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A Bell Canada payphone, a broken phone meme (using broken screen as a lightsaber) and a reader-submitted question: "When is the best time to buy a cell phone?"

The Get

When is the best time to buy a cellphone?

Here’s the answer to this week’s reader question.

“Are the holiday deals for cellphones any good? I need a new one and I want to know when is the best time to buy a phone.”

—Pat

Have a question for us? Send it to TheGet@neofinancial.com.

Should you buy a cellphone now?

Thanks for asking. I’ve been in the industry half of my life. I started working in telecom in my early 20s. In 2011, I switched my business to advocating for customers rather than representing providers.

If you want to buy a cellphone, the best time is Q4 (October 1 to December 31). This has been the case for as long as I can remember.

Providers in Canada usually reduce the costs of phone devices at the end of every financial quarter: so the end of March, June and September. You can also score good deals around back-to-school sales. But November and December—think Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) and into the holidays—is when you see not only a reduction on devices, but a reduction on cellphone plans. You won’t see deals like these again until the same time next year.

To be competitive with Apple, Samsung and Google typically offer discounts. Their phones are just not as sought after as iPhones, even though they can be just as good or even better. Right now, you can get a Google Pixel financed for less than $10 a month, whereas with other phones, you’re paying $30 to $40 a month. You can also get deals on older phone models once a new generation launches.

Consider refurbished phones—if the deal is good and you’re buying from a verified buyer. Same thing with trading in your phone for deals; year-round, brands will offer significant trade-in value. Look for retailers who offer additional incentives. Costco, for example, may add a 10% discount to your plan if you buy your phone there or even offer a $200 gift card for upgrading a device.

Before you upgrade, though, ask yourself a few questions:

When I buy my new phone, does it also make sense for me to switch to another provider?
Do I have a contract to fulfill?
Do I still owe for financing? If so, can I pay out but maybe get a cheaper plan?

Also take a look at whether it’s better to buy a new device outright or get financing with a new contract. You don’t want to jump up to a more expensive plan just so you can get a discount on your phone. To compare costs, do a simple calculation—or use ChatGPT. Financing it directly might be the better approach, but you need to find out the total cost. It really comes down to the math.

Today, telecom providers are mostly focused on “acquisition,” getting new customers. You don’t need to be loyal to your cellphone provider anymore, because I promise you, it’s not loyal to you. It’s not likely to give you a better deal to stay than you would get by jumping to another provider. You can try calling your provider to say you’re going to switch because you’ve been offered a better deal. This is called going through the “escalation process.” Know that it will take a couple hours of your time and, in the end, it might not get you a cheaper plan.

You don’t have to stick with the Big Three: Bell, Rogers and Telus. You can also find deals with lower-cost providers. If you’re in an area where their network coverage works well for you and you don’t really go outside of it, there’s no reason not to go with a provider that costs less. Many use Big Three infrastructure anyway.

If you also have cable, internet or landline expenses, look into those providers as well, in conjunction with your cellphone costs. You’ve probably already bundled these with your cellphone, but discounts tend to expire after 12 or 24 months. Since this is the time of year for discounts, you should look at all of your telecom expenditures in November and December.

—Mohammed Halabi

Director and founder, mybillsarehigh.com

As told to Carli Whitwell

Carli Whitwell is an award-winning Toronto-based lifestyle journalist. She's written for EE72, Refinery29, ELLE Canada, The Toronto Star and others. Her hobbies include going out for dinner and sleeping in.