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It’s an expense that has become a necessity: the dreaded cell phone bill. It seems like there are practically no affordable unlimited plans, and I know I’d be paying hand-over-fist for overuse charges if I was subject to data limits. Is there really such a thing as a cheap wireless plan these days? That’s a question that pretty much everyone is asking these days.
My Current Cell Phone Bill
Currently my wife and I have a plan through Sprint. We have unlimited talk, text, and web. The amount of data I use for Twitter, Email, and the countless apps I use on a daily or weekly basis make it essential that I have access to unlimited data. I am very thankful that my 9-5 company gives me a 20% discount on some cell plans, including my current one with Sprint. Still, even after the discount, we pay $145.97 each month for two lines. The sad thing is that this isn’t even that expensive compared to what some people pay. I asked someone just a few days ago what they paid for their cell phone plan. They are also with Sprint, but they pay $130 a month…for one line!
Alternatives to my current plan
When we first signed up with Sprint a little over two years ago, the other major carriers charged a similar amount for their unlimited plans. There really wasn’t anything less than $140 for an unlimited talk, text, and data plan. Most didn’t even offer unlimited plans!
Fast forward two years. If you haven’t already heard advertisements for it, I’m sure you will: T-Mobile has partnered with Walmart Family Mobile to give an unlimited plan. The best part about this plan? The price.
The costs involved in the Walmart Family Mobile unlimited plan are:
- Purchase of a phone: Cost is comparable to other plans.
- Activation: one-time $25 fee
- Monthly Fee: $40 and $35 for each additional line
If my family (my wife and I) switched to this plan from our current Sprint plan we’d have the following savings over the course of a year:
As you can see, even over the course of just one year there is considerable savings that can be gained through the Walmart Family Mobile unlimited plan.
I was also happy to see that just like any other cell service, there is an online account management and information section that can be utilized for managing your account and finding answers to questions that you have.
The LG Optimus L9 Phone and Activation at Walmart
I have been a fan of LG products for a while now. Our TV and my second monitor I use are both from LG. I’ve been happy with both of them and really like the LG brand in general. I was excited to get the LG L9 4G phone and test it out.
I received my phone in the mail last week and was anxious to get it activated.
We got to Walmart and went to the entertainment department. Below is what we came for: the Walmart Family Mobile section.
There are lots of other phone options at Walmart. I was impressed at how much they’ve grown this part of their business and how many options they had.
Activating the phone was painless and the employees were incredibly helpful. Believe it or not my phone was the first phone the employee had ever activated! You would think this would cause issues, but there was another person on staff who seemed to have been working there for quite a while based on his knowledge. I liked that they scheduled newer employees with seasoned pros to make the process painless for customers.
Definitely was impressed with the slick user interface and the overall feel and look of the phone. It is thinner and lighter than my Evo and the processing speed was definitely superior.
For more pictures check out my >Google+ album about my experience.
If you are interested in looking into alternatives to your current plan for you or your family, considering reading more about the unlimited plans that Walmart Family Mobile has to offer. #FamilyMobileSaves
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I am going to be getting a new phone at the end of this year. At the moment I think I will look into the S3/S4 depending on the price difference.
MonsterPiggyBank Samsung is great! Unfortunately on this plan you can’t have Samsung, but I am very happy with my new LG phone.
We went to the Verizon store this weekend just to check prices. They were outrageous. There are lots of great discount providers out there. Holly uses Republic Wireless and is happy with them.
GregatClubThrifty I think there will be a backlash against the higher-priced plans if some of these discount plans can deliver for less.
Interesting option. We’ve been looking at Straight Talk, which is $45 per month per line for unlimited everything. Pretty sure (though not 100% positive) that you can use Verizon’s network as well, which is a selling point for me. This is definitely worth looking into though.
Matt @ Mom and Dad Money I haven’t heard of Straight Talk but it sounds comparable. I hope these discount plans can deliver, it could be a game-changer.
Looks like some interesting options, though I an surprised that Wal-Mart offered that many options. We’re part of Verizon, so we’ll definitely be looking for other options when our contract is up.
FrugalRules It can’t hurt to shop around when your contract is up.
This is good to know! We are thinking about switching our phones because right now the cost is too high.
SenseofCents Yeah lots of plans are well over $100 for two lines (even one line!). I like the new option Walmart and Tmobile came out with.
Sadly, we had to go with one of the expensive plans because the discount ones just don’t have good service where we live. Here’s hoping by the time our contact is up, there will be another option. At least my husband’s employer gives us a 10% discount and a $60/month stipend for phone service.
EyesonthedollarI totally understand where you are coming from. If the discount plans don’t deliver on service, there’s really no value in them!
Awesome review. My wife just recently switched the the Walmart family mobile plan and likes it. It’s not quite as good as the major companies, but the price makes it worth it. Being that I’m only paying for my portion of my parents bill, it still made sense for me to stick with Sprint.
CommonCentsWealth I love how you always refer to her as your wife and not Cara haha. Sprint actually has had really terrible service for me recently so I was happy to jump ship, especially for the cheaper price.
That is excellent that you guys found such a great deal and that your employer pays 20% of your bill.
In my last corporate job we were given cell phones to carry 24×7 so that we were always accessible. Since quitting I rarely use a cell phone. My husband has one that he bought 6 years ago from China and we only use it for emergencies. We have looked into our options in Canada and the rates are high, as you mentioned. I’m not sure if Walmart Canada is offering the deal you received, but right now we really don’t need it anyways…
TacklingOurDebt My employer does not pay 20% for our new plan, but it’s amazing how expensive plans are even with a discount! Our Sprint plan seems so expensive looking back.
That’s great if you can get by without it, probably the easiest way to save money on a cell phone plan haha.
DC @ Young Adult MoneyTacklingOurDebtSorry. I read this: I am very thankful that my 9-5 company gives me a 20% discount on some cell plans, and thought it applied to your new plan as well. Why does it only apply to some and not others?
TacklingOurDebt I wish I knew : (
Excellent article. I plan on giving Verizon and their $100 per month bill the boot very soon. I have not heard of the Walmart plan before today. I may have to check into it.
Jason ButlerYeah I’d say it’s worth looking into. Definitely some big savings to be had.
Great savings! I think operators “renting” you a phone for 24 months for a higher priced plan is almost usury. I buy a $20 dumb phone and put $10 or so a month on it, it does its job and for all the rest I have an ipod.
RFIndependenceHey, if it works for you it works for you. I think spending too much on a plan you don’t need or use is a big way these cell companies make their money.
I don’t use a whole lot of voice time, so i am going to go with the $30 T-Mobile plan that is 100 minutes, unlimited text and data. Data is throttled past 5GB, but i don’t come close to that, so it’s the perfect plan for me!
BryanatFatWalletNice! I saw that plan as well but too often I’ve had to go on a conference call or something and burn minutes, so I’m not willing to risk it.
Do you know if you can use the WalMart plan with an unlocked phone? I have an unlocked iphone, and I definitely don’t want to pay a few hundred dollars for a new phone when I have one already. Great post by the way! :)
BudgetBlonde Hmmm that’s a good question. Not sure if unlocked phones will work or not.
Timely post for us, DC! We are looking into getting our oldest a cell phone for her 14th birthday, and upgrading to a family plan in the process. I’m hoping we can find a deal on a talk and text only type of a plan for the two of us. I will definitely be checking out Walmart!
Laurie TheFrugalFarmer I would definitely look into the Walmart plan!
The good news is that it’s Walmart. That means you barely had to wear clothes! Bonus!
AverageJoeMoney Oh boy haha
I really need to get a new service provider and will be looking to see what types of plans Walmart has. Never thought about them before was looking more at MetroPC and Straight Talk. We are looking to get the boys their own phones and our current provider is just going to cost too much.
YourDailyFin I’d say the Walmart Family Mobile plan is the best plan to get through Walmart. Certainly the cheapest.
It looks like you have to share 1g of data a month and anything past that is throttled to 2nd generation speeds. I easily use 2 gigs a month… please update with any issues on that.
tzoltek This plan might not work for you, then. Do you connect to wifi at home?
DC @ Young Adult Money tzoltek I do use wi-fi at home but for such a low data threshold I’d rather go with Republic Wireless if I need to be tied to wi-fi usage. But at least it’s good to know there are more affordable options out there for folks.
tzoltekThe beauty of a no-contract plan is that you can drop it at any time ;) If it causes me too many issues, I doubt I will keep it long-term. I will be writing a follow-up post in July as part of the review agreement, so I will definitely mention it then if it is a problem. I will also point out that my wife and I have seperate plans (you need to have the same area code to be on the same plan) – so we actually each will be paying $40 per month but it probably is worth it considering the throttling.
In Canada, we have a few discount carriers, but not the Walmart ones I think. I recently switched to Wind Mobile and I’m saving $40 a month PLUS I get unlimited data, calling and text. It makes my monthly bill so much cheaper.
Another good way to save money on calls is to stay connected to Skype or Viber on your phone and make calls between your friends that way, as well as chatting; to save money on calls and texts… both of which can be very costly! I know you’re speaking about data here, just had that related thought!
Your potential annual savings says it all! In my family, we have four on smart phones and to keep overages at bay, everyone is on an unlimited plan. The monthly bills nearly do me in when I receive them, even without overages charges. I’m looking forward to reading more about your experience! Its easy to see my family could save about 50% by making the switch!