Bring Your Own Phone Plans in Canada: When Keeping Your Phone Saves Money

In Canada, a bring-your-own-phone (BYOP) plan saves money when your current phone still works well, because you pay only for the plan instead of the plan plus a device payment. Phones sold in Canada since 1 December 2017 must be unlocked under the CRTC Wireless Code, and providers must unlock older phones for free on request. Before switching, check that your phone works on the new network and that any device balance is paid, then compare the two-year totals.

Check your phone first

• Unlocked: phones sold since 1 December 2017 are unlocked; ask your carrier to unlock an older phone for free.
• Compatible: check the new carrier's compatibility tool for bands, VoLTE and 5G.
• Healthy: battery health, storage and software updates. A battery replacement can extend a phone's life.
• Paid off: if you are on a financing agreement, the remaining balance comes due if you cancel.

BYOP vs a plan with a new device

When BYOP does not save

If your phone is failing, lacks updates or will not work on the new network, you will need a phone anyway. Then compare buying outright (new, refurbished or used) plus a BYOP plan against carrier financing.

Step by step: switching with your own phone

1. Find your phone's model number and check the new provider's compatibility tool. Look for VoLTE support; as older networks are retired, calls on many networks need VoLTE.
2. Confirm the phone is unlocked. In settings, or by trying another carrier's SIM. If it is older than December 2017 and locked, ask your carrier to unlock it free.
3. Check your device balance with your current carrier and decide whether to pay it off now or have it come due when you cancel.
4. Back up the phone and note any carrier-specific features, such as visual voicemail or Wi-Fi calling, and whether the new provider supports them on your model.
5. Sign up with the new provider, choose a SIM or eSIM, and ask it to port your number. Keep the old service active until the port completes.
6. Test calls, texts, data, voicemail and 911-capable calling settings such as Wi-Fi calling address registration.

How long a phone can last

The cost of BYOP depends on how long your phone stays useful. Phone makers publish how many years of security updates they promise for each model; check yours. A phone that still gets updates and has a healthy battery can often run another year or two on a BYOP plan. A battery replacement costs far less than a new phone. If updates have ended, the phone becomes a security risk, especially for banking apps.

If you need a phone to bring

BYOP does not require the phone you already have. You can buy a phone outright and bring it to any plan: new from the manufacturer or a retailer, refurbished with a warranty, open-box, or used from a private seller. Each option changes the 24-month total. A refurbished or open-box phone plus a BYOP plan often costs less than a new phone financed through a carrier, but check the warranty, the return window and, for used phones, that the device is not reported lost or stolen.

Common mistakes

• Cancelling the old service before porting, which can lose the number.
• Forgetting the device balance, which comes due when you cancel a financing agreement.
• Assuming any unlocked phone works: older or imported models may lack the bands or VoLTE support a network needs.
• Paying for a plan with a large data bucket you no longer need because a device subsidy is gone.

Example with made-up inputs: adding a battery

These numbers are an example with made-up inputs. Keeping a phone two more years on a $35 BYOP plan, with a $100 battery replacement, costs $940 over 24 months. A new phone at $30 a month on a $50 plan costs $1,920 over the same 24 months.

Example with made-up inputs: 24 months

These numbers are an example with made-up inputs, not current prices.