All About Skype International Calls & How to Choose Your Plan

Skype offers free international calls. The catch is that it has to be Skype to Skype. However, if you’d like to make an international call using Skype to someone with a landline or an unregistered Skype number, you’ll have to pay.

Are Skype international calls free?

If it’s Skype to Skype, it’s free but if the user is not on Skype, you’ll need to purchase Skype credits or subscribe to a Skype plan. The difference is the Skype credits plan offers a pay-as-you-go option while a subscription plan offers you unlimited talk time.

Both are great options but if you want to purchase one, you’ll have to look at your call habits. If you make many calls in a month, the subscription will offer you great value for money. However, Skype credits are your go-to if you talk to fewer people.

Your Skype credits are used up in accordance with the calling rates of each country. Some may be relatively affordable and others expensive. You can pay using various payment methods like PayPal or your credit cards and select an auto-renewal plan.

Luckily, a lot of people use Skype so you probably won’t need a subscription and even if you did, it would be for a handful of people.

How do I make Skype international calls?

1. Launch Skype on your desktop or phone, sign in and navigate to the Calls tab.
2. On the dial pad, select the country name where you need to make a call from the drop-down menu for the appropriate calling rates to be applied.
3. Next, enter the number you want to call and hit the Call button.

Read more about this topic

• How To Record a Skype Meeting on Your PC and Phone Easily
• 4 Simple Ways to Recover Skype Deleted Messages

Difference between Skype subscription and Skype credits

Skype subscription	Skype credits
Subscriptions are based on fixed time intervals	Credits are on a pay-as-you-go basis
Subscriptions are limited to select areas	Credits can be used in any country hence more flexible
Subscriptions have an expiry date	Credits do not expire
Unused subscriptions can be refunded	Credits can be used to purchase other features
Subscriptions offer a free trial	Credits don’t have free trials

What are the pros and cons of Skype subscriptions and credits?

Skype subscriptions

Pros

• Convenient – With unlimited calls, you don’t have to worry about topping up your subscription whenever you’re about to make a call.
• Cost efficient – For users who make a to of calls, it is cheaper to be on a subscription because of unlimited calls. The subscription rates are also relatively affordable with the lowest going for $2.54 and the most expensive at $6.79 for a monthly subscription.

Cons

• Limited coverage – The plans, although affordable, they only cover limited locations. If you want to make a call in an uncovered area, you’ll have to purchase an additional subscription.
• Flexible – Since it’s on a pay-as-you-go basis, you can top up as little or as much as you want depending on the Skype international calls you’ll be making.

Skype credits

Pros

• No expiry date – As long as your Skype account is active, your credits will remain until you use them.
• Wide coverage – You can use your Skype credit in all areas.

Cons

• Expensive – Because of its flexibility to call all areas, it may be expensive to call some areas and your credits get used up more than they would if you were on a subscription.
• Cumbersome -You’ll have to check your credit balance often to ensure it doesn’t interrupt your call or get a Skype call failed error message. This can get cumbersome.

Both plans have their own pros and cons but ultimately, the final choice lies on you. After evaluating your calling needs, you can choose the most appropriate option.

We’d recommend getting both. Get subscriptions for areas where you make a significant number of calls then use credits for occasional calls for areas excluded from the subscription plan.

There’s so much you need to learn about Skype but it’s why we’re here. For instance, did you know you can get free 60 minutes on landlines? We also have a few interesting facts about Skype you probably didn’t know about.

Have you tried Skype international calls? Were you on a subscription plan or using Skype credits? Which one would you recommend? Let us know in the comment section below.