Save on your cell phone bill

AID: 649
  • Status: Published

2770 points

  • ByG-Warren
  • TypeGeneral
  • Posted on2009-05-15 at 10:00:16
Are you an occasional cell phone user? Send a few texts a week, maybe have a few quick calls throughout the day? If so, you may be able to save a significant amount on your monthly cell phone bill by switching to a prepaid plan.

Take a look at the last 6 months of billing on your current plan and count up the total minutes used per month. Once you've got an average minutes per month, divide your monthly bill by the average monthly minutes to calculate a per minute rate. If you're paying more than 10 cents a minute, here's how to save some coin:

1.  Cancel your subscription and port your number to a T-Mobile prepaid plan. I looked at a lot of different providers, and T-Mobile offers the most value for your cell phone dollar. Stores like Target will sometimes put the T-Mobile prepaid starter kit w/ phone on sale, so you can save even more with that bundle ($100 of minutes and the phone is free).

2.  Purchase a $100 card to qualify for gold rewards immediately. You'll get 1000 minutes and it will last for a year.

3.  Buy your refill cards from discounters like CallingMart.com, ephonecard.com or others. With applicable coupon codes, you can consistently save $10 on a $100 card.

With this method, you will pay an effective price of 9 cents a minute. The average entry-level plan from the major providers will cost around $40/month regardless of your usage. Forget in-network/my faves, etc.-- if you use less than 445 minutes a month, you will save money with this method. Plus, you have the added benefit of no contract and no monthly bill.  
Asked On
2009-05-15 at 10:00:16ID649
Tags

cell phones

Topic

Cellular Phones & Carriers

Views
1998

Comments

Expert Comment

by: JackOfPH on 2009-05-15 at 18:34:40ID: 978

Only in US rights?

Author Comment

by: G-Warren on 2009-05-18 at 08:24:57ID: 1010

Yes this is specifically related to US plans and pricing. I'm not sure of rates and plans in other countries.

Expert Comment

by: sibleypark on 2009-05-19 at 13:46:55ID: 1019

This also works in Canada on several carriers.  I am not sure about the discount cards but the general principle is the same.  I switched 6 months ago and I love it as I don't pay a system access fee and it costs me $10 a month and I get unlimited text in and out.  Good article, I agree 100%.

Expert Comment

by: grtraders on 2010-01-23 at 06:25:42ID: 8352

Hi G-Warren,

How do you manage to display your Picture "Article Bio" ?

Ravi.

Add your Comment

Please Sign up or Log in to comment on this article.

Join Experts Exchange Today

Gain Access to all our Tech Resources

Get personalized answers

Ask unlimited questions

Access Proven Solutions

Search 3.2 million solutions

Read In-Depth How-To Guides

1000+ articles, demos, & tips

Watch Step by Step Tutorials

Learn direct from top tech pros

And Much More!

Your complete tech resource

See Plans and Pricing

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

Loading Advertisement...

Top Cell Phones Experts

  1. Mikal613

    24,532

    2,000 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  2. alanhardisty

    20,468

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  3. lherrou

    15,080

    2,100 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  4. simonet

    14,200

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Wizard
  5. FireRunt

    13,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Guru
  6. senthil1_kumar

    9,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Master
  7. Darr247

    6,600

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  8. leew

    6,500

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Savant
  9. FDiskWizard

    5,600

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Guru
  10. RobMobility

    5,268

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  11. snailcat

    5,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Guru
  12. demazter

    4,468

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  13. DaBagBoy

    3,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Master
  14. santhanasamy

    3,632

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Master
  15. Rogiee

    3,332

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Wizard
  16. Scissors85

    3,220

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Master
  17. shahzoor

    3,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Guru
  18. Ray_Paseur

    3,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Savant
  19. jordannet

    3,000

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Wizard
  20. Michael-Best

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Sage
  21. keith_alabaster

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  22. breadtan

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Genius
  23. Harvester_of_Sorrow

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
  24. SpeedyApocalypse

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Wizard
  25. TempDBA

    2,800

    0 points yesterday

    Profile
    Rank: Sage

Hall Of Fame