There are two types of non-contract cell phones on the market: Pre-paid cell phones and pay as you go cell phones.  Pre-paid cell phones have you pay up front for minutes and when you run out, you can no longer use the phone until you buy more.  Pay as you go phones have you pay for the minutes you use during the month on a cycle.

Pre-paid cell phones

With pre paid cell phones, you pay for your minutes up front. You can do this with time cards, online, by phone or even on some services, the cell phone itself. When those minutes run out, you have to purchase more to use the phone's network. These minutes also can be used to pay for text, picture and video messaging and other services on the network. In some cases, if you run out of minutes, your pre paid cell phone number may be returned to the network for another user to take up as their own.

Pay as you go cell phones

Pay as you go cell phones offer more flexibility than pre paid cell phones. However, if you use the phone more than you can afford during a month, you may find yourself with a costly bill. You pay per minute and per service. You can set up automatic payments or manual payments on most services, and you can do this via phone or online. If you do not pay your bill on time, you may lose your phone number.

When it comes down to it, it depends on how much you want to use your cell phone. If you end up using it a lot, utilizing pre paid cell phones gives you control over how many minutes you are using because you buy them up front. Once you use them up, if that is all you have budgeted yourself, then you are done using the cell phone for the month. If you are not worried about controlling how much you spend per month on cell phone service, going with the pay as you go cell phone may be the better route. This also keeps you in the loop as opposed to having service cut off when you run out of minutes on pre paid cell phones.

Choosing a cell phone is never easy. If you are not sure which road to travel, figuring your needs as a cell phone user is key. From there, you can determine if pay as you go, pre paid cell phones or even a contract cell phone is right for you.