1300 Free Call
A 1300 number is not a free call — callers pay a local call cost and the business pays the remainder. What free actually requires is the 1800 range.
A 1300 number is not a free call, and the distinction matters if free is what you are after. On 1300 the caller pays a local call cost on every call — that is the shared-cost design — and the business pays the remainder. The range that makes calls free for customers is 1800: callers pay nothing in the stated Australian 1800-number context, and the business carries the call charges.
Why the mix-up happens
Both ranges are inbound business numbers, both are dialled the same way, and both appear on Australian businesses of every size. But their caller-cost arrangements are opposites, and the price of getting it wrong is a customer experience you did not intend: callers expecting a free call pay a local call cost on a 1300, and businesses expecting shared cost carry the whole charge on an 1800.
The published split, side by side
| Range | Caller pays | Business pays |
|---|---|---|
| 1300 | A local call cost | The remainder, under the plan's rate table |
| 1800 | Nothing, in the stated Australian 1800-number context | The whole call charge, under the plan's rate table |
Both ranges run on published plans from $10 per month, and both can carry a word (up to six letters, from $40 per month with availability and desirability affecting the word) — the caller arrangement is the only thing the choice changes.
Choosing honestly
If callers contributing a local call cost is acceptable — even preferable — 1300 is the fit. If the call must cost the customer nothing, 1800 is the fit. The 1300 vs 1800 comparison and the 1800 or 1300 numbers page set the decision out in full, and every published fee and rate sits on the pricing page.
Related reading: what a 1300 number costs, what 1800 numbers cost, or the 1300 numbers pillar.
Free-call questions
Is a 1300 number free to call?
No. Callers pay a local call cost on 1300 — the shared-cost design. The free-for-callers range is 1800, in the stated Australian context.
Which should I choose if free matters?
1800. The business then carries the whole call charge under its plan's rate table, while callers pay nothing in the stated Australian context.
Do the two ranges cost the business the same?
The published plan price points are the same for both — the difference is which side of the call carries the per-minute charge, and how much of it.
Can either range spell a word?
Yes — up to six letters on a 1300 or 1800 base, from $40 per month with availability and desirability affecting the word. The word does not change the caller arrangement.
The common mix-up
Want a free call for customers? That is 1800
Compare the two caller arrangements before choosing a range.