When you lose your job or suddenly have your unemployment interrupted, the last thing you need to do is lose your phone. Unfortunately, when you are working, it seems like you always have money to pay for your cell phone bill. However, unless you were on a family plan, you can find yourself unable to afford the $40 to $80 per months needed to keep your smart phone operational.
If you break your phone, you can find yourself in even more financial trouble if you do not have the money to replace it. When all else fails, I found one solution that has worked for me the past 4 years I have been under-employed. Over the past year, I spent $205 on my cellphone and service. My roommate, on the other hand, spent $960 last year on their $80 per month plan. In other words, I saved $755. Here is how I did it.
Prepaid Options May Have Hidden Costs
Having a prepaid phone is usually the ideal choice when you cannot afford a cell phone plan. The when you are shopping around for a prepaid phone you will usually be taking a tour of your local pharmacy or discount retailer. The number of options can be a bit overwhelming. However, if you want the most reliable plan long term, there is only one option that rises to the top. In my opinion, that choice is the Tracfone.
The Ways Tracfone Is the Cheapest
With other prepaid cell phones; I often found that there were hidden costs. For example, some of the phones are not durable. By ordering online, I found a basic phone and have it delivered for less than $30.00. A year later, I am still using the basic Samsung slide model. Although I frequently drop my phone, I have found it to be much more durable than other prepaid or low cost phone companies. However, more advantages to this service make it affordable.
Do Not Get Scammed on Buying Minutes
With other cell phone companies, I often found myself overpaying because of the cost of texting. I also lost a lot of money by paying a premium price each time for the minutes. In other words, Tracfone offers many discounts on their prepaid minute plans that I have not found with other companies.
For example, I bought a phone for $30.00 that included instant double minutes for the entire time you have your phone. This means if I purchase 30 minutes for $10, I will have 60 minutes added to my phone. To text is only 0.3 minutes with this company.
Minutes Bundles Really Help Me Save
Tracfone also offers several options for money saving minutes bundles online. Typically, if you buy 30 minutes for $10, you have the option to buy an additional 100 minutes for $15. Of course, if you have a double minutes plan on your phone, this means you get 260 minutes for only $25. Most of the time, this means that my cell phone budget stays below $25 a month.
No Billing Cycle Means Extra Savings
On top of all the other budget saving advantages, the main reason I love the Tracfone service is due to their lack of a billing cycle. This means if I do not use all of the minutes this month, I will still have them to use for 60 days. In some cases, I have only spent $25 for 260 minutes over two months of service.
Overall, I found this phone extremely easy to use, maintain, and travel with. Their website includes several phones and ways to save with minutes options. The only thing they do not have is a smart phone, but in this case, you may have outsmarted the smart phone at last.