SMS Marketing Blog

What is the Average Cell Phone Bill?

31st May 2012 - Posted by Derek Johnson in category SMS Marketing News

Does it seem like your cell phone bill is always higher each year? Our good friends at the CTIA have released their results from their most recent semi-annual survey, showing what the average U.S. cell phone bill has been since all the way back to 1989. The data collected reflects the results for wireless providers that serve 95% of wireless subscribers in the United States. 

Below is a graph I created from the data collected in the survey about the change in monthly cell phone bills from 1989 to 2011. Some interesting points from the data…

• Back in 1989, the average cell phone bill was a whopping $98.02 per month.
• 1998 was the best time to receive a cell phone bill, as the average cell phone bill was only $39.43 per month.
• Last year (2011) the average cell phone bill was $47 per month.
• It’s interesting to note that 1999 was the first year that text messages could be sent between different operators, which I presume is the reason for the increase from 1999 to 2004.

You can see some of the other highlights from the survey here, or download it.