Increasing reliance on internet services, accompanied by a fast-growing streaming era and rising internet prices, has led to people spending more on mobile data.
Despite spending more on mobile data, old problems such as unexpected data depletion and poor services still persist. To the point that in late 2024, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission released a 621-page document highlighting some concerning consumer complaints.
While waiting for the service providers to get things right, let’s explore how you can maximize your mobile data experience.
Understand Your Mobile Data Usage
In addition to active usage activities, such as browsing, streaming, video calls, and gaming, some apps use your mobile data in the background every second that your device is on. This includes background activities like location tracking and app updates.
To fully understand your mobile data usage, you must take your phone’s active and background data usage into consideration.
Thankfully, you can check your mobile data usage in various ways:
- Phone settings: iPhones and Android phones come with built-in data monitors that allow users to check their Wi-Fi and mobile data usage via “Mobile data usage” settings.
- Carrier apps: My Verizon, T-Mobile, and My ATT have features for data usage monitoring.
Now armed with the knowledge of your data consumption rate, it’s time to look for a mobile data plan that best fits your needs.
Types of Mobile Data Plans Explained
Below are some common types of mobile data plans to consider:
- Prepaid vs. Postpaid: Here, the primary difference lies in how you pay for data. Prepaid plans allow you to make an upfront payment for a given amount of data per day, week, or month. With postpaid plans, you get a bill for all your data (and also text and talk) usage at the end of the month.
- Unlimited data plans: Most mobile network carriers, including Mint Mobile and US Mobile, offer variants of unlimited data plans, typically on a monthly basis.
- Pay-as-you-go plans: Traditionally, pay-as-you-go plans require that you top up your line with airtime, and then the service provider charges you per kilobyte of data you use.
- Family or shared plans: When compared with individual plans, shared plans are generally more cost-effective. Typically, one person purchases the family plan and shares it with multiple users. This is best for when all parties involved are moderate users.
Additionally, if you are not a heavy user, you should consider going for data rollover plans, which allow you to rollover unused data to the next billing cycle.
Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Plan
Whether you go for a rollover plan, prepaid plan, postpaid plan, or family plan is really a matter of your needs and the terms of service attached to each plan.
Therefore, it makes sense to read usage policies and contract terms before you commit to a data plan, to ensure the service provision meets your monthly data needs while you stay within budget.
With unlimited plans, for instance, providers may apply a fair usage policy (FUP), which throttles your speed when you exceed a given data usage threshold.
Also, consider going for carriers with better network coverage and speed in your area, even if they are slightly costlier. Poor networks can be incredibly frustrating.
Other considerations include:
- Your monthly usage needs: Super heavy users may find unlimited plans to be a generally better option, while those living in Wi-Fi-covered areas may prefer small prepaid plans.
- Streaming quality: If you are all about video conferences/calls and livestreaming, it’s generally better to choose 5G or other high-speed data plans with less or zero throttle on video.
- International use/travel: If you travel often, you may benefit from data roaming options offered by major providers, usually for a daily fee.
Lastly, compare plans across different providers to determine who offers the best service for your needs at a fair price.
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Tips to Save on Mobile Data
As a rule of thumb, you should consider restricting background data usage for heavy or unusual consumers, especially rarely used apps.
You should also consider the following:
- Set your phone to automatically connect to known Wi-Fi networks when in range.
- Disable automatic updates for apps and only download updates when on Wi-Fi
- Disable auto-downloads and auto-play on browsers and messaging apps.
- Opt for download options instead of streaming on mobile data.
- Set a data usage warning and allot a specific amount of data for other devices on the hotspot.
Conclusion
There are four key things to take away from this article: know your needs, compare options carefully, don’t pay for what you don’t use, and optimize your phone and internet activities to limit unnecessary data usage.
Given that needs change and network providers restructure or introduce new plans over time, make it a habit to reassess your plans occasionally, every 6-12 months, preferably.
