Choosing the Right Postpaid Plan: Factors to Consider
When you buy a new mobile SIM card from a service provider, there are generally two options to choose from – a prepaid SIM or a postpaid SIM.
If you choose a SIM card with a postpaid plan, then you will have to pay your postpaid bill, which is generated at the end of your billing cycle. Conventionally, the postpaid billing cycles are generated every month by most service providers.
Moreover, there are dozens of different postpaid plans offered by service providers with varying features and benefits. If you’re looking to get a postpaid SIM or switch your current prepaid number to postpaid, then here are some important factors to consider that will help you pick the right postpaid plan to suit your requirements.
Why Postpaid?
Postpaid plans are generally more expensive than prepaid plans even if they are offering the same amount of data, calling and SMS benefits. However, postpaid plans generally have some additional bundled benefits that pre-paid plans do not offer. Moreover, you do not worry about recharging your number every single time your prepaid plan gets over. You can simply set your postpaid bill to autopay and your bill will be automatically paid through your connected bank account while you continue to enjoy the benefits of your postpaid plan.
Choosing the right postpaid plan is necessary to ensure that all of your basic needs are covered when it comes to data capacity, calling and SMS. In the past few years, most service providers in India have started providing unlimited calling and SMS with their monthly postpaid and prepaid plans, but data plans are generally capped. In prepaid plans, users have a daily quota for data usage, while under postpaid plans, users are given a monthly quota of data to use, such as 50 GB/month or 100 GB/month.
5G has also recently been introduced in all the major Indian cities and towns by Jio and other service providers, but you will need a 5G enabled-smartphone in order to make use of a postpaid 5G SIM. Moreover, certain postpaid also offer added benefits like premium access to OTT and music subscriptions, priority customer support, and the option to add your family members under your postpaid plan. A hassle-free experience and added benefits are the primary reasons why users may choose to go for postpaid plans.
Understanding Your Requirements
Before you decide which postpaid plan to buy, you will need to consider your actual requirements. You must clearly define how much data capacity you need every month, how much local, national, and international talk time you require and how many SMS you need to send. Then, based on your requirement and your monthly budget for a phone bill, you can start looking at postpaid plans from service providers that fit your needs. Most importantly, ensure that the data capacity you have chosen is adequate, as the service provider may charge you heavily for going over the allotted monthly data capacity. You can also track your data usage and plan benefits through a dedicated mobile app from your service provider and based on your past usage, you can come up with estimates for your requirements.
Compare Network Coverage from Service Providers
Even if a service provider offers excellent benefits at a low price, it would not be useful if the service provider does not have a strong network service in your area. Strong network coverage is an important prerequisite that you must consider while choosing a service provider for your postpaid plan. It’s ideal to go with a service provider that has a reputation for the best mobile network access, even in remote areas.
If your job involves travelling or you are a travel enthusiast, it is all the more important to select a service provider with a strong network coverage across all of India. If you end up choosing the wrong service provider, you may end up stranded in remote regions without access to the internet or calling services. However, if you stay in a single area for extended periods of time and do not venture out too much, it would be prudent to choose the service provider which offers the best connectivity in your specific area.
You can read online reviews and consult forums in order to understand which service provider has the best network coverage in your area vs who has the best coverage across the country, and then pick which postpaid provider you wish to go with.
Comparing Benefits of Postpaid Plans
As mentioned above, postpaid plans come bundled with many additional benefits over prepaid plans. Moreover, the more expensive plan you choose, the higher the number of benefits you will receive. Some of the benefits that are offered under the best postpaid plans include:
Premium OTT Subscriptions: Many postpaid plans from service providers offer free access to paid OTT subscriptions. Jio, one of India’s largest mobile network operators, offers postpaid plans with a comprehensive bundle of benefits to their users including premium subscriptions to film, tv, and music streaming platforms such as Netflix, JioCinema, Prime Video, JioSaavn, Disney+ Hotstar, and many more.
Family Plans: When you buy a postpaid plan, most service providers also offer you the choice to add family members or friends under a ‘family plan’. The secondary numbers are added at very little cost, making the plan cost-efficient for the whole family.
Mobile Insurance: Many postpaid plans offer built-in mobile insurance for your handset, so in case you end up losing it or it gets stolen/damaged, you can get reimbursement in the form of an insurance claim payout.
International Calls and Roaming: Some postpaid plans also have a certain amount of calling minutes dedicated to international calls and international roaming calls. This feature is useful for those who travel internationally or have to make international calls on a regular basis.
Unlimited Internet: Most service providers have a specific postpaid plan that offers unlimited internet. However, it is usually among the highest-priced postpaid plans, and you should only opt for it if you do not have access to an unlimited broadband connection and have to rely on mobile data for all your internet-related tasks. You can also get access to high-speed 5G as companies like Jio have already installed 5G network infrastructure in major cities and towns. Jio also offers unlimited 5G data to users who are eligible for their ‘Welcome Offer’.
Add unlimited 5G under welcome plan
Based on which of the above benefits are of priority to you, you can start browsing for postpaid plans that satisfy your requirements.
How To Compare Postpaid Plans Online?
Most service providers list the features and benefits as well the prices of their postpaid plans on their official websites. Moreover, you can find detailed information about each company’s postpaid plans through various reputed tech-related websites or news sites.
A final yet important factor to also consider is how effective the customer support of a service provider is. If you end up facing bill-payment-related issues or wish to cancel or change your postpaid plans and these issues are not successfully dealt with by your provider’s customer support team, you may end up losing a lot of time and money. Online reviews from users will be very helpful in determining which provider offers the best customer support.
By comparing the prices of each postpaid plan offered by different service providers and doing a cost-to-benefit analysis of the features offered, you can shortlist a suitable set of plans to choose from based on your needs. Finally, you can consider which company offers the most reliable network and service and then choose an appropriate postpaid plan for your needs. Make sure you do not choose a plan with inadequate benefits or an overly expensive plan with features that you do not require. Fix a budget and based on your needs, you can then finally the best plan as per suitability.
