To give a team member a work number you have two real options: add a work eSIM line to the phone they already carry, or issue a second company handset. For most small and mid-sized businesses the eSIM line wins on cost, logistics and adoption, while giving the business the same ownership of the number.
A second phone gives you a fully separate device — sometimes the right call for high-security or field roles. But for the common goal of "everyone has a proper work number", buying, shipping and managing handsets is a lot of overhead for a number.
At a glance
| Work eSIM line | Second work phone | |
|---|---|---|
| Up-front cost | None — no hardware | Handset purchase per person |
| Ongoing cost | ~£4.99 per line / month | Airtime plan plus device |
| Time to live | Minutes — scan a QR code | Procure, provision, ship, set up |
| Device to carry | Their existing phone | A second device |
| Adoption | High — one phone | Lower — people leave the 2nd phone at home |
| Number ownership | Company-owned, reassignable | Company-owned, reassignable |
| Offboarding | Remove eSIM, reassign line | Recover device, wipe, re-issue |
| IT overhead | Manage lines in a portal | Manage a fleet of devices |
Cost
A second phone means a capital cost for each handset plus an airtime plan and, realistically, insurance, cases and replacements. A work eSIM line is a monthly subscription — roughly £4.99 per line per month — with no hardware to buy. For a growing team, the difference compounds quickly.
Logistics
Handsets have to be sourced, configured, shipped, tracked, repaired and eventually collected back. Multiply that across a team and it becomes a standing job. A work line is provisioned in the portal at /app and activated by the employee scanning a QR code — live in minutes, nothing to post. Reassigning a line when someone leaves is a portal action, not a courier booking.
Adoption
This is where second phones quietly fail. People don’t want to carry two devices, so the work phone gets left in a drawer or at home — and then they’re unreachable, or they fall back to their personal number anyway. A work line lives on the phone they already carry everywhere, so it actually gets used. More on the one-phone setup in dual SIM for work and BYOD done right.
Security and ownership
Both approaches let the business own the number, which is the thing that matters most for continuity — work calls, texts and 2FA stay with the company and can be reassigned (see own your business numbers).
Where a second handset genuinely adds something is full device separation: a company-controlled OS, its own storage and apps, and remote wipe of the whole device. If a role needs the work environment fully isolated from personal apps, a managed handset is the stronger control.
Which to choose
- Choose a work eSIM line when the goal is a proper, company-owned work number for each person, fast rollout, low cost and high adoption.
- Choose a second phone when a role needs a fully separate, centrally managed device with its own apps and whole-device controls.
- Do both if you like — issue handsets to the few roles that need them and give everyone else a work line.
Getting started
If a work line fits, you can get started and provision your first numbers in minutes — real UK numbers on a real UK network, one company bill. For the rollout, see give employees a work number.
Enterprise eSIM runs on eSIM Copilot, part of Mindszi. More at /about.
Frequently asked questions
Is a work eSIM line cheaper than a second work phone?
Generally yes. There’s no handset to buy — it’s a monthly line of around £4.99 per person on the phone they already own, versus a device plus an airtime plan.
Do I lose control of the number by not issuing a phone?
No. The company owns the work number either way. With an eSIM line you reassign it in the portal instead of recovering and re-issuing a handset.
When is a second phone still the better choice?
When a role needs a fully separate, centrally managed device — its own OS, apps and whole-device remote wipe. An eSIM line separates the number, not the whole device.
Can I mix both?
Yes. Many teams give everyone a work line and issue company handsets only to the few roles that truly need a separate device.
Give your team work numbers
Real UK numbers your company owns, on the phones they already carry. Live in minutes.