Why you should switch carriers when you upgrade your phone

Chances are, you don’t think about your phone plan all that much. Phone plans are filled with complicated features, high-speed data, and priority connections that, to many people, probably sound like a bunch of deliberately confusing gibberish.

Unfortunately, this results in a lot of people sticking with carriers or plans that aren’t a great fit for them, and they may be wasting money on unnecessary features. Carriers also like to lock customers in with lengthy phone payment plans that must be paid off before switching.

The fact is that many people just want the path of least resistance when it comes to dealing with their tech, and that often comes with a new phone on a three-year payment plan. If you’re willing to take a bit of a risk, though, or at least willing to do a bit of information gathering, you could save hundreds of dollars each year on wireless. If it turns out a different carrier is faster in your area, you could even get better performance.

Phone bills are complicated to read and frustrating to understand

Bloated premium data plans come with features that most people will never use

Most people only use talk, text, and data domestically on their phones, while unlimited plans from postpaid carriers, like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon come packed with other features; when you get your bill, it can be hard to understand what, if any, changes can be made for efficiency.

For the most part, you only need to know how much data you use. This should be displayed in gigabytes (GB), but if it shows megabytes (MB), you only need to divide the number by 1000. For example, 4000MB is roughly equal to 4GB.

To get an idea, let’s look at how Verizon’s three postpaid plans break down:

From the table, we can see that the two more expensive plans get faster 5G performance, more hotspot data, higher-quality video streaming, and more international features that most people won’t need. You may notice these plans all come with unlimited data, too; if your data usage is regularly under 35GB, you can find a cheaper prepaid plan that fits your needs. There are even unlimited prepaid plans if you use more data than that.

Here, the answer is simple: just choose a cheaper plan, like one of the best value data plans. But there’s a catch if you’re ready for a new phone. For example, if you’re looking to buy a new Galaxy S24 Ultra on Verizon, a $15 per month payment plan looks good, until you see that the discount requires you to be on the top Unlimited Ultimate plan. And just like that, you’re stuck paying for a plan chock-full of features you don’t need for three years.

T-Mobile does something similar, with many of its new phones getting bigger discounts with plans like Go5G Plus and Go5G Next. AT&T, for its part, deserves a rare compliment in that it doesn’t require a specific unlimited plan for its phone deals.

That being said, carriers are doing whatever it takes to add new subscribers. If you’re really looking to save money on a new phone, you should look at switching to a new carrier to save with new line deals.

Get a better deal when you switch carriers

Save on the plan or the phone with new line deals

If you look at a carrier’s best deals, a lot of them require a new line of service. While this is frustrating for existing customers, those with the freedom to switch could save quite a bit. For example, Visible is a prepaid carrier owned by Verizon, but new customers can get two years of unlimited data for $20 per month, down from $25. If you want a few upgrades, you can get Visible+ for $35 per month.

Another carrier, like Boost Mobile, offers plans that bundle in a new phone, called Infinite Access, as well as a promotion that gives customers a free year of service if they buy a qualifying new phone in full.

Related

Boost Mobile: Are you actually saving money with a phone and service bundle?

Orange is the new magenta

If your phone’s payment plan is coming to an end soon, you’ll be receiving a lot of notifications and texts from your carrier letting you know about how you’re upgrade eligible. Just remember that’s another way of saying the carrier has less leverage over you, and you can explore your options.

Your phone plan may make it hard to switch

Family plans make switching more difficult

Admittedly, some other elements can make it hard to switch carriers, such as having a family plan. With a whole family, you’ll need to coordinate a lot more and gather everyone in the same place to get all the lines activated. You may also have some lines with remaining phone payments while yours is paid off. You have the option to pay off the other devices, but depending on how long you’ve had them, it can be quite expensive.

Another big reason people are sticking with their carriers is their bundles. If you get your phone from the same company as your home internet, you could be giving up some discounts when you switch. With AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon all offering both home and mobile internet, a lot of people could choose to stick with a carrier.

For most people, coverage is close enough on any carrier

You should pick the best option for your needs, of course, and in the last few years, one of the biggest concerns, coverage, has evened out a lot between carriers. Unless you live in the countryside, there’s a good chance you’d get acceptable performance on just about any carrier. If you already have an unlocked phone, it’s never been easier to try out a new carrier. You can even get free trials from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon with eSIM.

Loyalty is an admirable trait, but massive corporations like phone carriers are unlikely to reciprocate your loyalty if it means making any less money. Don’t be afraid to try out a new carrier that’s doing things better, even if it means leaving your long-time provider.