As two of New Zealand's largest and most popular mobile service providers, Spark and 2degrees are locked in constant competition to keep customers connected and happy. So, when it comes to a head-to-head rundown of prepaid and pay monthly plans, how do these two mobile market-leaders shape up?
If you're on the hunt for a new mobile deal, there's a range of options to choose from. There are plans decked out with unlimited data, talk and texts. Plus, there are plenty of extras, including music and video streaming, hotspotting and free data incentives.
Canstar takes an in-detail look at the prepaid and pay monthly deals from Spark and 2degrees, plus the other factors to keep in mind.
Spark prepaid (four-weekly)
All of Spark’s prepaid plans come with a Spotify discount and hotspotting, and more expensive plans offer free Spotify data and Data Stack.
Data Stack: earn 100MB of data every 28 days when you stay on an eligible Spark Prepaid Value Pack, up to a maximum of 10GB. Unused Data Stack does not roll over.
- $17 Plan: 750MB data & 100 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount
- $21 Plan: 1.5GB rollover data & 200 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount
- $25 Plan: 2.5GB rollover data & 250 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount, free Spotify Data
- $35 Plan: 4GB rollover data & 300 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ + $7 Spotify Premium discount, free Spotify Data
- $50 Plan: 10GB rollover data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + $7 Spotify Premium discount, free Spotify Data
- $65 Plan: 25GB rollover data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + $7 Spotify Premium discount, free Spotify Data
- $85 Plan: Endless data (speeds reduce after 80GB) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + $7 Spotify Premium discount, free Spotify Data
2degrees prepaid (calendar month)
2degrees offers eight prepaid monthly plans. And each, except the cheapest $8 monthly plan, comes with a great perk: a free hour of data each day to use at a time that suits your data needs. In addition, plans offer 7.5GB of free Carryover Data on join-up:
Prepaid (calendar month)
- $8 Plan: 150MB data & 100 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ
- $15 Plan: 1GB data & 100 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ
- $20 Plan: 2GB data & 200 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ
- $25 Plan: 3GB data & 250 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ
- $35 Plan: 4.5GB data & 300 mins & unlimited texts to NZ/OZ
- $45 Plan: 10GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ
- $60 Plan: 50GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ
- $85 Plan: Endless data (no max speed cap) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ
Canstar's prepaid choice
Overall, 2degrees' plans offer better value. Not only do 2degrees' prepaid monthly plans offer more data as standard, they also offer a bonus hour of free data each day.
Also, each 2degree plan lasts a calendar month, meaning you only have to purchase 12 packs each year.
A Spark prepaid monthly plan only lasts four weeks, meaning users have to purchase 13 packs over the course of a 12-month period.
Spark pay monthly
Spark offers six endless data plans:
Endless data plans:
- $43 Plan: Endless data (speeds reduce after 3GB) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount
- $50 Plan: Endless data (speeds reduce after 6GB) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount
- $65 Plan: Endless data (speeds reduce after 75GB) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + 10% Spotify Premium discount and free Spotify data
- $75 Plan: Endless data (speeds reduce after 150GB) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + $7 Spotify Premium discount and free Spotify data + similar group plan for $40/m
- $90 Plan: Endless data (no max speed cap) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + international talk and texts + free Spotify Premium ($18.99/m) + similar group plan for $45/m
- $95 Plan: Endless data (no max speed cap) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ + international talk and texts + free Netflix Standard ($25.99/m) + similar group plan for $45/m
All Spark plans offer hotspotting and free voicemail.
2degrees pay monthly
2degrees offers four monthly plans that have carryover data, plus one endless data plan. Each, except the endless data plan, come with a great perk: a free hour of data each day to use at a time that suits your data needs.
Three of the plans also allow you to add up to five extra people at discounted rates to form a group plan:
- $35 Plan: 3GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ
- $45 Plan: 6GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ*
- $55 Plan: 15GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ*
- $65 Plan: 80GB data & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ*
- $80 Plan: Endless data (no max speed cap) & unlimited calls & texts to NZ/OZ*
*Add up to 5 group plans for others on either the same plan or one of a higher value:
- $45 Plan – Group members for $25/m
- $55 Plan – Group members for $30/m
- $65 Plan – Group members for $35/m
- $80 Plan – Group members for $40/m
All plans offer unlimited calls to other 2degrees mobiles, hotspotting, free voicemail and are 5G ready. Add a Sidekick plan for your smartwatch for $5/m.
All prices correct as of 08/01/25.
Canstar's prepaid choice
If you know how much data you use each month, and can keep within 2degrees' fixed data caps, then the telco's pay monthly plans offer good value.
However, Spark's plans all provide endless data, at speeds good enough for light web browsing and keeping in touch via email and messaging apps, which could be a dealbreaker for anybody who doesn't want to run out of data suddenly.
And, while on paper Spark's two most expensive phone plans can appear expensive. If you factor in the Spotify and Netflix discounts, they offer great value. But, of course, only if you're already paying for Spotify or Netflix and the deals save you money.
So, ultimately, when it comes down to picking the best value monthly phone plan, the choice is yours, just remember to do your research.
Compare the cost of a plan against the calls/data/extras you require. And check out Canstar's customer satisfaction ratings for mobile phone providers. All you have to do is click on the button below.
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