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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:

Editor's Notes & Price Research

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  • Please see the original post for additional details & give the WIKI and additional forum comments a read for helpful discussion.
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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buzzman
05-11-2024 at 05:07 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:07 AM.
Quote from innatthepark :
Shows active on existing account which is accessible from IOS and Android devices. Didn't need to add SIM on IOS.
How do you get data without a SIM?
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ROB.E.REIN
05-11-2024 at 05:11 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:11 AM.
Quote from buzzman :
How do you get data without a SIM?
I think that's pretty much impossible. Everything I've read says you need to have a SIM card, and they don't support eSIM yet. I'm not sure what this guy is saying, but if you already have a SIM card, I believe you'll receive the free data automatically.
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innatthepark
05-11-2024 at 05:11 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:11 AM.
Quote from buzzman :
How do you get data without a SIM?
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.
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ROB.E.REIN
05-11-2024 at 05:18 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:18 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.
Yeah, but I'm assuming that your iOS device is without a SIM card, so it won't have access to the free data, even though it's signed into the same account as your Android device with a SIM card. It can't access the free data without a SIM. However, since you already have an account with a SIM card on your Android device, it'll automatically be upgraded to the free data plan, based on what I've read and what you're saying.

So basically, your Android phone with a SIM card can access the free data, which was an automatic upgrade, but your iOS device without a SIM card can't access the data, even though they're both signed into the same account.
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Last edited by ROB.E.REIN May 11, 2024 at 05:20 AM.
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asianman35
05-11-2024 at 05:26 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:26 AM.
You still have to call and text through their app with this right ?
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ROB.E.REIN
05-11-2024 at 05:30 AM.

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank ROB.E.REIN

05-11-2024 at 05:30 AM.
Quote from asianman35 :
You still have to call and text through their app with this right ?
Unless something has changed, it would seem so.

For TextNow's free service, you must use the TextNow app to make calls and send texts. It relies on the app to provide these features, which are not available through your device's native phone and messaging apps.
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Pulvarize63
05-11-2024 at 05:31 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:31 AM.
Quote from asianman35 :
You still have to call and text through their app with this right ?
That's right, i just tried calling from the regular phone app instead and it just says the subscriber you are trying to reach is unavailable. Only works if you call and text from their app. Data works fine via 5g though.
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buzzman
05-11-2024 at 05:32 AM.

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank buzzman

05-11-2024 at 05:32 AM.
Quote from asianman35 :
You still have to call and text through their app with this right ?
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.
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Pulvarize63
05-11-2024 at 05:37 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:37 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.
I think they have significantly reduced the amount of time you have to call or text in order to keep the number active. I started getting weekly reminders to use it or I'd lose the number and their website states that you should use it at least once every 2 days to fully ensure it doesn't get deleted.

https://www.textnow.com/blog/keep...now-number
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holly_molly
05-11-2024 at 05:47 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:47 AM.
I have not used their service but can I use their sim in iPad for perhaps navigation etc while driving with one time cost of $5?
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buzzman
05-11-2024 at 05:52 AM.
05-11-2024 at 05:52 AM.
Quote from holly_molly :
I have not used their service but can I use their sim in iPad for perhaps navigation etc while driving with one time cost of $5?
Yes, but you'll still need to use their app to send out a text every few days to keep your account active.

Here's the info about the free data. You only get 350MB of high speed. The remaining 650MB is slow speed (2G/3G?)

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