iPhone 12 Plans in Australia: Telstra vs Optus vs Vodafone

The iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max are now available in Australia through Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. The (slightly) more affordable iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini are available in Black, White, (Product) Red, Green and Blue, and three storage variants: 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB. The photographers’ choice, the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, comes in Graphite, Silver, Gold and Pacific Blue, and three storage variants, also: 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB.

As per usual, the more storage, the higher the price tag. In recent years, telcos have also shifted to a month-to-month arrangement without handset discounts, so you can typically expect to pay the RRP of each device, spread across 12, 24, and 36 months. With that said, telcos are still offering some decent discounts on their plans, namely Telstra. Alternatively, you can pay the iPhone 12 cost upfront, and jump on an affordable month-to-month SIM plan.

Here’s a closer look at the iPhone 12 plans from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.

First, let's take a quick look at the most popular iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro models and what price they start.

Wondering which plan to go with? Let's take a look at the most popular iPhone plans currently available. Our friends at WhistleOut store popularity information for every handset, mobile provider, and plan in its database. It provides an up-to-date snapshot of what plans and phones Australians are buying every week.

For example, if you take a look at Apple phones, you'll see that the iPhone 12 Pro 128GB is the most popular iPhone available at the time of writing, with the iPhone 12 64GB a close second. If we select a phone, we see a list of the most popular plans people choose to pair with that handset.

Looking for the base model iPhone 12? Here's are the cheapest deals from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.

The iPhone 12 mini is not available anymore from any carrier in Australia - check our refurbished iPhone page for a refurbished iPhone 12.

The iPhone 12 Pro is not available anymore from any carrier in Australia - check our refurbished iPhone page for a refurbished iPhone 12.

On the same day Apple's Mini iPhone became available, so did its big bertha, the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It's obviously the priciest of the bunch (being the premium iPhone 12 experience). Here are the most popular iPhone 12 Pro Max plans from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.

For the best iPhone 12 plans, it's no contest. Vodafone is our top choice for Apple fans looking to upgrade.

Vodafone's network still isn't quite as large as Telstra and Optus, but it's still a reliable choice for most Australians. The only downside is that Vodafone's 5G network is the least developed out of the three, so it will be some time before you get to take full advantage of the iPhone 12's power.

As mentioned above, Vodafone is offering some sweet plans for iPhone 12 customers. However, there are no promotions currently in place when it comes to the device. 

If you can't do without Telstra's leading mobile network coverage, you'll be happy to know the Big Blue is offering some great plans for the iPhone 12. We still can't recommend Telstra if you're on a tight budget, but the rest of the perks it offers (Binge, Xbox All Access etc.) make it a compelling option at least. Telstra also has the most 5G coverage at the time of writing, so it's the provider of choice if you're looking to trial the next-gen network with your new iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 Pro.

Every Apple product purchase through Telstra comes with 12 months of Apple TV Plus free (for new subscribers), another three months of Binge Standard free, and data-free Apple Music streaming.

Then, there's the added option of bundling the new Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S with Telstra's Xbox All Access Deal, which gets you a brand-new next-gen Xbox and 24 months of Ultimate Game Pass (a little like Netflix for Xbox games).

These plans offer all the usual inclusions (unlimited national calls and text, etc.), with data sharing across multiple services on the one bill.  However, there aren't many other specific iPhone 12 perks associated with Optus plans at the moment.

There's the discounted rate on Optus Sport, which is a good value proposition for football fans in any other year. There's also the option to add a new iPad Air and Apple Watch Series 6 to your bill, but there is no bundling discount at the time of writing.