MVNOs in France: the full list of virtual operators and the networks they use

The full list of MVNOs in France and their networks

An MVNO does not own antennas. It buys wholesale capacity from one of the four French network operators and resells it under its own brand, which is why the same signal can cost you half as much depending on the logo on your SIM. The table below lists every MVNO selling consumer plans in France, the network it actually runs on, and its cheapest plan. For the network operators themselves, see our comparison of the largest mobile providers in France.

MVNOs stay a small slice of the market — 4.2 million SIM cards out of 82 million, or 5.1%, according to the regulator's Arcep mobile services observatory for Q1 2026. But that headline figure hides where they actually win: MVNOs take 40.7% of all new prepaid sign-ups in France. If you are arriving without a French bank account and want a SIM that works this week, you are shopping in the segment MVNOs dominate.

Ad — offers from Auchan Télécom, Cdiscount Mobile, Coriolis, La Poste Mobile, Lebara Mobile, Lyca Mobile, Nordnet, NRJ Mobile, Prixtel, Syma Mobile, Telecoop and YouPrice are presented via Selectra. Operators without a subscribe button have no distribution agreement with us and are listed for completeness only. Networks and entry prices verified against the Selectra comparator — last updated October 2026. The French regulator Arcep lists 32 licensed MVNOs (list updated 4 September 2025); the table above covers only those selling plans to consumers — the rest are business-only or machine-to-machine operators such as Transatel, Keyyo or Sewan.

MVNOs sorted by host network

Same list, grouped by the network you will actually be connecting to — the quickest way to check what coverage a given brand gives you.

Bouygues Telecom

hosts 9 MVNOs

NRJ Mobile Cdiscount Mobile Auchan Télécom CIC Mobile Crédit Mutuel Mobile La Poste Mobile Lyca Mobile Mint Mobile Source Mobile

SFR

hosts 5 MVNOs

Lebara Mobile Prixtel Réglo Mobile Syma Mobile Coriolis

Orange

hosts 3 MVNOs

Nordnet Telecoop Bazile Telecom

Free Mobile

hosts 0 MVNOs

The only French network closed to virtual operators — see why below.

• →Bouygues Telecom hosts the most MVNOs, and it is a distribution story: the supermarkets and banks that sell mobile plans as a side business all went to the same wholesale partner. The cheapest plans on the market therefore give you Bouygues coverage;
• →SFR is the expat group: Lebara and Syma built their business on cheap international calling, and Lebara runs a full English-language website and support line;
• →the Orange network hosts almost nobody — it sells its own budget capacity through Sosh and has little appetite for wholesale deals that undercut it. Wanting Orange coverage usually means paying Orange prices;
• →YouPrice is the exception: it lets you pick which of the three networks you run on, and switch later if your coverage disappoints;
• →La Poste Mobile is the trap: it spent years on SFR before migrating to Bouygues, so older guides — and even some official lists — still show it on the wrong network.

Which host network performs best?

Since your MVNO gives you its host's network, the host's performance is your performance. Independent measurement body nPerf ranked the four French networks over the whole of 2025:

Source: nPerf mobile internet barometer for France, 1 January – 31 December 2025, published January 2026. The nPerf score aggregates download and upload speeds, latency, browsing and video streaming. Figures measure average performance from user tests, not coverage in a specific area.

The gap between first and third is under 3%, so the network label is rarely the thing that should decide your choice. The useful takeaway is the other way round: the cheapest MVNOs happen to sit on the network that scored highest, and Orange — the priciest route in — leads on raw download speed but not on the overall score.

Why no MVNO uses the Free network

Not a single MVNO runs on Free Mobile — confirmed both by Arcep's official list and by our own catalogue of 123 plans. The reason is strategic, not technical: Free entered the market in 2012 as the disruptor, with a €2 plan priced far below everyone else. Wholesaling its network to resellers would mean competing against its own headline prices.

Which MVNO is cheapest in France right now?

On raw entry price, NRJ Mobile opens at €1.49/month. On value for money — the ratio that actually matters once you use your phone normally — Lyca Mobile and Lebara Mobile lead, with Lyca offering the most gigabytes per euro of any MVNO in our comparator. The ranking below is generated from live prices, so it reflects today's deals rather than a table someone typed last year.

MVNO pros and cons

Is an MVNO right for you?

An MVNO is the obvious choice if you are settling in France on a budget, already own your phone and are comfortable dealing with support online. It is a poor choice if you want a handset paid off monthly, need a shop you can walk into when something breaks, or rely on a plan with very high allowances — at the top end, operator sub-brands like Sosh, RED and B&You often match MVNO prices. If you need a large bundle, compare the unlimited data plans available in France before committing, and use our guide on how much mobile data you actually need to avoid paying for gigabytes you never use.

Our editorial take

“The network label matters far less than people assume. A €5 Lyca plan and a €25 Bouygues plan use the same antennas, and nPerf puts under 3% between the best and third-best network — you are paying the difference for a shop, a helpline and a handset deal. If you already have a phone and can handle support by chat, there is very little reason to pay operator prices in France. Where I would still hesitate: if you are moving somewhere genuinely remote, check the coverage map for your exact address before you pick a brand, because almost no MVNO sits on Orange.

Valentine

Editor at Selectra

FAQ: MVNOs in France

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