What is minimum contract term I can sign up?

All major carriers in the United States have changed contract term from 1 year to 2 years. In fact, it has become the industry standard to offer 2-year agreement since 2006. T-Mobile was the last carrier to make the change after Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint. The answer is 2 year is the minimum contract term you can sign up with a new cell phone plan. Now the only way not having to commit 2-year agreement is to have a prepaid service. All major carriers offer pay-as-you-go phone service. The prepaid phones are not discounted, so you would not see offers like $0 out of pocket and cash back after rebates.

Although you might think a contract will tight you up with a phone that would be out of fashion in a year, in fact many new phones today are built with high quality material and advanced software. Most of the phones can be updated wireless to keep the software capable of using the latest network features. If you do want to get a new cell phone every year with the same carrier, you can always upgrade your phone at a discount after 12 months with a new 2-year agreement. The cost of phone will be only a fraction of the retail price. Our recommendation is to try out other carriers in your area and see which carrier works best for you. All carriers are working fiercely to improve their network. You can only find out by trying them. Here is the tip - many carriers offer 30 test drive, you can return the phone within 30 days without paying the early termination fee.