A viral post about the stark differences between US and Canadian mobile phone rates while traveling highlights just how vast the differences are when it comes to roaming phone plans.
"Why are Canadians getting screwed with cell phone plans?" Redditors wondered in a post that has garnered nearly 500 comments from Canadians upset with their mobile service providers, specifically the prices of roaming plans, or the cost of using your Canadian cell phone line when you're abroad. One user said they're forced to spend over $100 extra on their bill when they travel outside of Canada.
But a telecom expert from mybillsarehigh.com, a company dedicated to helping businesses and individuals save money, says there are ways to get a cheaper cell phone. It's just a matter of knowing how and when to do it.
Mohammad Halabi is the CEO and founder of mybillsarehigh.com, which represents businesses and consumers against telecom providers in an effort to save customers when it comes to landline, mobile and cable services. He says the issue behind the discrepancies in U.S. versus Canadian cell phone providers boils down to one thing.
"The bottom line is there's a lot more competition in the U.S.," he tells Yahoo Canada. "Obviously the population is bigger there."
In Canada, the major mobile carriers are the telecom giants Rogers, Telus and Bell. While there are other low-cost mobile phone providers such as Fido and Koodoo, these are owned by Rogers and Telus respectively.
An example of the lack of competition in Canada is Rogers' mobile plan, which includes calling, texting and data within Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. The plan costs $100 per month, except in Quebec, where it costs just $75. This is due to increased competition from Videotron, a Quebec telecommunications company that provides service in the province.
Videotron acquired budget provider Freedom Mobile in 2023, which is available in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia
Halabi emphasizes that most customers are not aware of what is available in the Canadian market and should not rely on the average customer service representative to tell them everything.
"When you're dealing with telecom providers, not every agent is going to qualify the customer well," he says. "A lot of agents want to sell you new products."
However, he emphasizes that there are better prices than those stated on the website.
"But you have to fight for it," he says.
Many brokers want to sell you new products.
US mobile carrier plans differ significantly from those of the major carriers in Canada.
According to their websites, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile plans range from around $50 to $90 USD for unlimited plans that include data, calling and texting throughout North America. With the exchange rate, the most expensive plans can cost upwards of $120 CAD.
In Canada, however, roaming rates will cost you between $12 and $14 per day to use your Canadian phone line in the U.S., on top of your monthly rate. For international destinations, the price goes up to $15 or more per day in a select group of countries. Canadian carriers offer a number of unlimited plans for using your phone in North America, starting at $95 CAD per month with Telus and going up to $110 per month with Bell.
Halabi says the best time to get a cheaper phone plan starts in September, when it's back-to-school season, and lasts through the end of the year. He notes that last year's Christmas season was the most competitive he's ever seen in the telecom industry in Canada.
"The last quarter of the year is the best time to get a mobile plan," he says. "Between the start of the school year, Black Friday and Boxing Day, there's aggressive promotion."
People with existing plans should contact their provider and tell them they're considering switching providers, Halabi says. It may also be a good idea to talk to a retention specialist, someone whose main job is to keep existing customers happy.
"Talk to someone who has influence over that, because chances are the front-end customer service isn't going to be able to do much for you," he says.
The last quarter of the year is the best time to get a mobile phone contract.
There is an incentive for agents from competing carriers to try to do business if it is a new acquisition. Halabi says it is worth much more than if you just upgrade your device and extend your contract with your existing carrier.
"There's a lot more offering to new acquisitions to get new customers," he says. "Sometimes it's in the form of a couple of free months, or they're offering a plan that existing customers can't get. Because acquisition is key here."
When it comes to saving money while traveling with your cell phone plan, Halabi says that if customers like having an extra phone number, they can get a U.S. SIM card and a prepaid number. Otherwise, customers should consider calling their carrier for a $20 per month add-on, which will save them on roaming, especially if they travel more than twice a month.
"If you need access to your number, indicate how often you go and make sure the US is included in your plan," he says.
He adds that there is no option for international roaming, only a daily rate.
While there appear to be some price differences between cell phone providers in the US and Canada, 2022 data from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications (CRTC) shows that prices for cell phone service are falling as more consumers switch to large data packages.
A representative of the Canadian Telecommunications Association says the federal government's most recent price survey, after comparing prices in the U.S., shows that prices for wireless plans in Canada are lower on average than comparable plans in the U.S. Also, the average monthly revenue per user, including roaming charges, of national carriers in the U.S. is on average about 30 percent higher than that of national carriers in Canada.
In March, the CEOs of Rogers, Bell and Telus went to the House of Commons Industry Committee to highlight the fact that phone prices were coming down. They pointed to increased data usage as a reason why Canadian mobile phone users might not see that price drop.
While customers may pay less per gigabyte of data, some deals may force them to buy larger data plans than they need, along with bundles for TV and internet. This means they may have to spend more to save.
