Is there a true path to a lower cell phone bill? We certainly believe that there is. Obviously, though, different people are going to have a different path to a lower cell phone bill. This is one of the things that people don’t understand. If you go for the lowest base payment, you can end up paying way more than you would if you upgraded. It’s hard to make a cross-examination of each phone company. Because we would also have to take into account the level of coverage that each offers in a particular area. What we’ve seen is that people still choose their service provider depending on who gives them the best coverage in their area. This is a concept that may seem foreign to people in big cities. That’s rural America for you!
What we are going to disclose here are essentially tips and tricks that can lead you to a lower cell phone bill. Ideally, you’re coming into this with an open mind. One of the main problems that people have is that they want to pay less, but they don’t want to be perceived as cheap. The bottom line is that if you really want to lower your bill, then you may have to use some tactics that some people will perceive as cheap. Also, most service providers gear their phone plans towards family units. That can be a problem if you’re on your own. There are ways around that, though. That’s also something that we are going to explore here.
Lower Cell Phone Bill: Find Out How Much Data/Minutes You’re Actually Using
What we see happen to a lot of people these days, particularly the non-tech savvy crowd, is that they’ll get lured into overly expensive unlimited plans. There’s no question that unlimited plans can be a great option for teens who are on their phones the whole day. If you’re not someone who is using up a ton of data or minutes per month, you may be paying too much. These unlimited plans have become like a buffet. Your wireless service provider is betting that you’re not going to use up as much data as they can provide. Yet you’re still paying the same fee as the kid who spends his days on TikTok.
Literally, you need to come up with the number when it comes to the amount of MB that you’re using per month. Your phone has an app for that. If not, you can download one from the App store. Just type in data usage calculator. Also, you need to make sure that you know how many minutes you’re using per month. Spoiler alert, this is a number that literally totals zero for some people month after month. This is another part of your plan that you maybe aren’t taking full advantage of. There are data-only plans available that you can look into if you think that you’re paying too much for minutes. Although having some minutes can still come in handy for when the Uber Eats delivery person calls!
Do You Need To Cut Back On Any Of This Usage?
Another one of the reasons why it’s obviously important to get a good read on how much data or minutes you happen to be using is because maybe you are using too much. For example, folks on unlimited plans may just never connect to a home Wi-Fi network. Why would you, right, you have unlimited data? This opens up a new avenue to save cash, though. Maybe you won’t be able to get a lower cell phone bill, but you can cut your home Wi-Fi needs altogether. Just use your phone is a mobile wifi-spot. In most cases, this may only be an option if you live alone. Hooking up too many devices to a mobile wifi-spot on your phone is probably not ideal.
Good Wi-Fi At Home
We’ve talked about what can be considered one end of the spectrum. Using your phone data all the time and forgoing the payment of your home Wi-Fi. What you can do is also upgrade your home Wi-Fi and limit the amount of data that you have on your cell phone plan. This is actually an option that is opening up to more and more people. With home office jobs becoming more popular after the pandemic, the time you spend outdoors is minimal. When you’re indoors, there’s usually always going to be a Wi-Fi connection that you can hook up to.
Maybe relying too much on office Wi-Fi is not ideal. Usually, in office buildings, there are a lot of devices connected to the Wi-Fi. So the coverage that you ultimately get is a little sluggish. If you’re at home though, and you’re working from home, upgrading your home Wi-Fi network can surely be an option that’s going to be worth looking into for you. That kind of goes back to the first point. If you know how much data you’re actually using, you’re going to have a better chance of making a lot of these decisions.
Migrate Some Of Your Communication To Apps
This is something that a lot of people are doing anyway. It could sound counterintuitive to reduce the allowance of data that you have on your plan and then move your communication to apps. Particularly when minutes are something that wireless service providers are throwing in pretty much as a complementary piece. However, as we mentioned in the last point, these days we are always near a Wi-Fi network. Most business calls are made through apps these days anyway. A good internet connection is certainly way more important than having phone minutes to spend. Text fees are also something you can find yourself paying if you’re not careful. You can move your calls and text to apps like WhatsApp and Telegram.
The good thing about moving all of your communications through apps is that you can also be less reliant on your cell phone. For example, you could open up Telegram and WhatsApp on your browser. You could be dealing with some texts even as you’re working. This can work for some people and for others. As it can become more of a distraction. In any case though, it’s an opportunity to again use your Wi-Fi to handle most of your communications. That way, you’re going to need less data from your phone bill!
Family Plan Versus Solo Plan
One of the things that can be difficult is getting a good deal with a solo plan. All you have to do is switch the number of lines that you want on one contract, and you’ll see how those prices go up. If you have 4 or 5 numbers on one contract, you’re going to be able to get better rates from virtually all wireless service providers. An option here, particularly if you live alone, is to pair up with a few friends and have your lines on the same contract. Is that ideal? Of course, that really depends on how much you trust these people to pay their phone bill. The issue is that on one bill you need to gather the cash and make the payment from one card. That can leave someone on the hook for a hefty bill!
If you don’t want to take the risk of getting friends and family involved in your contract, you still have some options that you’re going to be able to try. For example, you can look into prepaid plans. For one, prepaid plans give you the major advantage of not having to deal with any type of roll over fees. Yes, there are mostly unlimited plans being offered by most service providers these days. They still find ways to screw you over. With prepaid plans, you only pay for what you need. You can manage your budget much better.
When you do the first step that we talked about right, and you know how much data or minutes you need, you’re going to be better equipped to make that decision. If you’re really using minimal amounts of data, a prepaid plan can make a ton of sense. Even on prepaid plans, you could also get deals for getting multiple lines on one contract. So these are actually two pieces of advice that you could potentially combine.
Lower Cell Phone Bill: Don’t Get Hooked Because Of A Phone
Wireless service providers have been tying people down with contracts that include your phone. They also have deals that allow you to upgrade your phone every so often. A lot of times what this does is it ties you to a service provider. Worst of all, if you have a hefty phone, it’s going to be really hard to change your rates. You’ll essentially have to buy your way out of that contract. That doesn’t make a ton of sense, most of the time. What you’re trying to do is save money, and putting up even more upfront is probably not ideal.
If you want the new iPhone every single time they release a new one, you can get a deal directly with Apple. That way, the phone is essentially yours. Make sure that you keep it unlocked, though. That way, you can pay your phone over time on a credit line. However, your credit line is not going to be directly tied down to the wireless service provider. Obviously, some deals may be better with wireless service than with phone manufacturers. Make sure though that you scope out all of the possibilities that you could have at your disposal. That’s going to let you determine how to get a lower cell phone bill!
Don’t Get So Many Add-ons
Verizon in particular is so good at this. They attach your cable TV bill, and now all of your subscriptions to streaming services, to your phone bill. Add to that maybe that you have international calls or some other type of actual phone add-on. That’s really when your cell phone bill can get really nasty. We keep coming back to, what do you really need? One of the first things that you may want to look into lowering your costs are all of the add-ons that you’re carrying on that bill. They can be things like an insurance policy on your phone. If you say yes to everything that you’re offered, you’re going to be in some trouble.
Speaking about international calls, some of these ads are overly expensive. You can pay for example up to 15 dollars to get better rates for international calling. If you make a lot of calls abroad, of course, those 15 dollars are going to be worth it. They can take a base cost of 35 dollars a line to 50 dollars! Do you really need to make “phone calls’ ‘ per se? It could be a good moment to look into apps, as we mentioned. International calling through apps can be considerably cheaper. Especially if you have an unlimited data plan.
Lower Cell Phone Bill Conclusion
The first step that we talked about as far as getting a sense of how much data, and or minutes you spend is crucial. That’s going to be what will ultimately allow you to pick and choose which of the tips that we’ve thrown out make more sense for you. If you have no idea how much data you’re spending, you’ll probably end up overpaying on your phone bill. Don’t take that as a criticism. That’s actually something that happens to most people. Particularly with the rise of unlimited plans.
Speaking of unlimited plans, they shouldn’t necessarily be something that you stay away from if you’re looking to spend less on your phone bill. In fact, a lot of times it’s much better to have a higher base payment that gives you more coverage than having to pay more for any type of roll-over issue. The same thing goes for things like international calls. If you can’t move them through apps, then the add-on could make sense. Also, keep in mind, some of these add-ons are things that maybe you don’t realize you’re paying. Check to see if your plan doesn’t have some type of clause activated that it maybe shouldn’t.