My Experience with TracFone (and Other Carriers)

Until 2008, I didn’t own a cell phone. I grew to despising them because they often rang before I could witness to selected individuals. Then I dated a woman who offered to buy me a phone and put me on her Sprint plan. That ended after a few months when we broke up. 

A short time later, I set up a Boost Mobile account. It was the only cellular service I knew of then that didn’t require signing a contract. My Boost Mobile phone was used sparingly since I had frequent access to landlines. In addition, a friend told me about Google Voice that allowed me to make free calls through my laptop using Wi-Fi. Eventually, I closed my Boost Mobile account after being tricked into switching to their $50/month Unlimited Plan to use a “free phone” they sent me.


Then another friend offered me a phone to use with his T-Mobile family plan. A year later, that phone accidentally got baptized in the washing machine. My then-pastor unsuccessfully tried resurrecting that phone in a bag of rice. Because my friend reneged on his offer of two years of free T-Mobile usage, my pastor offered to buy me a new phone with a different carrier.


For over eight years now, I’ve used TracFone. This has been a good cellular plan for me since I don’t text a lot or make many mobile calls. Friends have asked how much it costs to use TracFone. That depends on how you use their service. TracFone sells plans in varying amounts of minutes, texts, data, and service days. Usually, I buy the 60 minute plan (which triples for smartphones) with 90 service days for $19.95 plus tax and added fees. That allows me to have an active cell phone line for just over $7.50 per month. Unused minutes, texts, and data carryover as long as the service end date doesn’t expire.


One complaint I have with TracFone is their customer service. They don’t have retail stores like Boost or T-Mobile. Therefore, you have to contact them online or by telephone. In January 2018, my TracFone account got messed up. I bought a temporary replacement phone after losing my other one (which was soon found). For three months, I couldn’t retrieve an accurate balance of my remaining minutes, texts, and data through my phone or the TracFone website. I also wasn’t receiving incoming calls and texts. Many times I was on TracFone’s customer service line for two hours or more without making any progress. It wasn’t until letting my account expire and filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau that TracFone got serious about resolving the technical problems. What finally fixed them was changing my phone number.


There are better cell phone plans out there. One I might switch to in the future is Mint Mobile. Their pay-as-you-go plans have better data rates plus can be used internationally. An American can make international calls with TracFone, but their cell phones won’t work outside the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands. But for now, I will remain with TracFone. My account has accumulated large amounts of unused minutes, texts, and data. I’d like to use those up before possibly changing carriers.


Cell phones are a blessing but can also be a distraction. Many of us could spend more time talking to the Lord.


“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” - Jeremiah 33:3


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