I Cut My Phone Bill in Half in Less Than 10 Minutes

Ting Mobile

A few weeks ago, I was browsing on another FIRE blog and came across an article where the blogger cut down her phone bill to only $15 per month. That's when I learned about MVNO.

MVNO stands for Mobile Virtual Network Operator. It's a phone provider that doesn't own the wireless infrastructure and leases it from one of the big four mobile providers, such as Verizon or AT&T. As a result, the MVNO's mobile plans are much cheaper than any of the big four providers.

I've been using Google Fi for the last three years, after switching from Verizon and later MetroPCS. I like Google Fi because of its international support in more than 160 countries. But I realized that I didn't travel internationally in the past three years anyway. My monthly bill on Google Fi was around $30 after the cost of a Google Pixel 2 phone.

I thought Google Fi was the best deal I can get until I heard about MVNOs. Google Fi is actually an MVNO, but there are cheaper ones.

I did a little research and saw that Ting Mobile is pretty popular. I chose the Flex plan where it's $10 for unlimited calls and texts and $5 per GB of data. Since I rarely go over 1 GB of data per month, especially staying home most of the time, my bill would be reduced from $30 to $15 per month. That's a 50% reduction!

The only downside is that when I do travel internationally I would have to pay for higher rates than Google Fi. Due to the pandemic, I doubt I'll be traveling outside the US in the next year or so. However, when I do travel internationally I can switch back to Google Fi since Ting and Google Fi are contract free.

I thought switching mobile carriers would be a nightmare since most people don't do it often. As it turned out, it took less than 10 minutes. I had to order a SIM card from Ting. It costs about $5, most of it was the shipping cost. The card arrived in two business days. I followed the instructions online and it took less than 10 minutes for the entire process. My number stayed the same and the service switched over. I also downloaded the Ting mobile app on my phone to track my bills.

All in all, it was a great experience switching from Google Fi to Ting. Ting also has a webpage where you can check if your current phone will work with its service. I definitely recommend anyone to look into Ting.

I also have a referral coupon to save you $25 if you switch:

https://zl3d65bqh351.ting.com/

I urge anyone who feels like they are paying too much for their cell phone bills to look into MVNOs. You should do your own research and compare different providers. Then it's simple as picking the MVNO and make the switch. Good luck!