How To Save Cash With A Sim Only Plan

'How can I save money on my mobile phone bill?' is a question that I have been asked on numerous occasions. In fact in was just yesterday that my best friend seeked the same question. He is in between several jobs at the moment so money is fairly restricted and he is paying something like 45 a month on his tariff. Now, what is surprising to me is that his 24 month contract finished 2 months ago and he still hasn't got round to changing his plan, mobile or network provider! Let me stop anyone reading this and say, if your mobile phone contract has finished, start seeking new promotions NOW! What may have been a good deal 2 years ago will be an average or weak offer currently and you could be saving more money than you are at the moment.

When I said to him that I am signed up to a 12 month contract for only ?10 a month he was amazed. I further went on to say that I was getting 1GB of internet and unlimited texts for that amount and expectedly he felt inspired to find out more about what he could do to cut down his own expenses.

Keep or Switch

Now the tricky situation for the majority of people is choosing whether or not to keep their existing mobile or get a new phone. A lot of users (including me) are enticed by the latest Smartphones like the iPhone or HTC mobiles. In most situations your current mobile phone may have served its time and you deservedly a new mobile phone but if you're ok with the mobile you have got and it is working fine too then this is where you can really save some money by switching to a sim only plan or renegotiating your current contract with your provider.

Is it cheaper to buy the phone outright?

In a situation where you want a new mobile, you should really hunt for the best mobile plan option. However, some offers in 2011 are 2 year terms where the cost of the mobile might be free but the monthly tariff is a premium. This is a good alternative for a lot of consumers as at the end of the day you are getting an otherwise expensive mobile for nothing, straight away. It is valuable at this position to make some calculations and find out whether it is actually cheaper to buy the mobile phone outright and then get a SIM-only deal or PAYG offer. The disadvantage of this is the initial outlay for the mobile phone however; it does also provide you with more flexibility. You can flog your mobile phone if you want to, you can change your SIM deal or provider sooner due to the relatively short terms and you can also put any sim inside of it so it's ready to be used on holiday too.

Calculate how much your need

A question that i asked my mate was "How much talktime and texts do you send and how much internet do you use?" This is an basic question you must ask yourself before to buying a new package. Taking a peep at your previous bills is the easiest way to recognize if you have exceeded your allowance or are well within it. This will then provide you a greater idea of the monthly tariff you require and also whether there is opportunity to cut back or compensate with a bigger package.

There are many other means to economize on your cell phone contracts and opting for the SIM-only deals track is likely the most popular and easiest to change to. It doesn't involve altering your usage habits as well so you can be comfortable texting, calling or browsing the Internet on your phone.