4 Ways To Lower Your Cell Phone Bill

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Hey,

Major carriers are raising prices.

On August 20th, 2023, T-Mobile raised prices by $5 per line per month with the launch of their new Go5G plans.

Then AT&T raised prices by $0.99 per line per month on January 12th, 2024 with the launch of their new plans.

And now Verizon is raising rates by $4 per line per month starting on March 1st, 2024:

Do you want to pay more for the same service you’ve always had?

My guess is no, probably not.

So I put together a list of four proven ways to lower your cell phone bill, even as the big carriers raise prices:

1. Apply for Discounts

Most carriers offer discounts on their service to military veterans, first responders, nurses, teachers, students, and more.

AT&T offers up to 25% off their plans.

Verizon offers up to $20 off per month.

And T-Mobile offers up to a whopping 40% off their plans to eligible customers.

Check to see what discounts your carrier offers. You may be eligible. If you are, you can easily score some extra savings on your cell phone bill.

Helpful links:

• Check AT&T discounts

• Check Verizon discounts

• Check T-Mobile Military discounts, First Responder discounts, and age 55+ discounts

2. Switch to a More Affordable Plan from Your Same Carrier

If you are paying for an expensive plan from your carrier, it may not be a bad idea to evaluate the other plans your carrier offers.

Ask yourself:

• What perks do I get with my current plan?

• Do I really need all the perks?

• What would the trade-offs be if I switched to a more affordable plan from my carrier?

Verizon and AT&T both offer mix-and-match. You can put each line on your account on a different plan.

This allows you to keep lines that need the extra features on the more expensive premium plans and switch the lines that don’t need all the bells and whistles to the more affordable plans.

Even switching just one or two lines to the cheaper plans can save you a lot.

For example, moving one line from AT&T Unlimited Premium PL to AT&T Unlimited Starter SL saves you $15 per month for that line.

AT&T Unlimited Starter SL comes with unlimited high-speed data, 5GB of hotspot data, and free roaming in Canada and Mexico. Those are all the features most people need. 

Plus, Unlimited Starter SL is eligible for all of AT&T’s best trade-in deals.

And even if you did a free phone promo through AT&T phone, you should still be able to switch plans.

If you did a phone trade-in deal on T-Mobile or Verizon, then you may not be able to switch that line to a different plan. You might be required to pay off the remaining balance on the fianced phone, first.

Still, swapping to a lower-cost plan from your same carrier can save you some money.

At the very least it is worth looking into.

3. Check Your Bill To Make Sure You’re Not Paying For Extra Add-Ons You Don’t Need

In 2020, I signed up for Sprint (remember them?).

I brought my own device, activated a plan, and was good to go.

A couple of weeks later, I went back to the store to switch my service to a new phone. 

When I checked my next bill, it was $20 higher because the rep had added phone insurance when I had swapped devices.

I couldn’t believe it!

I had to call in to cancel the extra insurance that I didn’t even sign up for.

It turns out carriers LOVE to bundle in phone insurance and other add-ons with your service.

Why?

They make a lot of money by charging YOU a premium price!

Occasionally a rep may even add extra services without your consent.

In fact, just this past Saturday my buddy went to the T-Mobile store to buy an iPhone 15 Plus.

When he got home, he discovered the rep had added a new line, charged an activation fee, and added phone insurance to two devices on his account.

All without him knowing.

A quick Google search shows this situation is far too common:

That said, check your phone bill to make sure you’re not paying for features or services you don’t need.

If you’re unsure about a bill line item, call your carrier to find out what it is.

And what if you do want phone insurance of some sort?

Typically, it tends to be a better value to get phone insurance from the manufacturer directly. 

For example, purchasing AppleCare+ from Apple tends to be better than getting phone insurance from your carrier. 

4. Consider switching to a prepaid cell phone carrier

Prepaid cell phone carriers have a bad rap. 

People think that customer service will be worse, coverage will be worse, or prepaid carriers are only for people on a budget. 

To be candid, those people are right about customer service. You’re typically not able to go to a store for help and support, and yeah, some of the prepaid carries could do to improve their online chat and phone support. (But also, is the customer service from the major carriers that much better? In my opinion, the industry as a whole has room to improve here.)

Those people are mistaken about coverage though!

It turns out prepaid carriers run on the exact same towers for coverage. They use either the Verizon network, AT&T network, or T-Mobile network to provide service. 

The prices from prepaid carriers are also shockingly good.

The Visible plan is just $25 per line for unlimited data on the Verizon network, regardless of how many lines you have (even just one line!).

Considering coverage is the same and the prices are WAY lower, prepaid carriers are also not just for people on a budget.

Prepaid plans are for savvy shoppers who wisely know they can get the same network experience for less money. 

I’ve been using prepaid carriers for YEARS (since 2010!) with my personal phone number. 

I even got three of my friends’ families to switch when I showed them exactly how much money they would save and that coverage would be the same. 

Those families have literally saved THOUSANDS of dollars at this point. They switched 8 years ago! Let’s estimate they saved $50 per month. $50 per month x 12 months per year x 8 years = $4,800 back in their pockets!

If you’re not opposed to the idea, four great prepaid carriers to check out are:

1. Visible (Verizon coverage)

2. Mint Mobile (T-Mobile coverage)

3. US Mobile (Verizon or T-Mobile coverage, your choice)

4. Boost Infinite (AT&T or T-Mobile coverage, assigned when you activate)

I have personally tested all of these carriers, and I feel the service works well and I would recommend them to my friends and family.

Of course, you can always check out my Compare Plans page on my website, which allows you to compare all cell phone plans side-by-side.

Don’t Miss These Limited-Time Deals

• Visible: Get Visible Base for $20 per month (normally $25) for 2 years with code VISIBLE24

• Visible: Get Visible+ for $35 per month (normally $45) for 2 years with code VISIBLE24

• Mint Mobile: Get unlimited data for $15 per month (normally $30) for your first 3 months (ends in 2 days)

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I hope you found this information helpful.

Happy Monday,

Stetson