This is one of Prepaid Phone News' series of comprehensive US prepaid mobile operator profiles. I will be posting new profiles frequently, starting with the best known carriers. Eventually these posts will cover all the major US mobile operators that offer prepaid plans as well as the MVNOs that offer a good value.

Overview: TracFone is owned by Mexico based América Móvil, the fourth largest mobile operator in the world. Interesting trivia: América Móvil's founder and CEO, Carlos Slim was the world's richest man until recently but has slipped to fourth place.

TracFone operates 10 prepaid brands in the US; TracFone, NET10, Straight Talk, Simple Mobile, Page Plus, Telcel America, Total Wireless, GoSmart, Family Mobile and SafeLink. Combined the TracFone brands had 27 million subscribers at the as of September 2016, making América Móvil the largest US prepaid mobile operator. TracFone is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), it does not have a network of its own but buys service from other operators which is re-sells.

This post covers the TracFone brand which offers pay as you go plans only.

The main networks TracFone uses are T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon in the 50 states and Claro in Puerto Rico. Each TracFone device operates of one of the four networks.. Where service on the home network is not available TracFone feature phones will roam at no extra charge on other networks, including about 30 small regional operators that TracFone has agreements with. See How to Tell Which Network (AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon) a TracFone, NET10 or Straight Talk Phone Uses for more about TracFone's network options. TracFone Android phones and BYOP devices use either the AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon network and do not roam.

Technology: AT&T, T-Mobile and Claro based TracFones use GSM on the 850 and 1900 Mhz bands with  GPRS (2G), Edge (2.5G) and HSPA (3G) data support. TracFones on the Verizon network use CDMA on the 850 and 1900 Mhz bands with 1xRTT (2.5G) and EVDO (3G) data support. LTE data is available with Android phones and BYOP devices on the AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon networks.

Devices: Originally TracFone offered  only non-smartphones. In Sept., 2013, TracFone introduced its first Android phones. In Nov, 2014, TracFone began allowing users to activate Verizon 3G phones. Currently TracFone allow the activation of GSM and Verizon phones including LTE capable models. Verizon phones on TracFone use the Verizon network, GSM phones use either AT&T or T-Mobile depending on which SIM they are fitted with.

Plans and Pricing:  TracFone's pricing structure is very complicated and confusing with rates ranging from awful to very good depending on the plan, refill denomination, model of phone and if a bonus code code is used.

There are three basic types of TracFone airtime:

• The regular Pay As You Go minute cards that are sold at convenience stores, Target, Best Buy, Walmart etc. They work on  branded TracFone feature phones, and TracFone branded smartphones  and Bring Your Own Phone (BYOP) SIMs.  
• Monthly and Family Value Plan airtime. The value plans renew themselves automatically each month using your bank account or credit or debit card and are only available at tracfone.com. TracFone Value Plans are no longer listed on the TracFone website and can no longer be activated. Previously activated Value plans still renew automatically.
• Smartphone-only refills that only work on BYOP devices and TracFone branded smartphones. Most of the smartphone-only refills are only available directly from TracFone omline, not in stores. Minutes, texts and data added with these special cards (listed below) do not triple.

Here are all the different TracFone refills currently available:

Family Value Plan*

	Price	Minutes
First Phone	$9.99	50
Add'l Phones	$5.99	40

* Only available online at tracfone.com. Value plan members can purchase minute bundles (50 minutes for $10 or 100 minutes for $20) if they run out  before the month ends.
TracFone feature phones can be single, double or triple minute phones. Single minutes phones give you the face value in minutes of the top up card used. DMFL (Double Minutes for Life) and TMFL (Triple Minutes for Minutes for Life) phones give you two or three times as many minutes. So a 60 minute top-up card gives 60 minutes on a single minutes phone, 120 minutes on DMFL phone and 180 minutes on a TMFL phone. DMFL and TMFL phones get doubled or tripled minutes on Value plans too.

Text messages are charged at a rate of 0.3/minutes per text on feature phones.

Feature phone data and MMS picture messaging is billed various ways, all of them rather expensive.

• Old phones, released before June 2012: Data is charged at half a voice minute per minute of data use which is counted from the moment the browser or data using app is closed until it is closed. Picture messages cost one minute plus the cost of the data transfer which is typically another minute or two.
• Phones released between June, 2012 and Feburary, 2014 including the Samsung S390G, Samsung S425G and LG 840G: Data is charged at the rate of 1.5 voice minutes per KB of data. Picture messages cost one minute plus the cost of the data transfer which is typically another eight or nine minutes!
• Phones released since March, 2014, including the LG 305C and LG 306G: Data is charged at the rate of 0.5 voice minutes per KB of data. Picture messages cost one minute plus the cost of the data transfer which is typically another two or three minutes.

You can check your TracFone's data rate by entering *#106 on the code entry screen which can be reached by pressing Menu>Prepaid>Code Entry Mode.
BW=ACT R=1.5 means 1.5 minutes per KB
BW=ACT R=0.50 means 0.5 minutes per KB
BW=T R= 0.50 means 0.5 minutes per minute of data use
Older TracFone Android phones and BYOP phones activated on TracFone get triple talk, text and data, AKA "triple-triple" when topped up with a regular pay as you go minute refill.  For example, a 60 minute card provides 180 minutes, 180 texts and 180 MBs of data. TracFone smartphones launched after April, 2017 and BYOP SIMs manufactured after April, 2017 are labeled "smartphone cards only". These phones do accept minutes cards but the minutes do not triple-triple, a 60 minutes card gives you 60 minutes, 60 texts and 60 MB, not 180 of each.

On all plans unused plan balances roll over if a top up is made before the expiration date. For example, if you start with a 60 minute top up and only use 30 minutes worth of  calls, texts and data, and add another 60 minute top-up on the 89th day the 30 minute balance will roll over. giving you 90 minutes for the next 90 days. Rollover continues indefinitely as long as you top up before expiration.

Bonus codes  TracFone always has some bonus codes that will give you extra minutes when topping up. Some of these can be very good. There's currently one that gives you an extra 60 minutes when adding a 60 minute top up. You can find lists of current codes on  TracFone specialist sites like PrePaid.com and Turk Forums (log-in required).  Bonus code minutes are NOT doubled or tripped on DMFL, TMFL or triple-triple phones.  Bonus codes work with minutes cards on Android or BYOP TracFones but do not work with smartphone only cards.

Auto pay discount: Customers need to enroll a credit or debit card on the TracFone site and select a Pay As You Go card or a Smartphone/BYOP card that includes minutes, texts and data card as their "Plan" are eligible for an auto pay discount.  Customers who select a Pay As You Go card get a 10% discount, customers who choose a Smartphone/BYOP card get a 5% discount. There is no discount on the text-only and data-only cards or Value plans.

International Rates: TracFone users can make calls to 60 counties including Canada, Mexico, China and most Western European countries for the same price as a domestic all.  To make an international call you first dial 1-800-706-3839. You will then prompted to select your language and then to dial 011 plus the country code and number. (For Canada, do not dial 011).  It is not possible to call other countries besides the 60 supported ones except by using a 3rd party international calling card. TracFone doesn't support sending international text or picture messages.

Coverage: TracFone has the largest coverage footprint of all the USA prepaid operators. TracFone feature phones can use over 30 US operators. The coverage with TracFone CDMA non-smartphone models that use Verizon is the best but the GSM coverage on phones that use AT&T or T-Mobile as their home network is almost as good. See Coverage Maps For All Prepaid Carriers to compare coverage. Android and BYOP phones use either the Verizon or AT&T networks with no roaming.

How to Buy: TracFones are available from tracfone.com and at major retailers including Target, Best Buy Walmart and Costco.  Basic models can be purchased at supermarkets, convenience stores and chain drugstores.

TracFone branded GSM feature phones use SIM cards. However TracFone SIMs are locked to the phone they were sold with and can not be used in any other phones including other TracFones. The phones themselves are virtually impossible to unlock and can not be used on any other service.

How to Activate: The easiest way to activate a TracFone branded phone is by going to tracfone.com, clicking Activate phone and following the instructions.   If you don't have a PC with Internet service you can also activate by calling 1-800-867-7183.

Bring You Own Phone Activation: TracFone now lets users activate unlocked and AT&T locked GSM phones and Verizon phones. You can check if a Verizon phone is eligible here. If your phone is deemed OK you will need to purchase a 99¢ a BYOP SIM Kit along with an airtime PIN.

To activate a GSM phone or a Verizon LTE, you need a 99¢ BYOP SIM and an airtime PIN. For Verizon 3G phones, only a PIN is needed.

One you have the activation kit and airtime PIN, complete the BYOP activation process online or by using the Chat window on TracFone's Support Contact page or by calling 1-800-867-7183.

After activating a 3G Verizon based phone online or by calling, TracFone will tell you to dial *22890 on the mobile phone to complete the activation. If that doesn't work try dialing *228 and choosing option 1 when prompted. GSM and Verizon LTE phones should activate automatically when the phone is turned on with a TracFone SIM in it.

Switching Phones:
To move your TracFone account from one TracFone branded phone to another, choose the "Transfer my number and service from one TracFone to another" option on the TracFone website's Activate Phone page.

To move your TracFone account from one Verizon 3G BYOP phone to another BYOP phone, use the TracFone BYOP page. After entering and validating your new phone's MEID  choose the "I want to upgrade my active Bring Your Own CDMA Phone to another Bring Your Own CDMA Phone" You do not need a Network Access Code to swap between one BYOP phone and another.

To move your TracFone account for one GSM BYOP device to another, simply transfer the SIM from the old to the new phone if both use the same size SIM. If the phones use different SIM sizes you can swap service from one SIM to the other on the TracFone BYOP page.

Payment Options: PIN cards or codes are available at convenience stores, supermarkets, chain drugstores and big box retailers like Target and at tracfone.com. PINs can be purchased at a discount from callingmart.com and other online retailers.

You can top up with a PIN using the Prepaid menu on Tracfone feature phones. You can also top up with a PIN or a credit or debit card at tracfone.com  or by calling 1-800-867-7183.  If you have a promotion code don't forget to use it when you are topping up.  If you forget, TracFone can usually apply a code if you call within 24 hours on adding airtime.

Account Management: Your airtime balance and expiration date are displayed every time you turn on a TracFone feature phone. You can check your balance and expiration date at any time using the Prepaid menu on TracFone non-smartphones.  If you register at tracfone.com you can also check your plan expiration online for all phones and your balance for Android and BYOP phones.

You can also check balance and expiration for Android and BYOP phones by going to www.fastactportal.com/static/balance with the phone's browser or a PC and entering your phone number. Registration is not required. There's also a TracFone Android app that lets you check balance and expiration and refill using a PIN code. TracFone AT&T smartphone and BYOP users can check their minutes, texts and data balances by dialing *777*1#

Free information services calls
911 - Emergency services

Customer Service:

Chat Support: I've found Chat to be the fastest and least painful way to get support with TracFone. The Chat option can be found on TracFone's Support Contact page during the support hours of  8 AM to 11:45 PM Eastern Time 7 days a week.

Phone support: 1-800-867-7183 is the official TracFone support number. Use this number to access the automated service for adding top-ups 24/7.  You can also reach a customer support representative at this number from 8 AM to 11:45 PM Eastern Time 7 days a week . Calls are handled by off shore call centers. Wait times are usually short and the representatives courteous. However they often appear to be following a script and seem unfamiliar with the details of TracFone devices and services.

An alternative is TracFone's  "Executive Resolutions Dept." Miami based call center at 1-305-715-6500 X1029. It's available Monday – Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST.

The Executive Resolutions representatives are more knowledgeable and better equipped to resolve complex issues.  I recommend calling 1-305-715-6500 X1029 for issues that Chat isn't able to quickly resolve especially if it involves no service, billing issues, or PINs that don't work.

Social Media: TracFone on Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube

Phone Sales and General Information Web Site: www.tracfone.com

TracFone Pros: best coverage (feature phones only), strong retail presence, BYOP, lowest pay as you go data rates of any operator.

TracFone Cons: complex pricing structure, customer support is not trained and equipped to deal with the systems complexities.

Updated 25-Aug-2017: Newest smartphone and SIMs are "smart phone card only" and don't get "triple-triple billing" when topped up with minutes cards.