Cheaper International Calling from a Cell Phone

This is the latest in our series of how to reduce your cell phone bill.

Do you call internationally (from the U.S.) on your cell phone?  If you are using your cell phone provider for international long distance, you probably have run up some pretty significant bills.  For example, calling France on AT&T is $1.49 per minute, while it is $3.49 a minute to India.  One way to cut these costs is to see if your carrier has a monthly feature that offers reduced rates.  AT&T has “World Connect” which, for $3.99/month, shaves quite a bit off these rates.   Similarly priced programs are available with Verizon and Sprint.  T-Mobile is $5/month.

To save even more, try a carrier bypass service.   We work with a company called Enjoy Prepaid that has made the process rather simple.    Basically, you purchase a calling card with some value on it (e.g., $20) and register it.   Since it is registered, you won’t need to dial a PIN.  There’s an access number you call, but that can be set up as a speed dial on your phone, meaning you only need to dial the phone number… just as if you were dialing directly.    Call a landline in France or India for just a couple pennies a minute.  (Calls to cell phones in foreign countries, whether with a calling card or directly with your carrier are usually at higher rates.)

If you want to try out Enjoy Prepaid or just check out the rates to where you call, click here.   Use coupon code FRW15-943201586 by July 4 for 10% off your order.

A few other things to keep in mind as you consider your international long distance options

1. Even if you make just one 3 minute international call a month, you’ll be better off with either of the two options above
2. Enjoy Prepaid (and similar prepaid programs) are generally cheaper than even the discounted carrier rates.  However, you should compare rates for the places you call the most.  Make sure you compare the cost to both landline and wireless calls in those countries.
3. The carrier wireless program fees are charged monthly, so if you don’t plan on making international calls for a while, remember to have the plan changed on your account or you’ll pay a monthly fee for no reason
4. Enjoy Prepaid offers a number of different card programs.  The lowest rates tend to round calls up by a couple minutes and may have a small weekly fee.    In general, if you make short phone calls or make international calls infrequently, you should opt for the card with the least rounding and no fees.  The longer your calls, and the more frequent, the more beneficial it will be to take the lower per minute rates.