Reach Mobile, a postpaid MVNO that operates on Verizon’s excellent network, offers phone plans ranging from 3GB of data to unlimited. Reach Mobile uses a percentage of its profits to provide mobile service to low-income families and women. Moreover, you can save money through its Best Fit program that automatically charges you for the plan that matches your actual data use as opposed to the plan you signed up for. If you want your phone plan to give back to those who need it, then you may want to check out Reach Mobile and its Gigs That Give program.

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Reach Mobile’s Gigs That Give Program

Charitable giving is very important to Reach Mobile, which boasts the tagline, “Mobile service with an impact.” Gigs That Give is the name of Reach Mobile’s social impact program that provides connectivity and ongoing wireless training for women-in-need in the U.S., Nigeria, and India.

Here’s an overview:

  • When you sign up for a Reach Mobile plan, a portion of the proceeds goes to giving free connectivity to those who can’t afford it.
  • 10% of the cost of every phone plan is allocated to providing wireless access to low-income women and families.
  • The wireless access empowers women to make better-informed choices for themselves and their families.
  • Every family who receives wireless access is a step toward bridging the Digital Divide.

The Digital Divide refers to the gap between privileged families who have easy access to wireless and low-income families who cannot afford clothing, childhood, and food—let alone a smartphone plan. The Digital Divide disproportionately impacts women in developing countries, as these women are up to 40% less likely than their male counterparts to have used the internet. Reach Mobile is determined to bridge this gap through its Gigs That Give program, which partners with nonprofits in Nigeria, India, and the U.S. to determine qualified recipients, including women, students, and families, and then provide them with monthly plans.

How Much Value Does it Actually Provide?

According to Reach Mobile, nearly 51 million American households can’t afford to pay for a monthly phone bill. Moreover, there are 3.9 billion people worldwide who don’t have wireless access. Without internet, these individuals and families don’t have access to the opportunities, information, and resources that we do. Some people have never even used a smartphone before receiving wireless access from Reach Mobile, while others live at the poverty line in the U.S. and struggle to afford paying their monthly phone bill.

Access to data enables people to stay connected to their support systems, attend school, keep jobs, and put their families on the road toward economic mobility. For instance, families in India use their data to look for and obtain medications for their children, as well as educate themselves on the value of their crops in order to negotiate with traders who may offer an unfairly low price on produce. As such, connectivity isn’t just about browsing the internet; it’s about education, awareness, empowerment, and a better quality of life.

Reach Mobile is only about three months old and already this Verizon MVNO has provided connectivity to over 165 people around the world. That figure will continue to grow as more and more customers switch to Reach Mobile, as 10% of each plan cost is donated to provide those in need with data. Reach Mobile’s plan is to help 10,000 people in one year and 30,000 in two years.

One major pro about Reach Mobile is its transparency; you can track your personal impact on the Reach Mobile app, as well as read the Reach Mobile blog documenting empowering stories of wireless recipients.

Reach Mobile plans to provide 30,000 individuals with internet access within the next two years.

How Does this Compare to Other Give Back Programs?

It’s becoming increasingly common for brands to align themselves with a cause. Buying habits of consumers have revealed that they are more likely to choose a brand that gives back, and phone carriers have begun to catch on. Several carriers, in addition to Reach Mobile, have social impact programs, including:

  • AT&T: AT&T Foundation & Aspire Initiative
  • Sprint: 1Million Project Foundation
  • T-Mobile: Huddle Up
  • Verizon Wireless: Verizon Innovative Learning
  • CREDO Mobile: Progressive Change

AT&T Foundation

AT&T invests in projects and organizations that foster learning opportunities, address community needs, and promote academic and economic achievement. The AT&T Aspire Initiative provides education and training to help marginalized individuals obtain and keep jobs.

Sprint 1Million Project

Donate your old phone, tablet, or hotspot device and Sprint will donate up to $1 per device to the 1Million Project Foundation, which provides under-resourced students with internet access and phones in order to eliminate the “Homework Gap.” This gap negatively impacts low-income students who don’t have reliable wireless access, which is often necessary for completing homework, as well as applying to college or for scholarships and jobs.

T-Mobile Huddle Up

T-Mobile launched Huddle Up in 2005 as a volunteer-based program that helps children from high-need areas throughout the country by partnering with various organizations, such as After School All Stars and Boys & Girls Club of America. Huddle Up aims to expose students to technology and potential STEM careers. Additionally, the T-Mobile Foundation matches up to $2,000/year in donations to a variety of nonprofits, which isn’t particularly impressive for a large company like T-Mobile, but it does also give $10 for each hour that its employees spend volunteering.

Verizon Innovative Learning

Verizon’s Innovative Learning program, which also aims to bridge the Digital Divide as well as improve academic performance, partners with nonprofits to provide wireless access, free technology, and tech-focused curriculum to U.S. schools. All you have to do is trade in an old device and Verizon will donate $1 to this cause. Since 2012, Verizon has donated $400 million to support over one million children, and it plans to help two million more by 2021.

Credo Mobile Progressive Change

Credo Mobile, an MVNO that runs on Verizon’s network, donates 1% of its revenue to progressive causes, such as women’s rights, environmental issues, and LGBTQ rights each month. Considering the high prices of its plans, you may be better off signing up for a cheaper MVNO plan and then donating on your own.

Reach Mobile’s Gigs That Give is a great program that doesn’t require you to do anything, like trade in an old device—all you need to do is sign up for a Reach Mobile phone plan.

Where Reach Mobile Falls

Reach Mobile’s Gigs That Give is a great program that doesn’t require you to do anything, like trade in an old device—all you need to do is sign up for a Reach Mobile phone plan. Reach Mobile gives you access to Verizon’s robust 4G LTE network.

Unlike the major carriers—i.e. Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint—Reach Mobile’s entire branding is centered around its social impact, which communicates to customers that this is the main priority. Further, Reach Mobile has the only social impact program that not only helps U.S. individuals but also directly helps women and families in other countries, including India and Nigeria.

Several of the other carrier social impact programs share a similar goal of providing low-income, high-need individuals with internet access to improve their quality of life via educational, occupational, and community opportunities. If this mission is important to you, then Reach Mobile, Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T are all worth checking out.

Reach Mobile Plans

Reach Mobile offers several postpaid plans, ranging from 3GB to unlimited data. These plans include:

  • The $30 Basic Plan: 3GB
  • The $45 Moderate Plan: 8GB
  • The $55 People’s Choice Plan: 12GB
  • The $65 All-In Unlimited Plan: Unlimited

Reach Mobile offers a Best Fit program in which it automatically charges you for the next tier down if you don’t use as much data as you anticipated. For example, if you chose the 8GB Moderate Plan but only used 2GB that month, then you’ll only be charged $30 for the 3GB Basic Plan. This is a great way to save money on a charitable carrier that is backed by the top network in the country.

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