updates and security patches.
Mobile phones can get malware and viruses – please consider some form of Anti-virus protection.
Some of the Chinese manufacturers (e.g. Huawei, Honor) may not necessarily have access to the Google Play Store and other apps.
Stores and Apps can be region specific (e.g. jö app is only available in Austria)

Useful Links

Here are some useful links in no particular order:

A1 Handy Tariffs

Drei Private Customer Information

Magenta Handy Tariffs

RTR Number Portability