Prison phone calls are one of the most important lifelines between an incarcerated person and their family, and one of the most expensive. The prison phone industry has historically operated as a near-monopoly charging rates that few other consumer services would get away with. This section covers how the prison phone system works, why rates are so high and what has changed in recent years, how debit calling accounts function, how to get a number approved on an inmate's call list, how InmateAid's local number service reduces call costs by up to 70 percent, and what international callers need to know about reaching a US facility from another country. The questions answered here come from families who are paying too much for calls and from inmates trying to navigate phone access from inside. Understanding how the system works is the first step toward getting the most contact for the least cost. See also our sections on Money Transfer and Commissary.
Related InmateAid Services
Subject: Inmate phone calls
The telephone service at all of the TDCJ Prison facilities is a company called Securus. Securus' rules are often different than the rules at the jail so they can maximize the profit per call. Normally, the cell phone carrier should have nothing to do with the approval process of an inmate's calls. The process is supposed to approve a person, not a telephone type or it's underlying carrier.
Some people use InmateAid's service to get a local number for cheaper...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, InmateAid’s discount telephone service is different from the GTL pamphlet, but they actually work together, not separately.
About Global Tel Link (GTL):
GTL is the official phone provider for the facility
They handle:
Connecting the call
Recording and monitoring
Billing you
You must use GTL to receive inmate calls. There is no way around that.
What InmateAid does differently:
Provides you with a local phone number
Your inmate calls that number instead of your regular number
The call is billed by GTL as a local call instead of long distance
Why this matters:
Long distance calls: often $4–$15 per call
Local calls: often under $2...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
At Odom Correctional Institution, it is normal for there to be a delay before your husband can use the phone.
What happens after arrival:
He must go through intake and orientation
Orientation can take place anytime within the first few days up to a few weeks
During this time, access to phones may be limited or not available
Phone access setup:
He needs to submit and get approval for his phone list
Once approved, he can begin making calls
About adding money for calls:
If he is using the inmate-paid system (like Global Tel...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
At Minnesota Correctional Facility – St. Cloud, what you are experiencing is very common. Even if the area code looks local, the call can still be billed as long distance based on the rate center, not just the area code.
That is why your cost only dropped slightly from $7 to $6.45.
About your options:
1. Putting money on your phone account:
Convenient and controlled
Often more expensive per call, especially if billed as long distance
2. Inmate buying phone cards or using their account:
Can sometimes be cheaper per call
BUT:
You...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, if your inmate is at Lowndes County Jail and they use Infinity as their phone provider, you will need to use Infinity’s system to receive calls.
How it works:
The jail contracts with one phone provider only
That company (Infinity in this case) handles:
Call connections
Recording and monitoring
Billing
So even if you use another service, calls still have to go through Infinity.
About saving money:
If your number is long distance, calls can cost $5–$15 per call
If your number is local, calls are usually under $2
A local-number setup can help if:
You are not local...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
If your number is already local to your partner at Balch Springs Jail, then in most cases, there is little to no savings using a local number service.
Here is why:
You are already being billed at the local rate, which is usually the lowest available
The main purpose of services like InmateAid is to convert long distance calls into local calls
However, there is one exception:
If the facility uses Securus Technologies or a similar provider, sometimes:
Even “local” calls are priced unusually high
Using a different local number (from another rate center)...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Tracy, formally known as the Deuel Vocational Institution, is one of California's reception centers where newly sentenced inmates go through intake and classification before being transferred to their permanent facility. The reception process takes time, and phone access is not available until that process is complete.
Most inmates at a California reception center complete Admissions and Orientation within a couple of days to about two weeks after arrival, though the timeline varies depending on how many new arrivals are being processed...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, inmates can make outbound calls as long as their calling account has money. If you need more information on what to do or want to learn how to do it at the cheapest price, please email us at aid@inmateAid.com
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Call forwarding is NOT illegal. Some of the prison telephone companies make it their life's mission to block local lines. We do know how to deal with it and make all the calls $0.50 each, but we charge $19.95 per month to do it. Let us know if you would like more information - email us at aid@inmateAid.com
Subject: Inmate phone calls
Yes, the prisons have contracts with carriers where they share revenue for all outbound calling. You will have to fund that account either as a pre-pay account or get calling cards for your inmate who buys them at the commissary. Our service makes those calls cheaper by getting a local telephone number for the inmate to use. When they call the local number the carrier charges ONLY for a local call - InmateAid covers the long distance portion which is...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
Monthly charge is $19.95 - the recurring billing takes place on the 28th of the prior month. Quarterly charge is $59.85 and takes place of the 28th every three months. They are both $19.95 per month but if you can pay for three months in advance, we reward you with 1000 long distance minutes per month instead of 300 long distance minutes per month
Subject: Inmate phone calls
It depends on a number of factors - What facility is your inmate in? Is it a county, state or federal facility? Where are you (your area code and NXX numbers, which are the second set of three numbers)? Once we area able match the rate center of the prison to your phone number we can determine locality. Local calls are almost always less than long distance except in some states where Securus has the contract; and they are making...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
If the line is set up and operational but calls are not coming through, the most common explanation is that an additional step needs to be completed with the facility's contracted phone carrier before the number can actually be dialed from inside.
InmateAid provides the local phone number and confirms it is active on our end. But the number also needs to be registered and approved within the jail's own phone system before your inmate can use it. That process works...
Read moreSubject: Inmate phone calls
The flat rate is $19.95 - tax is included in that figure. To activate your number, we will need good funds in that amount
Subject: Inmate phone calls
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