4 Easy Steps to Choosing the Right Cell Phone Plan
There’s a mind-boggling amount of cell phone plans and services available these days. Cell phone ads promising bigger, bolder and better features blare at us every day. The question then becomes, “Which plan is right for me?” In this article, I’ll give you tips on what to look for in a plan, what to ask your service provider and how to avoid common mistakes that new subscribers often make!
First, ask yourself “What do I want in a plan?” Finding the right cellular plan is just a matter of deciding what, when, where and how you plan to use your phone:
- Will you be using it only for emergencies, or to chat with friends or family often?
- Will you make most of your calls during the day, evening, or on weekends?
- Will your calls be coming from your local area, or will you phone while traveling?
- What is your monthly budget for telephone services?
Getting the Most Minutes for your Money
Cell phone plans often come with a pre-allotted set of minutes per month (which may or may not correspond with an actual “minute” of time depending on factors such as where you are when you make the call, calling a long distance number and so on).
When you use up your minutes, you may be faced with paying an overage fee or paying a higher amount for the extra minutes. With many plans, the minutes you don’t use do not automatically roll over to the next month. So if you only used 30 minutes out of your 90 minute monthly allotment, you don’t get to keep the 60 minutes you didn’t use that month. You simply start over at 90 again.
Some other important differences to note in cell phone plans (as versus traditional telephone service) that you’ll want to keep in mind when comparison shopping include:
- You may find that your minutes are used up for both incoming and outgoing calls
- Calling a toll free number can cost you minutes
- The actual amount of time you’ve spent on a call is usually rounded up. So if you spent 3 minutes and 5 seconds on a call, you may find that 4 minutes have been used.
- The clock starts ticking on your minute usage the minute you press the “Call” or “Send” button, not the moment the other person picks up.
Most cellular service providers have a special phone number or web site address where you can login to check the number of minutes you have remaining each month. Keep in mind though, depending on how often the accounts or web site is updated, the numbers may not always be current.
Long Distance, Dropped Calls and Roaming – Oh My!
When choosing a wireless plan, keep in mind where you’ll be using your phone most often. Some service providers have nationwide coverage, while others target a specific “home area”. If you make or receive a call outside of this area, you’re “Roaming”, and your minutes may run out faster or you may face an extra charge. Know the boundaries of your calling area – you could be charged for long distance and roaming on top of the minutes that are spent during the call!
If you have a set of numbers that you dial frequently (such as friends, family, doctors and so on), ask the wireless provider if the cell phone plan you’re interested in will work in those locations without accruing long distance or roaming charges.
What To Ask Your Service Provider
If you’ve got a handful of good plans you’re considering, these questions may help narrow down the field of choices:
- Can I use my minutes anytime? Can they be used during “peak times” or am I charged more during those hours? (peak times usually occur on weekends). When do “peak hours” start and end?
- How much extra am I charged if I go over my monthly allotment of minutes?
- How much will I be charged for long distance and/or roaming? (Some nationwide carriers do not charge for these services unless you call out of the country)
- What is your cancellation policy? What happens if I cancel early? Will I be charged a cancellation fee after my plan has been activated?
- Can I make any changes to my plan (such as increasing or decreasing the number of minutes) after my service has been activated?
- What other features are included on my plan? (such as voice mail, caller ID) and if not included, how much would they cost to add to my service?
Remember, get all of these answers in writing. That way, if you suddenly find a $100 Early Cancellation charge on your bill, and you have a written document that states that there is no early cancellation fee, you’ll have an easier time of disputing the charge.
If you have several plans you’d like to try out, ask the service provider if there is a grace period where you can cancel your service without being charged (or being charged only a small amount) if the service doesn’t meet your expectations. Chances are, many wireless providers will be eager and happy to help you compare plans. Just remember to read the fine print before you sign!
Watch the video related to compare cell phone plans
sorry about the quality it was shot with a cellphone and we were right next to the speakers/amps. this is Simple Plan Live at Orange Lounge Tattoo Parlor.. this was a private show in downtown toronto
Help answer the question about compare cell phone plans
Want to see the AT&T cell phone plans?I'm comparing AT&T plans to Verizon, but I can't find a page where it would just give me cell phone plans where I could click a link or two and see different types of plans with different amounts of lines or unlimited or something.
Sooo, a link to AT&T plans please and thank you ;D.
I don't wanna see the bundles with internet or anything, JUST the cell phone plans when you get a few cell phones from them.
Thanks! ;D
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Here's a simple example. I'm going to ignore text messaging and mobile web prices because I don't know how complicated you want it to be.
I'm just going to assume there is a monthly charge (no matter how many minutes you use) and a charge per minute for the amount of minutes that you go over your allowed minutes.
Let's say plan A is 39.99/month for 500 minutes, and then it is $0.65 per minute after you use the 500 minutes.
Let's say plan B is $34.99/month for 450 minutes, and then it is $0.60 per minute after the 450 minutes.
Let x = number of minutes you use each month.
The cost of plan A would be
C = 39.99 if you use less than 500 minutes or
C = 39.99 + 0.65(x-500) if you use 500 minutes or more.
The cost of plan B would be
C = 34.99 if you use less than 450 minutes or
C = 34.99 + 0.60(x-450) if you use more than 450 minutes.
Right away you can see that Plan B is cheaper if you don't use more than 450 minutes.
You can find when the plans cost the same amount by setting the cost of each plan equal to each other.
39.99 + 0.65(x-500) = 34.99 +0.60(x-450)
Then solve for x.
http://www.phonescoop.com has every cell phone from every wireless provider available. Hope this helps!
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I just looked yesterday. Check out this site:
http://cnet.phonedog.com/cell-phone-research/compare-plans.aspx
hope it helps
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type that into a search
Here are some things to consider that will make the process of comparing prepaid plans an easy one:
1. Price per minute – prepaid cell phones minutes cost between 10 cents and 60 cents. That's a huge range. With some prepaid providers you buy a bucket of minutes, and the more you buy at one time, the less per minute cost.
With others you put dollar amounts on your phone. With more money you add, your number of minutes per dollar will increase. Long story short, the more you spend, the cheaper each individual minute will be.
2. Expiring minutes -This is really important. Once your minutes expire, you will lose them. If you use your cell phone often, this probably won't be an issue.
But, if you are buying a phone for emergency purposes or to use infrequently, you might want to spend more per minute for a later expiration date. Some carriers also make you add a certain amount of minutes or money per month in order to keep your account active.
3. Daily Fees -Some carriers charge a fee for each day your phone is used. This can be as high as $1.00 a day, but will come with lower per minute fees.
If you use your phone infrequently this might be a good deal for you. If you use your phone for many days a month, you will be paying too much, especially if it's for short call.
4. Nights and weekends/ mobile to mobile -Some plans offer free nights and weekends and some offer free calls to others with the same carrier.
Again, you might want to pay more per minute if you will be able to take advantage of these features.
5. Roaming charges – Some carriers have roaming charges and other have none. It is important to find out if there will be times that you will be roaming.
If you will be roaming frequently, you will want to avoid a carrier that has roaming fees. Some are up to 70 cents per minute.
6. International calling -Some prepaid plans offer it and some do not. If you need international calling capabilities you will want to be sure that the carrier you select offers this service. Finding the best plan can be a daunting task.
Be sure to sit down and write what your needs will be before shopping. If you know what your needs are for the above topics, you will be able to make an educated comparison of prepaid plans.
Try MyRatePlan. At the source link below, you can compare single, family and/or prepaid plans.
You generally won't find discount codes for rate plans, although some corporations have discounts with specific carrier(s). Usually these come in the form of a percentage (e.g., 15%) off your monthly bill.