Will your phone just work in Lanzarote, and is it going to cost me? The Canary Islands feel a long way from home, out off the coast of Africa, but for the purposes of your mobile phone they count as part of the EU, the same as mainland Spain. The good news is your UK phone will work fine here with no faff. The catch is that, since Brexit, whether it costs you anything depends entirely on your network and when you took out your plan. Here’s what you need to know before you travel, so there are no nasty surprises on your bill.
The Short Version
Your UK phone works normally in Lanzarote. You keep your usual number, you can call, text and use data, and the network connects automatically when you land. Whether you pay extra for the privilege comes down to your provider. Some UK networks still include EU roaming for free, some charge around £2 to £2.50 a day, and a few older plans have it built in. So the single most useful thing you can do is check your specific plan before you fly, which takes five minutes and can save you a surprise charge.
Why the Canary Islands count as EU roaming
It’s worth clearing this up, because it confuses people. The Canary Islands are Spanish, and part of the European Union, so as far as mobile roaming goes they’re treated exactly like Spain or France or anywhere else in the EU roaming zone. That’s true even though the islands sit outside the EU’s VAT and customs area for tax purposes, the tax status and the roaming status are two different things. So whatever your network’s EU roaming policy is, that’s what applies in Lanzarote. If your plan lists the Canary Islands, Madeira or the Azores specifically, even better, but “EU roaming” covers you here regardless.
Where each network stands in 2026
Policies have shifted a lot since Brexit, and they do change, so treat this as a guide and confirm with your own provider before you travel. As things stand in 2026, here’s the rough picture.
O2 is the standout, and still the only major network that includes EU roaming at no extra daily charge on most pay-monthly plans, so O2 customers can generally use their phone in Lanzarote just as they would at home, subject to a fair-use data cap of around 25GB. Its sister network giffgaff, and some SMARTY plans, similarly include EU roaming.
EE charges most customers on plans taken out after 7 July 2021 a daily fee of around £2.47 to use their UK allowance in the EU, or you can buy a Roam Abroad pass by the month if you travel a lot. Crucially, if your EE plan started before that July 2021 date, you very likely still have EU roaming included for free, so it’s well worth checking your start date.
Vodafone operates a zone-based system with daily charges for most newer plans, broadly similar to EE at a couple of pounds a day, though some plans include roaming or let you add it. Three also brought back charges of around £2 a day for customers who took out or upgraded a contract after October 2021.
The pattern across all of them is the same: older plans (broadly pre-mid-2021) tend to still have free EU roaming, newer ones usually charge a daily fee unless roaming is bundled in. Pay-as-you-go and smaller networks vary, so check yours.
Check before you fly, and Make Sure You enable Roaming
Two quick jobs before you travel will save you all the hassle. First, check your plan: a two-minute look in your network’s app or a quick message to them will tell you exactly whether you’ll be charged in the EU and how much, so you’re not guessing. If there’s a daily charge you’re not happy with, that’s the moment to consider the alternatives below. Second, make sure data roaming is switched on, on an iPhone it’s under Settings, then Mobile Data, then Data Roaming, and on Android under Settings, then Connections, then Mobile Networks, then Data Roaming.
Some networks also ask you to text a code to activate roaming, so check that too. Turn it on before you land and your phone sorts itself out on arrival.
Watch The Fair-use Data Cap
Even where roaming is included, there’s usually a fair-use limit on how much data you can use abroad before extra charges kick in, typically around 25GB a month on most networks, or up to 50GB on some EE plans. For a normal holiday of messaging, maps, social media and browsing, you’re very unlikely to get anywhere near that. But if you’re planning to stream a lot of video or work off your phone as a hotspot, it’s worth knowing the ceiling exists so you don’t blow through it.
Ways to Avoid Mobile Roaming Charges in Lanzarote Altogether
If your plan does charge for roaming and you’d rather not pay it, you’ve got a few options. The easiest is simply to lean on wifi, which is widely available and free in most hotels, apartments, bars, cafés and restaurants across the island, so you can message, browse and make calls over apps like WhatsApp and FaceTime without touching your data allowance at all. For many people, hotel and café wifi plus the occasional bit of roaming is all they need.
If you want proper data on the go without roaming fees, an eSIM is the modern, hassle-free answer, a local or European data plan you buy online and install on your phone before you travel, with no physical SIM to swap, so you keep your UK number for calls and texts and use the eSIM for cheap data. Providers like Airalo, Saily and Holafly sell Spain or Europe eSIMs, and most newer phones support them. Alternatively, you can buy a local Spanish SIM card once you’re here, from the likes of Vodafone, Orange or Movistar, though that means a different number and a bit more faff, so it only really pays off for longer stays.
A More Bits of Advice
To finish, a handful of things worth knowing. Calls and texts back to UK numbers from Lanzarote are covered by your roaming allowance the same as data, so if roaming’s included they come out of your normal allowance. WhatsApp, iMessage, FaceTime and the like work over wifi or data just as they do at home, and are the cheapest way to keep in touch.
The emergency number across Spain, including Lanzarote, is 112, and it works from any mobile free of charge, roaming or not. And 4G and 5G coverage across the island’s resorts and towns is generally very good, so you’ll rarely be stuck for a signal. Sort your plan out before you fly, and your phone will be the least of your holiday worries.
