Tracfone uses the verizon network. You buy the phone and add minutes. I usually get mine from HSN because I get 1200 minutes and 365 days with the phone and triple minutes if I need to buy minutes. Tracfone doesn't take minutes whether you use it or not. I just get a new phone every year and don't have to buy anymore minutes because I don't use it that much, but if I needed to buy minutes they would triple (if a buy a $10 card which is 30 minutes it would triple to 90 minutes, for example). When you buy minutes it also add days to your phone. So it is minutes and days, we buy minutes on the internet and the service is good. You can transfer your number and minutes if you need to buy a new phone and I have seen the phones at Family Dollar for $20 and I have seen them on sale for $10.