Montreal - Post Report Question and Answers
Do you have any recommendations regarding mobile phones? Did you keep your home-country plan or use a local provider?
Get an phone at your hometown in the US with AT&T US/Canada service. It will work on both sides of the border. - Jul 2022
If you bring an unlocked phone, the store in Eaton Center mentioned in a previous post can help. I have a plan that allows me to call the US for no added charge, and use the phone when I am in the US without fees. Bell wanted me to have a Canadian credit card and other requirements that were unreachable. I wish I’d seen that Easton Center post report earlier, because when I asked for advice, I didn’t get useful information. - Aug 2020
We use Telus. You may have to shop around to find a carrier and branch that will open a contract (vs. pay as you go), but it's not a huge hassle. You can pay an extra $10 (Canadian) a month to be able to use your phone/data in the US and make calls to the US. - Feb 2018
That is a bit tricky. Some U.S.-based folks arrive using their already existing U.S. phone and plan, and simply update their plan to Canada-based residence. But check the rates. There are a few Canada-based options as well. This will be a personal choice, depending on your own calling profile (many calls to US, or not, etc.). Also, you will likely be issued a work phone. A tip: in the Eaton shopping center downtown (and I suspect in other places) there is a store that can offer phones/plans from all the different local cell companies, depending on your own demands. Not unusual at all here to see Americans (and Canadians) walking around with 2 or 3 phones, owing to this complicated situation. - Aug 2012
Do not, under any circumstances, use Bell Canada. They are the worst company I have ever dealt with in the entire world. Customer service is awful. In two years, I had to make over 100 calls for billing errors, service outages, etc. Not once did I get assistance on the first call - I often had to call 3-5 times to finally get someone to actually do what they said they would. And the average time on the phone for any call was more than 40 minutes. - Dec 2009
Don't go with Vonage. Three phones died on us, and they manufactured reasons that suddenly made them out of warranty. Like, "there's water inside it." - Sep 2009
Mission Canada signed a very favorable contract with Rogers. Otherwise, it's just like the U.S. - Jan 2009
