Smarter Together: Families could save up to £3,550 a year by sharing costs across every day spending

Nearly two thirds of Brits (59%) are already embracing shared spending with their families in some form to reduce expenses. Of these, more than one in three (34%) 18–34-year-olds reveal they would struggle to afford a holiday without sharing the cost with their parents, making the most of family deals.

The same also rings true for bulk buying household expenses and splitting among the family (31%). As a way of maximising savings even further: 27% of families have compared prices or deals together before making a purchase; a quarter (25%) have joined forces to unlock a specific deal or discount; and 17% have delayed a purchase until they could share the cost.

Despite efforts from families to cut costs, nearly eight in 10 Brits (79%) are still looking for more ways to reduce household spending. However, three quarters (75%) have yet to explore the savings available from taking mobile plans together.

Professor Gathergood identifies that, while shared spending is becoming second nature for holidays, life events and big purchases, bringing together mobile plans in one place is a standout gap. His findings highlight that, unlike other utility bills, mobile and broadband plans offer one of the biggest opportunities to save, as families often don’t need to be living under the same roof.

Four simple money-saving swaps:

And, as 46% of families say their mobile contracts are spread across multiple different providers, Vodafone has identified the true cost of the “Solo SIM Penalty” – the extra expense incurred by managing mobile plans individually, rather than collectively.

With Vodafone Together, the brand’s multi-plan family offering, customers with one mobile line can add more unlimited plans from just £16 a month, meaning each additional plan saves £19 a month. With this, a family with four plans can save up to £57 a month, leading to savings of up to £684 annually.

For those combining a mobile plan with a broadband plan, the savings grow even further, with an additional £2 a month off your broadband bill. Yet, for many, this added value is not being unlocked, with 30% of families saying they joined their mobile network providers at different times and never reviewed their policy to see if they could get a better offer elsewhere.

The research also uncovers where in the UK families are making their money go further, with London** crowned the nation’s ultimate “saving capital”, as families are more inclined to share their spending. At the other end of the scale, Brighton*** ranks among the least cost-efficient, with families more likely to spend separately.

John Gathergood, Professor, University of Nottingham, said: “What’s striking is the size of the prize. £3,550 a year is a serious sum – and the savings come from a simple shift: substituting individual purchases for joint ones. Consolidating subscriptions alone can save families £1,100, and a multi-line mobile plan, such as Vodafone Together, provides the largest single saving in this category.

“Many everyday purchases are priced at a meaningful discount when bought as a family unit, and there is a great opportunity here to save money all-year round – both inside your home and with your wider family.”

A VodafoneThree spokesperson said: “Families today are doing everything they can to make their money work harder – from bulk‑buying essentials to pooling loyalty points.

“But taking mobile plans together remains a missed opportunity for many. There are millions of Vodafone households that have plans with multiple providers, who could be saving hundreds each year by bringing their family’s plans into one place. Vodafone Together makes it simple for customers – both new and existing – to unlock meaningful savings and rewards”

Vodafone Together also comes with three months’ free access to its digital safety service – Secure Net Mobile – which helps to protect against fraud, viruses and identity theft. Plus, it boasts advanced parental controls – keeping the whole family safe online and giving parents added peace of mind.

Customers also receive exclusive VeryMe Rewards, where families can access monthly perks, discounts and prizes, as well as a 15% discount on multi-line phone insurance. Professor Gathergood notes that this is another one of the easiest areas for households to save together, as insurers actively price bundle policies lower than individual policies.

For more information about Vodafone Together and how you can start saving, visit the Vodafone website.

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Notes to Editors:

*£684 in savings per year, or £57 in savings per month, with x 4 unlimited plans. Get a discount of £19 per month on all 24m unlimited plans when you have an existing unlimited PAYM connection.

• £19 saving per plan, per month
• £19 × 3 = £57 saved each month
• £57 × 12 months = £684 saved per year

Existing Vodafone Together household until 30 October 2025: You must have already signed up to an eligible Airtime or Pay Monthly Mobile plan and an eligible Home Broadband plan and receive a Vodafone Together discount (“Discount”) on your Broadband plan. The Discount amount will vary depending on what Airtime or Pay Monthly Mobile plan you have (see Table 1 in terms and conditions). Only selected Airtime and Pay Monthly Mobile plans include unlimited data, texts & minutes. See your Home Broadband Price Guide for more information on discounts. Please note that if you cancel your Pay Monthly Mobile plan the Discount will only be applied to your Broadband plan until the minimum period of your Broadband plan has ended.

Vodafone Together discount from 30 October 2025: Effective from 30 October 2025. Monthly discounts on eligible new additional plans bought from Vodafone. Discount varies by plan. Not available with other offers. Annual price rises are not discounted. Minimum term, credit check, eligibility and Vodafone Together terms apply

The Service consists of the below Service Features: “Advanced Parental Controls”: In this feature you can add content filters to restrict access to certain websites and use of applications (when browsing online apps and services) and set time limitations when internet use can be restricted. To use the Advanced Parental Controls feature you must create a profile for your child/children and assign devices to each child. Any Advanced Parental Controls you activate for a profile will apply to all devices assigned to that profile when the device is connected to your Vodafone Home Broadband. Advanced Parental Controls cannot be applied to offline apps or games that work without data connectivity. Further, the feature does not restrict access to content already on a device. The Advanced Parental Controls Service Feature does not protect you or your devices when not connected to your home broadband service or when using privacy features, such as a VPN, that encrypts your personal data

McAfee Total Protection: Offer subject to availability and McAfee’s terms and conditions. McAfee’s protection for up to 10 devices. Offer of 12 months subscription which will be automatically renewed 30-days before its expiration date, at the renewal term subscription price in effect at the time of renewal billed to the payment card we have on file. Pricing is subject to change. See mcafee.com/en-us/consumer-support/policy/legal.html#webtos for more details

**Region with most combined spending areas (1.7 vs 1.3 country average)

*** Region with least combined spending areas (0.9 vs 1.3 country average)

Professor John Gathergood, University of Nottingham: Methodology & Considerations

The analysis finds that a typical UK family of four could save approximately £3,550 per year (around £296 per month) by coordinating their spending across four identified categories. These are: spending together (holidays, groceries, eating out and leisure); subscriptions together (mobile, broadband, video, music and digital services); finances together (savings, banking and rewards); and insurances together (motor, home, travel and gadget cover). For each category, a methodology has been developed drawing on existing public-domain research, including data from the Office for National Statistics, the Financial Conduct Authority, Ofcom, the Association of British Insurers, HM Revenue & Customs, the Bank of England, and a range of nationally representative consumer surveys. Where Vodafone has provided proprietary research data, this has been incorporated directly into the calculations.

The estimates set out in this report are deliberately conservative and represent the savings achievable by a typical UK family of two adults and two semi-independent children. By semi-independent, we mean children who are old enough to have their own preferences, routines and emerging financial lives – their own choices about what to watch, what to listen to, how to spend pocket money or part-time earnings, and increasingly their own mobile and digital subscriptions – but who remain part of the household economy.

The estimates are not intended to capture the full range of possible savings; many families will be able to save substantially more, particularly those with multiple vehicles, larger extended family networks, or higher levels of discretionary spending. Equally, the estimates exclude savings that would require significant lifestyle adjustments – such as adult children moving back into the parental home or students choosing to live at home rather than in halls of residence. The focus throughout is on coordination of existing spending, not on changes to where or how families live.

All savings are presented in 2026 prices and represent estimated annual savings for a typical UK family. Unless otherwise stated, the savings reflect the differential between coordinated family-level purchasing and the equivalent purchases made independently by individual family members.

Importantly, none of the actions identified here require families to spend less in real terms or to forego any of the goods and services they currently enjoy. The savings arise purely from substituting individual purchases with equivalent family-level purchases – a set of one-off administrative decisions that delivers recurring savings from the moment they are implemented. For a family with two semi-independent children, where each member could plausibly operate as a separate consumer, the choice to coordinate is the choice that delivers the saving.

It should be noted that some of the family arrangements considered in this report, most notably certain motor insurance, home insurance and broadband packages, require all named members of the household to be resident at the same address. Other arrangements, including most mobile, video and music family plans, do not require co-residence and can be shared by family members living separately.

Shared Family Behaviours & Savings

Research Methodology

Research conducted by 3Gem across 2,500 UK adults, May 2026

About VodafoneThree  

VodafoneThree is the UK’s largest mobile provider serving fixed and mobile customers, formed following the merger of Vodafone UK and Three UK in June 2025.

Through an unprecedented £11 billion investment, VodafoneThree will build the UK’s best network. The network will deliver reliable, quality connectivity to all nations and regions, creating as many as 13,000 jobs and laying a digital foundation for the country’s growth ambitions.

VodafoneThree is the only mobile network operator with a fully funded, regulated and guaranteed network build plan, reaching 99.95% population coverage by 2034. From big cities to small towns, and everywhere in between, the company’s mission is to build the UK’s best network.

VodafoneThree is a private company, 51% owned by Vodafone and 49% owned by CK Hutchison Holdings. It encompasses all businesses and assets, including Vodafone UK, Three UK, VOXI Mobile, SMARTY and Talkmobile.