IS YOUR PHONE BILL TOO EXPENSIVE?

Determining your phone bill compared to what the average person in your area pays can help you figure out if you’re overpaying, getting a great deal, or somewhere in the middle. Phone bills aren’t one-size-fits-all; what’s considered a high price for one person might be perfectly reasonable (or even necessary) for another. 

This guide will help you determine if you’re overpaying for your phone plan, understand how your usage affects your bill, and identify opportunities to lower your costs.

In This Article:

> Rethinking plan pricing

> Average phone bill in your area

> Find hidden costs in your bill

> Tips to lower your bill

> Frequently asked questions

Rethinking Expensive: It’s Not Just About the Number

It’s easy to feel sticker shock when your monthly bill hits a number higher than what you expected to see. But “expensive” isn’t just about a big number, it’s about getting personal value out of what you’re paying for. 

A higher bill might actually be a great deal if it matches your needs, covers your usage, and includes invaluable features you truly use. On the flip side, even a $50 bill could be too high for some if you’re paying for extras or perks you don’t need.

How to Determine What Features You Actually Need

To figure out what phone features you need, start by asking yourself:

• How much data do I realistically use per month?

• Do I need international calling or roaming?

• Am I paying for insurance or Add-Ons I rarely use?

• Is my device paid off, or am I still financing it?

Once you separate your “needs” from your “nice-to-haves,” you can identify where your bill might be bloated. This is where switching to a carrier like Boost Mobile can make a big difference. We offer unlimited plans at a fraction of the cost of major carriers, giving you a ton of extras at an ‘essentials’ price.

What Are Others in Your Area Actually Paying?

Phone bills vary widely depending on location, carrier, and even whether you live in a rural or urban area. City dwellers often pay more for coverage in densely populated areas, while rural areas might require a premium for access to major networks without cell towers in the area. Understanding the average phone bill in your area can help give context to your bill.

Data from U.S. Mobile Phone Market Size and Household Spend Report 2024

Your Data Use Determines What “Too Much” Means

Are you paying for features on your plan you barely use? Many people pay for extra data or unlimited plans when they only use a moderate amount of data. For example, the average American uses around 22.1GB of data per month, with most paying for far more than that. If you use around an average of 5–8 GB per month, a pricey unlimited plan might be overkill.

At Boost, we get it, which is why we provide unlimited data at a limited price, giving you what you need without overpaying. If you want to see how much you can save by switching to Boost, check out all our current phone plan deals and see how the savings stack up. 

The Hidden Costs Lurking in Your Phone Bill

Even if your base plan seems reasonable, hidden costs or sneaky fees can inflate your bill quickly. Things like surcharges, overage fees, and phone financing can be hidden cost drivers within your monthly phone bill. Getting an itemized breakdown of everything in your bill is essential to ensure you aren’t unknowingly paying for things you don’t want. 

Many carriers sneak in small fees that add up: device financing charges, insurance, extra features, and promo price resets. These are often overlooked until the bill arrives and can be stressful when they pop up.

Knowing these line items and cutting what you don’t need can reduce your monthly cost without affecting your coverage. 

If you don’t want hidden fees and promo price resets hiding in your bill, discover how we’re reshaping how carriers work, with deals like our $25 Forever plan, giving you the same price, every month, for life. 

As long as you never pause or cancel your plan, you’ll be locked in at that $25 price point and be able to easily budget for your phone plan. You’ll get 30GB of premium data per month with unlimited data at reduced speeds after that. No data overage charges, ever. 

Tips to Lower Your Bill (Without Sacrificing Too Much)

You don’t have to give up the features you love to save on your phone bill every month. Often, the real savings come from understanding how phone plans are structured and making small, smart adjustments. 

Here are a few ways to keep your phone bill in check without losing the essentials you need most.

1. Pay Off Your Device or Buy It Outright

One of the most overlooked costs on a phone bill is device financing. Those $20–$40 monthly installments add up, especially with newer models priced over $1,000.

If you can, consider paying off your phone early or buying it outright when possible. Once your phone is paid off, your monthly bill could drop dramatically, sometimes by 25% or more. At Boost, we offer huge discounts on many popular phones when you sign up for select plans, with options to pay in full or finance the device over time. To see all you can save when you switch to Boost, check out our current deals.

Bonus tip: After your phone is fully paid off, put the amount you were paying toward financing into a savings account for your next device. You’ll be ready for your next upgrade without adding to your monthly bill. 

2. Unbundle Services You Rarely Use

It’s easy to get locked into “bundle” deals, plans that include streaming subscriptions, device protection, or other extras you might never touch. While they sound convenient, those extras can quietly inflate your bill and make it harder for you to leave the plan without giving up too much.  

Take a few minutes to audit your plan:

• Are you actually going to use that bundled streaming service? Would it be cheaper to go with a different carrier and add that service separately?

• Do you need insurance on an older phone that’s already paid off?

• Is that add-on data plan necessary for your lifestyle?
  

If you find that many of the extras in your phone plan are things you won't use, unbundle and simplify. Choose a plan that’s focused purely on what actually matters for your phone, talk, text, and data.

3. Choose a Smart Provider and Skip the Big-Brand Premium

Many people overpay simply because they stick with the “big three” carriers. But hybrid mobile network operators (MNO), like Boost Mobile, use the same national networks to deliver exceptional coverage at a lower cost.

You still get reliable 5G and coverage, but at a fraction of the price. It’s a smart move if you value performance and savings equally.

Check out Boost coverage in your area

4. Take Advantage of Discounts and New Customer Perks

Switching to Boost Mobile can save you more than just your monthly bill, it can unlock exclusive offers like yearly device upgrades or big discounts on select devices.

Adding family members or friends? Boost makes it easy to save with multi-line plans, so the more lines you add, the lower your per-line cost. Combine these savings with paid-off devices, and you could enjoy one of the most affordable unlimited plans around, all without sacrificing coverage or data.