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Small Changes that Can Make a Big Difference to Your Mobile Phone Bills

We all know that mobile phone plans aren’t cheap.  In fact, for some, with the cost of data plans, texting, and even overage fees or late payments (oops!), their mobile phone bill can be one of the most expensive costs they have to pay.  This can be particularly tough for individuals who rely on their mobile phones as their main, or sometime even, only, form of communication.  If you can’t pay your phone bill you could potentially be out of communication with the world for weeks or even sometimes, months.  But there are a number of small changes that you can make to your mobile phone plan or usage habits that can significantly decrease your monthly costs and the risk of overage fees being charged to you.

Keep a Tab of Your Minutes

This might seem pretty obvious to some, but if you’re noticing that pretty consistently you have been going over your monthly minute allotment and being charged the painful and expensive overage fees, try keeping a running tab of minutes to ensure that you stay under.

Talk for Free?

There are a variety of phone apps, Skype being the most obvious example, that allow you to call other people who also have the app using your phone without using up any of your phone plan’s monthly minute allotment.

Try to Get On the Same Provider as Family and Friends

Since you can typically call other users using the same mobile provider as you for free, selecting the provider that the majority of your family and friends seem to be using could be one way to lower mobile phone costs.

You Can Text for Free?

There are now a range of apps that allow you to text for free.  Learn to use them and love them.

Prepaid Plans

If you’re a heavy mobile phone user you’re going to need a more “full service” plan.  On the other hand though, if you need it only for the occasional call then you can get some pretty killer deals by going prepaid.

Bundle Yourself Up

For those unable to go prepaid you can often get deals when you bundle your internet, cable and phone bill together which can save you money versus if you paid for them all individually.

Get Insured

This might seem counter-intuitive to many people because insurance means an extra monthly cost but imagine if disaster befell your brand new iPhone 5 and you had to replace that expensive puppy out of pocket?  Ouch!  Try something like Protect Your Bubble mobile insurance.

There are lots of ways you can lower your monthly mobile phone costs.  Keep in mind the suggestions and tips outlined above as a solid starting point, but realize that you could easily find dozens of other creative ways to lower your cost as well.  Be on the constant lookout for other cost saving opportunities and as always, live thrifty!

Laura Ginn is a professional writer and blogger.  She loves finding creative ways to save money, and considering her iPhone is almost always close at hand she has a reason to put in practice many of the tips that are presented here.

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