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best cell service for all the US


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HI everyone.....my partner and I will be moving to your lovely village in January.  We are so excited.....it is so beautiful and the people are so friendly....its paradise on earth.

My question is what is the best and maybe the most inexpensive cell phone service to use to call in Mexico and the states?  I would like unlimited calls, text and data as I have now (with Straight talk at 45.00 per month).  Any responses or info would be very much appreciated.  Thanks for reading and again Im very excited and feel blessed to move to such a lovely place.  

 

Be well and happy......thanks!

 

Joel

 

PS I have done some research online about Mexican cell phone services...but it seems very confusing.  Thanks again

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For me the easiest solution was to start with a monthly plan from Telcel. They used to have plans starting at $149 pesos/month with 1gb of data but now it appears that the cheapest is $299 for 2gb. Unlimited calls to Mexico, US and Canada. The Amigo plans may be cheaper but to me they're quite confusing.

Many of our friends and family have cell phone plans that include Mexico. Those that don't can text us and we'll call back.

Straight Talk uses CDMA and so won't work in Mexico where GSM is the standard. For a US phone number I found Magic Jack to be the most economical. You can put the device on one phone in your house and if the connection isn't good call back in your Telmex or cell phone. You can install the MJ app on one cell phone so you can send and receive calls using cell data or wifi.

When back in the US you connect to T-Mobile automatically. 

If you are going to live in Mexico it is better to have a local number for all the service people you'll be dealing with. They'll have an easier time dialing the usual 33.... number than figuring out how to dial a US phone.

I hope that by the time my 5 years are up on MJ I'll no longer need a US phone number but there are still many web portals requiring a phone number that won't accept a +52 country code.

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Telcel has the best coverage albeit at the higher prices. Other providers have better deals but service may be absent. If your house has a good signal from Movistar or AT&T and travel is not a concern then you have options. Otherwise choose wisely. As John mentioned you will need a phone that supports GSM (most newer smartphones do).

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There is no "one best" fits all. Most people in the US feel Verizon has the best coverage, followed by AT&T. I use TelCel here on a 1gb plan for 33 days for $200p. I can call the US on this number. When I am in the US, I switch sim cards over to my T-Mobile sim and pay $45 for 30 days service and 4gb. T-Mobile piggybacks on AT&T's network. All my friends in the US can call the T-Mobile number when I am up there. The AT&T service here is reported to be fine but that doesn't work for me because it will have a Mexican number and all my friends in the US cannot call that without first changing their service plan to be able to call foreign numbers. And my phone is unlocked(but set up for AT&T which is compatible for TelCel)  so I can switch plans at will.

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We have a US number that rings here via VOIP. Lots of different choices, we use OOMA. Once you buy the equipment, think Black Friday or similar, their basic plan is free. You pay only the taxes that go with every landline. Our Houston number is under $4/mo. With their basic plan were can add the OOMA app to our phones. We can MAKE calls to the US free on WiFi or for almost free on the Telcel network. If someone calls that number and we're not home it rolls to voicemail. If they leave a message OOMA alerts us on our phones and we can listen and return the call, still for no additional cost. If you want your cellphone to receive that number you can switch to the high plan at $20/mo. Lots of options.

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