Save Money on Your Cell Phone Bill

How to Save Money on your Cell Phone Bill

Today, it seems that everyone owns a cell phone. Whether it be your eighty year old neighbor or sixteen year old daughter, people of all walks of life are finding a cell phone meets their needs even better than a landline. After all, a cell phone allows people to access you anywhere. You can text, take pictures, video, surf the internet, or use one of the thousands of apps available to make your life easier. The only problem is, this convenience comes at a cost. For unlimited data and services, you could be paying as much $150.00 a month for a single plan! But you don’t have to. Instead, take a look below at how to save money on your cell phone bill.

Saving money on your cell phone bill does not necessarily mean you need to sacrifice services. It also does not mean you need to resort to a cheaper phone with fewer bells and whistles. There are still plenty of ways to save on your monthly cell phone bill while still getting all of the services you not only want but need. Interested? Take a look at how easy it truly is.

How to Save Money on Your Cell Phone Bill in 7 Easy Steps:

1. Track your usage for one month.
It is important to know what you are using your phone for. Do you tend to only use it when in a bind, or do you do a majority of your daily calls on it? Do you surf the web daily or have apps you use daily, or do you just check email and Facebook on occasion? For one month, carry a small memo pad and make note of your usage. Include the number of calls in a day, time on the internet, and apps used. Then, based on your usage, you can better see which features you can live without. For example if you are only sending half a dozen texts a day, you don’t need unlimited texting. If you only use your internet to check the occasional Facebook page, you don’t need unlimited data. Tracking your usage will help you see what you need and don’t.

2. Use a land line for your local calls
Cell phones are always near us an convenient, but chances are a landline is not far away. If you have one in your home or office (office especially) use it when making local calls. There is no need to dive into your minutes and risk incurring extra charges if you can make a landline call. You might have to walk a few feet or remain seated at a desk to talk, but it will make a difference.

3. Question the insurance plan.
In many cases, having insurance on your phone is just not worth it. Your home owners and auto insurance will cover any costs in the case of theft or an accident. In the case that your phone gets damaged from dropping or misuse, chances are the store insurance plan won’t cover it anyways. Therefore, understand the insurance plan the carrier offers you. It may not be worth spending money each month insuring a phone when the stipulations are strict and unaccommodating to your needs.

4. Request a lower rate.
Sounds simple enough right? If you are finding your monthly bill getting out of control, call your service provider and request a lower rate. Competition in the cell phone world is huge and they will want to keep your business. They may offer to lower your monthly rate just for the asking. By doing so they may ask that you extend your contract, so be sure you know all of the details before agreeing to anything.

5. Follow your friends.
By using the same service provider as your family and friends, you can often communicate for free. If you have family members you talk to daily, ask who their carrier is so you can try to have it as well. This way, you can talk and text as much as you want and it won’t cost you a dime. These savings can really add up.

6. Bundle your services.
See if you can get a better deal by bundling your services such as internet, cable, and cell phone. Many carriers are no offering steep discounts if you carry all of these services through them. Call and find out what sort of savings you can enjoy by doing this. Not only will it be convenient to only pay one bill each month, but you can save as much as 20% by bundling plans.

7. Avoid impulse usage.
This pertains to using your phones extra features to save time. For example, don’t call your cell phone’s 411 feature when needing a number. This will add $1.50 on to your bill. Instead, use your internet and Google the number you need. Also, avoid making 1-800 calls on your cell phone. These tend to be lengthy and suck away a ton of your minutes. Instead, use a landline for these calls. Apps are convenient, but opt for free ones before spending $1.99 on one. Just a few apps a month can really add up, as can these other services, so be vigilant.

As you can see, these are seven painless ways to save on your cell phone bill. You don’t have to sacrifice service to save, just do a little homework. Give one or two of these tips a try to get started, and really see the savings ad up!

Make sure you check out our Saving Money Blog and also our How to Coupon Page for more tips, tricks and videos on saving money and using coupons.