SNAP benefit was supplied to 40 million Americans in 2018, and the number has increased since now. It’s fairly easy to get a free phone for SNAP recipients.
The US government provides free phones to low-income, disabled, or sometimes unemployed people to improve their lifestyles. And, creating awareness is easy with the people who use a smartphone. So, it’s a win-win situation for both the government and the public.
There are a few conditions to qualify for a free phone. One of them is to participate in a federal assistance program, including SNAP.
Today, I’ll tell you how you can get a free phone for snap recipients and mention some top providers.
What Is SNAP?
If you are the recipient of the SNAP, you are sure to know about it. In case you don’t have a clue what it is, let me explain a little.
SNAP or Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as Food stamp) is a federal assistance program that helped millions of American families put food on their tables. And, if you meet a specific condition, you will be qualified for the program.
The primary focus of the program is children and elders. Around two out of three SNAP-eligible families are with children and elders. It strengthens the families’ budget to alleviate hunger and buy healthier foods by offering financial assistance. Like, you can get a free laptop with food stamps if you’re eligible for it.
How Do You Get A Government Free Phone?
Back in 1980, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) introduced an assistance program called Lifeline. The program aims to help unable, low-income, and disabled people to help with technological improvement.
Now, it is also commonly known as the “Obama Phone” program. It delivers families or individuals discounts or free cell phones and internet service.
There are specific criteria you need to meet to get a free phone. And, you really need to be needy, who can’t afford a free phone to get the service.
With your SNAP certification, getting a discount on your phone billing is extremely simple. Continue with the article to know the process of getting a free phone.
Why Does the Government Offer Free Phone Service?
After so much hardship in life, it is expected if there is a question in your mind about the legality of the fact. Firstly, the government isn’t giving you the phones out of kindness.
Secondly, it makes jobs easier if the citizens have a phone. Moreover, researching and creating awareness among people with a phone is quite simple. Take Covid Pandemic for instance. How hard would it be to lock people on the phone if they don’t know how dangerous Covid could be?
Also, mobile phones help civilians to get a job and contribute to the country’s economy. So, as you can see, there are many benefits for the government when they offer a phone to you.
And, as for your benefit, there is no need to say this. In simple words, a mobile phone can change your life. It can make you better, healthier, weather, and wiser. So, in the end, it’s a win-win game.
One thing, if you have these insecurities, government-free phones are entirely free. If you qualify, you get a free phone from the government, and they don’t expect anything from you in return.
If you are clear so far, the next question is, where do you get a free phone?
Many providers are offering free phones. Few among them have quite exceptional offers, and others have complicated little packs. Here’s are my few recommendations –
Top 7 Providers of the free phone for snap recipients
1. Access Wireless
Access Wireless is one of the big names in the free government phone business. They also have the broadest coverage. Without getting a free phone, you can get data, minutes, and text each month free of cost.
On top of free plans, affordable paid plans will provide you extra high-speed data, text, or talk, depending on your need.
Access Wireless could be an excellent choice free phone for snap recipients. But, before deciding, you need to make sure they are available in your state. No free phone providers are available in all states of America.
And, the offers you get also vary from state to state. For Access wireless, the California residents get an extra benefit from the provider. They also get unlimited minutes, unlimited messaging, and 5GB of internet data with a free smartphone.
What You Get If You Are In California
For California, Access Wireless offers a free smartphone, unlimited talking in local and long-distance nationwide, and 5GB of data.
What You Get If You Are In Other States
Those who are applying from other states get some limited benefits. There are 250 minutes of talk, unlimited text, and 3 GB of data for every month with a free smartphone.
The Top-Up Plans
Top-up plans are essential. Free plans don’t last forever, and the internet speed for those plans is relatively slow. Access Wireless has paid plans for both talk and data. And, The plans are relatively small, which is beneficial for low-income individuals.
Top-Up minutes
- With $5, enjoy an additional 250 minutes each month.
- Keep connecting even after the monthly limit reaches 10 cents per minute.
Top-Up Data
- Get 100 MB high-speed data at $1 for 30 days.
- Get 500 MB of high-speed data at $3 for 30 days.
- Get 1 GB of high-speed data at $5 for 30 days.
- Get 4 GB high-speed data at $20 for 30 days.
Access wireless has the most inexpensive plans among the Lifeline participants. And, if the company has service in your area, I would recommend them first.
2. Tag Mobile
Tag Mobile is also a noticeable participant thanks to its decent coverage and reliable internet speed. And, you can get a free smartphone from them with your SNAP certification.
Similar to the previous provider, with a free phone, you get free internet data, free minutes, and free text. The benefits are better when you are from the most populous state – California.
The main reason for Tag Mobile still being top of most free phone providers, despite offering fewer data, minutes, or text, is its network. The company uses the network of Verizon, Sprint, and T-mobile. So, its coverage is extensive, and the network has close to no blind spots in the service area.
And, the plan also has features like – no contracts, no cost, nationwide coverage, caller ID, call waiting, and voicemail.
What You Get From Tag Mobile Lifeline Program
For the Other State Lifeline:
- Free Smartphone.
- Unlimited texting to anywhere in the world.
- Free 1000 minutes for local and long-distance calling.
- 1 GB of data.
For the California Lifeline:
- Free smartphone.
- Unlimited global texting without any cost.
- Monthly free 1000 minutes for talking.
- Monthly free 6.5 GB LTE data.
Top-Up Plans:
For Text and Talk:
- Tag Mobile offers two paid plans naming Premium and Platinum plans. With the Premium plan, you monthly pay $4.95 for 250 minutes talk 8 (local and long-distance) and unlimited text.
- The $9.95/month platinum plan includes – unlimited minutes for both local and long-distance and unlimited text.
For Internet Data:
- The company has three data plans for the customers. But, the plans are comparatively expensive.
- The Lite plan, costing $5.95 each month, offers 500 MB of high-speed data.
- The Lite plan, costing $11.95 each month, offers 1 GB of high-speed data.
- The Lite plan, costing $19.95 each month, offers 3 GB of high-speed data.
0verall Tag Mobile is an excellent option for the free phone for snap recipients. But, keep in mind, their free service is lesser than other providers and paid plans are also slightly expensive. That is the price to pay when you want better coverage and more reliable internet.
3. Life Wireless
With your SNAP certificate, you can get a free phone from Life Wireless. Unlike other providers, Lifeless Wireless hasn’t been long in the Lifeline program. Moreover, the company was established a long time ago.
Still, it is getting people’s attention for their excellent service and decent free phone form for low income families.
As a small company, the provider isn’t available in a large number of states. Only a handful of states are under the service area of Lifeless. But, those areas have a good reputation.
Lifeless Lifeline program gives you a smartphone, free monthly data, monthly texting, and monthly talking. Without that, their free plan includes features like No long-distance calling charges, distance calling, domestic calling, call waiting, triple-way calling, voicemail, caller ID, and free 911 services.
And, if you aren’t satisfied with the free offers, there are top-up plans too. But, the top-up plans aren’t versatile and quite expensive.
What You Get With Life Wireless
For The Other States:
Suppose you are in the other states, except Oklahoma and California, with your SNAP certification. In that case, you get a free phone, monthly free 750 minutes for both local and long-distance calling, unlimited global texting, and Monthly 1 GB data.
For the California and Oklahoma:
The residents of California and Oklahoma get additional benefits. The freephone comes with unlimited talk, unlimited text, massage with image, free-roaming, and monthly 4.5 GB of internet.
Top-Up Plans
Only Talk
Lifeless Wireless has three only talk plans. The plans are for thirty days. And after the service period, if there are any additional minutes, that won’t roll over to the next month. So, keep that in mind; you have to finish all your time before the time ends.
- Purchase 100 minutes additionally with $4.
- Purchase 500 minutes additionally with $12.
- Purchase 1-00 minutes additionally with $20.
Only Data
The data plan also has a similar path. If I can’t finish them before the month ends, there isn’t any rollover.
- Purchase 100 MB of the internet at $4.
- Purchase 500 MB of the internet at $15.
- Purchase 1 GB of internet at $20.
4. Assurance Wireless
Assurance Wireless also comes under the big boys of the Lifeline participants. After the combination of sprint and T-mobile network, Assurance is performing even better. You can get a free phone for snap recipients and get free internet service.
And, it also doesn’t require signing a contract, no credit check, zero activation fee, and no hidden fees. With the Sprint and T-mobile collaborative network, Assurance is now the largest Lifeline program participant. They are now in more than forty states, and it is said to expand its service area pretty soon.
But, the problem with the provider is that their process of getting a free phone and setting up is complicated. And, there are many complaints about it. Assurance promised to address the issue as fast as possible. By the time you are reading this article, the issue may already be resolved.
What You Get With Assurance Wireless
Besides providing a free phones for food stamp recipients, Assurance also has a free wireless service. Just with most of the providers, if you are from California, you get a terrific deal.
For The Other States
With a free cell phone, you can enjoy free monthly calls (limited; Varies depending on the state), unlimited free text for anywhere in the globe, and 3 GB of data per month.
For California
California residents get unlimited local calling, unlimited free global texting, and 5 GB of monthly data. And, of course, a free smartphone is included in the deal.
Top-UP plans
Assurance offers plenty of versatile deals. They have both only text and only talk plans, along with bundles of talk/ text + data.
Talk/Text Top-Up Plans:
Currently, there are two talk and text-only plans available with Assurance Wireless, one is a $5 plan, and the other is a $10 plan.
- The $5 “Mexico/Canada calling + international Text” offer-
- Unlimited landline and phone calling to Canada And Mexico.
- Unlimited only phone calling to over 200 countries.
- Unlimited worldwide texting.
The $10 “Mexico/Canada calling + international Text” offer:
- Unlimited landline and phone calling to Canada And Mexico.
- Unlimited Landline calling to 70 counties.
- Free 200 mobile minutes to 50 counties around the USA.
- International calling is unlimited to over 200 countries.
There are also data plans which cost from $5 to $30 for unlimited data.
5. EnTouch Wireless
EnTouch is also a good alternative when you are choosing a free government cell phones provider. The company is vastly known for its versatile free and paid plans.
Although the service area isn’t massive, it could be called decent. And, most of the major states are under the service of their network. They offer free phones with free internet services.
But, their free services may not be that exciting. Their versatile prepaid plans will make you amazed, which start with only one dollar and go up to fifty dollars.
The free offer varies from state to state. And tribal people have a greater advantage.
What You Get With EnTouch Wireless
For California
With the free smartphone, you can unlimited local and long-distance, text worldwide unlimitedly, and use 3 GB of free internet per month.
For California (Tribal)
The tribes in California get everything similar except, instead of 3 GB of internet, they get 5 GB.
For Other State
The other states won’t get anything outstanding. Besides the free phone for snap recipients, they get unlimited text, only 100 minutes of the call, and 100 MB of data per month.
Top-Up Plans
Just as I said, EnTouch has quite several plans from $1 to $50. You can choose any of them. But, I would like to remind you, the internet is as expensive as their service.
I would only recommend choosing if you are either in California or live in tribal lands for the provider. If not, the additional free service doesn’t have much to offer.
6. Q Link
Q Link is one of the biggest names in the Lifeline program. And, they gave the most number of free phones to the Americans. Along with the internet service, they have reached more than ten million people.
Getting a free phone for snap recipients is relatively easy for them. Also, the process for that is simple. You need to go to their website, fill a form, and show proofs. If everything is fine, they will contract within five days.
Anyways, the Q link also has both free and prepaid cell phone plans unlimited for Lifeline participants. And, their offers for all over the United States are the same.
What You Get With Q link
Q Link Lifeline service offers you a free phone with 1000 minutes of talking for both local and long-distance, nationwide unlimited texting, and 3GB of data each month.
Top-Up Plans
Talk Only
Q Link offers a unique plan if you only get busy for some days of a month. You can pay just $1 and get unlimited data for one day.
The other plans have a thirty-day service period. With $5, you can purchase 500 minutes and 15$ for unlimited minutes. Both plans are capable of both local and long-distance calling.
Data Only
The data plan starts with only $1 for 100 MB to $40 for unlimited data. Among this number, there is a large variety of plans. All of them have the same thirty days. And, remember, leftover data won’t roll back to next month.
7. FeelSafe Wireless
Under the brand name of FeelSafe Wireless, AirVoice Wireless provider free government phones to low-income families and disabled individuals. The service is limited to a few large states of the provider.
Offers from Feelsafe Wireless are different in different states. To find out what the company offers in your local area, visit their official website, put your zip code. All the available options around you will appear.
Just like all other providers, FeelSafe Wireless also offers both free phones and wireless services. And, the California residents have the upper hand here too.
What You get with FeelSafe Wireless
For California
If you dwell in California, you get unlimited talk ( local and domestic long-distance), unlimited text, 3GB of internet per month, and a free cell phone service.
For the Other States
The other states get 1000 minutes for calls, 500 texts, 3GB of internet, and a free phone.
How To Apply For The Government Free Phones
You can apply for free government phones, either online or offline. And, there are some things you need to do –
Check The Eligibility Requirements
Lifeline assistance program eligibility changes depending on your state. The providers just check the personal information, verify them and manage the lifeline accounts.
As a government-regulated program, the states have full regulation for it. But, most of the requirements are the same all over the US. Firstly, you need to participate in a federal program ( that’s the case with you), or your household needs to be below 135% of the federal poverty guideline.
Selection Of A Provider
The most crucial part of getting a free phone is to get it from a reliable and reputable company. Several companies are providing a free cell phone for snap recipients; even some large carriers also provide them. So, getting a free phone or free service isn’t an issue.
What will you do with all of this if you can’t even use your phone most of the time? So, before selecting a provider, research how well they are performing in your area.
Large providers are good, but they aren’t available in every area. Sometimes so named local providers to shine in their limited areas. Don’t hesitate to choose them if they are doing great.
Apply For Your Free Phone
After selecting a provider, it is time to apply. Again make sure you choose a good provider, and the provider offers enough free data, call and text.
You can apply directly from their website. It’s the easiest way. Visit the website of your provider, where you can see apply now or similar buttons.
Some providers aren’t quite active online; for them, mail your application. And, don’t just stop after applying. If there’s no response within two weeks, apply again in the same way or the other. If still not responding, communicate with them through calling or on the social media pages.
FAQ About the free phone for snap recipients
What is the Lifeline Assistance Program?
Lifeline Assistance is the Federal Communication Commission’s long-running (since 1985) program designed to provide equal access to phone service for all Americans. It specifically caters to low-income residents who may not otherwise afford a cell phone device or plan.
Do large companies also give away free phones?
T-Mobile is “giving away” 5G phones in an attempt to move customers from its 4G network onto 5G, the company said today.
What proof do I need to apply?
You’ll need to make sure that your household income is at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. You’ll need to prove your household income with pay stubs, a W-2 form, or a letter from the government agency that you’re enrolled in.
