How to make free international calls

If you have family or friends living overseas it has never been easier to make that much treasured phone call for free. Whether you are using a computer, landline phone or mobile phone there are ways of getting these calls without parting with your hard earned cash.

PC to PC

You can use your computer to contact someone on their computer using Skype. Both parties will need to download the software and have internet access, then you are good to go. The latest PCs have built-in cameras and microphones so you can also enjoy video calls for free which adds a whole new dimension to the occasion. You need to be aware that calls are only free between PCs so don't fall for Skype's other offers that will only cost you money.

Phone to Phone

There are specialist internet telephony providers such as JaJah that allow two people with internet access to make international calls for the cost of a local call. There is a limited range of countries available but North America, Australasia and Europe are fully covered.

There are a large number of these override providers so to make sure you are getting the best deal for the country required use intcallchecker

Mobile to Mobile

Providers such as Rebtel and firstnumber will let you make cheap international call from anywhere in the UK. You will be given a local number to dial for each country, just dial this number followed by the number you want to call and away you go.

As above there are a large number of override providers so use intcallchecker to make sure you are getting the best deal.

Recently Apple have launched FaceTime which will allow you to make free video calls between iPhones or between Mac computers or any combination of the two. Skype also offer an app which does much the same thing. You need to be aware, however, that whilst calls are free over the internet, calls via 3G may use up your data allowance very quickly.