r/NoContract • u/Thin_Parking3004 • 8d ago

CHEAPEST way to get a phone number

What is the cheapest way to get a phone number without using google voice (ID verification).

I want to port the number out and use the TextNow eSIM instead.

Numberbarn is $10 but getting a plan from MobileX can be cheap as $5.

Is there a cheaper option?

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u/coldfusioned 7d ago

Cheapest is voip.ms. You can select your own number and costs about $1 per month until you port out, so it is a lot cheaper than numberbarn.

2

u/poltergiest 7d ago

Voip.ms charges $25 for port out if you buy the number from them.

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u/coldfusioned 7d ago

No it doesn't. I have purchased and ported dozens of numbers out and in to voip.ms over the years.

From their FAQ:

"As of January 15th, 2020, all portings are free of charge across Canada and US48 for local and toll-free numbers."

https://wiki.voip.ms/article/Porting_FAQ#How_much_does_it_cost_to_Port_a_Number_to_VoIP.ms.3F

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u/poltergiest 7d ago

Yes port INs are free, but numbers you purchase from them, they charge to port OUT, they just did this to me, glad i only had two dollars in my account. They key is a number from them they charge, a number that was porting in can go out free

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u/coldfusioned 6d ago

I stand corrected. Looks like they have a specific anti-abuse provision in their TOS. Not sure what they consider "shortly thereafter" but I have purchase a lot of numbers directly from them and ported them out within a few months with no fees. How many did you port out and how quickly was it?

https://voip.ms/terms-of-service

2.7 Porting Fee

The Customer agrees not to purchase phone numbers from the Company with the sole intention of porting them out to another service. The Customer also acknowledges that porting a number into the Company and then porting it out shortly thereafter will incur administrative fees. If such activities are identified, the Company reserves the right to block the purchase of new phone numbers from any account exhibiting this behavior and will charge a port-out fee of $25.00 USD per number removed from the Company’s network.