The average American spends about $1,300 – $1,400 per year on their cell phone plan. If you look at your plan, chances are it’s a noticeable part of your monthly bills.
Your cell phone charges are probably higher or at least comparable to many other bills you pay. To save more each month, you need to make sure you’re paying the lowest possible amount for your cell phone plan.
Thankfully, regardless increasing cost of phone plansyou can learn how to lower your cell phone bill. If you want to stop wasting money paying more for your phone plan every month, it’s time to take action.
How to lower your cell phone bill
There are many ways to start lowering your cell phone bill. Some strategies involve finding cheaper plans, while others are as simple as changing your phone’s settings.
1. Change your carrier
Sometimes, the best way to lower your cell phone bill is to switch to a carrier that offers a comparable plan at a lower price.
You should not assume that all mobile plans charge the same amount. Instead, take a few minutes to compare plans every now and then.
An affordable option to consider is Boost Mobile. When you switch to Boost Mobile, you can get unlimited talk, text and data for $25 a month – and that price is locked in for life as long as you stay active with AutoPay. There are no annual contracts, no trade-in required and you have access to a network that offers 99% nationwide coverage. New customers can currently start at just $10/month for the first three months, then $25/month forever.
2. Consider prepaid phone plans
Switching to a prepaid phone plan is one of the fastest ways to lower your monthly cell phone bill. A prepaid phone plan, or no-contract plan, is just what it sounds like – you pay upfront for a set amount of monthly minutes, text messages and data. If you run out, you can pay for additional usage or wait until the next month for usage to reset.
Since prepaid plans let you pay monthly, you don’t have to worry about being stuck with an expensive carrier and plan you don’t need. Plus, prepaid phone plans generally fall back on existing cellular networks from major providers, helping them remain more affordable while offering reliable coverage.
3. Stick with old phones
If you prefer contract plans, you can still lower your cell phone bill by sticking with cheaper phones. Contract plans usually advertise new phones that cost $0 and give you a “free” phone when you sign up, but that’s not the reality because they factor the phone costs into your monthly contract price. If you decide to buy the latest iPhone or Samsung, don’t expect the cheapest phone plan on the market.
Consider sticking with a slightly older model to reduce the amount you pay per month. If you can bring an old phone on the plan, that’s even better. But if you decide to upgrade your current phone, you can also ask if your carrier accepts phone trade-ins to earn a discount.
4. Cancel Additional Services
Stop paying for services you don’t need. Look at your last bill and see what services you pay for that you don’t use. Unlimited data and minutes are great. It may seem like you need a big plan, but look at the actual number of minutes or data you use. Consider choosing the cheapest phone plan if you can’t upgrade to a less expensive basic plan, especially if you’re in a tight budget.
5. Consider family plans
You can often lower your cell phone bill by signing up for a family plan. Most providers only charge 25% of the cost of the original line to add more lines. Of course, you need to pay attention to features to keep your bill down, but usually, adding more phones lowers your cost per phone compared to prepaid or no-contract plans.
6. Skip insurance
Cell phone sellers make cell phone insurance sound like a must when, frankly, the money is in the bin. Instead of paying $10 – $20 a month for phone insurance, put that money into your account. If something happens to your phone, you’ll have the funds to take care of it without lining the cell company’s pockets.
Ideally, you should only buy a phone that you can afford to repair or replace if something happens. Stay within your budget and you won’t have to spend money on cell phone insurance, keeping your cell phone bill low.
7. Limit background data
Data overage charges are one of the fastest ways to turn a cheap cell phone bill into your worst nightmare. Although unlimited data is becoming more affordable, if you have a data cap, you should do everything you can to stay within your monthly limit.
To prevent data overage charges, get in the habit of turning off your data at home or when connected to Wi-Fi.
You should also disable data permissions for specific apps on your phone. Blocking permission for data heavy apps like YouTube and others video streaming apps eliminates the possibility of accidentally downloading mobile data when watching videos. You can also limit background data usage for apps so they only consume data when you’re actively using them.
8. Travel smart
It doesn’t matter if you are one digital nomad or travel frequently for business; staying connected while abroad can be expensive.
Instead of upgrading your phone plan to include international travel, try a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot plan. Keepgo is a popular option and offers coverage in more than 100 countries. If you give up your SMS needs in favor of a messaging app like WhatsApp, you can save even more money on international travel.
9. Sell your old phone
To reduce the cost of ownership of a mobile phone, you need to recoup some of the hardware costs selling your used phone.
If you’re upgrading, see if you can get a good trade-in value from the new carrier. Alternatively, try a used cell phone marketplace like SellCell. They pay cash for used phones and accept a variety of popular models, making it quick to find buyers for your device.
Sell your phone with SellCell
10. Negotiation
When was the last time you called the mobile operator ask for a better rate? If it’s been more than a year, you may lose your chance to lower your monthly cell phone bill. If you’ve been a long-time customer with the same company for years, call and see if you can get a better rate, and don’t forget to mention that you’re shopping around.
You can even go so far as to get quotes from other phone carriers and share that information with your provider. If they won’t match or beat the offer, go elsewhere.
11. Take advantage of cashback
If you have one cash back credit cardtransfer your monthly cell phone payments to that card. This is a quick way to recoup some of your monthly expenses without much effort.
If you’re signing up for a mobile plan online, shop through Rakutena popular one cashback appthat pays you cash for purchases at thousands of stores, including carriers like Verizon, AT&T, Cricket Wireless and Visible by Verizon.
Rakuten usually pays cash as a percentage for purchases to their partners. However, some phone providers offer up to $125 in rebates instead, which is a great way to kick off your new phone plan.
The last word
These days, it’s virtually impossible to avoid owning a smartphone. The days of having one landline phone are coming to an end, and as smartphone technology improves, these devices will become more integrated into everyday life.
Fortunately, with a few simple steps, it’s easy to learn how to lower your phone bill. If you can find room to save extra money, your future self will surely thank you.
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