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Two of them are free. One of them is us. Here they are side by side, including when not to buy anything — the rate is set by the kind of number they dial, so any landline gets them 55% off, whoever it belongs to.
England and Wales. Last checked 2026-08-20.
The default, and the most expensive thing they can dial. Nothing to set up, and nothing saved — every minute costs them more than twice what it needs to.
Best for: Nobody, on purpose. It is where you start, not where you stay.
If there is a landline in the house and somebody is usually in to answer it, this is the answer and it costs nothing. Put that number on their list and you are done. No service can beat free.
Best for: Households with a landline and someone home at calling times.
Gets the same rate, but you pay to install it, pay rental on top of your broadband, usually sign up for a year or more — and it only works when somebody is physically at home. Most households spend more than they save and still miss calls.
Best for: Rarely anyone, unless a landline was wanted anyway.
The landline rate without having to be at home for it, and no limit on how long you talk. Services doing this are not priced alike: some charge for every minute you receive, some sell a bundle that runs out, and unlimited elsewhere is around £38 a month. Ours is £19.99, and that is the whole price. If a row above already works for you, take it — free still beats us.
Best for: Households with no landline, or nobody home when they ring.
Prices charged by other services were read from their own sites in August 2026. Tell us if one is out of date and we will correct it.
Whichever of the bottom three you pick, the same capped money buys about 2× the talk — a half-hour call drops from £1.65 to £0.74.
Work out your own numbersIf you’re paying for one
We’re not the only service doing this, and we’re not always the cheapest. These are the things worth checking about any of them — ours as much as anyone’s — because a cheaper plan with an allowance on it can cost more than a dearer one without.
Prisons refuse numbers their security cannot place. An ordinary 01, 02 or 03 landline is what the phone list is built for. Anything routed through a messaging app, a conferencing bridge or a non-geographic range invites the question and is likelier to be turned down.
A per-minute plan reintroduces the exact problem you are trying to solve — you end up watching a meter instead of them watching theirs. If there is an allowance, find the overage rate before you sign up, not after.
Some refusals happen and no provider can prevent them. What matters is whether you get a fresh number without paying again, and how long that takes.
You should be able to stop it yourself, in one action, without a phone call or a notice period. If cancelling means emailing someone and waiting, expect that to be the slowest thing the company does.
A conviction is special-category data under UK GDPR. A service that asks for the name of the person in prison is holding something it has no need for. Nobody providing this needs more than the establishment, and only if you offer it.
Circumstances change fast — a transfer, a release, a recall. A rolling monthly arrangement matches that. A twelve-month tie does not.
Already looking at one by name? We’ve put our prices against theirs, including the point where theirs works out cheaper than ours.
If you already have a landline at home and you are usually there to answer it, that is the cheapest — it costs nothing extra and calls to it are already charged at the landline rate. If you are not usually home, or the household has no landline, a landline number on the phone you already have gets the same rate without you having to be anywhere. Ringing your mobile directly is the most expensive option and the one most families are on by default.
Not necessarily. A landline you already own gives you the landline rate for free. Paying for a service only makes sense if you have no landline, are rarely at home to answer one, and they call often enough that the saving beats the subscription — which for most plans means talking most days.
Usually not. A new line means installation, line rental on top of your broadband and typically a contract of a year or more, and it only helps when somebody is physically at home when they ring. For most households it costs more than it saves and misses more calls than it catches.
Check six things: that it is a real UK geographic number, that calls are unlimited rather than metered, what happens if the prison refuses the number, whether you can cancel yourself in one action, what the provider stores about the person inside, and whether you are tied into a contract. Price matters, but a cheaper plan with an allowance on it can cost more than a dearer one without.
A UK geographic landline goes onto the phone list through the same application and the same security check as any other number. RingYard's is not a redirect: the eSIM installs the landline itself on your phone, so the call ends exactly where the number says it does. Be straightforward if you are asked how it works — there is nothing here that needs hiding.
An ordinary UK landline on the phone you already have, unlimited, cancel in one tap. And if one of the free rows is you, take that instead — we’d rather tell you than sell you.