NEW YORK – Shopping for a long-distance phone plan can be confusing and frustrating.

The Federal Trade Commission has the following suggestions for what to consider while you’re trying to find the least expensive rates:

When it comes to price, look for monthly fees or surcharges that may be involved when an ad guarantees 10 cents a minute or less. Beware of minimum per-call charges.

Under plans that offer 20 minutes for a dollar, every short call or message left on an answering machine will cost a buck.

For calls over 20 minutes, rates may surge.

Find out what times peak rates may apply and make sure they aren’t too high. Also, determine if the advertised rate is offered only for an introductory period like 60 days.

If so, ask how much rates go up once the promotion is over.

Ads that promise something like “50 percent off the basic rate” may not be a good deal – the “basic” rate is another term for the highest available rate.

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AP-NY-09-05-03 1719EDT