Are Freedom Mobile Plans a Good Deal? Before You Switch, Meet this Canadian Wireless Provider
Some of the common challenges faced by Canadians looking for good cellular service are high charges for data overages, poor coverage, and lengthy contract terms. One carrier that’s trying to change all that is Canadian Freedom Mobile.
Freedom Mobile Reviews
What is Freedom Mobile? They’re currently Canada’s 4th largest mobile network carrier and have pricing models that give unlimited calling throughout the country for a flat monthly rate.
Some important questions to ask before you sign up are, “How do Freedom Mobile plans compare with other carriers?” and “What does the Freedom Mobile coverage area look like?”.
Price isn’t the only factor when it comes to a smartphone plan, reliability is also key.
In our Freedom Mobile coverage review, we’re going to take a look at this Canadian cellular carrier and service they provide. You’ll find out what customers’ reviews reveal about Freedom Mobile and whether there are many Freedom Mobile complaints out there (and what they’re complaining about).
We’ll also give you a comparison between Freedom Mobile prices and their competitors, and a quick rundown of the Freedom Mobile app.
So, if you’re ready to learn more about Freedom Mobile Canada, read on for a detailed review of everything you need to know about this wireless carrier.
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AdvisoryHQ Freedom Mobile Review | What is Freedom Mobile?
Some customers may remember this wireless provider as Wind Mobile, which was the company’s original name. It was founded in 2008, just after the Canadian government started an initiative to encourage wireless sector competition.
The name was changed to Freedom Mobile in 2016 after an acquisition by Shaw Communications, and Freedom Mobile phones started to be marketed under the new brand. Many people wonder “What is Freedom Mobile Canada?” and don’t realize they were originally Wind Mobile.
Freedom Mobile is based in Toronto, Canada and there are over 1,317,800 active subscribers of Freedom Mobile plans throughout the urban areas of Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta.
Is Freedom Mobile good for other areas, like Nova Scotia? Freedom Mobile network coverage reviews show that they have a “variable service.” They depend on a partner network that expands Freedom Mobile coverage to many other areas throughout Canada, including Nova Scotia.
How Does Freedom Mobile Work?
If you’ve been wondering, “How does Freedom Mobile work?”, it works on a monthly plan that has as many or as few services as you need. Freedom Mobile plans start as low as $15 per month.
We’ll get into Freedom Mobile prices in a moment, but one thing you’ll need to know to understand Freedom Mobile plans are their service plan categories. These categories include:
- Data
- Data + Talk
- Home
The Home Freedom Mobile plan is the lowest priced. It’s meant for use just on their own home network, not the extended variable service.
Freedom Mobile phones using a Data plan can choose data up to 20GB, but Canada-wide calling may be charged.
For data with calling included at no extra cost, they have the Data + Talk Freedom Mobile plan.
Bring Your Own Phone
If you’re wondering, “Is Freedom Mobile good for switching and keeping your phone?” the answer is “Yes.”
All Freedom Mobile plans allow you to save money by bringing your own phone and switching it over via SIM card to their service, rather than purchasing a new Freedom Mobile iPhone or Android phone.
The plans, discounts, and add-ons with Freedom Mobile phones and plans can get a little complicated, so we’re going to run through them all in the pricing section. First, let’s go through their Freedom Mobile coverage areas.
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Freedom Mobile Coverage Reviews
As we mentioned earlier, Freedom Mobile coverage is divided into three zones. You’ll know which zone you’re using from the network name displayed on your Freedom Mobile iPhone or Android phone. Let’s go through each network next.
Freedom Mobile Coverage
Home Network
Freedom Mobile’s Home network is LTE (a 4G standard) & 3G. It is a Freedom Mobile coverage area that was built by the company and it covers a much smaller area percentage than their Away network.
A Freedom Mobile coverage review of their map shows the Home network in the areas around:
- Barrie
- Calgary
- Edmonton
- Georgina
- Hamilton
- London
- Oshawa
- Peterborough
- Toronto
- Vancouver
- Windsor
Variable Network
When you’re in areas beyond Freedom Mobile Canada’s range, then you’ll see the term Variable noted as your phone’s current network.
Freedom Mobile coverage reviews of their map show the Variable network covers slightly larger areas in Canada that surround the same cities as the Home network.
Away Network
If you’re not near one of the cities within the Home and Variable networks, which is a good portion of Canada, then you’ll be on the Away Freedom Mobile coverage network.
Besides your Freedom Mobile iPhone or Android phone showing the Away network in the display as the network name, your phone may also indicate that it’s roaming.
In a Freedom Mobile coverage review of the Away network, you’ll be covered in portions (some larger than others) of these provinces and territories:
- Alberta
- British Columbia
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- New Foundland & Labrador
- Northwest Territories
- Nova Scotia
- Ontario
- Prince Edward Island
- Quebec
- Saskatchewan
- Yukon Territory
Depending upon the Freedom Mobile plan you have, you may have to pay extra for calls in the Variable and Away networks.
Is Freedom Mobile Good for Calling within the U.S.?
Yes, you can get a Freedom Mobile plan that includes international roaming for the United States, or other countries. You’ll pay $5 per day for the U.S. plan. The Freedom Mobile prices for other international plans range from $6 to $10 per day, depending on which countries you choose.
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AdvisoryHQ Freedom Mobile Reviews | Pricing & Plans
Now, let’s look at one of the most important deciding factors for anyone choosing a cell service provider. Here’s our complete Freedom Mobile review of their plans and pricing.
Some people that had Freedom Mobile complaints were a little confused about what they were getting with their plan since there are a lot to choose from.
Freedom Mobile plans are separated into three categories, so we’ll start at the smallest and work our way up.
We’re also going to give you the normal price without their “Digital Discount.” The discount can shave $5/month off the listed Freedom Mobile prices of eligible plans when you set up autopay.
Freedom Mobile Coverage Reviews | Home Plans
Home 250MB – $20/month
- 250MB data
- 100 minutes of Canada-wide talk
- Unlimited incoming calls
- Unlimited text to Canada & U.S.
Home 500MB – $30/month
- 500MB data
- Unlimited Canada-wide talk
- Unlimited text to Canada & U.S.
Data Plan 1GB – $30/month
- 1GB data
- Canada-wide calling at $0.05 per minute
- Unlimited text to Canada & U.S.
Home 2GB – $45/month
- 2GB data with no data overage fees
- Unlimited Canada-wide talk
- Unlimited global text
Freedom Mobile Coverage Reviews | Data Plans
Big Gig 10GB – $55/month
- 10GB data with no data overage fees
- Canada-wide calling at $0.05 per minute
- Unlimited global text
Big Gig 15GB – $75/month
- 15GB data with no data overage fees
- Canada-wide calling at $0.05 per minute
- Unlimited global text
Big Gig 20GB – $95/month
- 20GB data with no data overage fees
- Canada-wide calling at $0.05 per minute
- Unlimited global text
Freedom Mobile Coverage Reviews | Data + Talk Plans
Big Gig + Talk 5GB – $55/month
- 5GB data with no data overage fees
- Unlimited Canada-wide calling
- Unlimited global text
Big Gig + Talk 10GB – $65/month
- 10GB data with no data overage fees
- Unlimited Canada-wide calling
- Unlimited global text
Big Gig + Talk 15GB – $85/month
- 15GB data with no data overage fees
- Unlimited Canada-wide calling
- Unlimited global text
Big Gig + Talk 20GB – $105/month
- 20GB data with no data overage fees
- Unlimited Canada-wide calling
- Unlimited global text
So, you’ve got 11 different Freedom Mobile plans to choose from, plus there are add-ons. Let’s see what additions they’re offering.
Freedom Mobile Reviews | Phone Plan Add-ons
Do you visit the U.S. often? Worried about dropping your new iPhone? If you’d like a little more speed, data, or other customization added to your Freedom Mobile phone plan, you can choose from one of these available additions.
- Add 1GB fast LTE data to a Home network plan for $10/30 days
- Add 1GB fast LTE data to an Away network plan for $30/30 days
- Extra data & unlimited global texting/calling to Canada from the U.S. for $5/day
- Extra data & unlimited global texting/calling to Canada from Mexico or part of the Caribbean for $6/day
- Get reduced roaming rates in over 50 countries for $8/month
- Add unlimited international texting and low long distance for $8/month
- Phone protection plan for $9/month
- AppleCare+ to protect against damage or malfunctions to Freedom Mobile iPhones starting at $129
- Visual Voicemail for $4/month
That’s a lot of add-ons to consider in addition to the plans, but they also give you a lot of options for tailoring your Freedom Mobile plan specifically to your needs.
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FAQ | Freedom Mobile Coverage Review
Still have some unanswered questions, like “How does Freedom Mobile work with Wi-Fi calling?” or “What features are in the Freedom Mobile app?”. We’ve got a mini-FAQ for you with some of the most popular questions and answers for this mobile carrier.
Q: What is Call Control and Which Plans Have It?
A: Call Control is included with every Freedom Mobile plan It includes 6 key services:
- Caller ID
- Missed Call Alerts
- Call Waiting
- Call Hold
- Call Forwarding
- Conference Calling
Q: How Do You Set Up Wi-Fi Calling?
A: If your Freedom Mobile phone supports it, you can set up Wi-Fi calling by connecting to Wi-Fi and toggling “On” the Wi-Fi calling switch in the phone’s settings.
Q: What Can I Do with the Freedom Mobile App?
A: When you download the Freedom Mobile app for iPhone or Android, you can easily manage your account anytime. The app for Freedom Mobile includes the ability to:
- Change your rate plan
- Add or remove add-ons
- View billing and payments
- Make payments
- Change network settings
- Check current usage and compare to past billing periods
Q: Can I Make Payments on a New Freedom Mobile iPhone or Android Phone?
A: Yes, if you use their MyTab option, you can reduce the amount of money you have to pay upfront for a new phone and put a portion of it on the tab which is paid off little by little with your monthly bill.
Freedom Mobile Customer Reviews
How happy are customers with Freedom Mobile? Do they think there’s a Freedom Mobile scam or do they stay with the carrier for years?
We’re going to take a look at Freedom Mobile coverage reviews and ratings first to find out how they stand in the rankings. Then we’ll get into Freedom Mobile complaints and praise from multiple Freedom Mobile reviews online to hear what people really think.
Note: The Yelp ratings were posted under their previous name, Wind Mobile.
Freedom Mobile Plans Ratings
- Better Business Bureau (BBB) (141 Freedom Mobile reviews) – 1 out of 5
- Google Play (5,910 Freedom Mobile app reviews) – 3.5 out of 5
- Yelp (14 Freedom Mobile reviews) – 2.5 out of 5
Next, we’re going to find out in detail from Freedom Mobile coverage reviews what people liked or disliked about this Canadian wireless provider.
Freedom Mobile Reviews – Negative
- In an unhappy Freedom Mobile coverage review at the BBB, the reviewer said they were not told about roaming and the “home” or “away” plans and found service range was severely limited from what they expected.
- Another reviewer had a Freedom Mobile complaint about the spotty service. They said it was difficult to complete calls without connection issues and though the company said it was the phone, poor service happened on more than one phone model.
- A poor LTE connection was the complaint in another Freedom mobile coverage review. They said they were lucky if it held the faster connection for more than 5 minutes. They ended up switching to another provider.
- One reviewer thought there was a Freedom Mobile scam related to excess data. Even though data was disabled on their phone, they kept getting charged for data overages.
Freedom Mobile Reviews – Positive
- A pleased customer said they were very happy with the customer service from this carrier. In their Freedom Mobile coverage review, they said customer support was very knowledgeable and provided excellent service.
- If you don’t need a fast data speed, then the price is hard to beat, stated one of the Freedom Mobile coverage reviews. It works well for maps and emails, but they found it a little too slow for YouTube streaming. They noted that international texting was excellent.
- In another of the Freedom Mobile reviews at the BBB, the reviewer called them a breath of fresh air. They said their customer service was a pleasure to deal with and pointed out that others could take notes from Freedom’s support representatives.
- A customer who’s been with them for 7 years said their network has improved over the years and they were extremely happy and ultimately earned them a 5-star review.
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Freedom Mobile Coverage Review | AdvisoryHQ Competitor Price Comparison
Before we close out our Freedom Mobile review, let’s take a look at how their prices compare with some of the other Canadian wireless carriers.
Freedom Mobile Canada
We’re comparing three of the top services in addition to Freedom Mobile to see how their lower and higher priced phone plans compare.
Freedom Mobile
- Low Price Plan (250 MB data): Home 250MB – $20/month
- High Price Plan (20 GB data): Big Gig + Talk 20GB – $105/month
Bell
- Low Price Plan (100 MB): Basic Phone – $25/month
- High Price Plan (3 GB data): Canada & U.S. – $100/month
Rogers
- Low Price Plan (50 text messages): Basic Phone 25 – $25/month
- High Price Plan (17 GB data): Canada & U.S. – $175/month
Telus
- Low Price Plan (50 text messages): Starter 10 – $10/30-days
- High Price Plan (20 GB data): Canada & U.S. – $120/month
AdvisoryHQ’s Freedom Mobile Review Conclusion
Freedom Mobile is working hard to become the number one mobile carrier in Canada, but they have a ways to go when it comes to their coverage area.
While Freedom Mobile plans are hard to beat for the amount of data you get and the low price, the company has some catching up to do when it comes to their Home network and how many cities and rural areas it covers.
The main complaints that had people wondering if there was a Freedom Mobile scam were the spotty service and the roaming and extra charges due to their lack of network coverage.
On the plus side, customers do mention in Freedom Coverage reviews that the carrier has improved a lot over the years, so there’s a good chance that they’ll continue to grow their network.
If you’re thinking about one of the plans Freedom Mobile has to offer, you’ll want to definitely pay attention to any additional network charges you’ll get for using their Variable or Away networks, or else you could end up paying much more than you expect.
If you’re looking for low prices and live in one of their main Home network cities, this could be a great deal. If you’re outside their Home network, then you may want to go with someone else and keep an eye on the Freedom Mobile coverage map for expansion in the future.
Either way, we think that Freedom Mobile is definitely a wireless carrier to watch.
Image sources:
- https://www.freedommobile.ca/
- https://www.freedommobile.ca/network-and-coverage/coverage
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