How To Switch Phone Carriers And Keep Your Number

It’s never been an easy decision for anyone to lose the previous number and buy a new one. There are times when you have a long time with the same mobile phone number but the plan is not as beneficial as per you need to carry on.

You may be carrying the number from your school days and a large population of your loved ones is having in their mobile phones. You may have changed multiple cell phones but keep the same number in them.

The most important thing we consider while using any network provider is the benefits that they are offering and its quality of service. So the question will be, how we can take that advantage by having same number?. Indeed its possible now to change your service provider and also keeping the old number.

What Makes Customers to Change Provider

Research has shown that a large number of customers do shift their service provider due to multiple reasons. The main reason as seen is that with cellular service and high costs, customers are increasingly unhappy and alternative operators are moving ahead to save up to Fifty percent with the same high level of coverage.

If you finish changing the number, you should probably go down your contacts and text for every contact to let them know that your number changes and that isn’t easy, and is also difficult and time consuming.

How to Get the Number Ported

Transferring the number from one carrier to another is a serious thing because you can’t easily move the previous network. It is a process known as porting that transfer your current cell phone number from one carrier to another. Porting your numbers to the old account is considered to be a semi-permanent move.

You may receive a transferring fee, depending on your new carrier, but this may be negotiable at times. They will do their best to keep you but they won’t have more choice than to satisfy your request, if you’re insistent that you’ll leave. To complete the whole process you may have to go through from different steps.

Step by Step Guideline:

1. Inform you Provider

You can either call, text, and let your provider know you need a number port. They will send you some verification code and you may have to verify your identity as well by answering the identity verification questions. The most important thing to keep in mind before porting the number is that you have to tell them clearly about shifting to other network.

Before you port your current number, do not cancel your current service as it is unlikely to work. Your new service provider will handle the porting the same number and cancelling it from previous network.

2. Clear All the Dues and Bill Amount

Before putting the request of porting make sure to pay all the previous bill payments of the old service provider otherwise they will straight away reject the request. So better to clear the amount and make it zero before taking the step to shift.

3. Contact the New Carrier

Once you have cleared all the details of the previous network provider you can further proceed to the new carrier for complete the porting. You may have to visit to their store to request for the porting the number into their network. Chances are that cost will be one of your main motivators if you switch to cell phone service providers.

Choosing a phone plan that meets your needs is one of the best ways to control cost. First choose a better plan then the previous one and ask them to make a porting request. They will continue the proposal of shifting and you will get a message of confirmation of the request. Get a new sim from them so that when the process will be done the same number will start working on their provided sim card.

4. Switching Time and Confirmation

For the confirmation try to contact both the carriers and make sure that your request has been done and both carriers got the right type of information about it. The process can be done in 1 to 2 days and if there will be some delay can take up to one week. In between this time interval your old carrier may contact you and give you some good offer for retaining in their network.

They might give you some extra benefits from previous one or can offer you some special discount on the monthly plan. Skip all these offers as you have already decided to port your number and make sure that they will not trap you again by these offers.

5. Make Sure That Switching is Done

Your new carrier will let you know when you are activated and transfer your number. In most cases, the transfer of numbers will automatically cancel your old service. Now on your old telephone, you can call or text, but through your new network. If the text and calls are received, the switch is working, and the process is complete.

The new sim card will be having the same number and you will receive and do calls from it. After the switching has done contact your old carrier provider and make them sure that the previous contract will no longer be there.

Things to See Before Switching the Carrier

  • Billing Statements Reviewing: The main concept behind the number porting is the amount of advantages that you get in a fixed amount. Don’t just look at the billing amount and the data you get to make a fool for any service provider. Some network providers provide unlimited data, but the speed of the data varies. Perhaps the first 20GB of the data are of high speed and you can’t use it in a good way afterwards. So, better to see all this before you decide.
  • Select the Best Plan: Choose the best plan of your desired usage in less amount of monthly payment. Selecting similar type of plan as of the old provider will no longer be good decision to port as you were getting in the old carrier. Take your time in doing a research about the offers and plans which are provided to other customers and ask them about the best what they can do for you. Install the required application of the carrier and get the best out of the plan and manage the way you want to use it.
  • Device Compatibility: Device lists that are not compatible across all networks are constantly decreasing, but there are still some. Before taking the decision of porting your number to some other carrier you must know about the compatibility of your device to that network. In order to ensure the network works on your phone, you can check your device compatibility on the carrier’s website.
  • Data Backup: This is more to be done as a precaution. Most smart phones can now carry data such as photos and contacts with their device/cloud specific ID. Backup your phone data to a cloud service or your computer for secure retention before you start the process. So always enable your data backup option so that whenever you move to other network either by porting or changing the sim you don’t lose any of your data.

May Also Like: How To Switch Phones On Verizon

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Do we have to change the number?

There is no need of getting a new mobile number from the new network carrier as the request was to maintain the same number in new service provider. So they will get the same number from other service provider to their network. Your new service provider can assign you a new number but it will be for a temporary basis.

Can I be able to use during porting?

As the porting will take 1 to 2 days but still you will not lose the service and will be able to use the previous server until the process will be completed. You probably won’t miss a call or text if you maintain the SIM card on your phone during the conversion between providers.

How much it will be charged?

The port or transfer number from one server to the next is subject to no official fees. Some companies may charge you for porting your number or ask you for some cancellation fee but you may ask if fees can be waived. Once the request is complete they cannot demand for the money anyways.

Is it compulsory to change the mobile also?

Changing a number or porting is to other network does not mean to change the mobile too. You can use the same mobile by just installing the new sim card in it. one thing to remember is that your mobile will be compatible to all network providers and there is no need of unlocking the mobile phone. Contact your existing mobile provider prior to switching service if it is to be unlocked. In addition, all major mobile providers have the option of selling a new one on your existing phone.

Is it required to cancel the service first?

You don’t have any need to cancel the service from the previous provider as after porting it will automatically be canceled by them. If you did it wrong, it would not be ported and the number would be lost.

Can I port while having outstanding balance?

Switching the number from one service carrier to other requires a confirmation from the old carrier that you don’t owe any amount. If it’s not completely clear they will not allow you to shift and will demand their money first. So better to clear all the payment and outstanding before making the request.

What if they offer me better plan?

As you are rejecting the service of one network and asking them to allow you to shift to their competitive. They will try their best to retain you by giving you some extra benefits and ask you to retain the service. So at the end your decision matters what you want to do. Better to go with what suits you and give you much benefits.

Summary

Getting the full advantage of the telecom service companies is what a customer demands as it helps to keep in touch with the world and with its loved ones. Providing a better plan is main aim of most of the companies but still it does not mean its suits all the customers.

If you want to shift your network from one server to other, the above guideline with surely help you in getting it done. Porting the number is not as difficult as most of the people think if you follow right steps.

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