How much is 3GB of data?
According to Ofcom’s 2021 report, most users choose to have (approximately) 4.5GB of mobile data each month. A 3GB bundle isn’t that far off the average, but would still be considered small by today’s standards. After all, you can easily find SIM plans that offer 10GB, 20GB, 50GB, or even unlimited!
But that doesn’t mean you should discount it. It could be the most affordable and most ideal plan for you, depending on your usage.
How long does 3GB of data last?
Before we can work out how long 3GB of data would last, we need to know how many MBs (megabytes) or GBs (gigabytes) common tasks would consume per hour.
Note: Approximately 1,000MBs make up 1GB.
|
Activity |
Data consumption |
|
Browsing the internet |
|
|
Listening to music |
Spotify 10.8MB per hour (24kbps) 43.2MB per hour (96kbps) 72MB per hour (160kbps) 144MB per hour (320kbps) |
|
Watching Netflix |
1GB per hour (standard definition) 3GB per hour (HD) |
|
Watching YouTube videos |
1.56GB per hour (1080p) 2.7GB per hour (4K) |
|
Browsing social media |
90MB per hour (scrolling) 156MB per hour (interacting) |
|
Using Skype / FaceTime |
Skype
FaceTime |
As you can see, streaming video content typically uses up the most data. Audio content, on the other hand, isn’t as data intensive (as long as you stream at a lower quality).
Scrolling the internet or other web-based applications like social media doesn’t consume much data, so you can usually do these activities for quite a while. Video chatting also uses up less than you might think per hour, but this will eventually add up - and, remember, once your data is gone, it’s gone until the next month!
How many hours will 3GB of data last for?
Now we know how much data each activity uses, let’s see how long they’d last on a 3GB plan:
|
Activity |
Time duration with 3GB* |
|
Browsing the internet |
50 hours |
|
Listening to music |
Spotify 277 hours (24kbps) 69 hours (96kbps) 41.6 hours (160kbps) 20.8 hours (320kbps) |
|
Watching Netflix |
3 hours (standard definition) 1 hour (HD) |
|
Watching YouTube videos |
1.9 hours (1080p) 1 hour (4K) |
|
Browsing social media |
33 hours (scrolling) 19 hours (interacting) |
|
Using Skype / FaceTime |
Skype 11 hours
FaceTime 16.6 hours |
*Calculated based on data consumption values in previous table - 3000MB or 3GB / XXMB or XXGB
As shown, you could only watch Netflix or YouTube for around one to two hours before running out of data for the month. Considering there’s around 720 hours to fill in a month, this wouldn’t be the best idea on a 3GB bundle.
However, you could browse social media for more than a day non-stop, and browse the web for two constant days (though you probably shouldn’t do this!). With 3GB, you also have quite a lot of data for streaming audio content, particularly if you opt to play your music in a lower quality to preserve your data.
If you use your data cautiously, you’d probably be able to make 3GB last for the month. But is it right for you?
Is 3GB of data enough for me?
It’s safe to say that 3GB is not suitable for people who stream video content or rely on their mobile data often while out and about.
This bundle size is best for those who:
- Like to sometimes stream audio content
- Mostly use their mobile data to search the internet
- FaceTime or Skype occasionally each month
- Scroll social media fairly regularly
3GB with Asda mobileIf you're looking for a great value SIM plan with no contract, look no further than Asda mobile! For just £5 a month you could get 3GB of data, as well as unlimited minutes and texts. You can also take advantage of 4G, Wi-Fi Calling, roam like you're home, and much more!
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Discover more
If 3GB isn’t right for you, check out our other data guides here:
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