Financial Resiliency Series: how to save thousands on your cell phones

I still shake my head at just how much I’ve wasted on new phones and cell phone bills over the years.  It’s a bit of a punch in the gut, that’s for sure.  Let me show you how you can save thousands on your cell phones like I did once I learned better.

The actual amount that I’ll have in my pocket after 10 years of making better cell phone decisions is a whopping $40,712.69.  Keep reading to learn how you can do this too.

I’m going to quickly qualify this as we are Canadian so if you live in another country, you will have your own list of cellular providers but chances are you have the same huge range in pricing that we have here so keep on reading as you’ll benefit from this too.

There are a few things that affect how much you are paying for your cellular use; type of devices that you use and the plan/provider that you have a contract with.

Types of Phones

Classic flip phones (basic)

I bet you’re thinking that I’m going to suggest going back to an old flip phone with no data but heck no – I wouldn’t use one of those today and I don’t suspect that many of you would either.  We live on our phones so they need to be both useful and affordable.  That said, if you are able to get away with this level of device, all the power to you as they do still sell them and they cost considerably less than the newer smartphones.

If you search “Dumb Phone” (haha) on Amazon, you will find plenty of options under $100.

Androids

Android smartphones can be less expensive than their Apple counterparts, and I hear that their functionality is just as good… that said, I don’t use one myself but I’ve heard good things from my “android friends”.  

The New York Times published an article last week listing their top choices of android phones, with their favorite, the Google Pixel 8 coming in at just under $700.

iPhones

I started my smartphone journey with an iPhone 4 and I’ve stuck with them, obviously upgrading as needed.  They serve my needs well but I haven’t bought a new one in many years… actually since I accidentally walked into a lake with one in my board shorts.  Instead, I buy refurbished phones.

How to save on your devices

Don’t buy a new phone.

Let me repeat that, in case you didn’t hear me… do not buy a new phone.

I can’t suggest hard enough that you skip out on buying the latest and greatest device and go straight to a refurbished model.  Plenty of people replace their phones regularly and they exchange them for new ones leaving their, often still really new, phones to be refurbished and sold to smart folks like me.  The last two devices I purchased were both under $400 and were new(er) and large enough to satisfy my teenage boy.  My big caveat on this… make sure to buy from a reputable business as there are a lot of scammers out there and it is a sizable purchase.

Now you may be wondering why I’m recommending that you not buy a new device when you may have always just received a device when you signed up for your new contract.  I hate to tell you this, but those phones are not free.  The ads say that they’re free, but they are definitely not.  It’s like buying them on credit, you will be billed for the cost of that phone for years after you purchase it… even if you lose it or it gets broken.  That is how the big (expensive) carriers hold onto your business.  But they are charging you WAY TOO MUCH!

3 things you need to know before you buy your next device or sign up for a new contract.

1. How much data you typically use.  This will inform how large of a data package you will need
2. How much space you need.  There’s no point in buying a 256GB phone if you only use 64GBs.
3. How do you use your camera?  In today’s phones most of the cameras are similar but if you are using it for business or to take a lot of videos and that’s really important to you, then you will want a device that meets those needs.

Let’s talk contracts

For what felt like decades, and before I knew better, we used the major carriers, Telus and Bell as our phone carriers.  I paid monthly cell bills upwards of $800.  Yes, you read that right.  And when we called to have them bring it down we were told that they couldn’t.  That was with Bell.  My last cell bill with Telus for one line was $185.  Thankfully, I learned a few years ago about a better option.

The Traps to Watch Out For

1. How much are you actually paying for your phone and how long do you have to pay it?
2. They will try to upsell you to more expensive phones than you need
3. Limited time offers
4. Hidden fees
5. Taxes

See the image above? I received this offer in my mailbox after Christmas and I chuckled because it’s a limited time offer.  After the first 6 months, the price doubles.  Plus it doesn’t account for any extra fees and taxes.  I would guess that your bill will be upwards of $60-70 once it’s all said and done.  

PUBLIC MOBILE – A BETTER OPTION

Public Mobile is Telus’ discount carrier.  They offer very limited service and you pretty much have to do everything yourself but if I could figure it out, anyone can.

You purchase a $10 sim card.  Drop it into your phone and go online to connect it with your account (or start an account).  It’s super simple.  I’ve done it multiple times now and it’s easy peasy.

Then, if you can believe it, I pay only $43.68 per month for two lines, one for me and the other for my teen.  We both have data.  And my bills go down by a dollar every year for loyalty – unlike the other carriers that can raise your prices almost any time they please and you have to call them asking for a discount each year.

Bonus: you can save $10 by using our referral code (O0MV04) and once you sign up, you’ll get your own referral code that you can share to help others save.

Referral Code:  O0MV04  (that’s capital “O”, then zero).

How much do we really save?

Let’s look at the math, if one buys the newest device every year, let’s say that’s $1,400 and we buy refurbished devices approximately every 3rd year at $400 = $1,267 per year saved.

Then, if we are paying $22 per month compared to $85 = $756 per year saved.

Total saved each year is $2,023.

If I put these savings into an investment that generated an average of 10% growth each year, after 10 years, I would have a whopping $40,712.69.

Source: calculator.net

I hope that you can see that there is a better way to have the cell coverage that you need and still keep some of your hard earned dollars in your pocket.

You may be asking what this has to do with Financial Resiliency?  Well, if your monthly bills are lower, then you can earn less money and still pay your bills or you can save and invest the difference to let it grow even bigger like I’ve shown above.  $40,712.69 is a pretty nice cushion in case you need it one day.

Now, change your cell phone provider and celebrate all the way to the bank!

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Financial Resiliency Series: How to track your spending

Frugality is a Superpower