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TextNow: New and Existing Customers: 1GB/Month Free Essential Data (Limited Apps)

Free
$5 Sim Kit Req'd for New Members
+90 Deal Score
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TextNow is offering 1GB/Month Free Essential Data Plan (Limited Apps) for Free to new and current subscribers. New subscribers may order a Sim Kit for $4.99 (click the Get Sim button on the home page).

Thanks to community member ROB.E.REIN for finding this deal.

Plan Details:
  • With Free Essential Data, you can use most email, calendar, maps, notes, and rideshare apps without needing to be connected to Wi-Fi (see eligible apps on the details page)
  • TextNow app required
  • Make sure you're logged into an account with an active TextNow SIM card. If you have an active SIM in an area with cellular coverage available, you'll automatically have access to 1GB of Free Essential Data each month.
  • 350MB of data per month at regular speeds, then you'll have access to data at slightly slower speeds up to 1GB.
  • This is in additional to the free texting/calls from via the TextNow app

Additional Details:
Good Deal?

Original Post

Written by
Edited May 11, 2024 at 05:39 AM by
TextNow's New "Free Essential Data" plan provides unlimited talk, text, and 1GB of data monthly for essential apps like email, maps, and rideshare. This plan is free except for a one-time $4.99 fee for the SIM card, and is supported by occasional ads. The first 350MB is at regular speeds, followed by slower speeds up to 1GB. Users can buy data passes starting at $0.99 for 300MB.

Phone IMEI check: www.textnow.com/device-checker

Coverage Map: https://www.textnow.com/check-coverage

Sign Up: www.textnow.com/signup

More info: https://help.textnow.com/hc/en-us...ntial-Data
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Created 05-11-2024 at 04:37 AM by ROB.E.REIN
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Community Wiki

Last Edited by MisterDude May 11, 2024 at 08:43 PM
If you already have a TextNow SIM card but find it no longer works you may need to update your APN settings inside your smartphone. One can use the TextNow support chatbot to get the new APN settings. These settings can also be found online in their support article: https://help.textnow.com/hc/en-us...er-network Once I input the new APN info data worked perfectly on older SIM and sure enough the app is showing my free essentials data because I used the app to activate the SIM several years back. Sweet deal!woot

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Featured Comments

As an experienced user of Textnow, those considering it should understand:

1) The usage requirement to keep your phone number alive and active seems to vary by area code, yet not specified to the user, although they do send out warning emails. It can vary from once every couple of weeks, to every couple of days. Once you lose your phone number, you can sign up for a new one.

2) Many, if not most of the SMS verification services will not work with Textnow numbers. I'm not going into all the details, but this is not a traditional carrier where your SIM card phone number is governed by the SIM card. In fact while there is a phone number associated to the SIM card, that number isn't usable to the customer. Instead Textnow assigns you another number, which is in effect a voice over IP number that it uses over your wifi connection, or when not present, Textnow's data connection.

3) They are notorious for suddenly cancelling your account if you have any use of a VPN on your phone. Apparently they view this as something non US users do to try to get a free Textnow account from overseas, and so cancel your account, without warning, upon detecting this.

4) The ads that are show on your phone, over time, are becoming more intrusive and more video orientated. Before, I hardly noticed the ads. Now they do bother me.

As such, I don't see this suitable for most people as their main cell number, but instead as something for a second, or backup phone, if you can accept the downsides to this service.
For those looking for onetime SMS verification, companies like SMSPool provide numbers you can rent for 24 hours or longer, that are guaranteed to work with the selected service. I needed one for a Claude Ai account initial setup and rented it for 36 cents.
So you're getting the SIM card AND 1GB of data every month, all for a 1 time $4.99 charge? Do the calls and texts use up the 1GB of data? How long will the 1GB/mo of data last for free?

I'm confused....when I go to sign up, I see nothing about an Free Essentials Plan with 1GB data/mo. Where is a link to that? In the app I downloaded, it goes straight to buying the SIM card. When do I pick the plan?

Where does it say anything about a free 1GB data/mo? Don't see that.

Edit: I found this page which explains the types of apps you can use the 1GB of data with. Apparently, it's NOT data that you can use for just anything you want to:

https://help.textnow.com/hc/en-us...ntial-Data

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Joined Jul 2017
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> bubble2 4,005 Posts
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Luigis3rdcousin
05-11-2024 at 10:10 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:10 AM.
A friend of mine is using the service because he switched to AT&T and they refused to let his Motorola work on their network, so in the meantime he's using this on his old Samsung S7, every time he calls me, it's like he has the worst cell reception, I can barely hear him, if I try to call him back, it won't show up as an incoming call, I will call him several times, and then he will call me back a couple days later and say that he didn't hear from me, and I told him I called him several times, so that's why I message him on WhatsApp Messages because those actually get through
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Jaggsta
05-11-2024 at 10:30 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:30 AM.
looks like if don't use the sim regularly they deactivate it. Mine no longer works was working back in December 2023
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radars
05-11-2024 at 10:31 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:31 AM.
Not free but Sim Kit for $4.99, is it?
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> bubble2 236 Posts
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cas8180
05-11-2024 at 10:47 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:47 AM.
Quote from buzzman :
Yes, and you'll lose your number if you don't use every 30 days (or something like that). The SIM card coverage has Canada coverage, BTW.

I have an old SIM card from them that I haven't used in 2 years, and it no longer works.
Its actually less than that in real world use. I got their SIM was it was 99 cents. I made a habit of always keeping my phone on as I wanted to use this as a backup line. I would text here and there to try and keep the line active. But after about 10-15 days they killed the line cause I didn't use it enough..
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ROB.E.REIN
05-11-2024 at 10:48 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:48 AM.
Quote from Luigis3rdcousin :
A friend of mine is using the service because he switched to AT&T and they refused to let his Motorola work on their network, so in the meantime he's using this on his old Samsung S7, every time he calls me, it's like he has the worst cell reception, I can barely hear him, if I try to call him back, it won't show up as an incoming call, I will call him several times, and then he will call me back a couple days later and say that he didn't hear from me, and I told him I called him several times, so that's why I message him on WhatsApp Messages because those actually get through
It's possible that your friend's older Samsung S7 lacks the proper antennas for optimal reception with TextNow's service?

Upgrading to a more recent phone model could improve call quality and reliability.
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ROB.E.REIN
05-11-2024 at 10:53 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:53 AM.
Quote from radars :
Not free but Sim Kit for $4.99, is it?
The SIM kit is available for $4.99 to start using TextNow's services. If you already have a SIM card, you'll be upgraded to the new plan automatically and receive 1 GB of free monthly data without needing to buy another, so it's free. And other than the price of the SIM card you get free talk, free text, and 1 GB of free data, every month for free.
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Last edited by ROB.E.REIN May 11, 2024 at 10:55 AM.
Joined Oct 2011
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> bubble2 496 Posts
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rshakelford
05-11-2024 at 10:59 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:59 AM.
Quote from avalon :
are textnow's phone numbers seen as real numbers

or voip numbers that most services reject as fake?

Because I vaguely remember having a problem with their free service

ah ha see what I mean, nope, better just to get a $25/year tracfone
they are not, they classified as voip which means most services block them for SMS verification purposes, and top of that your number only works when using it from their app

Also isn't this whole concept against net neutrality rules?
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ctz
05-11-2024 at 10:59 AM.
05-11-2024 at 10:59 AM.
Can you just use data, not talk/text? I assume using their VoIP app would drain battery.
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Jaggsta
05-11-2024 at 11:00 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:00 AM.
Quote from GreyTank342 :
last time the sim was $0.99 shipped
all its worth is 99c they deactivate them randomly for inactivity
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sweetdreams
05-11-2024 at 11:00 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:00 AM.
so how much do you need to use to keep the sim/account active?
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rshakelford
05-11-2024 at 11:04 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:04 AM.
Quote from zigner :
1) The usage requirement to keep your phone number alive and active seems to vary by area code, yet not specified to the user, although they do send out warning emails. It can vary from once every couple of weeks, to every couple of days. Once you lose your phone number, you can sign up for a new one.

As such, I don't see this suitable for most people as their main cell number, but instead as something for a second, or backup phone, if you can accept the downsides to this service.
I was thinking about keeping it as a backup device but if they demand usage every couple days then that's out of the question and also obviously a ridiculous rule to deter people who do not use their service as main line, I assume if you don not sign up for a new number soon after they took your number away from you they also cancel your line completely?
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rshakelford
05-11-2024 at 11:09 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:09 AM.
Quote from innatthepark :
The original was on Android with a SIM. I was able to add the app to IOS and maintained the same account; now on 2 different devices.
Quote from buzzman :
How do you get data without a SIM?

I think he's just talking about the the voip textnow number attached to his account being active, which for many of us we couldn't care less about that side of the service
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ZenNuts
05-11-2024 at 11:21 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:21 AM.
interesting service. Was thinking of using this for the backup phone but now I think I'll stick with the $30/year Red Pocket from eBay.
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alancontestor
05-11-2024 at 11:43 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:43 AM.
I may try it if they have that $0.99 SIM again.
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ranibane0309
05-11-2024 at 11:44 AM.
05-11-2024 at 11:44 AM.
I have textnow SIM on my old Android 9 unlocked phone.
My phone doesn't support 5g, 4g LTE is max I would get I was thinking.
I am still showing 2g which I have had in the past also but data never worked actually.

Can anyone else using TextNow on a non-5g phone confirm if getting 4g LTE data?

TIA
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