How to Save Glo Data
How to check your Glo data balance, stop services you did not ask for, and make a Glo data plan last longer on iPhone and Android.
5 min readUpdated
The short answer
Dial *323# to see exactly what is left and when it expires, including any bonus or night-time data. Then lower video quality, turn off autoplay, and keep updates and backups to Wi-Fi.
Knowing which part of your balance you are actually spending is half the job on Glo, where plans can come with bonus data that has its own rules.
Read your balance properly
Under the Nigerian Communications Commission's harmonised short codes, *323# checks your data balance on Glo and every other network, and *310# checks airtime. You can also see your plans on Glo's official app and website.
When you check, look at more than the headline figure:
- Main data versus bonus data. Bonus data can have a different expiry or only work at certain times or in certain apps.
- Expiry dates. Data that isn't used before its validity ends is lost. If you have a lot left near the end, that is the time for downloads you were saving.
- Night data. If your plan includes data that only works late at night, schedule large downloads, app updates and backups for that window.
Stop services you didn't ask for
Dial *305# to see value-added services on your line and opt out of any you don't want. To stop promotional texts, send STOP to 2442, the NCC's Do-Not-Disturb short code.
Make the phone use less
What uses the data is your phone, not the network, so the biggest savings are here:
- Video quality: set YouTube to Data saver on mobile networks, and turn on data saver in TikTok and Instagram.
- Autoplay: turn it off in social and video apps.
- System saver: Low Data Mode on iPhone, Data Saver on Android.
- Updates and backups: Wi-Fi only, or scheduled for your night data.
- WhatsApp: stop automatic media downloads on mobile data.
Step-by-step instructions are in How to Save Mobile Data, and Which Apps Use the Most Mobile Data? shows how to find the heaviest apps on your phone.
Summary
- Dial *323# for your data balance, and look at bonus, night and main data separately.
- Check expiry dates, and schedule big downloads for night data if your plan has it.
- Dial *305# to stop unwanted services, and text STOP to 2442 for promotional messages.
- Lower video quality, turn off autoplay and keep updates to Wi-Fi.