Without knowing it, you are probably paying too much for your phone plan. The cause ? An Internet data envelope much greater than your actual needs. Here’s how to check it before looking for a more suitable subscription.
Is your phone plan really suited to your needs? Not sure. It is even very likely that it is oversized. And therefore much too expensive compared to your use. In fact, like many consumers, you have undoubtedly taken out a subscription with unlimited calls, SMS and MMS, the most common plan currently in France. But in addition to these vocal and textual communications, this type of formula always includes a “data envelope”: these are the famous “gigas” now well highlighted in advertisements. Gigabytes (GB) which correspond to the amount of mobile data that you can use in a month to access the Internet, in 4G or 5G.
And it is thanks to these “gigas” that you can go to websites, check your emails, retrieve geographical information to guide you with your GPS, but also play online, listen to music or play streaming videos when you are outside, using your operator’s telephone network. In short, it is thanks to this data envelope that you can enjoy the Internet everywhere, or almost, as long as you are in a mobile coverage area, but out of range of the Wi-Fi of a box or a public access point.
The only thing is: to meet the growing needs of modern uses and, above all, to increase their turnover, operators tend to offer packages that are ever richer in data. It is not uncommon today to see plans promising 100, 150 or even 200 GB of mobile data. And it’s easy to be tempted, as these packages are strongly promoted with promotions, lots of advertising and exceptional offers.
Except that not everyone needs so much data. And even though mobile data consumption has increased significantly with streaming video – Netflix, Disney+ and other YouTube –, podcasts and social networks like TikTok or Instagram, it is rare to consume a lot of mobile data. According to studies by the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (Arcep), the average mobile data consumption of a user in France was around 15 GB per month in 2022 – compared to around 13 GB per month in 2021. We are therefore still very far from the 100 or 200 GB integrated into certain packages! Especially since this average hides, in essence, strong disparities. And if some heavy consumers of video – the most data-intensive use – can actually reach 80 or 100 GB per month, many are happy with much less, even by going daily on social networks or chatting regularly on WhatsApp. “Small” consumers can thus be perfectly satisfied with an envelope of 5 GB, as found in “first price” packages at 5 euros per month. And, in fact, most users can get by with 20 or 40 GB, with a plan costing less than 10 euros per month, without depriving themselves of Internet.
Also, if you have subscribed to a very generous data plan, it is in your best interest to evaluate your actual consumption to see if it really corresponds to your needs. No need to be an expert for this: of course, you can find out your actual consumption by going to your operator’s customer area, on its website or in the dedicated app. but your smartphone can also give it to you instantly!
On Android, open the Settingsthen go to Mobile network – or an equivalent, the title may change depending on the overlay of the manufacturer of your smartphone. On the next screen, tap Data consumption. The screen then displays the amount of mobile data used during the month, with a graph showing daily consumption in bars.
On iPhone, Open the Settingsthen go to the section Cellular data. Your mobile data consumption is displayed in the CELLULAR DATA area, with details by application type (Music, Podcasts, etc.) below.
Once you have this valuable information in hand, all you have to do is compare the operators’ offers to find a package that really suits your needs, without paying for unnecessary gigabytes. Do not hesitate to change to a cheaper plan by possibly switching to another operator, and in particular to an MVNO, a “virtual” operator such as Cdiscount Mobile, Auchan Telecom, NRJ Mobile, La Poste Mobile, Prixtel, Reglo Mobile, SIM+ , Syma or Coriolis: they are the ones who generally offer the cheapest packages, with the same services as the big guys! By doing this, you can easily save 10, 20 or 30 euros per month, or up to 360 euros per year… And don’t forget to turn off mobile data as soon as you have Wi-Fi so as not to burn out your data envelope unnecessarily!