How Much Data Is Enough, Really?

There’s lots of talk about overconsumption, low-buys or no-buys, and personally, we think it’s about time that someone said it: You don’t need to spend money on things you a) probably already have, or b) aren’t an actual necessity. Sure, there’s nothing wrong with splurging on treats occasionally, but when you’re already on a tight budget, you have to evaluate every single purchase — including your phone service.  

The trendy thing over the past decade has been to exclusively offer unlimited data plans only, convincing you that when you don’t have to worry about a limit, your life is so much better, because who wants to watch their data usage and stress about running out or going over? But the question is, are they selling peace of mind or just extra data you don’t actually need?  

Studies for the average mobile data usage vary, with some claiming that the average American uses up to 15GB of data/month, while others claim that number is closer to 19GB/month. But even within that range, does it warrant an expensive unlimited data plan? By our accounts, no, and let us tell you why.  

How much data does running apps on your phone use? 

If you’re away from Wi-Fi, your phone will use its mobile data connection to do virtually everything on your phone, from checking email to looking up directions, to doom scrolling through your socials. You can check your phone’s settings to see just how much data you’re using (and which apps are using the most) on a monthly basis, but here is a quick general guide: 

>> Quick tip: It takes about 1,000MB to use up 1GB 

If you’re someone who exclusively streams and uses their phone over mobile data, then yeah, an unlimited data plan is probably for you, as streaming just one movie (depending on which quality setting it’s on) can run you up to 14GB – the average for most people in a month. But if you do the bulk of these activities over Wi-Fi, then you can probably get away with less than 15GB a month – heck, maybe even less than 10GB. And at that point, what are you paying for?  

How much money am I wasting on an unlimited data plan? 

If you’re paying for an unlimited data plan with an MVNO (or a prepaid carrier), you’re likely paying on average $45/month. If you’re paying for an unlimited data plan with a postpaid (major) carrier, that number is closer to $80/month.  

Let’s count an unlimited data plan as 50GB of premium data (we know some carriers offer more). For $45/month, that’s roughly $1 per gig. For $80/month, that’s ~$1.50 per gig. If you’re only using 15GB, that's $15 worth of data...but you're paying significantly more for it. So, how much does that peace of mind really cost you? An extra $30/month? That $30 can – and should – go to more pressing financial needs, like a credit card payment, a utility bill, or even just funding your “fancy” upgrade at the grocery store, like maybe you do buy the brand name cereal or cookies every once in a while.  

But doesn't TextNow offer an unlimited data plan?  

Yes, we do! But we also offer it in a way that no one else does — as a flexible option, not the only option. If you’re spending most of your time on Wi-Fi anyway, between home and work — behavior that 80% of Americans share — you might not need a dedicated data plan all the time. But we’ll still keep you connected with service that gives you access to your number for unlimited calls and texts nationwide, plus data access for iHeartRadio and select other apps including email, finance, maps, and rideshare. So, regardless of whether you can pay or not — if your paycheck is late or bills piled up a little more than usual — you’re always going to have service. And then, if you want to access to more data, like if you have a DMV appointment and know you’re going to stand in that line for a while, you can add unlimited data for just the day, a week, or the whole month whenever you need it. Cancel or downgrade back to the free plan at any time, and never get your phone line cut off.  

So how much data is enough data? Try out a lower data limit plan for a while to see for yourself — you may be surprised to find that nothing changes, except for your phone bill.