T-Mobile offers some competitive prepaid cell phone plans for those who are considering using a prepaid phone.  Although only about 15% of all cell phone users are officially on a prepaid model, that number is increasing almost daily as consumers become a little more savvy.

One of the benefits of prepaid and pay as you go phones is that you don't have to sign a contract that binds you to a wireless provider.  Why should you have to sign a contract?  Come to think of it, why should you have to pay for the same amount of minutes every month?  Why can't you simply pay for the minutes you use?

These last two questions bring up another prepaid benefit: you can choose how many minutes you want to pay for.  You have to pay for them before you use them, but you have a lot more control over your minute usage.  For example, if you know that you are going to be using your phone a lot in a given month, you can buy more minutes than you did the month before.  On a contract plan, you most likely can't change the number of allocated minutes you pay for.  

Or, if you run out of minutes, you can simply buy more.  Keep in mind that one of the best ways to get the most out of a prepaid cell phone is to purchase larger amounts of minutes ahead of time.  

Companies like Tracfone prepaid and T-Mobile prepaid have bonus minutes you can earn if you purchase in bulk.  For Tracfone, you can purchase a Double Minutes for Life card.  With T-Mobile you get a gold bonus of 15% extra minutes on the rest of your purchase if you buy the $100 card for 1000 minutes that can be used over the time span of a year.

If you are smart about it, the savings can really add up.  

There are two T-mobile prepaid options you can choose from.  One is the Pay as You Go plan and the second is Pay By the Day.

You have two options with T-Mobile To Go prepaid plans.

Pay by the Day Plan

For this plan you will pay $1 per day for the days you use your phone. You also get Unlimited Nationwide Calling from 7pm to 7am and you talk free with any other T-Mobile cell phone user. All other domestic calls cost ten cents a minute.

Pay as You Go Plan

On this prepaid plan you don't receive any unlimited calling features. You simply buy minutes in different dollar amounts.

$10 equals 30 minutes

$25 equals 130 minutes

$50 equals 400 minutes

$100 equals 1000 minutes

As a bonus for buying the $100 talk time refill, you get a bonus of 15% extra minutes on all refills that you decide to purchase beyond that initial 1000 minutes of talk time.

These are the two T-Mobile prepaid cell phone plans that you have to choose from.

The best way to choose a prepaid cell phone plan is to figure out exactly what your needs are. If you are the type of person who likes to keep track of all of your friends and constantly be "connected," than a prepaid plan probably is not best for you.

But if you consistently use, say, around 200 minutes per month, you will definitely be able to save money with a prepaid or pay as you go cellular plan. This is not a hard rule, because depending on your phone usage, you may save more on a prepaid even if you use 400 minutes.

If you use your phone as an emergency type of thing, then the T-Mobile Pay as You Go may be a good options. If you only need 130 minutes a month because you use your phone sparingly, $25 is not a bad deal.

If you talk on your phone heavily in the night hours between 7pm to 7am and have friends and family on the T-Mobile network, then it probably makes sense to go with the Pay By Day, which overall is a better deal for people who will be using their phone often. One bonus is the free in-network phone calls. But be warned that those $.10 minutes add up quickly. And don't forget about the $1 a day fee you have to pay for every day you use your phone.

It may be a good idea to look at past cell phone bills to gauge your usage and look for patterns in your phone habits. The more info you have about what you need, the better you will learn how you can save money on your prepaid cell phone bill.

There are several other competitive prepaid wireless providers out there. One of the companies that made a big move earlier this year is Boost Mobile. The company released the Boost Mobile Monthly Unlimited prepaid plan which allows subscribers unlimited text messaging, web surfing, unlimited talk time. Long distance is also at a set rate. The total cost for this plan is $50 a month, which is quite competitive.

This plan is aimed at younger users who text frequently throughout the day, surf the internet via cell phone, and like to "stay connected." Boost's network isn't the strongest, but this plan seems reasonably priced for heavy cell phone users. And it is a prepaid plan, which is a plus for an all-inclusive wireless plan like this one.

Tracfone is another serious contender for your business as it is one of the most popular prepaid providers out there. Known for low prices and frequent special offers, Tracfone has a lot of different options for different kinds of cell phone users.

Tracfone Double Minutes for Life is an option you can pay for up front or even sometimes get for free with the purchase of a handset. Every time you purchase minutes, you are rewarded with the same amount of minutes on top. This is obviously a good way to start saving money on your cell phone bill.

On the other end of the spectrum is the Jitterbug phone, which is also a prepaid handset, but is aimed at older users who may not need all the features associated with today's modern phones. Jitterbug, which just released the new and improved Jitterbug J, is focused on providing a simple high quality phone for basic use. The phones are comfortable to hold and use, and also have some emergency features befitting their older customer base.

There is an emergency line feature as well as 24 hour operator support reachable by hitting the "0" button. The screen is large and colorful and the keypad is large and the numbers are easily distinguishable from one another. Jitterbug phones are a good option for those with a senior citizen as a relative who wants to be able to easily keep in touch.