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Student phone plans in North York
We are on Keele Street, a short trip south of York University's Keele campus — and we look after students from every school in the GTA. Plans on the Bell network, phones you can actually afford, home internet for the house you are moving into, screen repairs, and a free look at whatever plan you are on now.
Plans on your own phone currently start at $30/mo · phones in our in-store lineup from $189.99.
Where are you studying?
Closest campus
York University
The Keele campus and our store are on the same street. If you live in residence or anywhere around Keele and Finch, we are the closest place to sort out a plan, a used phone, or a cracked screen without crossing the city. Find us at 3346 Keele St, North York, ON M3J 1L5 — open 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM Monday to Friday.
Somewhere else? Same pricing, same help.
York gets named because it is nearest, not because it is the only one. Nothing on this page is York-specific — students from these campuses come to us too, and plans on your own phone or home internet can usually be arranged over the phone without a trip at all.
Seneca Polytechnic
York & Newnham campuses
Humber Polytechnic
North campus
Toronto Metropolitan University
Downtown
University of Toronto
St. George, Scarborough & Mississauga
George Brown College
Downtown & waterfront
Centennial College
Scarborough
OCAD University
Downtown
Keep your phone, pay less every month
If your current phone still works, this is the cheapest way through a school year: none of your bill goes toward paying off a device, and there is no 24-month term to worry about if you are only here for two semesters. These are live prices on the Bell network, updated as Bell changes them.
100 GB
$30/mo
On your own phone · month to month
250 GB
$60/mo
On your own phone · month to month
Bell also runs flanker brands (Virgin Plus and Lucky Mobile) at different price points. We can quote those beside the plans above — call or drop in and we will lay all of them out rather than steering you to one.
What everyone else is advertising right now
You are going to compare these anyway, so here they are in one place. Student offers change constantly and every one of them has conditions attached — these were checked on August 6, 2026 and are worth confirming with the carrier before you sign anything.
Rogers
$60/mo · 60 GB
Student plan on your own phone, with Auto-Pay. Rogers also lists a $45/mo student add-a-line as a third line on an existing Essentials plan. Worth knowing as of August: Rogers has taken Mexico out of the roaming included in its $70 plan, so if you travel there, check what your plan covers now rather than what it covered when you signed up.
Freedom Mobile
$45/mo · 175 GB
Advertised at select post-secondary campuses, over an 18-month term and requiring their digital discount. Freedom also lists $30 per line when three or more people bring their own phones onto one account, and has added a $70 plan with 20 GB of Roam Beyond data. One thing to be aware of: Freedom itself labels every plan from $45 up as a back-to-school offer, which is its own way of saying these are temporary — offers labelled that way usually come down within weeks of the season ending.
Telus
Moved twice this summer
Telus raised prices $5/month across the board in August and removed its $95 unlimited-Canada plan altogether, with roaming data now capping at 5 GB/day. Nothing student-specific stands out right now, but it is the clearest example of why a dated comparison matters: the plan you researched in July may not exist in August.
Bell
Unchanged so far in August
Bell's back-to-school offers move around more than the others through the season, so quoting one here would be out of date within weeks — but unlike Telus and Rogers, Bell had not changed its published plan pricing at all as of the date above. We check what is actually live on the day you come in.
The part that is not in the advertised price
Buy a phone from one of the big carriers and you are typically charged a one-time device handling fee of around $40 on your first bill, on top of the monthly price you agreed to. It is not hidden exactly, but almost nobody is told about it out loud. The CRTC opened a proceeding into these fees in July 2026, then paused its own deadlines at the end of July and has not set new ones — so no ruling is close. Until one lands, the fee is still being charged — so budget for it, and ask about it wherever you end up signing.
We are not going to pretend we win every one of those comparisons on price alone — some months a flanker brand is genuinely cheaper, and if that is the right answer for you we will say so. What we do is the part a promotion cannot: work out whether the plan actually fits how much data you use, move your existing number over so you do not lose it, set the phone up before you leave, and be a ten-minute trip away when something breaks in the middle of term. Send us whatever you are on now and we will tell you plainly whether it is worth switching.
Need a phone that does not cost a semester
Every phone in our lineup is a specific unit sitting on our shelf, listed with its own condition — not a catalogue entry. Pair one with a bring-your-own-phone plan and you skip device financing entirely.
See the full used lineup →Sharing a place off campus? Sort the Wi-Fi out first.
Four people streaming, gaming and sitting in video lectures at the same time is what actually breaks a cheap connection. Bell Fibe is pure fibre — the upload speed matches the download, so your camera does not freeze the moment a housemate starts a download.
Fibe 1 · 1 Gbps
From $55/mo
Split four ways
≈ $13.75 each per month
Fibe is not available at every address — it depends on what is wired to the building. Give us the address you are moving into and we will tell you in seconds what speeds you can actually get there. Home internet is also one of the few things we can set up without you coming in, so it works the same whether you are around the corner or across the city.
What to bring so it is sorted in one visit
You do not need an appointment. Bringing these along just means you leave with everything working instead of having to come back.
Government photo ID
A driver's licence, passport, or provincial ID card. If you are here on a study permit, bring that too — it helps us line up the right options for you.
Your current phone, if you have one
So we can confirm it is unlocked and check whether it supports eSIM. Phones bought in Canada after December 2017 are unlocked by default.
Your student ID
Some carrier offers ask for proof of enrolment. Bring it and we will apply whatever is active that day.
Your old account details, if you are switching
Your current phone number and account number, so your number moves over cleanly instead of being lost.
If you are picking up a new phone, a specialist sets it up and hands it to you in person — SIM in, plan active, ready to use when you walk out with it.
Cracked screen before classes start?
Screens, batteries, charging ports — get it done before the term gets busy rather than in the middle of exams. Repair pricing is listed per device, so you can see the cost before you commit.
Check repair pricing →Already on a plan? Let us read it.
Send us your current bill and we will tell you plainly whether you can do better — including when the answer is “stay where you are”. Free, and there is nothing to sign.
Student questions we actually get asked
Is there a student discount on phone plans?
Carriers run student and back-to-school offers at different points in the year, and they change often — so rather than quote you a number that may be stale, we check what is actually active on the day you come in and put it beside the regular price. Bring your student ID; some offers require it. If nothing student-specific is running, we tell you that instead of pretending otherwise.
Why is my first bill higher than the plan price?
Usually because of a one-time device handling fee — around $40 at the big carriers when you buy a phone from them — plus part of a month billed in advance if your account started mid-cycle. The fee is charged on top of the monthly price you agreed to, and it is the single most common surprise on a first bill. The CRTC opened a proceeding into these fees in July 2026 but paused its deadlines at the end of that month and has not set new ones, so the fee may not be permanent — it is still being charged today. Ask about it wherever you sign, and bring your first bill to us if anything on it does not look right.
I just moved to Canada for school and have no credit history. Can I still get a plan?
This is the single most common thing that trips up new international students, and yes — there are routes that work. Which one is open to you depends on the credit check, and the honest answer is that we cannot tell you before we run it. Bring your ID and study permit and we will tell you straight which options you qualify for, including bring-your-own-phone and prepaid routes that do not depend on credit history at all.
Should I get a plan with a phone, or bring my own?
If you already have a working phone, bringing it is almost always cheaper month to month, because none of your bill is going toward paying off a device. A phone on a plan makes sense when you need a new device and would rather spread the cost over 24 months than pay up front. If your current phone is on its last legs, a used phone plus a bring-your-own-device plan is usually the cheapest way through a school year.
What is the difference between a physical SIM and an eSIM?
A physical SIM is the small card that goes into your phone. An eSIM is the same thing built into the phone as software — nothing to insert, nothing to lose. Most phones from roughly 2022 onward support eSIM. Whether you can start on an eSIM depends on your specific phone and plan; we check that for you before anything is set up.
I am only in Canada for eight months. Do I have to sign a two-year contract?
No. A 24-month term only applies when you are financing a phone through the plan. If you bring your own phone, plans are month to month, so a shorter stay is not a problem. Tell us your timeline up front — it genuinely changes which option we recommend.
Can I get home internet for my student place?
If you are renting off campus, yes — you can set up Bell Fibe in your own name, and splitting it between housemates usually works out to very little each. If you are living in residence, the building already provides internet, so there is nothing to order. The one thing we cannot tell you in advance is availability: Fibe depends on what is wired to that specific building. Give us the address and we will check it in seconds. This is also something we can arrange without you coming in.
Do you fix cracked screens?
Yes, screen and battery repairs are a big part of what we do, and it is worth sorting out before the term gets busy rather than during exams. You can see device-by-device repair pricing on our repair page, or call the store and we will quote your model.
Can I sell my old phone instead of trading it in?
You can, and it is worth comparing the two. A manufacturer trade-in promotion and our buyback offer are separate routes for the same phone — you take one or the other, never both. We will price both and tell you which comes out ahead for your specific device.
I am not at York University. Is this still for me?
Yes. We are closest to York's Keele campus, which is why it gets named, but students from Seneca, Humber, TMU, U of T, George Brown, Centennial, OCAD and everywhere else in the GTA get exactly the same pricing and the same help. Plans on your own phone and home internet can usually be arranged without a trip at all.
Keep reading
Written by the Wireless Nerds team — real phone experts on Keele Street in North York, helping students pick plans and devices every September.
