Optus vs Amaysim: Which SIM-Only Plan Actually Wins?

If you're choosing between Optus and Amaysim, you're not actually choosing a network. Amaysim is a reseller running entirely on Optus's own infrastructure, so the coverage map is identical down to the postcode. What you're really choosing is which company you'd rather pay, and that makes this one of the more clear-cut comparisons on this site.

The plans, side by side

Both currently run simple SIM-only, no-lock-in lineups. Optus's own-brand plans:

Amaysim's 28-day SIM-only plans:

Line them up by data and the gap is stark. Amaysim's 42GB plan at $35 beats Optus's 60GB Small Choice Plus at $60 on price even before you account for the extra data headroom being irrelevant to most people's usage. Push further up the range and it holds: Amaysim's 120GB for $50 comfortably undercuts Optus's 240GB Medium Choice Plus at $70, and even its own 480GB Large Choice Plus at $90 is a harder sell once you notice most people never touch triple-digit data.

Amaysim's cycle is 28 days rather than calendar-monthly, which works out to 13 charges a year instead of 12. Worth knowing before you compare "monthly" prices too literally, though it doesn't come close to closing the gap above.

Where Optus pulls ahead

International calling is the one place Optus's own plans have a real edge on paper: Medium and Large Choice Plus both bundle talk and text to 35 destinations at no extra cost, while Amaysim's plans are domestic-only unless you add a specific bolt-on. If you regularly call overseas, that's worth pricing in separately rather than assuming Amaysim's headline price is the full story for you.

The other reason to pick Optus directly is bundling. If you're already an Optus home internet or entertainment customer, combining services can bring its own discounts that a standalone Amaysim SIM can't match. Outside of those two cases, though, Optus's own-brand pricing struggles to justify itself against its own network reseller.

The honest verdict

For most people who just want data and calls on the Optus network, Amaysim is the easy win. Same coverage, meaningfully lower price at every comparable tier. Optus earns its place if you specifically need bundled international calling without a separate add-on, or you're stacking it with other Optus services. Check exact current pricing before you commit, since both providers run rotating short-term promos on top of the ongoing prices above. See the full current lineups on Optus's provider page and Amaysim's provider page, or browse every plan on the network sorted by price.