I was talking to a friend yesterday who told me his parents booted him and his brother off their family plan and set them each up with their own, and how much more expensive it is. Let’s look at some numbers. I am on a family plan so I pay: $10 for my line + $10 for unlimited texting + $3.50 for visual voicemail (which I need to cancel) + $30 for the data plan. Thats $53.50. Assuming he is doing the minimum number of minutes, with text, and data (he’s getting the Droid 2), his plan looks like this: $60 for talk and text + $30 for data. That’s $90. Of-course, with Family Plan with his brother, his plan would look like this:

$100 for talk and text + $30(x2) for their data plans = $160 or $80/person. $10. Big Whoop. However, if you bump it up to the next plan for each person, it would be $110 vs $90. $20/month saved. Close to (essentially) a free data plan. If they add one more person to the plan, it would be $170/mo ($10 for the extra line), which divided by 3 is $56.60 per person. Plus, monthly charge savings tend to add up!

Seems like a no brainer at that rate. You will save a good amount of money by playing your cards right with a family plan.*

*note: These numbers are using Verizon Wireless’s plans. Results from other providers may vary.