For work, school, home; the internet is essential for everyday life. However, it comes at a cost that we’d all like to save a few bucks a month from. Thankfully, you’re not alone and savvy shoppers have found ways to get better monthly rates on internet service. Save some extra money and make your internet fit better in your monthly budget with these tips on how to save money on your internet bill here.
Buy Your Own Equipment
Sounds weird to spend money to save money right? This could be a viable tactic that works in the long run if you pay a monthly lease fee for your modem or router. If you do pay a monthly lease fee, did you know that overtime you could actually be paying more in equipment lease fees than if you just purchased your own?
To figure out if this tactic is right for you, do the math. How long do you plan on staying with your provider and how much does one of their approved modem router combination devices cost? Divide the cost of your chosen approved device by the amount of months you plan on staying with your internet provider. You may be pleasantly surprised at how much less it’ll cost you per month to just own your equipment outright. The math also doesn’t account for the serious upgrade you’re getting when you buy quality equipment versus the old, refurbished equipment that’s seen better days at many other homes before yours.
Negotiate For A Better Monthly Rate
Angry that your bill just went up again? You don’t have to accept it and pay up. You could negotiate with your internet provider for a better rate. But before you pick up the phone, do your homework on what else is out there so you have the proper knowledge to use as leverage.
Once you’ve learned what is out there and available at your address, only then will you be ready to call your internet provider and hit them with the hard facts. Let them know their service costs too much and you’ve found service that is more affordable like they used to be. For this conversation you’ll want to get transferred to someone on their customer retention team because they’re the ones with the power to give you what you want. That team is there to talk you out of switching or cancelling their service and they have certain allowances to get you to stay like discounts on service, free upgrades or waiving of fees if you just ask.
While on the line, be respectful, kind, but assertive without raising your voice or being insulting. You’ll increase your chances by treating them with the respect they deserve. Also save cancelling their service as a last resort. You don’t want customer service to call your bluff and leave you without a connection.
Take Advantage Of New Customer Deals
The easiest way to start saving money is by switching internet providers and taking advantage of all the new customer deals your new provider has to offer. Internet providers will roll out the welcome mat to potential new customers with lower prices, freebies and more. However, those introductory rates for new customers won’t last and soon enough you’ll be stuck paying for full price like everyone else.
There’s little to no promotions or breaks for being a loyal customer. Some providers will move you to the next promotion if you call and ask for it, but most will not in hopes you don’t go anywhere. If you like your current internet provider and don’t wish to cancel service for long, you could always come back after a period of time for that new customer introductory rate. Each internet provider defines a new customer differently from 30 days to 90 days since you’ve last used their service.
One way is if you don’t live alone, you could always cancel service and then have your spouse, family member or roommate call for service in their name. By the time their promotional rate expires, you can do it all over again and put it back in your name. All these scenarios work great, but buyer beware of contracts. If you’re in a contract, the early termination fees will cost more than you’d ever save by breaking the contract early.
Bundle Your Internet With TV Or Phone
Do you also subscribe to traditional TV service or have an expensive wireless plan? If yes to either of those services, you could be saving money on both bills when you bundle your TV or wireless phone plan with your internet. These providers can put some serious cash back in your pocket:
- AT&T: Save $20 a month when you bundle TV and internet
- Cox Communications: Save $40 or more a month with TV and internet
- Optimum: $10 off per line on already deeply discounted wireless service
- Spectrum: Save $15 per month on TV & internet or up to 40% off your wireless bill
- Suddenlink: $10 off per line on already deeply discounted wireless service
Some internet providers will give you a discount on multiple services if you subscribe to all of them with them. You’ll get a better monthly rate and it’ll all be on one convenient bill. Before taking the plunge into bundling up, be sure to compare the cost of purchasing all your services separately first. Not all bundles are the same and not all of them will save you money. This is especially the case if to bundle up you need to subscribe to a better internet, TV packages or wireless plan.
Only Pay For The Speeds You Need
One way you could start saving money on your internet bill today is lowering your internet plan and it’s speeds. What if you’re paying for faster speeds than you’re actually using?
Here’s the scenario. Let’s say you’re paying a premium of $89.95 a month for 1 Gbps of MetroNet internet, but you live alone and besides the PS4 and smart TV, you only use your internet to watch TV at night. In this scenario you could get by with a smaller internet plan that’ll cost you half the monthly price like 200 Mbps.
The easiest way to figure out if you’re paying for more speeds than you actually use is to assess how you’re using the internet now and how many devices you have connected simultaneously. From there you’ll have a better idea of the speeds you need and can make a more informed choice on internet plans.
Add Comment