If your chosen smartphone or mobile device is registered with Orange, international calls may well be something of an issue for you. To examine this issue in more detail let us examine how Orange international call rates are structured and why they are not always the cheapest option.

Calling Internationally with Orange

To be fair to Orange, they have made rigorous attempts to make calling abroad more straightforward by making no differentiation between the rates for day/night or peak/off peak times.

Instead Orange have grouped all countries of the world that they offer services to into 8 ‘pay monthly’, or 6 ‘pay-as-you-go’ Calling Zones. By looking up each country in these calling zones, depending on which type of contract you have, you can work out how much calls would cost for you.

Orange also offer a ‘Call Abroad Subscription’ for £3.50 per month, which gives large savings for regular users.

Here are some examples:

Therefore, it is safe to say that if you are going to make regular international calls with Orange then the Call Abroad Subscription is indeed the much cheaper long term option. But how do these prices stack up with some of the other international call providers?

Alternatives to Orange

When it comes to making international calls, you do indeed have other options available. By using the Internet, through Wi-Fi or 3G, you can access a number of international calling services, usually with better rates and often with functionality tailored specific to the international calling customer.  Here’s a peak at some of your options:

- SIM Card based companies – if your phone is not locked to the Orange network, you can use a second SIM Card to make cheap international calls.

- Top Up companies – by sending a text to a specified number, you earn a stated amount of credit with your chosen company, which you can then use to make cheap rate international calls to several countries. 

- Apps – Arguably the most popular and certainly the easiest to access. You can download an app from a reputable international calls specialist (such as Skype or Rebtel) which allows for cheaper access to your international contacts. For any smartphone user, this promises to be the most optimal choice.

How do costs compare?

Below we take a look at Orane’s ‘Call Abroad’ subscription in comparison to the other options noted above.

You can read more about some of the pros and cons of the different options, but in summary it is the App market which is thriving most, and subsequently passing on savings to their client base.  Learning more about the best apps available for making international calls is therefore massively worthwhile in optimizing the way you stay in touch with loved ones.