Cheapest Prepaid Cell Phone Plan

What is the Cheapest Prepaid Cell Phone?

While many people buy a cell phone based on the features, coverage, ability to surf the web and other things, some people just want a cheap cell phone for backup, emergencies or because they want to save money.

Save A Big stack of coins with Prepaid

If you buy a cell phone from one of the major service providers such as Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile or any of the others, you will typically pay a few hundred dollars just for the phone, pay around $70 per month for service, and sign a contract that lasts 2 years.

You could be paying around $1000 a year just to use a cell phone.

While this does usually include unlimited talking, texting and web browsing, not everyone needs that.

Lets look at the extreme opposite end of the cell phone spectrum. What about a cell phone plan that costs less than $10 a month?

Cheapest Prepaid Plan - Less Than $10 a Month

Imagine paying $10 a month, or $120 a year for your cell phone. You could be saving $880 a year, or $1760 with a standard 2 year contract phone.

What would you do with $1760? We can think of lots of things! Like a new computer or TV.

So what is this prepaid plan? Well, it is very simple, and many of the major prepaid cell phone companies have plans that cost less than $10 per month. Some of the prepaid companies are Net 10, Straight Talk, Cricket, and Tracfone.

But Here at de9w2dsl, we are going to look at the options from Tracfone.

How to Pay Less Than $10 a Month for a Prepaid Plan:

If you are looking for a way to save money, but still have a cell phone, here is how to do it.

LG500g from Amazon

Tracfone offers several phones for $9.99. The 376g (click to read our review) is a simple but durable flip phone. It is an older model, so it might not be available everywhere. The Samsung S125G is another phone option from Tracfone that is a little newer.

Another option is the LG500g (click for our review!) with full QWERTY keypad, and many other impressive features. It is currently on sale from Amazon for $9.99! It usually sells for $29.99 from Tracfone.


After you choose which cell phone, (and make sure it comes with Double Minutes) buy a 60 minute phone card for $20 from Tracfone.

Thus, you get a cell phone, 3 months of service, and 120 minutes (with double minutes) plus bonus minutes from a promo code, all for $30, which works out to $10 a month for the first three months, and about $6.65 for every month after that.

If 40 minutes a month is not enough, you can always purchase another minutes card, or even get the 120 minute card which costs $30 and comes with 3 months of service. With double minutes for life, that's 240 minutes for 3 months, or about 80 minutes a month, (20 per week) for $10 per month.

Tracfone offers some even better options with their Tracfone Family Value Plan. You can get 50 minutes a month and 30 days of service for $10 for the first person, and 40 minutes/30 days of service for only $6 a month for each additional person! To learn more, read our full Tracfone Family Value Plan review.

The Bottom Line - How Much Can You Save?

While some people do need to use their cell phones a lot for work or to keep in touch with needy friends or family, not everyone needs an unlimited plan from a major cell phone provider. 

The $10 a month plan described here works great for those who only make a few calls or texts a week.

For those who use their phone a little more often, there are plenty of prepaid options.

For example, a 200 minute phone card from Tracfone is $40. With a double minutes, that is instantly turned into 400 minutes for 3 months, or about $13 per month, for 133 minutes per month!

Perhaps it is time to start saving money, by looking at your prepaid cell phone options. Just think about what you could do with the money saved?

Interested in more money saving tips? Check out our article on How to Make your Minutes Last Longer!

Tracfone Review - LG 800G Touchscreen

The LG 800G Touchscreen phone from Tracfone with Triple Minutes for life

LG 800G from TracFone

This is a phone for anyone who likes the freedom of prepaid cell phones, but wants a touchscreen phone with a little more features.

The LG 800G is one of TracFone's more expensive phones at $50, but it delivers on features, performance, and overall value.

Check the end of this post to see where you can get this phone for closer to $15!

LG 800G - Features

The LG 800G comes with plenty of features as most phones usually do. Here are some of the most important features:

• Triple Minutes for Life
• Touchscreen
• Mobile Web Browsing
• 2 Mega Pixel Camera and Video recorder
• Speaker Phone
• 1000 entry phone book
• Voice Recorder
• Space for Additional Memory (Micro SD card, but does not come with purchase)
• Alarm Clock
• Wall Charger
• 3.06 ounces total weight 
• Good battery life - 8 days on standby
• Calculator with advanced functions

The triple minutes for life is a huge bonus to this phone making texting, calling, and surfing the web much more cost effective compared to other Tracfone options.

Likes and Dislikes for the LG 800G

This phone comes with several features that we really like - Triple Minutes for Life, 2 MP Camera and Mobile web.

Triple Minutes for Life means that for every minute of airtime you add, it will be turned into 3. So if you add a 60 minute prepaid card you will get 120 total minutes! And of course you will use a Promo Code to get a few extra bonus minutes!

The 2 Mega Pixel camera and video recorder is adequate for taking pictures or video if you don't have any other devices handy, and you can store these on the MicroSD card (which unfortunately is not included). Mobile web is also a nice feature for this phone, but it will cost you airtime.

What we were not such a huge fan about was the somewhat unresponsive touchscreen. While you can get used to it and some may even like it, for those who have used newer devices with modern touchscreens, it may be a little disappointing.

While the LG 800G does bring some great features, it is nowhere near a smartphone, so be aware of what you are actually getting for your money.

If you are looking for a phone with a few more features, like WiFi and a better touchscreen, you should deffinatly check out the newer, LG 840G and our full review.

Customer Reviews of the LG 800G:

Most people give the LG 800G a favorable review of 4 out of 5 stars.

Customers liked the size of the touchscreen, the ability to have a no contract smartphone, and the overall value of the phone with triple minutes.

Some customers thought that the LG 800G lacked the full functionality that other smartphones have, and the customer service was also not up to par.

The touchscreen is not always as responsive as users would like. However, the included Triple Minutes for Life is a great bonus for this phone.

Overall, the LG 800G from Tracfone is a very good value for the money. For those who have experience using Tracfone prepaid cell phones, it is a nice upgrade from many of their other phones. For those who have not used a Tracfone before, or don't have experience with prepaid cell phones, this might be a little challenging to get accustomed to.

You might find some of our other recent articles useful in shopping for a cell phone including:
Top LG cell phones from Tracfone
Top Samsung cell phones from Tracfone
The Best Tracfone Cell Phones

Update - Cheapest Place To Buy:

LG 800G on Amazon

Tracfone Reviewer suggests buying the LG 800G from Amazon, where the phone is currently on sale at a discounted price (last check it was on sale for $15!): Click the image to the right to go to see the phone on Amazon.

Want more Reviews? Visit our Cell Phone Reviews page!

Read our Overview of Tracfone for more information about prepaid cell phones

Gift Ideas for Teenagers - Prepaid Cell Phone

Christmas and Birthday Gift Idea - Tracfone Prepaid Cell Phone

While many teenagers might already have a cell phone, those that don't (and even 11 and 12 year old's) really want one.

Cell Phones - From Microsoft

Cell phones give a sense of freedom for teenagers. It also makes them feel more grown up because they are responsible for the phone.

Many parents face a problem; contract cell phones are expensive, and if the teenager somehow breaks or looses their phone, the parents are often stuck spending hundreds of dollars to get a replacement.

While unlimited call, texting, and data is fun, no teenager actually needs an unlimited plan. And while an iPhone or other smartphone is fun to use, few teenagers even need that.

Which is where prepaid cell phones become an inexpensive, and beneficial option.

Prepaid Cell Phone's have Several Great Benefits:

Giving a prepaid cell phone as a gift for a teenagers first phone has several valuable life lessons which many parents might not think of.

It teaches kids to manage prepaid minutes, be more responsible, and it is inexpensive.

A Prepaid Cell Phone Teaches Management Skills

With Tracfone, you buy minutes for the phone using minutes cards. The phone then has a certain number of minutes remaining on it.

As the teenager uses the phone for calling and texting, the balance of minutes will slowly be reduced. If the teenager calls all of his or her friends in the first few days of owning the cell phone, then the phone will likely run out of minutes very quickly.

This is where the learning happens. The teenager must learn to manage the minutes remaining on the cell phone, or be willing to buy extra minutes.

This management skill quickly transfers to managing money because it is the same principle. If the teenager gets $50 in their bank account for the month, but uses it all in the first few days then they will have to find a way to make more money, or just suffer being penniless for the rest of the month.

Cell Phones Teach Responsibility

When a teenager owns a cell phone, it teaches them to be responsible for it. They must make sure not to lose it, not to break it or drop it. If something happens to the phone, they must know it is up to them to fix the phone or get a new one.

Cell phones also tend to make a young kid feel older because they recognize the extra responsibility they are receiving when given a cell phone.

Prepaid Cell Phones are very Inexpensive

The final benefit of giving a prepaid cell phone as a gift to teenagers is that it is very inexpensive compared to other cell phone companies.

A good Tracfone cell phone is $10-$30 and available at many stores. Enough minutes to last a month can be purchased for $20 in store, or even online.

It can cost as little as $10 a month to own and sue a prepaid cell phone. And the great thing is, if more minutes are used, one can simply buy another minutes card.

Conclusion - A Great Gift Idea for Teenagers, or Anyone Else

Obviously contract cell phones have certain benefits for those who use their phone often or want certain features. But a prepaid cell phone makes a perfect gift for a young teenager, or anyone who doesn't have a cell phone.

It will teach them several valuable skills and help them stay connected with friends and family.