Verizon mobile bill statement FAQs (2024)

Why is my first mobile bill so expensive?

If your first Verizon bill is higher than expected it may include:

  • A one-time activation fee for each device you added to your account.
  • 2 sets of monthly plan service charges:
    • Charges for your first billing period.
    • Charges for your upcoming billing period (since we bill for your plan 1 billing period in advance).

Am I paying for my mobile bill in advance or for service I already used?

Billing for your monthly plan is done in advance; charges for non-monthly products or services are billed after you incur them.

How various activities affect your mobile bill
Your activityYour bill includes

Billing period: 9/19 – 10/18: Welcome to Verizon

  • On 9/19, you go to verizon.com.
  • You open an account and get an iPhone 11, using device payments, and get a monthly mobile phone plan.
  • You want to manage your account online, so you register for My Verizon.
  • You also download the My Verizon app when you get your new phone.

Your "Oct 18 bill" is ready online on or about 10/21 and is due 11/10. It includes:

  1. Monthly plan charges for your first billing period 9/19 - 10/18.
  2. Device payment charge for the iPhone (first of 36 payments)
  3. One-time activation fee for your phone line
  4. Monthly plan charges for the upcoming 10/19 - 11/18 bill period
  5. Taxes, fees and surcharges for all of the above

Billing period: 10/19 – 11/18: New accessory

  • On 11/17, you buy a $99 pair of earphones on verizon.com.
  • At checkout, the earphones are charged to your bill (called Bill to Account).

Your "Nov 18 bill" Is ready on or about 11/21 and is due 12/10. It includes:

  1. Monthly plan charges for the upcoming 11/19 - 12/18 billing period
  2. Device payment charge (iPhone)
  3. One-time $99 charge for earphones appears
  4. Taxes, fees and surcharges

Billing period: 11/19 – 12/18: International travel

  • You go to Brazil from 11/26 - 11/30.
  • You don't get a plan for international use for your line. But you send $35 worth of text messages while there.

Your "Dec 18 bill" Is ready on or about 12/21 and is due 1/10. It includes:

  1. Monthly plan charges for the upcoming 12/19 - 1/18 billing period
  2. Device payment charge (iPhone)
  3. One-time charge for the international texts appears
  4. Taxes, fees and surcharges

Billing period: 12/19 – 1/18: Add a line

  • On 1/4 you call us to add your sister's mobile phone to your account. You choose a monthly mobile phone plan for her.

Your "Jan 18 bill" Is ready on or about 1/21 and is due 2/10. It includes:

  1. Monthly plan charges for the upcoming 1/19 - 2/18 billing period
  2. Device payment charge (iPhone)
  3. Activation fee for adding your sister's phone line appears.
  4. Monthly plan charges appear for your sister's plan for just 1/4 - 1/18 (called partial or “prorated” charges).
  5. Monthly plan charge for your sister's plan, for the 1/19 - 2/18 billing period (billed 1 month in advance)
  6. Taxes, fee and surcharges

Billing period: 1/19 – 2/18: Change of plans

  • You want more data for your smartphone.
  • On 2/2 you use the My Verizon app and switch your plan to one of our new mobile phone plans.

Your "Feb 18 bill" is ready on or about 2/21 and is due 3/11. It includes:

  1. Monthly plan charges for the upcoming 2/19 - 3/18 billing period for your sister's line
  2. Device payment charge (iPhone)
  3. Monthly plan charge for the upcoming 2/19 - 3/18 billing period for your line. You have prorated plan charges for the original plan for 1/19 - 2/1 and for the new plan for 2/2 - 2/18.
  4. Taxes, fees, and surcharges

*In some cases, charges can't be finalized by the bill delivery date and may appear on a later bill.

What are all these charges on my mobile bill?

Your Verizon mobile bill charges can include:

  • Monthly, recurring charges for the next billing period, such as:
    • Plan charges
    • Device payments due
    • Credits due (e.g., Auto Pay and other discounts)
    • Services & Perks (e.g., Verizon Cloud, Apple Music, etc.)
    • Any $10/month perks available with Unlimited Ultimate, Unlimited Plus and/or Unlimited Welcome*
    • Verizon surcharges, taxes and other governmental charges for the above.
  • One-time charges and credits for the prior billing period such as:
    • Activation fee
    • Upgrade fee
    • Device payment - if you paid off your agreement early you see the payment as a credit.
    • Overage charges - if you exceeded your plan's allowance for minutes, text or data usage.
    • Charges for phone use overseas if you didn't add an international plan.
    • Credits we owe you (e.g., if you overpaid your previous bill, moved to a lower-priced plan, got a promotional discount, etc.).
    • Verizon surcharges, taxes and governmental charges for the above.

*If you have Welcome Unlimited you can also add perks to that plan. Welcome Unlimited is no longer available to add to your account.

I thought Verizon was giving me a free promo. Why am I being charged for it on my mobile bill?

Here are things to know about promo credits:

  • It can take 2-3 billing periods for promotional credits to appear on your bill. You then get all the missing credits as a lump sum.
  • Depending on the state you live in, you may be taxed on the value of a promotionally-priced service or product.

Why is the amount of my mobile bill different this month?

If the amount of your current bill is different than you expected, sign in to My Verizon to see what's changed.

Here are some reasons why your bill may be higher (or lower) than usual:

  • Partial charges due to mobile plan changes you made in the previous billing period.
  • Product and service purchases you made in a previous billing period.
  • Promotional credits or discounts can take 2 or 3 billing periods to be applied to your bill.
  • Taxes on promotional items – Depending on your state of residence, you may have to pay tax on products or services we give you for free.

Why are there international call charges on my bill when I didn't travel during that time?

International usage (and other non-recurring charges) are billed after you use them. They appear on your next bill.

For example, international service used during a Nov 19 - Dec 18 bill period is charged on the Dec 18 bill, due Jan 10.

Note: This is different from your recurring mobile plan charges, which are billed in advance.

Why do I see 2 payments made in the same billing period?

If you signed up for Auto Pay without canceling direct payments from your bank account, you may see 2 payments for the same billing period in your Payment history. In that case:

  • Bill Pay makes the usual scheduled payment.
  • Auto Pay makes payment for any extra amount that’s due (e.g., if you had overage charges, bought a Data Boost, etc.).

Verizon mobile bill statement FAQs (2024)

FAQs

Does Verizon bill show text activity? ›

You can sign in to My Verizon through your desktop computer to get: Talk, text and messaging activity details and spreadsheets for the last 90 days. 18 months of past bill statements, which include billed usage summaries.

How does Verizon mobile billing work? ›

Verizon bills one month in advance, so your first statement will include partial charges for the current month, as well as charges for the following month. Monthly charges are prorated according to the number of days you are billed for during your 30-day billing cycle.

What all can you see on a Verizon phone bill? ›

When you view your bill using My Verizon app or website, here's what you'll see: You can View by line or View by plans & devices. In either view, you see all your charges, they're just grouped differently. Charges can include: plans, devices, Serices & Perks, surcharges & taxes.

How do I get My Verizon phone bill statement? ›

My Verizon app:
  1. Choose Account.
  2. Bill & payment history. Choose a billing period from the past 18 months.
  3. Choose Bill PDF to save, email or print your past bill.

Can I see my husband's text messages on Verizon? ›

Also, you won't be able to see the content of the messages, and neither does Verizon, they don't archive that information for privacy reasons.

Can my spouse get copies of my text messages? ›

Generally, texts and emails are private. Thus, you don't have a right to look at them without your spouse's consent. Doing so is viewed as an invasion of privacy. It doesn't matter whether you are married, separated or divorced.

Can Verizon account member see the bill? ›

Account Member: You can access information and functions for your own line but you won't have access to sensitive billing information. Everyone except for the Account Owner will start as an Account Member.

How to see call history on Verizon app? ›

The best way to get a copy of your calls is by using the My Verizon app or the My Verizon website. Simply log in, head to Account > Usage > History > Select your date range. You'll be able to see your calls there.

Does Verizon bill show data usage? ›

No, it doesn't reflect your real-time usage. However, the generic categories do reflect usage that occurred during your current bill cycle. The categories are typically updated within 48 hours of the data usage.

Can the primary account holder view text messages on Verizon? ›

Verizon Messages

You can read them from the phone itself, of course. You can see the text logs (not actual message content) if you are the Account Owner and logged in as such.

Can Verizon account holder see phone activity? ›

If you are the account owner or manager, you should be able to see all the lines on your account, along with the usage details for each line. Clicking on the "Breakdown of recent activity" should give you the info you are seeking.

Can I read text messages from another phone on my account? ›

Contact your phone carrier and inquire if they offer options to view text messages from another phone on your account. Many carriers provide services that allow primary account holders to access the text message details for all lines on their plan.

Can I see text messages on My Verizon account? ›

Verizon Messages allows you to view texts online, however since the text is deleted then it's unable to be retrieved. You can view the past 90 days of the messaging details (phone number, time, and date) from My Verizon to help put the pieces together.

Do iMessages show up on Verizon bill? ›

When viewing this information, any messages sent/received via out network will be displayed. If a message was received over Wi-Fi such as an iMessage, this will not appear on your bill. Any additional information such as the name or content of the message will not be displayed.

How can I see text activity on My Verizon bill? ›

Monthly mobile accounts – The My Usage page in My Verizon shows talk, text and data use for each line on your account. Click View previous usage for past monthly mobile data usage. You can also set up data usage alerts on this page. Visit Downloading Verizon text & Verizon data usage to learn more.

Can a Verizon account holder see text messages? ›

You can see the text logs (not actual message content) if you are the Account Owner and logged in as such. If the phone is using Verizon Messages and you know the MyVerizon password, then you can read the messages from your computer. Otherwise, the answer is 'no'.

Why does Verizon not show all text messages on bill? ›

I'm assuming you're referring to the text logs/history via your My Verizon account? If so, only texts that are sent via Verizon's servers are shown in the text logs, so any that are sent via other means, like iMessages, for example, will not be on the logs.

Can I see my iMessage history on My Verizon bill? ›

These would only be regular text messages using the Verizon network. iMessage and other third party applications use an outside network, so they would not show in your texting logs.

Do iPhone texts show up on Verizon bill? ›

Verizon Messages

The logs won't include iMessages since those go through Apple's servers rather than VzW's.

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