If you’re like most people, then you’re probably paying too much for your wireless service. Smartphones are very expensive, and the service can cost even more than the device. The good news is that there are many ways to reduce your wireless bill, and most of them are easy and fairly convenient.
Use Wireless Networks
If you have an unlimited data plan, then this won’t help you, but it will be useful for those who still have limited plans. There are many wireless networks. You can find them at many businesses, restaurants, train stations and airports. Not only that, but there are often vendor-specific networks that you can use if you remember your username and password.
While it’s not quite as secure, using a wireless network instead of your data plan will help reduce your costs. Not only can you use a smaller data plan, but you can also avoid overages.
Negotiate
Most carriers make it seem like the prices are what they are and you can’t change them. While it can be difficult to convince a carrier to change its price if you’re a new customer, you might have some leeway if you’ve been a customer for several years.
Tell the carrier that you are thinking of using another service provider because the prices are too high. You might be able to negotiate a better deal.
Use Prepaid Services
The majority of carriers force you to sign contracts in exchange for a free or discounted phone. The problem is that most of these carriers charge you about $70 to $100 a month, but you can get the same level of service for $35 to $50 a month without the contract. You just have to buy the phone yourself.
If you compare the costs, then the majority of prepaid networks will cost less. No-contract deals are becoming more popular, and you should consider using one of these providers to significantly reduce your monthly bill.
Business Discounts
You’ll never see it advertised, but many carriers provide discounts if you belong to a certain corporation, organization or educational institute. The discounts typically range from 10 percent to 25 percent. You can call the carrier and ask about this, or you can enter your business email address to see if you qualify for a discount.
Evaluate Data
Unlimited data plans seem great. You never have to worry about overages, and you can stream as many movies and songs as you want. While there are many advantages to unlimited data plans, they are often quite expensive. In fact, they are so expensive that the benefits may not be worth it.
Evaluate your data usage. How much are you really using per month? If you never go beyond 2GB of data, then you can easily cut your costs by using a smaller data plan.
Family Plans
If you’re paying for more than one phone, then consider using a family plan. Most of these plans allow you to add an extra line for $10 a month, which is much better than paying about $70 or more for each additional line. Most of these plans rely on shared pools of minutes, text messages and data, so be sure to account for this when signing up for a family plan.
Same Carrier
Most people can talk on their phones for hours, but this can get expensive since you have to buy a lot of minutes. If this is a problem, then you might want to consider getting the same carrier as your friends and family members. If everyone is using Verizon, then sign up with Verizon. You won’t use any of your minutes if you talk to people who use the same carrier.
Some carriers also offer free text message for in-network communications, but this isn’t as common as free minutes.
Conclusion
Reducing your wireless bill isn’t that difficult if you know what to do. You mostly just have to evaluate your usage to ensure that you’re not paying for too much data, minutes or text messages. You should also try negotiating with the wireless carrier and use the same provider as your friends and family members. For example, Scratch Wireless offers free wireless smartphone service so check them out!
