Calling cards can be an excellent way to save money, both at home and abroad. Calling cards can offer you the lowest prices in domestic and international long distance service, no matter where you call from.

This means that the next time you're traveling, you won't have to pay the hotel their ridiculous long distance charges. Some hotels charge as much as $8 per minute! With a calling card, you can get rates for less than a penny a minute - now that's dome savings!

But if you want to save as much money as possible, you need to know several things about choosing the correct calling card for your uses. The cheapest is not always the best. Here are several factors to consider:

1 – is there a connection fee?
Some calling cards charge you a fee for each call you make, usually in exchange for lower rates. If you make short calls, this setup could be expensive for you.

2 – is there an expiration date?
Some calling cards have an expiration date – if you don't use the minutes on the card within a certain number of days or weeks, they become invalid. Of course, this would not matter to you if you make lots of calls on a regular basis, and would use up the card before it expired.

3 – how do the international rates work?
If you will be calling to more than one country, look carefully at how the international rates work. Some cards may give you very low rates to one country, but high rates to other countries. Some domestic calling cards do not allow international calling at all, or charge very high rates. Every card is different – just check before you buy.

All in all, if you get the right calling card for your uses, you can save a great deal of money over time. Just use these tips to ensure that you get the right calling card for you.