Prepaid Cell Phone Plans in Cedar Rapids
If you have bad credit that prevents you from signing a cell phone plans which requires a 1-year or 2-year contract, then a prepaid mobile phone plan may be the right choice for you. It also may be a good choice if you are unsure that you want to sign a contract with a provider, if you may move to a new city soon, or if you find that you don't need a cell phone.
Most cell phone service providers want to lock you into a 2-year contract. They offer a free phone or other incentives to do so. Generally, it's cheaper per month to sign a contract. However, if you discover that you don't need a cellular phone or want to switch providers before the contract expires, you likely will be subject to a $150-200 early termination charge.
| Company | Plan | Anytime Minutes |
Nights | Setup Fee | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T (Cingular) | $.10/min | N/A | $.10/min | $0 | $1/day used | Unlimited mobile to mobile |
| AT&T (Cingular) | $.25/min | N/A | $.25/min | $0 | N/A | |
| I Wireless | 7 day | No limit | N/A | $30 | $12 * | Unlimited anytime local |
| I Wireless | 15 day | No limit | N/A | $30 | $21 * ($42/mo) | Unlimited anytime local |
| I Wireless | 30 day | No limit | N/A | $30 | $39 * | Unlimited anytime local |
| I Wireless | 60 day | No limit | N/A | $30 | $71 * ($30.5/mo) | Unlimited anytime local |
| Nextel | N/A | N/A | ||||
| U.S. Cellular | $25 | 100 | N/A | $30 | $25/mo | N/A |
| U.S. Cellular | $45 | 350 | 9
pm-6 am, Sun-Sat |
$30 | $45/mo | Unlimited incoming calls near home & nights |
| U.S. Cellular | $60 | 600 | 9
pm-6 am + all Sat-Sun |
$30 | $60/mo | Unlimited incoming calls near home & nights |
| U.S. Cellular | $80 | 1000 | 9
pm-6 am + all Sat-Sun |
$30 | $80/mo | Unlimited incoming calls near home & nights |
| Verizon | INpulse | $.10/min | 9
pm-6 am, Sun-Sat |
$35 | $.99/day | Unlimited incoming calls & nights |
| Verizon | EasyPay 350 | 350 | 9
pm-6 am, Sun-Sat |
$35 | $50 | 3000 night & weekend min. |
| Verizon | EasyPay 700 | 700 | 9
pm-6 am, Sun-Sat |
$35 | $70 | 3000 night & weekend min. |
| Qwest |
Pay As You Go | N/A | $.10/min | $25 ? | $1/day used |
Details and prices are valid as of June 19, 2008.
1. Prices do not include taxes and surcharges that may apply.
2. Coverage areas vary greatly among mobile phone providers.
* I Wireless (Mega Talk) prices do not include Des Moines area
Summary of Prepaid Plans
AT&T (formerly Cingular) currently offers a $0 activation fee. The $1/day plan fee is only charged for days when you use your phone.I Wireless's MegaTalk plans give you unlimited minutes all hours of the day. Therefore, you don't have to worry about exceeding your alloted minutes. The only drawback is that you can only make calls to much of eastern Iowa. You can pay a little more to include Des Moines.
U.S. Cellular grants unlimited incoming calls to your cell phone in your home area for most plans.
Verizon grants unlimited incoming calls in its INpulse plan and almost unlimited minutes in its EasyPay plans.
Qwest's Pay As You Go plan is similar to Cingular's $.10/min plan but doesn't grant unlimited mobile to mobile calls. The activation fee essentially constitutes buying the start-up kit.