Q&A for How to Understand Pay as You Go Cell Phone Plans

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Question

How do I install new minutes after purchase?

Community Answer

The clerk or purchasing agent should have given you a receipt to go with your purchased minutes. On the receipt should be an activation code and a phone number. Just dial the phone number and follow the step-by-step instructions for entering your activation code.

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Question

Can pay-as-you-go cell phones be used for international calls?

Community Answer

No, not on most plans. It's one of the limitations that sometimes fall upon prepaid services. Local/domestic calls and texts are just about all it can do sometimes. Make sure to carefully read your re-loadable prepaid cards and select an international/long distance card if possible.

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Question

I am elderly, and I need pay as you go only for very occasional or emergency use. I want to keep my credit. What can I do?

Community Answer

You may be eligible for a free phone. Call your local welfare office. People with low income can get free phones with free time!

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Question

Can I get unlimited talk and text but no data in a cell phone plan?

Community Answer

Yes, you can with some plans.

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Question

If I use my pay-as-you-go mobile to access my home WiFi, will I use up my phone minutes?

Community Answer

No. WiFi and phone minutes are two different things. When you use the internet over WiFi, it does not affect your phone minutes.

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Question

If credit runs out can you receive texts and calls?

Community Answer

Yes you can. However, you cannot make any calls of send texts if your credit runs out

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Question

Does pay-as-you-go require name and address?

Community Answer

No. You just buy the minutes card and follow the directions on it to refill your minutes.

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Question

Can I buy data on my pay-as-you-go plan without a monthly fee?

Community Answer

That depends on your service provider and the plan you buy. Most PAYG plans include a data option. The amount of data is usually very low (500MB), as compared to a contract plan with data (2GB or more).

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Question

What happens to the unused minutes with a pay-as-you-go plan?

Community Answer

Since it is a pay-as-you-go plan, there won't be any unused minutes, so nothing happens.

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Question

Do I buy a cheap phone and prepaid card? I only want this phone for calls and maybe texts -- something simple.

Community Answer

Yes, you could possibly buy a cheap phone if your budget is low. Prepaid plans can work on any phone depending on the carrier you end up going with. If you want to bring your own phone, you have to find a carrier that supports GSM and BYOP.

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Question

Can you explain what data is and how it gets used?

Community Answer

Data is internet access for your phone. Most phones these days are smartphones, for which you get a data plan in addition to a voice plan. Data is measured in bytes. With most typical data plans, you get a certain number of gigabytes (billions of bytes) per month, which determines how much internet you can use per month on your phone through the browser or through apps that require internet connectivity. If this is not something you want at all, then don't get a smartphone.

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Question

Can I do this without my parents' permission as a teenager?

Community Answer

As far as I know, in the United States, you don't need to be an adult to buy a prepaid phone or account. As long as you have cash, you can get a rather decent smartphone at some dollar stores, Walmart, and Best Buy. Make sure your smartphone's brand or carrier sponsor matches with a re-loadable prepaid card with the same carrier. Also, make sure to at least load the card with about $40 since most prepaid monthly plans won't surpass that amount for the lowest monthly price. You can always keep coming back to that retailer to reload it whenever you're low on minutes/data.

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Question

If someone calls me, does it use my minutes?

Community Answer

Not in most case. Most times, it will only deduct minutes if you answer the call or if you open and listen to your voicemail.

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Question

Will the number I get have the area code assigned to the area where I purchase the phone?

Community Answer

The zip code is based on where you activate the phone.

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