What’s Your Phone Plan?
The most important decision you make regarding your smartphone, after which smartphone to choose in the first place, is picking the right plan for your usage needs. Picking a plan can be overwhelming and requires you to do some deep self-reflection on how often and why you use your smartphone in the first place. If you’re like me, you may not always be honest with yourself about which plan you need. It took me a long time to come to terms with the fact that I utilize my minutes and data way more than I wanted to pay for. Pick the wrong plan and you may end up paying far more in overages then the few bucks you saved by picking a cheaper or smaller plan.
Simple Plans
If it’s just you, and a simple plan will suffice, most major service carriers offer a basic or simple plan to fit your needs. Verizon’s 5GB plan starts at $60 per month and supplies you with 5GB of data and unlimited minutes and text messaging. This plan is ideal if you’re not quite willing to go prepaid, but don’t need all the bells and whistles of an unlimited plan. Metro PCS also offers a reasonable 6GB plan for $40 per month with 6GB of data and unlimited minutes and text. If you don’t use your smartphone several times a day and don’t access data regularly, shop around and see if there is a simple plan that works for you. Checking your monthly bill gives you valuable information regarding your usage and can help you decide if a simple plan will work for you.
Prepaid Plans
Prepaid Plans are another great choice if you want to avoid a contract and billing surprises. Most popular carriers offer some great prepaid plans, even for families and multi-phone situations. Simple Mobile has a 6GB with 4G LTE and unlimited talk and text with no contract starting at $37. Simple Mobile uses the T-Mobile network. In the market for a prepaid family plan, Total Wireless from the Verizon Network starts at $95 for 4 lines. Total Wireless offers 25GB of shared data with unlimited talk and text. Whether one line or four, if you want to get rid of the contract then a prepaid plan is for you. Do some research to find the best prepaid plan for your needs.
Family Plans
When shopping for a Family Plan, there are a few additional questions you need to answer. Is the family in the market for shared or fixed usage? How much data will be required to cover all members, and how many lines will there be? When putting together a family plan a little planning goes a long way. Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom Family Plan offers an unlimited family plan with unlimited talk and text with 10GB for $100 a month for four lines. AT&T’s Unlimited & More Family plan offers 4 lines with unlimited data starting at $190 per month. If a family plan is what you need, do a little shopping around and find the one that works for you.
Unlimited Plans
Unlimited Data Plans are best for people who use their phone for anything and everything. If you use your phone for business and entertainment, you may need an unlimited plan. If you paid a lot in overages on your last few bills, you may need an unlimited plan. I am definitely an unlimited plan person and after several months of overages I finally broke down and made the switch. T-Mobile ONE Plus offers a no contract, unlimited plan starting at $85 per month. Need unlimited for the whole family? MetroPCS has an Unlimited Family Plan with 4 lines starting at $100 per month. Know your needs and don’t be afraid to shop around to find the plan that’s right for you.
We all have certain circumstances and preference and no matter what those are for you, there is a plan out there that can cover what you need. Smartphones can be expensive and each person’s servicing needs are different, but with a little planning and shopping around finding the right plan can make all the difference.