Popular Plans
Popular Phones
What You Need to Know
Owned by Rogers, Fido has offered service throughout Canada for more than a decade. As a separate brand from Rogers, subscribers enjoy access to both Fido and Rogers’ networks as well as free roaming on partner networks with a supporting device.
Fido offers both prepaid and postpaid services. Postpaid plans run between $25 and $105 per month before add-ons and fees. Prepaid plans run between $16 and $70 per month before add-ons and fees.
Looking to pick up a phone to go with your service? Fido’s Plus plans make device financing simple.
What’s Good?
- No-contract plans available
- Bring your own device plans
- Multi-tier phone financing
- Most plans include unlimited messaging
- Flat-rate per-day roaming plans for frequent travelers
- Canada-wide calling on most plans
What’s Bad?
- Basic services are there but little offered to differentiate its service from other carriers
Notable Features
Fido Roam: For as little as $5 a day you can unlock roaming in more than 300 countries.
Fido Pulse Plans: Pulse plans include 6 months of premium Spotify access for music lovers looking to listen on the go. Fido Roam is also included for worry-free traveling.
Circle Calling: Calls between numbers on the same account for plans with Circle Calling do not count against your monthly minute allotment.
Awards and Recognitions
- Rogers network ranked #3 in Tutela's 2018 "Mobile Experience Report"
- Ranked #7 in J.D. Power's "Canadian Wireless Customer Care Study (2017)"
- Ranked #2 in Ookla’s “Canada’s Fastest Mobile Networks 2015”
- Ranked #5 in J.D. Power’s “Canadian Wireless Customer Care Study” in 2016
- Ranked #3 in J.D. Power’s “Canadian Wireless Purchase Experience Study” in 2018, up from rank #6 in 2016
- Fido currently has a B- rating with the Better Business Bureau with 544 complaints closed in the past 3 years. (NOTE: The BBB combines Fido and Rogers when determining the rating.)
How's the Network Coverage and Speed?
Fido claims their network -- a combination of Fido’s and Rogers’ networks cover more than 93% of Canadians.
You can check coverage and network types in your area at the Fido support page.
Notable considerations include:
- Coverage areas noted as “Extended” require an HSPA+ or LTE device for connectivity
- Use of “Extended” coverage service is limited to no more than 50% of your usage over a three month period.
The Rogers network ranked third for download speeds in both the 4G and 3G network categories in Tutela's 2018 "Mobile Experience Report", tests showed an average speed of 16.12Mbits/sec for 4G downloads and 3.92Mbits/sec for 3G downloads. Uploads speeds averaged 7.73Mbits/sec across both 4G and 3G networks.
In the 2016 PC Magazine study “Fastest Mobile Networks in Canada,” merges the Fido and Rogers networks. However, the networks ranked third on the national level with an average LTE download speed of 43.20Mbits/sec. The average national upload speed was 21.80Mbits/sec.
Additional data from OpenSignal shows an average 4G LTE download speed for 16.9Mb/sec and an average 3G download speed of 2.2Mb/sec. 4G upload speeds measured at 7.5Mb/sec with 3G coming at 0.7Mb/sec.
Does Fido Charge Roaming Fees?
For most Fido calling plans--those labeled Canada-wide--you won’t pay roaming fees for any calls placed inside Canada.
Roaming for travel to the U.S. or internationally is covered using pay as you go (PAYG), Fido Roam or destination-specific travel add-ons. Fees vary between prepaid and postpaid services.
Postpaid Roaming Fees
If you are traveling to the U.S. you can take advantage of Fido Roam.
This add-on allows you to use your existing allotment of minutes, texts, and data abroad for a flat per-day fee. For US roaming, you'll pay $8 per day. Other international destinations are priced at $12 per day.
Prepaid Roaming Fees
Prepaid roaming fees are structured slightly differently. You’ll find a flat per-minute fee by region regardless of add-ons.
You can find out more about Fido's roaming options on their Travel Page.
What About Long Distance Fees?
Most Fido plans include Canada-wide calling with no long distance fees. However, the lowest priced prepaid and postpaid options may only include local calling.
For international calls, rates differ by country. However, Fido offers a few add-ons to help if you plan to make frequent international calls.
Fido Value Pack: For $5 per month you can unlock premium calling rates that drastically lower the per-minute charge for international calls.
U.S. Long Distance Add-On: For $15 per month you can call the US using your monthly minute allotment for no per-minute charge
Prepaid customers have access to the above-mentioned Fido Value Pack as well as a North American Long Distance Preferred Rate Add-on. For $5 per month, this add-on makes calls to the U.S. only $0.10 per minute.
You can find more about specific calling rates per country and additional options on the Fido support page.
Does Fido Offer Wi-Fi Calling?
Yes. If you have a supported phone, they allow calling over Wi-Fi at no additional charge. They do not currently offer an app for Wi-Fi calling on non-supported phones.
For device compatibility and usage information, check their Wi-Fi Calling page.
How About Voice over LTE (VoLTE)?
Yes. Fido supports both Voice and Video over LTE. If you're on a Fido Pulse plan, video calls are included in your monthly rate. For other plans, local video calls are included but long-distance video calls are billed at $0.35 per minute.
For phone compatibility and usage information, consult their Fido VoLTE page.
Can I Tether My Mobile?
You won’t pay extra charges to enable tethering on your Fido smartphones or hotspots. However, remember that data used by other devices tethered to your phone will count toward your monthly data allotment.
Do They Offer Data Rollover?
No, Fido does not offer any form of data rollover.
Do They Offer Add-ons or Bundles?
Yes! All plans include voicemail service, call waiting, balance notifications, call display and the Fido Mobile Internet Portal.
Additional offerings differ between prepaid and postpaid services.
Prepaid add-ons include:
- $10 to $30 per month for data add-ons
- Data passes in one-day to one-month intervals
- $5 to $10 per month for additional text messages to numbers in Canada
- $4 to $10 per month for additional international text messages
Postpaid add-ons include:
- $4 per month for premium voicemail with text
- $3 per month for call forwarding
- $7 to $15 per month for data top-ups
- $1 to $10 for data passes
- $13 per month for the Fido Value Pack--includes reduced long-distance and international rates, call forwarding, name display, and Fido Device protection
Do They Offer Bring Your Own Device/Sim-Only Plans?
Yes! Fido supports most unlocked GSM, UMTS, HSPA and HSPA+ devices.
For LTE access your device must support:
- 700MHz on Band 17
- 1700/2100MHz on Band 4
- 2600MHz on Band 7
You can find additional information on using your own device with Fido on their support page.
Do They Require a Credit Check?
There are no credit checks for prepaid service. However, monthly service agreements may require a credit check. At the time of writing, this is a "soft" credit check. This means fewer chances of an impact on your credit score.
Items needed include 1 of the following:
- Canadian Driver's Licence
- Canadian SIN Card or Letter
- Canadian Credit Card
Plus 1 of the following:
- Valid Canadian Driver’s License (Not applicable if used as one of the items above)
- Valid Canadian or Foreign Passport
- Work Visa
- Department of Defense ID
- Permanent Resident Card
- Native Indian Status Card
- CNIB Card
- Valid, Government-Issued Provincial/Territorial Photo ID
- Possession and Acquisition License (PAL)
NOTE: Credit checks from carriers that pull your credit bureau report may impact your credit score. If you're not sure the best options for your credit profile, we suggest contacting the carrier directly before attempting to obtain service.
For more information on credit check requirements and how they might affect your account, consult their Credit Limit Monitoring page.
What About Activation and SIM Fees?
Fido charges a one-time $70 activation fee for every new line of service.
They also charge a $30 upgrade fee for processing phone upgrades.
However, both fees are waived if you complete the process online.
To bring your own phone or tablet, you'll need a Fido SIM.
SIM kits are available for $10 through their online store.
Does Fido Charge an Early Termination Fee?
If you have a contract agreement or device finance balance remaining, there will be a fee for you to cancel service with Fido. The Fido Terms & Conditions state:
“Unless otherwise set out in the Materials, if you agree to subscribe to any Term Services, you may be subject to an early cancellation fee, as described in an Agreement ("Early Cancellation Fee"), for the early cancellation of your Term Service prior to the end of the applicable Commitment Period. Any decrease in your Commitment Period may be subject to a fee. If your Term Service is terminated prior to the end of the Commitment Period, you will pay us an Early Cancellation Fee as specified in your Agreement for that Term Service, plus taxes.”
Unfortunately, the exact formula to calculate this fee isn’t listed anywhere on the site or forums. However, our best estimate is that you would owe--at a minimum--the remaining balance for your device financing agreement with a possible administrative fee.
For more information on Fido’s early termination fees, we recommend contacting Fido and discussing the issue with one of their representatives.
Can I Port My Number To or From Fido?
Fido follows all Local Number Portability guidelines allowing you to transfer your number from an existing landline or mobile line to your new Fido line of service.
Requirements are as follows:
- The account from which you are transferring the number must be assigned to the same name and address as your Fido account.
- The account you’re transferring from must be in good standing--including payment of any fees resulting from the porting of the number.
Fido claims that completing porting requests takes between 1 hour and 3 business days.
For more information on starting the number porting process, refer to Fido’s support page.
Will They Unlock My Phone?
Fido will unlock any Fido phone provided the following conditions are met:
- Your Fido account must be in good standing
- If you received a discount on your device, you must have active service for 90 days before unlocking
- If you purchased your device from a third-party seller, you must have active service for 90 days before unlocking
According to CRTC Wireless Code regulations effective December 2017, they must unlock your phone free of charge upon request.
For more information about unlocking your Fido phone through Fido, check their support page.
For additional questions about Fido pricing, features, and coverage, be sure to check out our Fido Q&A Forum. It’s filled with questions and answers from people like you looking to get the most out of their mobile service!
If you spot any errors or missing information, please let us know! It's appreciated and will help make this page better for everyone.
Voice network: GSM 850 MHz, UMTS 850 MHz, LTE 700 / 850 / 1900 / 1700 / 2100 / 2600 MHz
Data network: HSPA+, LTE
Mailing Address:
800 de la Gauchetiere West, Suite 4000 Montreal, Quebec H5A 1K3
Phone Number:
1-888-481-3436
(or 611 from your cell)
Official Website, Facebook, X, Coverage Maps, Manage Your Account
Resources
Review Sources and Citations
Use this product?
Help inform others by sharing your experience with Fido
Rate It:
Fido Question?
Visit the Fido Q&A Forum to get answers, ask a question or help others.