this is how you avoid a sky-high bill

Telecom providers have increased their data limits considerably in recent years. Providers such as KPN and T-Mobile (including Tele2) even offer unlimited mobile data. There is a good chance that you do not have unlimited data yet. Then of course you do not want to exceed your data limit – after all, you have to pay extra for the additional consumption. Below you will find all the steps you can take to prevent over-consumption.

Mobile data limit on Android

Fortunately, 500 MB data bundles are no longer available, but you will still see 5 GB data bundles, or in some cases even 1 GB. With such bundles, watching a few videos on your favorite streaming service or regularly browsing social media platforms can already lead to your data bundle reaching zero within hours or days. When you reach zero, your telecom provider starts charging a flat rate for every MB you use.

Depending on how many MBs you use, and where you use that data, that can be quite expensive. In Android you can arm yourself against such extra costs by setting up a mobile data limit. Within a specific period you cannot use more mobile data (MBs) than you have specified. For example, if you have a 5 GB data bundle, your new bundle always starts on the first of the month. Then you can set that you can use 5,000 MB between the first and last day of the month.

If you approach the zero point of your data bundle, the Android operating system can send you a notification about this. As soon as all mobile data has been used, the mobile data connection on your phone will be turned off immediately. You can then only browse via WiFi.

Set mobile data limit

All phones since Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich have the option to set a data limit. The steps below therefore work for all phones with Android 4.0 or higher. Note: the menu layout will be different for some steps.

1. Open it settings menu
2. Navigate to Network and Internet
3. Then click Mobile Internet
4. Then go to Data Warning and Limit
5. Set the at the top Data Cycle for mobile data, selecting the date on which you data bundle starts monthly
6. At the bottom of this menu you put the switch behind Set data limit at
7. Via the setting below you set the Data limit in
8. You can still use the Data warning turn on with its own switch, and then also select after how much mobile data used you want to receive a warning

It is important to note that Android is not always completely accurate in tracking the amount of mobile data you use. It is therefore possible that you have used slightly more data than indicated by the menu. This difference is small, but it is still important to keep an eye on your mobile data usage.