Best Cell Phone Carriers in Scranton, PA

Cell Phone Coverage in Scranton, PA

When debating between different brands, what carrier options should you value the most? When looking for the right cell phone plan, pay close attention to the coverage quality, carefully assessing the cell phone carrier with the best coverage in Scranton, PA before deciding. Many companies attempt to sway you with slick offers, charging you next to nothing, tempting you with low rates, only to trick you into signing a contract that chains you into years of poor or even non-existent coverage. At home, without coverage, your calls will go to voicemail, forcing you to step out of the house to make a call. Thankfully, this rarely happens, as most major national carriers have coverage in almost all U.S. cities, which means that such situations rarely happen. However, avoid this rare conundrum by carefully checking the carrier's’ coverage maps, giving you the peace of mind that your city is completely covered.

Types of Wireless Plans Available in Scranton, PA

Even though every consumer is a bit different, they’re all looking for the same basic things when it comes to cell phone service. They want a plan with enough minutes and text messages that they won’t go over their limits, and enough data to cover the amount that they use.

A consumer always needs a cell phone plan that fits his needs, but it’s even more essential if he plans to use his cell phone for the majority of his communication. This is becoming more and more common as consumers eschew home phones entirely. Using PhoneDog, the consumer can check out the plan and carrier options in Scranton, PA to see how much money he could save over his current wireless plan.

There are three types of wireless plans: individual, family and prepaid plans.

Individual plans are also known as single-line plans, and the name is self-explanatory. The consumer pays one rate and receives a certain amount of data, texts, and minutes per month for his one phone line. For single adults, an individual plan is usually the most affordable option.

A family plan allows a group of people to each have their own device. This is by far the best deal for two or more people who want to get phone service together, as they’ll pay less on a per-line basis than they would with multiple individual plans. With a family plan, everyone shares the same pool of minutes, texts and data, making it important that the plan has a sufficient amount to cover everyone’s needs, whether they live in Scranton, PA or not.

Prepaid plans have several other names, including no-contract plans and pay-as-you-go plans. The consumer pays in advance for phone service, which means he only has to pay for what he uses, although there can be extra fees. The main advantage with these types of plans is that the consumer isn’t committing to a contract. The downside is that phones can have a higher upfront cost because the consumer must pay the full price. The most recent and advanced smartphones are often available with prepaid plans.

Individual and family plans are either contract or no contract plans, and the consumer must commit to the plan for a certain length of time if it is a contract, with the standard being two years. Some carriers with service in Scranton, PA also have one-year plans available. The consumer must pay for the plan monthly, and if he wants to get out of his contract early, there will almost always be an early termination fee. The early termination fee will typically include a percentage of whatever was left on the contract, along with a penalty.

How To Get The Best Cell Phone Plan in Scranton, PA

First off, it should be fairly clear that anyone looking for a plan in Scranton, PA for more than one user should be looking for a family plan. If you aren't looking for coverage for more than one person, you'll need to decide what sort of coverage you'll want along with the level of flexibility from your new plan.

Some users would probably be more than satisfied with the economy-level plans that typically over a few hundred voice minutes and text messages along with some limited data usage. Heavier mobile users might want an unlimited plan for their voice minutes and text messages, but they'll have to pay a premium for such coverage. Prepaid plans often require upfront payment for a batch of minutes or simply by the minute. If you use all your minutes, you pay to add more.

While unlimited plans existed for data coverage at one point, those plans slowly started to vanish as carriers realize how much data consumers can use, but they are on their way back. Unlimited data plans in Scranton, PA can easily be had these days. Data is usually sold in packages of several gigabytes per month on contracted plans, and prepaid plans allow you to buy data as you wish. Overage costs on data tend to be some of the highest in the mobile market, so don't skimp on coverage if it might force the incursion of these penalties.

Compare Cell Phone Carriers in Scranton, PA

There are many major carriers that provide cell phone service in Scranton, PA. Smaller carriers such as Ting, Tello, Boost Mobile, and Cricket Wireless use the service of major carriers, so there are high chances that you will have coverage in your city.

AT&T is the second largest major cell phone carrier. They offer all types of plans and even have unlimited options. Verizon Wireless is another very large major cell phone carrier and provides plans similar to AT&T. Sprint is the smallest of the “big 4” carriers, but arguably offers the most affordable plans. T-Mobile is the third largest carrier, and they offer no-contract plans for individuals or families with unlimited talk, text and data. All four major carriers offer unlimited data plans.

You may be able to find better deals with less popular cell phone provider, also known as MVNOs, although you should carefully compare these providers to make sure your needs will be met. You may find that a smaller cell phone carrier can give you everything you need at a lower price, but you may also find that your needs would be better provided for by a major carrier. Luckily, you can compare all of these companies with PhoneDog's great comparison tool. Before long, you'll have found the perfect carrier and plan for you based on your own specific needs!