Hidden Savings of Ditching Your Cellphone — And the Hidden Costs
Cellphones: Can't live with 'em, can't survive without 'em. As useful and fun as they are, they often create a lot of noise and frustrations in our daily lives, thanks to their attention-stealing systems by design.
And Americans pay a lot for that distraction. With the average cellphone bill amount at a shocking $141 monthly in 2026 (or $50 to $90 for a single-line plan), it’s little wonder that digital detox solutions — including Brick, a digital device that temporarily blocks your phone's endless waves of information and disinformation — are increasingly en vogue among Americans of all ages.
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But what if you’re interested in a more concrete or complete solution, perhaps by ditching your smartphone entirely? While saving yourself a bundle in monthly fees and app subscriptions are the obvious pros, what are some of the hidden savings and costs tied to skipping out on the smartphone — even if it’s for a little while?
‘Friction-Maxxing’ Your Way to a Better Life
With “-maxxing” being the trendiest suffix of the past few years, it’s unsurprising that it might be applied to the cultural world as well via a recent discussion of “friction-maxxing” as put forth by Kathryn Jezer-Morton for The Cut.
Basically, Jezer-Morton pointed out that tech tools like smartphones and iPads are essentially dehumanizing people by reducing friction — and producing escapism or convenience at the push of a button — which ends up infantilizing adults and stunting the necessary growth of children.
Maybe it’s actually better to pick up a cookbook when in need of a recipe rather than to ask ChatGPT, or to actually visit your local grocery store in person to do some idle shopping (and chatting with people, in person, as you do so). Calling the problem “the life-annihilating suction of technologies of escape” may be a bit bleak on Jezer-Morton's part, but there’s a nugget of truth here.
Without a Cellphone or Smartphone, Many Americans Lose Internet Access
Pew Research provided longitudinal data up to 2025 showing that a whopping 16% of Americans were termed as “smartphone-only” dependent for web access — meaning that they only have access to the internet via their phones and do not have home broadband. In this case, ditching the phone means losing access to the internet (at least without visiting a friend’s house or the library).
That percentage increases to more than one-quarter (27%) of younger Americans ages 18 to 29, with older folks ages 65-plus (17%) still coming in above the average. That means for the youngest and oldest Americans, a sizable cohort would be significantly hampered by the loss of their phones — their only means of reliable internet access.
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Shadow Subscription Costs Could Be Brought To Light If You Toss the Phone
The average American also drops between $219 and $273 per month on subscriptions, according to a C+R Research study reported by Resubs, with many of these tied to app usage. Perhaps more troubling is the perception gap between what consumers are actually spending and what they believe they are: Taking that $219 figure and comparing it to the $86 monthly that survey respondents believed they were spending and there’s an obvious problem with such a wide gap.
While canceling your phone-based subscriptions and cutting back on streaming services you only use on the go (Spotify, we’re looking in your direction — and you too, Netflix!) may not close the books on this sneaky expenditure entirely, doing so would definitely help balance your household budget during these turbulent economic times.
On the Other Hand, Some Replacements May Be Necessary
Given the widespread adoption of tech, it’s almost impossible to be a modern-day luddite. Slack, Microsoft Teams, various scheduling apps, messenger services and (of course) email remain the most common methods of business communication.
If your job or social life involve — or revolve around — any of the aforementioned, you’ll need to factor in the price of gaining regular access to these tools when it comes to the lofty ideals of the smartphone-free lifestyle.
A laptop or desktop computer might start at around $300 for an inexpensive option and internet connectivity is often comparable to a cellphone plan with data (at up to $50 per month, according to HighSpeedInternet.com) and is less portable. In the end, it may actually be cheaper to keep your phone, but that’s subject to interpretation on a case-by-case basis.
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This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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