Industry sources argued that the real reason for the 28-day plan preference is customer loyalty rather than revenue advantage
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SAMPATH KUMAR GP
A quick comparison of 28-day data packages versus 30-day data plans shows how all three telcos are working this strategy.
Jio Infocomm and Vodafone Idea offer three 28-day plans to every one month plan they put out.
Airtel offers lumpsum and per-day data usage options for both categories but restricts the amount of data available in the 30-day plans.
Incentives Math
As an incentive telcos offer add-ons for both 28-day and one month plans but set aside access to platforms like JioHotstar only for the 30-day plans. Retailers tell businessline that such metrics have an important impact on customer choice.
“There is no appeal for the 30-day plans. It’s either the 28-day plan or the longer 3-month or annual plans directly. No one even considers the 30-day plan,” a retailer in Thane told businessline.
The biggest lever of cost is especially misleading since most consumers opt for the cheaper 28-day data pack, not realising they end up paying 13 times in a year as opposed to 12 times when opting for the 30-day pack.
Retailer Opinion
“If I get 10 customers in a day, maybe two people will ask for a 30-day plan. They simply consider the first digits of the total price and choose the 28-days plan. Those are the most popular aside from the three-month plan,” said one retailer, located near a suburban railway station.
Another retailer said he rarely spotted the 30-day offering when making the transaction for customers. However, he rarely struggled because of this as customers specifically asked for 28-day plans.
Habitual Choice
When asked about this consumer bias, Parag Kar, telecom expert, said the 28-day plan has a psychological impact on customers.
‘The person paying thinks it’s just a difference of two days for a lesser price. So, then telcos get to squeeze in an extra cycle in a year. Consumers don’t realise this unless they do an analysis,” said Kar. In a video, Kar showed how 30-day plans are ₹60 to ₹700 cheaper on an annual basis compared to 28-day plans.
However, industry sources argued that the real reason for the 28-day plan preference is customer loyalty rather than revenue advantage.
“Customers have habits. If you are used to something, you select that. The most selling and preferred plan is the 28-day plan. On the government’s insistence, the telcos may launch a 30-day plan but there are hardly any takers for 30-days,” said the indsutry source, pointing out that telcos can combine packages and manipulate prices if they must only sell 30-day packs. Currently, while 28-day plans garner crores of recharges, 30-day plans hardly sell a 1000 recharges.
In the Parliament, MP Raghav Chadha continue to argue for 30-day data plans and roll-over services for daily data llowances. However, as telcos are yet to receive any formal intimation from the government, the companies continue to offer the two categories separately.
Published on March 26, 2026