Will Ting Mobile Slash Your Cell Phone Bill?

What is Ting Mobile?

Ting Mobile is on a mission to make your mobile phone plan make sense. You may have noticed that Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile constantly roll out new service plans, each one more confusing than the last. But Ting is all about clarity, transparency and flexibility. You can roll your own contract-free service plan, choosing different amounts of mobile data. (All Ting plans offer unlimited talk and texting.)

With the cheapest Flex Plan, each line added to your account costs $10/month, plus $5 per gigabyte of LTE/5G data. A single line with 2 GB of data would be just $20 a month. Data is shared across lines, so a family of four could pay $60 and share a 4 GB data pool. Or pay $80 and share 8GB of data.

The Set 5 Plan offers 5 GB of data for $25/month per line. Your example family of four would pay $100 and share 20GB of data. The Set 12 Plan offers 12 GB of data for $35/month per line. Your example family of four would pay $140 and share 48GB of data. There’s also an Unlimited Plan (22GB of data for $45/month/line) and the Ollo Unlimited Pro Plan (33GB of data for $55/month/line). You can add as many lines as you want under an account but all lines must be active on the same plan at this time.

All Ting plans provide unlimited talk and text, nationwide 4G/LTE coverage and 5G in some areas. You can use your high-speed mobile data as a hotspot. Any unused data carries over to the next month. Ting's rate chart shows all the service plan options and details.

No Math, No Contract.

You can estimate your monthly needs for each family member and see which plan works best. Or skip the math and just sign up yourself and any family members for the lowest-priced Flex Plan and pay just $5 for each extra gigabyte of data if needed. (AT&T charges $10 for extra gigs if you go over your data allotment. Verizon charges $15 per extra gigabyte.) Keep in mind data is shared between family members, and you can switch between plans at any time.

Ting requires no contract, and you can cancel service at any time. That's a breath of fresh air for anyone who's ever been in the vice-like grip of those multi-year cellular contracts that come with hefty early termination fees. Also, there are no start-up fees with Ting. They don't charge extra to activate or transfer your number over from another provider.

And how about some free stuff? Every Ting customer gets Voicemail, Call Forwarding, Caller ID, Three-way Calling, and Picture & Video Messaging. Not impressed? How about free number porting, tethering, and mobile hotspot capability? I know for sure that Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T don't offer all those things for free.

I also like Ting's approach to customer service. Ting says they hire people ("geeks", actually) who are already accustomed to solving problems for their friends and families. These reps are trained and empowered to solve problems without reading from a script. As a test, I called Ting Mobile; my rep answered quickly, spoke perfect English, and was able to answer my questions.

You can purchase a Ting-compatible handset, such as the $99 Motorola Moto E smartphone, the $159 Motorola Moto G 5G, or $199 for a Samsung Galaxy A16 5G. (Monthly payment plans are available) Or, you can bring your own device, if it's compatible with Ting's mobile carriers. Ting's phone campatibility page will help you determine if your existing phone will work with Ting.

You can also check Ting's network coverage in your area. Ting is a MVNO (mobile virtual network operator), which means they are a reseller of services from "three of the four national networks, including the nation’s largest." By contract, they're not allowed to name those "four national networks" but I can tell you that they are Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint. Ting plans run on the T-Mobile or Verizon network, depending on your location and plan choice. They'll automatically assign you to the network that provides you with the best coverage in your area. (If you live in an area that has only AT&T wireless service, Ting won't work for you.)

Ting supports international roaming and international calling, on a pay-per-use basis for minutes, messages, and data. You'll need to turn on international roaming in your Device Settings before traveling outside of the country. As an alternative, you can enable Wi-Fi Calling in your Ting Mobile dashboard, and use Wi-Fi Calling to avoid those roaming charges.

Are There Any Incentives to Join Ting?

If you're already a Ting customer, you can give a friend a $25 credit to try Ting, get a $50 credit when they activate.

Ting also offers Fiber Internet in some areas (check here) and Internet customers can get "Combo" deals with discounted mobile lines. Ting Internet customers can get mobile for $10/mo per line (saving $15/month) and the first 3 months are free.

I can't guarantee that Ting would save everyone money in the long run. My gut reaction is that most people (or families) would benefit. For a small business, it seems like a slam dunk win. I have no business relationship with Ting, and I don't get anything if you sign up. Check the rates page mentioned earlier here, and see if your personal, family or small business mobile phone bill looks better with Ting. At the very least, it's a unique step towards more transparent pricing of cellular services. Perhaps it will spur further movement in that direction.

Have you tried Ting, or are you curious about it? Post your comment or question below...