Telus, Rogers & Bell Roaming Prices Hike Again in Spring 2023

Phone Plans are Getting More Expensive

After the last price hike in 2022, expect your phone bill to cost more starting this spring 2023. Phone bills are increasing across North America including monthly plans and roaming plans in the United States. While it can be difficult to keep up with the rising phone bill costs, Canadians need to stop relying on major telecom companies and start using alternative solutions to help manage phone bill expenses. And I declare that we, Textr eSIM, do not price gouge!

Major Telecom Companies are Raising Prices

With inflation on the rise and exceeding 10% in some areas, phone bills may be hitting our wallets harder this year than ever before. Mobile providers typically increase prices annually to accommodate rising costs, but consumers are feeling it more acutely due to high CPI (currently at 10.1%) and RPI (13.4%). With such significant price hikes looming large as we move into March, there's no better time for us all to reassess our mobile plans!

Telus

With the upcoming school break vacations on its way, Telus has just announced a pricier move for their Easy Roam service. Customers will see hikes of 17% and 7%, respectively - to $14 per day in the U.S., and from $15 to an almost-doubled rate at $16 daily for international travel. Spring breakers should be wary when considering signing up with this roaming service if they don't want higher bills than expected!

Telus has just increased the cost of their Easy Roam features, with a $12 daily fee for U.S travel and an International rate at $15 per day - capped at high levels each billing cycle. But wait; it gets worse! Rogers and Bell are also increasing their monthly service fee. 

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Rogers

Rogers has increased roaming costs to $12 per day for the U.S. for a maximum of 20 days, and the international price is $15 per day for up to 20 days per billing cycle since March 2022 last year. As of now, the prices remain the same in spring 2023 and are unsure they will be kept that way.

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Instead of increasing roaming fees this year, Rogers’ monthly service fee will increase by $4 per month plus taxes, beginning on the date of your next bill after March 6, 2023. Rogers says if this wireless line is on a fixed term or financing agreement, the rate increase will not kick into effect until the term is over. Rogers mentions the change is made in accordance with the CRTC Wireless Code and other wireless services on a customer’s account will remain the same.

If you are traveling to the U.S. with 3G/HSPA networks, note that mobile providers in the United States, including AT&T and T-Mobile, began permanently shutting down their 3G/HSPA networks in February 2022.  You will no longer be able to roam on the cellular network in the U.S., call nor send text messages in the U.S.

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Bell

As for Montreal-based carrier Bell, several mobility customers have received an increase of about $3 per month and the cost of its Roam Better add-on will also increase starting March 9th, 2023. Bell’s Roam Better offers two prices, one for U.S. travel and one for international travel. The U.S. Roam Better package will increase from $12 per day to $13 per day, while the international version will go from $15 per day to $16 per day.

Bell customers are facing an unwelcome surprise as two roaming plans, Roam Better with home data and the 500MB variant, will both increase in price come March. Despite identical prices for each plan currently, one offers a speed cap after 1GB of usage while the other only gives users 500MB of data - hardly seems fair! Both Roam Better plans have a similar price range, but both will increase in March.

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Travel with Textr eSIM

If you are traveling to the United States of America for a family road trip or a solo adventure in 2023, the best option is getting Textr eSIM, which is cheap and easy. Our price model is pay-as-you-use and it starts at $4.99 USD with 1 GB for 7 days. If you are staying Traveling in Canada, United States and Mexico for a month, the best value is 5 GB 30 days plan for only $39.99 USD!

With an eSIM, travelers will no longer have to worry about buying a new SIM card when they arrive at their destination. Instead, they can simply change their plan settings from their phone or other device without having to buy a new physical SIM card. This makes the process of switching carriers cheap and easy, allowing travelers to switch between domestic and international plans depending on their destination. This is much more convenient than having to buy a new physical SIM card each time they travel. 

Furthermore, eSIMs are more secure because they are protected by encryption and remote access control, which prevents others from accessing the user's data. This makes it much safer for travelers to access the internet while they are on the go. Traveling in 2023 with eSIM is a must!