Will My Consumer Cellular Phone Work in Europe?

Are you going on a trip and wondering will my Consumer Cellular phone work in Europe? We have the answers you’re looking for!

Consumer Cellular is an affordable network operator with over 4 million subscribers.

If you’re planning to go on a trip to Europe, we have a complete guide that has everything you need to know.

Let’s get to it!

Will your Consumer Cellular phone work in Europe? Absolutely! They have international roaming that allows you to use your phone virtually anywhere in the world, including in European countries. The most important thing you need to do is activate roaming while you’re still in the US.

Does Consumer Cellular Work Overseas

Yes! You can surely use your Consumer Cellular phone in over 200 countries.

They have partner networks across the globe, so you can continue to use your phone.

You should be able to use your phone in any European country as long as you have international roaming activated.

Before you go on your trip, let’s look at some of the things you want to consider so you can make sure that your phone is ready to use the moment you land.

What to Consider When Using My Consumer Cellular in Europe

You need to have a close look at a few things when you want to use your Consumer Cellular phone in a European country.

Rates may vary depending on the country you’re in. Calling the US should still be pretty straightforward.

Lastly, expect that you’re going to be paying significantly more than your usual bill if you always use your phone.

1. International Roaming Rates

Consumer Cellular has an international rate table that you can check out before you go on your trip.

Calls and text messages are going to be charged depending on the country you’re in.

2. Activating Roaming

One of the things you need to remember is activating international roaming while you’re still in the US. If you don’t, you’re going to have a hard time getting it up and running.

3. Calling And Sending Texts

Once you have roaming activated, you should be able to make calls and send messages to the US like normal.

4. Using WiFi

If you’re abroad and want to lessen your roaming bill, you can use WiFi. You can then use messaging apps to continue communicating with friends and family.

Now that you have a good idea of what to expect with Consumer Cellular and its roaming capabilities to European countries let’s look at how you can take advantage.

How to Use My Consumer Cellular in Europe

Will my Consumer Cellular phone work in Europe? Short answer, yes! However, there are a few caveats before you can successfully use it in Europe.

International roaming isn’t usually automatic.

You’ll need to tell your network that you’re going abroad and change some settings, so it searches for a signal from its partner networks.

If you don’t set it up before you leave the US, you’re better off setting your phone to Airplane Mode and relying on the internet.

It’s vital that you know how to activate roaming so you can continue to use your Consumer Cellular phone and number wherever you are in the world.

Step #1: Enable International Calling on Your Account

The first step that you need to do so you can use your Consumer Cellular phone in Europe is to enable international calling.

Consumer Cellular has different partner networks abroad, and letting them know ahead of time ensures that your phone should be able to receive their signals.

Doing this will allow international roaming on your account. It’s a quick process and won’t even take more than 10 minutes of your time.

You also want to do this before you leave. If you don’t, it will be impossible to get it activated.

Here’s how to enable international calling on your Consumer Cellular account:

Go to the Consumer Cellular Support Page.
Select the International Rates tab.
Search for the country you’re traveling to.
Verify if Consumer Cellular has a partner network.
Call 888-345-5509 to enable international calling.

Pro Tip: We recommend calling the Consumer Cellular helpdesk at least two weeks before you leave for Europe.

Step #2: Enable Roaming on Your Phone Before You Leave

Now that your account is ready to go, you’ll still need to enable roaming on your device.

This will allow your phone to look for the signal from Consumer Cellular’s partner networks.

Whether you’re on an iPhone or Android device, this is an important step you don’t want to miss.

Doing this ensures that your phone disconnects from your home network whenever it doesn’t detect its signal. It can then hop on any partner network, depending on your destination.

Here’s how to enable roaming on your phone:

For iPhone:

Go to your phone’s Settings.
Select Mobile Data.
Choose Mobile Data Options.
Toggle the switch on Data Roaming to On.

For Android:

Open your phone’s settings.
Select Network and Internet.
Go to Mobile Network.
Turn on Roaming

Note: We recommend that you turn this on at least a day before you leave for the US, then restart your device for the settings to take effect.

How to Call the US from Europe

At this point, you’re at the airport waiting for your plane to board. Everything is now set up once you land at your destination.

You should be able to use your phone to call and send messages to your family and friends in the US.

You can even use your phone and connect to the internet via mobile data so that you can hail an Uber or any taxi app available in your city.

You’ll know that your phone is connected to a partner network since you’re going to have coverage and a different carrier name on the top left.

If you want to make a call, remember that you want to enter the entire number, so it connects.

Here’s how to call any US number on Consumer Cellular from Europe:

Open the Phone app.
Type the + sign.
Enter 1 as the US country code.
Type the local area code.
Enter the local number you want to call.

Note: It’s important that you use the international format whenever you’re calling any number on roaming, so it connects properly.

How to Track Your Usage

One of the most important things to do while you’re abroad with roaming on is to track your phone usage.

You don’t want a surprise when your bill comes in next month. Roaming charges can easily stack up, and you always want to be on top of the situation.

The good news with Consumer Cellular is they have a $500 limit for international roaming charges. They will cut off your access if your bill shows you going over that limit.

Here’s how to track your usage on Consumer Cellular:

Log in to your account on the Consumer Cellular website.
You can also log in to your account on the MyCC app.
Select View Usage Details.
Choose a date range.
Check the report for your usage.

Note: If you feel like you’ve reached your international roaming budget, you can contact Consumer Wireless to disable it.

Activating WiFi Calling to Use Up Your Minutes

There’s one way to use Consumer Cellular in Europe that will not burn a big hole in your pocket.

Activating WiFi calling enables you to use the internet to make and receive calls.

You could be connected to a network or not, but as long as you have access to the internet, you should be able to call like normal.

Here’s how to activate WiFi calling on your phone:

Go to your phone’s Settings.
Select Network and Internet.
Go to WiFi Preferences.
Select Advanced Calling.
Toggle WiFi calling On.

Tip: You’ll also need to activate it on Consumer Cellular’s side by calling their customer service hotline.

How to Not Incur International Roaming Charges

Yes, there are ways for you to lessen the impact of international roaming charges.

There are alternatives to using the traditional features of your phone and swapping it with internet-based apps.

There are a lot of apps that will allow you to make calls and send messages that won’t charge by the minute.

Here’s how to lessen your international roaming charges:

Download messaging apps.
Get a local SIM card and use it to connect to the internet.
Switch on Airplane Mode while you’re in another country.
Take advantage of free public WiFi.
Use your hotel’s free WiFi if possible.

Note: If you have access to any of these methods, we recommend turning off roaming, so you don’t get charged for incoming calls and messages.

These are the things you need to know if you’re going to use your Consumer Cellular phone in Europe.

Roaming should allow you to continue using your number while you’re abroad. You can contact Consumer Cellular customer support for assistance with roaming.

Bottom Line

Will my Consumer Cellular phone work in Europe? Absolutely! In fact, you’ll be able to use it in other countries as well.

Just make sure you’re aware of the international rates and possible costs you can incur when using your phone in Europe.

If you’re traveling to Europe, you might be missing out on your favorite Netflix content from the US.

We recommend using a trusted and reliable VPN service like Atlas VPN to unblock these geo-restrictions.

Kevin Wood

Kevin has over five years of experience working in various Tech startups and providing Technical solutions. He has contributed to many Tech publications and websites. Check out more about him here.