It is time for a new phone subscription. Then you come across all kinds of stunts with large data bundles, but how do you know which amount of data suits you best? Because not everyone uses the same amount of gigabytes in a month.
See how much you are currently consuming
On both iPhones and Android phones you can see how much data you are currently using. That is a good indicator of what you need in a month.
On iPhones, data usage can be viewed in the Settings app, under ‘Mobile Network’. Under the heading ‘Mobile data’ is what each individual app has consumed on the mobile 4G or 5G connection, with the total data usage above it. This is not from one month, but from the entire period of your subscription. When it started is at the bottom of this page. If your subscription runs for 25 months, for example, you must divide the number shown by 25 to find out your monthly consumption.
Android has a similar data overview. You can find this in the Settings app under ‘Network and internet’, where you tap on the relevant SIM card. At the top it shows how much data apps use, by tapping on the apps you get a graph with more specific data.
If you want a simpler monthly overview, you can also open your provider’s app. This often shows your consumption for this month. If you want to see what you have consumed before, this is usually stated on the shared invoices.
Ask yourself if it can be less
With a consumption of, for example, an average of 20 gigabytes per month, you could opt for a subscription with 25 gigabytes of data. That gives you a bit of room for maneuver if you exceed the average, for example if you stream a lot during a vacation.
An alternative is to take a little less data, so in this case, for example, 15 gigabytes. Then take a good look at which apps have consumed the most in recent months and see if you can reduce this. Streamed a lot of Netflix? You can reduce that data consumption by downloading movies and series at home on Wi-Fi in advance, so you don’t have to load them over 5G. Your most listened to music library in Spotify can also be stored locally to save a lot of data.
If it turns out afterwards that you need more data, you can always increase your data bundle with most providers.