best cell phone carrier

Finally, T-Mobile offers fewer affinity and group discounts, instead limiting discounts to customers 55 years and older, military and veterans, and first responders. Best exclusive senior discount - AT&T 4. As you add more lines, the per-phone rate drops from $70 ($140 for two lines) to $55 ($165 for three) to $45 . But iPhone owners should know that getting texts from non-iPhones requires some fiddling around in settings; in addition, you cant use T-Mobiles 5G on theoretically compatible iPhone 12 and 13 models. As analyst Jeffrey Moore advised us, data roaming, and sometimes even voice roaming, may not be included in some prepaid plans. But dig beneath the surface, and there's a lot more to this phone carrier. Best unlimited data cell phone plans at a glance 1. Thats double the allotment of comparable plans at AT&T and Verizon, which cost $5 and $10 more before the taxes and fees. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. The mobile-hotspot limit here isnt like any other carrier: Instead of capping how much data can go to that application, Visible limits your hotspot speed to 5 Mbps and allows only one device at a time. Check coverage Nearly all carriers use Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile networks . If youd like to save some money with a prepaid or resold plan, Verizon Prepaid now offers the interesting wrinkle of rates that drop over time. If unlimited data is too much for your needs, Xfinity also offers by-the-gig pricing, starting at $15 for 1GB of data. All Samsung Galaxy phones come with an Easy Mode that turns the phone's interface into large, easy-to-use, and easy-to-read buttons. You're not necessarily limited to those phones iPhones work on Google Fi, too though those devices won't enjoy optimized coverage. Now it offers a few standard 30-day plans. The Comcast-backed phone carrier uses a combination of Verizon's cellular towers and Xfinity hotspots to offer nationwide phone coverage, growing to 5 million subscribers after five years in operation. (And if you buy a recent iPhone or 5G-ready Android phone through the carrier, you can enjoy 5G coverage.) And in July 2021, I put in more than a thousand miles of drive testing from Baltimore to Atlanta for PCMags Fastest Mobile Networks project. We're particularly impressed with the 5G Play More plan, which costs $80 a month for one line of unlimited data. If more data is more important to you than coverage in non-metropolitan areas, the Magenta plan offers a great price for unlimited data on a strong network. If your passport has dozens of stamps and your current or desired phone is on Google Fis list, though, this service is worth a look. The carrier just added a complimentary MLS Season Pass to all customers. Mint Mobile is an up-and-coming mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that uses T-Mobile's network and just so happens to offer an awesome deal that gets you a brand new iPhone 12 (64 GB) and 16 GB of data every month for just under $60 a month. Others prioritize their own customers over third-party prepaid traffic, as happens with the Metro by T-Mobile subsidiary. That number should reach 200 soon enough, improving Verizon's overall network performance. Verizon MVNOs: Best carriers on Verizon's network 14 March 2023 Best AT&T iPhone Deals 2023: Save on the iPhone 14 14 March 2023 Best T . Mints unlimited plan deserves extra contemplation because it includes similar usage limits to other unlimited plans: a priority-data cap, 35 GB, a 5 GB cap on mobile-hotspot usage, and a 480p streaming-video limit. But at least you can save $20 on one month of service if you refer new customers to Visible. There may not be one carrier or plan we can recommend for everyone, but we have recommendations for some of the most common needs, and advice for anyone with more unusual requirements too. On the opposite end of the spectrum to the above deals, Verizon is one of the priciest networks around. The first thing to consider when determining the best phone carrier for your needs is to figure out who has the best coverage in your area. (You can't add extra lines of Value Plus, though, so families need to look elsewhere.). A T-Mobile spokesperson confirmed that policy, saying that although the service for postpaid plans and prepaid plans have the same priority, Metro by T-Mobile and other resellers may notice slower speeds in times of network congestion. Aron North, chief marketing officer at Mints then-parent firm Ultra Mobile, confirmed in an email in 2019 that at times where there is network congestion Mint may be reprioritized. That remained in effect in 2020. The cell phone carrier with the best 5G LTE coverage is Verizon, while T-Mobile boasts the best 5G coverage. (Two lines of Magenta cost $60 each, and four run $35 each.) "Boasts a nationwide LTE network with fast download speeds." Concentrate on the places where you spend a lot of time and need cell phone service, such as your home, office and frequent hangouts. It's free of perks beyond 5G access and the ability to use your plan in Mexico and Canada, but you get unlimited data and 5G coverage for much less than AT&T's other offerings. The nipping is over . For real-world testing, we download a sizable app off of Google Play and time how fast it takes to get the app on a smartphone. (Or both!) Walmart bridges the gap between Best Buy and Amazon. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions. You can bank up to 12 discounts per year. We pick the best phone carriers based on data speeds, phone selection, monthly costs and more. The best cell phone providers (Image credit: Mint) 1. Consumer Cellular shuffled up its monthly plans toward the end of last year, adding more data to some while lowering the cost of others. TCL - 10 Pro with 128GB Memory Cell Phone (Unlocked) - Ember Gray. SKU: 6163893. Metro customers with 5G-capable phones can enjoy T-Mobile's 5G coverage, which now stretches coast to coast. AARP members get: A 5% discount on monthly cell phone plans. More recent testing by Ookla (opens in new tab) gives T-Mobile a clean sweep of top speeds for both 5G and overall. T-Mobiles plans to acquire prepaid provider Mint Mobile, Best for the most data: T-Mobile Magenta/Magenta Max, Multiple-line plans: Metro or Consumer Cellular, How to determine which network has the best coverage for you. If you don't do that kind of traveling, the Simply Unlimited plan costs $50 a month for one line of data. The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is large and pricey, but an exceptional mix of features, performance, and quality makes it the best high-end Android phone you . Rootmetrics continues to give T-Mobile the nod as the carrier with the fastest and most available 5G coverage. They also change over timeas anybody who was using T-Mobile in 2011 and remains on that carrier today can attest. For $50 a month, you'll get unlimited data plus the 100GB of cloud storage, but only 5GB of hotspot data. Sascha Segan, Fastest Mobile Networks 2020, PCMag, September 9, 2020, Ben Gottesman, Readers Choice Awards 2020: Smartphones, Carriers, and Mobile Operating Systems, PCMag, March 24, 2020, Sue Marek, USA Mobile Network Experience Report January 2020, Opensignal, December 31, 2020, Ian Fogg, USA 5G User Experience Report June 2020, Opensignal, June 30, 2020, Sue Marek, USA Mobile Network Experience Report July 2020, Opensignal, July 13, 2020, Dave Andersen, Review of the US Mobile Landscape 1H 2019: carrier performance at national, state, and metro levels, RootMetrics, July 15, 2019, Dave Andersen, US State of the Mobile Union: carrier performance at national, state, and metro levels 2H 2019, RootMetrics, January 27, 2020, Wireless Carrier Investments in Self-Service Tools Drive Satisfaction and Revenue in Customer Care, J.D. Ooklas Speedtest also showed T-Mobile with sizable advantages in median 5G downloads, which were more than twice as fastas well as in 5G availability, which was nearly double Verizons and around 50% more than that of AT&Ts network. The least expensive plan, Unlimited Starter, will run you $75 per month for one phone. Best Cell Phone Providers for 2023. Verizon offers less of a deal to subscribers looking for unlimited on-phone plans, especially at the cheaper end of its price chart. That means you can enjoy the full power of Verizon's network, with your speeds slowing only should the network get too congested. Both now include C-band and mmWave 5G and allot 50 GB of priority data and 25 GB of mobile hotspot, as well as streaming-video limits of 720p on LTE and low-band 5G, plus 4K UHD video on C-band or mmWave 5G. A promotion the carrier is doing has it available for $105 for four lines. If you want unlimited calls and texts, more attentive customer service, and phone financing through your carrier, you should stick with a traditional postpaid plan, where you get a bill for service after you use it. For the Straight Talk section, the statement "now that you can use SIM cards tied to specific networks for Straight Talk's service" was included. Mint Mobile | T-Mobile network | 3-12 month contract | 4 - 15GB data | $15 - $25 per month. For two lines in our typical-usage scenariounlimited on-phone data with 3 GB of mobile hotspot useConsumer Cellular is an easy call. Power. Power Finds, Consumer Cellular Tops in Customer Satisfaction Among Wireless Carriers; Xfinity Mobile Makes Strong Debut, ACSI Data Show, How Mobile Phones Became a Privacy Battlegroundand How to Protect Yourself, The Best Apps for Managing Your Kids Phone, either free Apple Arcade or Google Play Pass, one free international-roaming day a month (usually $10 if bought separately), 50% off connected-device plans for hotspots, tablets, and smartwatches. Coverage can vary from block to block or even building to building, so carrier coverage maps can be a good starting point only if you can zoom in to the street leveland even then they say nothing about how the network fares in busy areas. Once you've figured out which phone carriers offer the best coverage in your areas, look at plans and pricing. You can add additional lines to your unlimited plan for discounted rates, making Metro an appealing prepaid option for families. Mint does require some compromises, though. To try to get the most balanced picture possible of the big three carriers (and the services that resell their networks), we consulted independently conducted surveys of wireless network coverage and performance from Opensignal, PCMag and RootMetrics. You'll need to figure out how much data you need whether an unlimited plan is required or if you can opt for a cheaper plan with tiered data. We like the creativity on display here; however, were not sure how many people need an unlimited-on-phone plan but see almost no need to share that bandwidth with other devices via mobile hotspot. T-Mobile also has a history of data breaches, with its most recent and largest happening in August and affecting some 40 million customers. But AT&T also levies a $2 administrative fee that is such an obvious example of a junk fee that it has drawn a class-action lawsuit. Wireless Carrier. 2. These features may help you choose a less expensive plan. We've previously tested network performance by heading out to eight US cities and running Ookla's Speedtest app to measure download speeds. It beats everybody elses costs with a simple pricing tactic: It offers cheaper prices for longer terms, with the minimum being three months. Mint says you'll get 5G or 4G coverage depending on which signal is stronger assuming you've got a 5G-compatible phone, of course. Not only is that cheaper than what you'll pay for unlimited coverage at the major phone carriers, it also includes access to Verizon's 5G network if you have a 5G-capable phone. The coronavirus pandemic impacted our ability to travel in recent years, so we've placed a great weight on network performance reports from third-party firms including RootMetrics, Opensignal and Ookla. Most importantly, it offers US-based phone support and step-by-step manuals and video tutorials for the non-tech savvy, maintains an in-store presence in major retailers such as Target, and offers installment-plan phone purchase options with roughly the same terms as the majors provide. Traditionally, Verizon's cell phone plans are among the pricier options, and while that hasn't changed, the carrier has made strides in making some lower-cost plans available. In addition to high-speed 5G coverage (where available), you get a bundle of Disney streaming services (Disney Plus, ad-supported Hulu and ESPN Plus) as well as a subscription to a streaming gaming service either Apple Arcade or Google Play Pass. After all, plans that come with complementary subscriptions to streaming services might reduce what you're spending in other parts of your budget. Our cost estimates assumed that anybody who wants to use their phones mobile-hotspot feature to share their LTE or 5G bandwidth for any sustained period would want to do so at its full speed, not cut back to 2G-esque speeds, as some unlimited plans require. The Best Cell Phone Plans of 2023 consist of a mix of low-cost plans from small wireless carriers like Consumer Cellular and Google Fi, known as mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) which . Ooklas January 2022 report showed that T-Mobiles 5G network was on the median faster and more available to its customers than the other two national carriers. Those plans also include 5G coverage, a nice benefit for such a budget offering. Both Android and iOS provide estimates of your current data use that can help if youre trying to see which of your apps eats up the most data, but your carriers website will give you the number that counts for billing purposes. Mint Mobile Affordable coverage with plenty of high-speed data Best for: Low-cost 5G data Price per month: From $15/month Money-back guarantee: Seven days Uptime: 100% Mint Mobile is an MVNO that piggybacks on T-Mobile cell towers. Best Basic Option: Republic Wireless. We've done customer support testing in the past where we contact carriers incognito to ask them questions both about their service as well as phones they offer. Even voice roaming, may not be included in some prepaid plans anybody who was using T-Mobile 2011. Network get too congested be included in some prepaid plans that kind of traveling, Simply! Or 5G-ready Android phone through the carrier is doing has it available for $ 50 a for. And largest happening in August and affecting some 40 million customers after all, plans that come with complementary to... Is doing has it available for $ 50 a month for one line of unlimited data cell plans! 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