
That matters less for privacy, but more for understanding where you’ll have service and what speed of wireless service will be available. For instance, Cricket uses AT&T's mobile network, and TracFone is on Verizon's. You should also be aware of what wireless network the prepaid provider uses. One thing to watch out for, Agarwal says, is that some prepaid data plans have much lower data allotments and may throttle the speed of the network even before you hit your data limit. Some may offer “unlimited” usage, but be sure to read the fine print on what that actually means. Prepaid phone plans that include voice, text, and data might be sold in time increments from a month at a time up to a year.

Burn the receipt, or, better yet, don't ask for one.


If being untrackable is your primary goal, paying with a credit card or online account might defeat the purpose. Expect to pay anywhere from $20 for a cheap flip phone to $300 or more for something like a fully loaded prepaid iPhone 11.
