Affordable cell phone plan

[tvguy]

I drive an old car. No Bluetooth! lol My SO streams though. I wonder if he truly does use data or not??

Also my SO's job does not let employees connect to the wifi on their cell phones. Only lap tops. I'm on wifi all day at work.

I don't think $50 a line is bad for unlimited data. Some pay more for way less data.

To be honest, we use so little data, we both have WiFi shut off and just use data. Just checked. We have 3.1 GB of our 4 GB left with less than 2 days left on the month. Shockingly, our smartphones are most often used as phones. We have computers at work and home for everything else.

 

[nmrgrl55]

I pay $65/mo (including taxes and fees) for 2 phones with Total Wireless with like 15GB of data. I have a Galaxy S6 that I got for a penny years ago when I was on Verizon and my son has an iPhone SE that was $99. I've used them for the last year or two and think the service has been pretty good. My husband pays $90/mo for Verizon with unlimited data (he drives for a living and insists he needs to stream and use data but won't look to see how much he actually uses ).

 

[Anthony1971]

the ones I would stick with as they are directly owned...
T-Mobile owns Metro PCS -- there phones are not cheap but you can unlock after 30 days but may only be a GMS phone so Tmobile and ATT only. You can buy a used GMS unlocked phone and it will work.. MOTO phones can be had reasonable fully unlocked and will work on any network -- you can not buy one from Best buy branded for??? it has to be an unlocked one places like BH photo have good deals once in a while.. Apple phones bought from the apple store with no carrier also will work on any network as below.
Sprint owns both Virgin mobile usa -- there is a UK site as well.. and Boost -- Boost will discount phones but will only work with boost but can be unlocked after one year of being with them. some phones they unlock will only be CDMA so you can only use on them and Verizon
both of the above include tax on all plans so a 35.00 plan will be 35.00....
ATT owns cricket I am unfamiliar with the phone costs and unlocking options.
Walmart has a few plans that are owned by Walmart that run on T-Mobile not sure if T-Mobile owns them but is only T-Mobile network they will also discount phones but from what understand can not be unlocked
As above there are phones you can buy unlocked and move freely between any of the above I mentioned two above. Moto older versions can be had for around 100 and they are good phones... apple is apple and you will pay retail period...

 

[robinb]

We have Cricket Wireless and have had them for 4+ years. $100/month for 4 lines, all in. Uses AT&T towers, reception is very rarely an issue. Very happy with them.

Cricket can and will throttle you. Cricket is probably a better deal for 4 people, but it wasn't for me. I also think your plan may be grandfathered in.

I am with AT&T Prepaid and I have two phones on it for $70 per month. I get unlimited talk and text plus 8 GB data per phone. I buy prepaid cards monthly, at a discount, from Calling Mart for about $63-$66 (depending on the discount) which have a $70 value. I apply the card to my account directly though Calling Mart before AT&T charges my account so I pay no taxes or other fees.

 

[SUSIEQ]

If you have Xfinity internet, then you can get Xfinity mobile, which is the cheapest I've found. Texts and Calls are FREE. Then it's $12 per GB of data. We have 3 phones, and don't allow my daughter to use data on her phone, and our total price for all 3 is usually around $35 a month. They use Verizon towers.

I'm really thinking of trying this. I hope I don't regret it.

 

[Hikergirl]

My husbands current employer pays for his cell phone. He is leaving to a new position with a different company and will no longer have this perk. We are looking for an affordable cell phone/plan. I am currently on my parents family plan with a basic phone (not a smartphone) for $30/month (I reimburse them the cost of course). We are looking to get me off my parents family plan and get myself a smartphone along with my husband. Where should we start looking for affordable plans? Hubby stopped by Bestbuy on his way home from work and was quoted $120/month for 2 phones/4gb data.

What carrier are you looking at?

My family of 5 uses Total Wireless which runs on the Verizon network.
We pay $135 a month for our service (4 of us are on the $100/mo plan and share (evenly) 25GB of data, and my dd is on the singe line $35 plan, it is normally 5GB but there was a promo when she signed up so she gets 7.5GB).
I stock up when Target has Buy 1 get 1 20% off refills so sometimes the 4 of us are only paying $80 a month and my dd under $30.

There are alot of affordable options if you are willing to go to an MVNO, you just need to use one that gets good service in your area.

 

[nmrgrl55]

What carrier are you looking at?

My family of 5 uses Total Wireless which runs on the Verizon network.
We pay $135 a month for our service (4 of us are on the $100/mo plan and share (evenly) 25GB of data, and my dd is on the singe line $35 plan, it is normally 5GB but there was a promo when she signed up so she gets 7.5GB).
I stock up when Target has Buy 1 get 1 20% off refills so sometimes the 4 of us are only paying $80 a month and my dd under $30.

There are alot of affordable options if you are willing to go to an MVNO, you just need to use one that gets good service in your area.

How often do they do B1G1 20% off? I try to look out for deals, but I've never seen that deal!

 

[Hikergirl]

How often do they do B1G1 20% off? I try to look out for deals, but I've never seen that deal!

The last one was in January, but I honestly don't pay attention to how often, I would say a few times a year.
They do have "sales" on the cards more often, I think the standard sale is 5 or 10% off.
I also think that the sale is for certain ones, so TW may not be included but another prepaid carrier is. I just check Target or slickdeals when I know it's time to refill.

 

[starry_solo]

Ultimately, it's not a one size fits all. It will depend on what type of service you get in your area. While they are low-cost options, they aren't for everyone. Sprint is horrible in my area, tons of dropped calls, texts that don't go through, etc. AT&T is similar - I see my neighbors outside the house when they need to use their cells. I would love to get a cheaper alternative but, for us, Verizon is the most reliable in the area.

 

[Disneyliscious]

I have used Straight Talk for nearly 10 years now. $35 a month for unlimited talk and text with 3GB of data (that's not a lot of data but it works fine for me, you can get a $45 a month plan with more data, etc). I love their service, love not having a contract, and would never consider changing. In FACT, they actually lowered the price of their plans last year. I paid $45 forever and then they dropped my plan to $35. My whole family uses Straight Talk. They use Verizon Towers.

 

[Searc]

My daughter seems to have found a way to stream music in her car, by linking her Google Phone on WiFi and using the SYNC in her car and not using any data.
Me, I listen to satellite radio. 60's on 6!

LOL What does she pay for that monthly wifi subscription in her car? It isn't free.

 

[Searc]

Double post

 

[tvguy]

LOL What does she pay for that monthly wifi subscription in her car? It isn't free.

Sacramento launched a huge free WiFi wiring project in 2013, so nothing. Plus is provider is Google.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

I am amazed at all the low data usage, last month DH and I used 23 gb combined. Thank goodness for unlimited plans!

 

[cglaura]

If you have Xfinity internet, then you can get Xfinity mobile, which is the cheapest I've found. Texts and Calls are FREE. Then it's $12 per GB of data. We have 3 phones, and don't allow my daughter to use data on her phone, and our total price for all 3 is usually around $35 a month. They use Verizon towers.

I second this if you are an xFinity customer. I have been using it since they started (around 1.5 years). You do get up to 100mb of data free as well. You pay taxes and fcc stuff, but the most my bill ever was is $2.40 or so.

I keep my data turned off, and use wifi at home. When out you can use any xFinity wifi for free. How well that works will depend on where you live.

I also like that you can swap between plans. So if you are going to be traveling, you can switch to unlimited and then back to per use next month. You have to pay for the full month of unlimited, which is $45, but might be less than the $12 per gb on the per use plan.

They have sales, my phone only cost $1! It is an LG xCharge, not the fanciest schmanciest like an iPhone or galaxy, but it is a decent smartphone and takes nice pictures.

I used Virgin Mobile in the past, probably 10 years or so? Never had any issues and as a pp mentioned, pretty decent unlimited plans.

 

[tvguy]

I am amazed at all the low data usage, last month DH and I used 23 gb combined. Thank goodness for unlimited plans!

I'm amazed (FLABBERGASTED actually) that anyone could use that much data. Our photographers tether their phones to feed in HD video, plus GPS, web etc. You're using 6 times as much data (okay 3 times if it is two of you) as our highest user.

 

[dina444444]

I am amazed at all the low data usage, last month DH and I used 23 gb combined. Thank goodness for unlimited plans!

I average out between 18-22gbs a month for just myself. I’ve also never not had unlimited data since getting my first iPhone 11 years ago.

 

[Hikergirl]

I am amazed at all the low data usage, last month DH and I used 23 gb combined. Thank goodness for unlimited plans!

I use my phone as a phone and to text more than I use it as a way to get online so I don't really need alot of data.
I don't think I have ever used even half of my 6+ GB monthly allotment. Same for dh.
If my kids are at a place where they are streaming or something, it's most likely a place where they have wifi. If they don't have access to wifi it usually means they are doing something out and about where they aren't sitting there streaming or doing things that require alot of data.
My dd used to have unlimited but since it was a prepaid service they toggled the speed after X amount used and it was basically useless. I think she learned then how to conserve LOL

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I am amazed at all the low data usage, last month DH and I used 23 gb combined. Thank goodness for unlimited plans!

My son uses over 20 gb per month by himself. Streaming videos kills data.

 

[tvguy]

My son uses over 20 gb per month by himself. Streaming videos kills data.

It makes a huge difference if the video is HD or SD.
My IT guys say 23 GB that OP was talking about is over 19 DAYS of SD live streaming......over 15 hours per day in a 30 day month.