| When choosing a cell phone provider, the most important thing you should take into consideration is the cell phone’s monthly rates. Cell phone monthly fees are based on the amount of minutes that a plan offers, the addition of extra lines, and the features involved. Taking all of these into consideration, a customer begins to realize that the cheapest monthly cell phone plan may not always be the best suit for their mobile phone needs.
The monthly rates paid on a cell phone plan basically reflect the type of plan they are on. Data plans generally have higher monthly cell phone rates due to the amount of data transferred from e-mails sent and received and web pages transferred from the Internet. Plans like these can start around $30 a month to over $100 a month, depending on the amount of data transferred and additional features.
Family plans are geared towards families or small groups. Their base price is a bit higher because it includes at a minimum two phone lines. Additional phone lines can be added, usually the total is five lines per plan, for an additional monthly fee. The minutes of these types of monthly cell phone plans are shared among the group.
Individual plans are generally the cheapest monthly cell phone plans. They are the least expensive because the service one line only.
Like the family plans, individual plans can be customized to add features like unlimited text messaging, unlimited Internet, media transfer, and other add-ons. For each feature outside of the basic monthly service plan, additional fees are added on. Individual plans are great for single people, but money can be saved if family members can work out some way to utilize a family plan.
Basic monthly cell phone plans are often the cheapest however, they are less expensive because the offer the customer less minutes a month to talk. If the customer stays within the allotted minutes this is great, however if they utilize more minutes than their month to month cell phone plan allows, they incur overage charges. These can be quite costly, sometimes as much as 50 cents a minute extra. So selecting the cheapest monthly cell phone plan isn’t always the cheapest. In fact, it can be more expensive than larger plans.
When selecting a plan, always estimate your monthly minute use to be on the high side and then select the next plan up for insurance. A cell phone’s monthly fees can be increased by additional features tacked onto the plan as well. Generally, a cell phone plan offers the ability to talk on the phone, basic voice mail, call forwarding, three-way calling, and call waiting. Sticking to the basics can keep the cost of your monthly cell phone plan down. However, the lure of additional features is very enticing. Unlimited text messaging, unlimited e-mail, or media services can add a great deal of functionality to your phone, and a great deal of additional costs. When adding features to a cell phone plan, choose only the ones you will use. If you find that you are not using them often enough, drop them from your plan.
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