About SimBuddy
Independent, Aussie-owned, honestly ranked.
Why one bloke in Brisbane built a comparison site that puts real value ahead of commissions.
The story
Why I built SimBuddy
I've spent years working in financial services at one of Australia's big banks. Through that, I learned that what really matters to people is transparency, honesty, and getting the best options available. But away from the office, I was in the same boat as everyone else—frustrated by how hard it was to find a simple, decent mobile plan that didn't come with hidden traps or stingy data limits. Honestly, I often couldn't be bothered with the hassle of searching online. With the cost of living rising and every dollar counting, I knew there had to be an easier way to see what's actually out there.
When I looked around at other comparison sites, it felt like they were mostly pushing the big telcos, showing sponsored picks, or only reviewing a select few. It showed me that what we really needed was something simple, transparent, and easy to use—a tool that checks everyone, including the smaller Aussie providers offering killer deals you might not have heard of. So, using everything I've picked up in banking since 2005, I built SimBuddy.
It pulls together all current physical SIM and eSIM options across Australia—prepaid, postpaid, travel eSIMs, and starter kits. The site automatically gathers the plans and ranks them based on what actually matters: price, data, and coverage. No paid favors, special treatment, or hidden commissions—just honest rankings to help you save money.
My goal for SimBuddy is simple: to give everyday Aussies an unbiased, reliable way to trim down at least one regular bill. It won't be perfect, but I'm giving it a fair go. Nothing built from scratch ever starts out perfect, and learning as I go is all part of making it better over time.
Joey Kanak
Founder, SimBuddy
Brisbane, QLD · Australia
What we stand for
Three promises to every visitor.
Unbiased ranking
Our Top 6 is ranked by coverage, price, data and SIM/eSIM availability. Affiliate commissions don't influence position.
Every Aussie provider
From major telcos to small Aussie-owned MVNOs — if it's a SIM or eSIM deal worth knowing about, you'll find it here.
Plain English
No fine print games. We translate plan jargon into clear, comparable facts so you can switch with confidence.
Acknowledgement
Our colours.
SimBuddy's blue, green, black and white pay quiet respect to the Torres Strait Islander flag — designed by the late Bernard Namok of Thursday Island and officially recognised as a Flag of Australia in 1995.
- Blue — the sea
- Green — the land
- Black — the Torres Strait Islander peoples
- White — peace
We're proudly Aussie-owned and grateful to share these waters and this land with the world's oldest continuing cultures.
Full transparency
How SimBuddy makes money.
When you click "View Deal" on a plan and end up purchasing, the provider sometimes pays SimBuddy a small affiliate commission — at no extra cost to you. The price you pay is identical whether you clicked from here or went direct.
Critically, this commission has zero influence on our Top 6 ranking. The same algorithm rates a provider that pays us $0 the exact same way as one that pays us $50.
Read the full Affiliate Disclosure · ACCC compliant · ABN 21 607 700 562.
Editorial standards
Maintaining Independence from Compared Telecommunications Providers
SimBuddy operates as an independent, privately-owned Australian editorial platform. The organization maintains no equity or shareholding relationships with telecommunications companies, Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), or affiliate network entities.
Editorial schedules, ranking methodologies, and provider evaluations are established autonomously.
Commercial partners possess no access to proprietary algorithms nor the capacity to adjust their numerical evaluations. Requests by commercial partners to alter reviews or adjust plan rankings are strictly declined.
All factual assertions published on the platform reference primary documents or reputable third-party sources. Network coverage details are obtained from network operators or the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) carrier register. Data performance claims cite assessments conducted by OpenSignal, Ookla, or Umlaut. Published retrieval dates indicate source recency, and high-traffic pages undergo re-verification every 90 days.
The platform operates on an affiliate-based financial model: upon a user selecting a partner link and completing a transaction, SimBuddy may receive a referral commission. These commissions do not impact plan rankings or editorial assessments, and consumer pricing remains identical to direct provider channels. Non-partner providers are evaluated under the same standardized methodology, ensuring visibility is not contingent upon commercial agreements.
- All published claims reference primary or reputable third-party sources, indexed fully on the Sources page.
- Automated weekly verification procedures deactivate listings that yield HTTP 404 errors or display price variances exceeding 20%.
- Editorial corrections include a timestamp and a summary of revisions to ensure historical transparency.