Difference Between Prepaid and Postpaid Plans

Prepaid vs Postpaid Plans

There is still a lot of talk between the two types of billing schemes popularly used in mobile devices like cellphones. These are the prepaid plans and the postpaid plans. By the looks of it, prepaid plans are paid before use (“pre” stands for “before” or “prior”) while postpaid plans are being paid after use as evidenced by the word “post.” These two billing schemes were devised to cater to the needs and preferences of different types of users or customers. Either option has its pros and cons. It just depends on what suits you best.

A postpaid plan is when you have a registered phone number that is being billed. You make as many messages through SMS or MMS and as many calls as you want; then you will be billed (in most cases) only after a month. Prepaid plans are different because you often need to buy electronic credits or load with the use of a prepaid card that has a call number and a call number pin to give a balance to your phone number.

With regard to credit limits, postpaid plans technically are more flexible and do not have a balance limit as compared to the prepaid scheme. You are being billed depending on overall usage. If you call or text too often, chances are you’ll be getting a very big phone bill. On the contrary, if you use your postpaid phone rarely, then you’ll end up paying less per month. But nowadays, postpaid plans are now being bundled with a brand new mobile phone of your choice that may bill you with a fixed amount per month. But this often comes at a hefty price. If you choose the bundled postpaid plan, you have the option of choosing the higher end phones to accompany your postpaid plans, but you must be prepared to pay a bigger monthly premium. Some postpaid plans today are even given set limits of a predetermined number of calls and messages. Any excess to that will come as an additional cost for your monthly bundled plan.

Prepaid plans are best for those who want to have more control of their phone credits. By knowing your current load balance, you’ll know how many SMS messages or calls you can make. But to some customers who want to be assured of having phone credits during times of emergency, this is not an ideal option. Those who can afford costly plans and who engage in too many mobile calls and messaging are better off having a postpaid plan.

Summary:

Prepaid plans are paid before use while postpaid plans are paid after use.
Prepaid plans are good for low-usage customers while postpaid plans are better suited for moderate to high-usage customers.
Prepaid plans generally cost less compared to postpaid.
Prepaid plans are more limiting and inflexible in terms of phone credits compared to postpaid.
Many postpaid plans today are bundled with the provision of a brand new device.

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