Ditching T2 After 20 Years: How I Cut My Bill in Half

Ditching T2 After 20 Years: How I Cut My Bill in Half

Hello there!

I've been with Tele 2, now just t2, for over 20 years, but it seems that's not enough to keep my loyalty to the old and familiar mobile operator I've stuck with. The reason is simple: when they hike up their service prices, but you only use them a quarter of the time, it's just not worth holding on. It's easier to jump ship to a provider where you'll pay half the price for the same minutes and gigabytes. I'm not sure about the latter, but after t2 decided to jack up my tariff price by 115 rubles, I decided it was time to switch to a new operator.

Now that the transition is complete, I'm left with a bit of regret, not because I'm unhappy with my new connection, but because I've grown accustomed to Tele 2 after all these years. It's sad to let go of something you're used to.

Why Tele 2?

I first met Tele 2 during my university days. At the time, the options were limited to MTS, Beeline, and that 'tough2' operator. It was called 'tough2' for its great call quality and later, internet service. Despite that, Tele 2 was super popular among students and beyond, because it was affordable and you could buy SIM cards at just about any kiosk. So when I got my first phone, I chose Tele 2 as my mobile operator. Later, my parents, grandparents, and even great-grandparents joined the family plan.

Unfortunately, my first SIM card went with my first phone. Back then, there was no SIM card recovery service, so when I got a new feature phone, I had to go back to the kiosk to get a new Tele 2 SIM card. At the time, you could buy a SIM card, use up all your minutes, and then just throw it away, as there was no way to track it. I took a more responsible approach and filled out the contract and mailed it to the post office. That second number has been with me for 19 years, and I decided it was time to switch to Sberbank Mobile.

How Tele 2 has changed:

To be honest, it's hard to keep track of all the changes over the years, as new technologies have been emerging and evolving at breakneck speed. Of course, this has affected the quality of service, and most importantly, made high-speed internet accessible to us. Along with it came new tariff plans, and the cost of service has increased significantly.

I liked that if something wasn't to my liking, I could always choose a different plan and payment option. I've changed my tariff plans multiple times, so I won't list them all, but my last one was the 'Supreme Call' plan, which went into archives in 2022.

Let's face it, Tele2's tariff plans are always changing. It feels like every year they're scrapping old plans and replacing them with new ones, leaving you with no choice but to adapt. And let's be real, the new plans are usually pricier, so many people stick with the old ones because they can't afford the hike. Take the cheapest plan right now, for instance. It's still a whopping 600 rubles per month. You get 10 GB of internet, 200 minutes on other networks, and 100 SMS. I remember when I had this plan, it was a great deal. But now, with the rise of messaging apps, they've added SMS back in. The plan's called 'My Conversation' and it's basically the same as my old 'Super Conversation' plan, except I upgraded to 20 GB. Back in 2022, it cost me around 350 rubles per month, but by 2025, the price had gone up to 525 rubles. And this year, they've hiked it up to 640 rubles.

So, if I'd opted for 'My Conversation' and boosted my GB to 20, it would've cost me a whopping 700 rubles or more. There's another plan available for 390 rubles, but it's only for new customers. Existing customers like me are stuck with the more expensive options.

I don't make many calls on my phone, and to be honest, I don't even have stable internet in my area. My minutes and GB are piling up, and my bill is increasing accordingly. The latest price hike was the last straw for me. I'm tired of being taken advantage of. When they said the price increase was due to improved equipment and better network quality, I'd had enough.

But here's the thing - Tele2 doesn't want to lose customers, and that's why I was willing to reconsider my decision to switch.

How to reduce your tariff price in Tele2:

I'd heard rumors about Tele2 offering discounts to customers who try to switch to another network with their number. Apparently, the discount is permanent. I was skeptical about the 'permanent' part, but paying 250 rubles would've been a lot more appealing than 640. However, I decided to pass...

When I got the letter from Tele2 about the price hike of 115 rubles, I immediately went to the Sberbank mobile app and ordered a SberMobayl SIM card. I had planned to do this by the end of 2024, but I ended up staying with Tele2 because all my family and close friends were on the same network. In December 2025, I was determined to switch and didn't hesitate.

I got an SMS as soon as I placed the order, saying that my SIM card was ready and I could pick it up at any Sberbank branch. It was a Sunday, so I just had to wait until Monday and head to the bank to initiate the number transfer process.

The process wasn't time-consuming, so I was out of the bank with a new SIM card and a temporary number within 15 minutes. The bank staff also sent a request to Tele2 on my behalf. To be honest, I expected a flood of calls and offers, but everything went smoothly. There was just one suspicious call that I missed, and I thought to myself, 'Good riddance to Tele2!' I went to my parents' place for New Year's and my son-in-law told me to check the app. I did, and that's when I saw the generous offer from Tele2. They were willing to give me a 70% discount on my new tariff plan, with options starting from 180 rubles and going up to 350 rubles.

I was tempted to stay with Tele2, but I didn't rush into it because I didn't have time to read and compare the conditions. I decided to put it off until later, but when that later arrived, there were only 48 hours left before the number transfer, and the offer was gone. If I had agreed, I would have had to choose a new tariff plan and cancel the number transfer, but it didn't work out, and now I'm a SberMobayl customer with the same number, which has a 2026 ruble credit and 2026 GB of free internet as a welcome gift.

Saying I regret my decision would be a lie, because I didn't lose anything and even gained a bit. Yes, it's inconvenient that I have to spend minutes on calls because my loved ones are still on Tele2, but my parents have since switched to SberMobayl too, so I'll soon be able to chat with my mom for hours. And let's not forget the free messengers – they're still available!

The pros and cons of Tele2:

Tele2 actually had a lot of good things going for it, including excellent network quality, which hasn't been matched since. I also appreciated the fast internet, at least until June. The coverage was decent, and I liked the feature of saving and sharing balances with my loved ones.

I didn't use some of the features, like subscriptions, but I have plenty of those elsewhere, so it wasn't a big deal. The promise of consolidating everything in one place sounded pretty enticing, though.

Now, let's talk about the downsides. I've got to admit, I'm not even going to bother mentioning the old grievances, since the rules for calls and internet have changed a lot over time, but there was a time when I was unfairly pushed into the red zone. Nowadays, it's all about the paid subscriptions for services that somehow get activated and quietly suck the money out of my balance. You only notice it when you check your account and see that you're short on funds to cover the tariff. You dig into the details and find some random charge for 5 rubles here and 3.5 rubles there. It's like, how did I even get charged for that?

I've got to say, the biggest downside now is the price hike for the tariff that was the main reason I decided to leave Tele2.

For me, Tele2 was never the perfect operator. Over 20 years, I've dealt with scams, horrible customer support, and terrible connection quality, but it was still convenient, especially when I could customize my tariff to fit my needs and roll over unused data to the next month. I'd often share my data with my kids, and most of my friends and family were on the same network. Now, I'm just tired of the constant price hikes, which are completely unjustified, given the current connection quality. Sure, other operators will raise their prices too, but I'm not going to wait for that to happen. I've decided to switch to a provider that offers better value for money.

Thanks for reading.