Alternative providers offer a wider range of plans and at better prices.

• Carrier: AT&T
• Cost: $60/mo
• Taxes included: Yes
• BYOD: Yes
• Data throttling: None
• Hotspot allowed: Yes (15GB)
• International roaming: Mexico & Canada included

The advertised price is what you’ll pay with this AT&T subsidiary. Taxes and fees are included in the cost of its premium “Unlimited + 15 GB Mobile Hotspot” plan, which offers truly unlimited talk, text, and data. Coverage includes international roaming in Mexico and Canada, and within the U.S., you also get international texting to 37 countries. 

A slew of perks come with this plan: 15GB of hotspot data, HBO Max (with ads), and 150GB of cloud storage. It also gets the same prioritization as post-paid AT&T subscribers, meaning your calls, texts, and data won’t suffer extra delays in congested areas.

Managing an account is pretty easily done via website or app, and customer service is easy to reach. It works out well despite the lack of a slick interface or fast service.

Need multiple lines? Cricket Wireless offers hefty group discounts, particularly for four or five lines. Currently, you’ll pay just $160/month for five lines for this plan, or $32 per month per line.

• Carrier: T-Mobile
• Cost: $40/mo
• Taxes included: Yes
• BYOD: Yes
• Data throttling: Possible after 35GB usage
• Hotspot allowed: No
• International roaming: Mexico and Canada for an additional fee

A fun perk included with T-Mobile subsidiary MetroPCS’s plans is T-Mobile Tuesdays, which provides freebies and deals on food, gas, and more. But the real benefit to MetroPCS is its all-inclusive pricing, which means taxes and fees are included in the advertised cost.

This basic $40 unlimited plan offers up to 35GB of 5G or LTE data unthrottled; afterward you may see slowdowns whenever the network’s congested. Note that this basic plan lacks hotspot use and the extras available to more expensive unlimited plans, like a Google One membership (100GB) and unlimited texting to over 210 locales.

T-Mobile does put MetroPCS subscribers at lower priority for call, text, and data requests, so if your area is congested, you may notice slower responses than on a post-paid plan before using 35GB of data.

Need multiple lines? Like Cricket Wireless, MetroPCS’s group discounts are sizable for four or five lines. For this plan, it’s $125/month for five lines, or $25 per month per line.

Want to save even more cash? Rival T-Mobile MVNO Tello offers a $30 unlimited plan with hotspot included, as well as free calling to over 60 countries. But its data throttling starts earlier, at 25GB, and will bump you down to a painful 64Kbps. It also doesn’t bundle in taxes and fees into its prices, so if you live in an area with high regulatory charges, the cost skirts closer to $40 per month.

• Carrier: Verizon
• Cost: $45/mo
• Taxes included: Yes
• BYOD: Yes
• Data throttling: Possible after 100GB usage
• Hotspot allowed: Yes (50GB)
• International roaming: Yes (100+ countries, possible addt’l fee)

US Mobile’s incredibly slick interface makes switching to its Unlimited Premium plan an absolute breeze. In fact, managing your account is so easy through the app and website, they’re part of what sells this service.

But the meat of this top-tier plan is still the star of the show. You get unlimited talk and text, along with 100GB of 5G data and 50GB of hotspot data before you’re subject to speed throttling. You also get free international LTE roaming in select countries, with data allotments as generous as 10GB. (Varies by country; some still require an additional fee.)

The main drawback of US Mobile is that despite its premium data plans having the same prioritization as post-paid Verizon plans, you’ll only experience that benefit on a 5G device. LTE-only phones get hit with deprioritization, and in our experience, it can cause your data to crawl—especially if the network is congested or you’ve got poor reception. Happily, though, US Mobile recently moved to all-inclusive pricing, so the price you see advertised is exactly what you’ll pay. Unlimited international long-distance calling to 87 countries is now free of charge, too.

Need multiple lines? US Mobile’s group discounts steadily drop the cost the more lines you have, with the maximum of four lines costing $160/month or $40/month. But the company further sweetens the pot—plans with three lines can choose a free subscription to a streaming service (e.g., Spotify, Disney Plus, HBO Max, and Xbox Live Gold).

• Carrier: T-Mobile
• Cost: $15/mo and up (3, 6, or 12-mo plan)
• Data: 5GB
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: Yes
• International roaming: Yes, separate pay-as-you-go rates

This Ryan Reynolds-backed MVNO may be best known for its green fox mascot, but it’s more than a gimmick. Mint Mobile’s ultra-affordable 5GB plan includes unlimited talk and text, free use of your data for mobile hotspot, and free calling to Mexico and Canada. 

The catch? You have to buy the plans in increments of three, six, and 12 months. An annual plan is required to get costs down to $15 per month, or $180 upfront. A 7-day trial allows you to try the service before you commit, but it can still be a gamble if you’re not 100 percent sure about coverage in your area.

The good news is that Mint Mobile often runs promotions, in which the three-month plans cost as little as the annual rate—or even less, if you catch a “buy three, get three free” promotion. Taxes and fees also tend to be lower, since you pay only once on the whole plan, rather than per month.

Need more data? Mint Mobile also offers 15GB, 20GB, and unlimited plans. Unlimited plans are capped at 5GB for mobile hotspot, 480p resolution for streaming, and speed throttling after 35GB of data use.

• Carrier: AT&T
• Cost: $12.50/month (annual plan)
• Data: 3GB
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: No
• International roaming: Yes, at additional pay-as-you-go rates

H2O Wireless offers many plans, but best among them are its 12-month options, with the 3GB plan particularly standing out at $12.50 month or $150 total. You get unlimited talk and text, 3GB of high-speed data, and unlimited throttled data (128Kbps). If you need more data, you can instead bump up to the 10GB 12-month plan ($25/mo or $300 total).

The big risk with H2O Wireless is that no trial is available—the best way to try out the service is to first sign up for a monthly plan (e.g., the $20 per month 2GB plan or $30 per month 6GB plan), see how well you like it, and then switch plans.

Never use data? Don’t ever use data, including for group texts, audio text messages, or picture messages? Check out H2O wireless’s $5 per month unlimited talk and text annual plan ($60 total). 

• Carrier: Verizon
• Cost: $35/mo (after auto-pay discount)
• Data: 15GB
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: Yes
• International roaming: Yes, for an additional fee

If you don’t use a lot of data, the options for cheap Verizon plans are limited. Generally your options are the choice of iffy customer service or paying nearly as much as for a cheap unlimited plan.

But if you really hate the idea of a $45/mo unlimited plan, then Verizon’s own basic prepaid plan is your best bet—provided you sign up for auto-pay, which knocks $10 off the monthly cost ($45) immediately. Otherwise, you’re on the hook at the going rate for three months until loyalty discounts start kicking in.

This plan includes unlimited talk and text, 15GB of high-speed data, mobile hotspot use, unlimited 2G data, and unlimited international texting from the US to 200+ countries. You also get unlimited calling and texting to Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

If you travel, you have access to unlimited calls, text, and data while in Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (data capped at 3G speed after 2GB/day use); other areas require the purchase of a TravelPass.

Heads-up: Verizon deprioritizes most of its prepaid plans, so you may face slower speeds and responsiveness from the network, especially in congested areas or places with poor reception. Only unlimited plans with premium data (i.e., Verizon’s Unlimited Plus prepaid plan or US Mobile’s plans with premium data) get treated the same as Big Red’s post-paid plans.

• Carrier: T-Mobile or Verizon
• Cost: $5/mo and up
• Data: -Varies-
• Taxes included: Yes
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: Yes
• International roaming: Yes (mostly separate pay-as-you-go rates)

Nope, you’re not seeing things: US Mobile made this list twice, and yes, its plans can work on either the Verizon (“Warp 5G”) or T-Mobile (“GSM”) network. You pick the SIM type for the network you want, and then activate the plan. There’s even talk of eventual support for the AT&T network, too.

So why so much love for US Mobile? The flexibility. Not only is its Unlimited Premium plan a great option, but you can also choose between two lower-cost unlimited plans (which now include hotspot data), four “shareable data” plans, or two extremely cheap plans for light users (starting as little as $5 per month for 500 minutes, text, and MB of data). And you can buy international roaming data at affordable rates, too.

As mentioned above, the one drawback is that if you use the Warp 5G network (that is, the one that runs off Verizon’s cell towers), you need a 5G device to avoid slow service. Generally, you’ll be hard-pressed to find rival plans that cost as little and are as easy to manage, though. Not only is the online dashboard straightforward, but US Mobile’s support is extremely responsive. You can get help in a number of ways, too (including through r/USMobile on Reddit).

• Carrier: T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular
• Cost: $20 and up
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: Yes
• International roaming: Yes, on select plans (200+ countries)

Google Fi started as a rival to MVNOs like Republic Wireless: It charged a baseline $20 fee for unlimited talk and text, and then $10 per gigabyte of data. You saved big on your cell phone bill by leaning hard on Wi-Fi for your data needs.

But the best part of Fi was its inclusion of free international roaming in over a hundred countries with its plan. You could land in the UK and then hop between Denmark, Italy, and Germany without paying an extra dime—just your usual base fee plus data charges. All the hassle of obtaining a local SIM card was gone as well; you simply turned on your phone at your destination and went on your merry way.

This feature is still going strong, with even more countries and territories supported (200+). Google has further sweetened its plan offerings, too. Data charges on its original metered plan are now capped—you won’t pay more than the cost of 6GB—and there’s also a $65/month unlimited plan with this kind of international roaming.

While at home in the U.S., you can make free calls to other countries (Canada and Mexico at minimum, or more with the Unlimited Plus plan). You’ll also get treated with the same priority as T-Mobile’s post-paid customers for network connectivity, so slowdowns shouldn’t be an issue outside of typical congestion.

The one small(ish) catch: Your phone must be compatible with Google Fi, which relies on multiple cellular networks (T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular) to provide talk, text, and data connectivity. These days, many phones work, but models built for this kind of switching (e.g., Pixel or newer Samsung phones) are your best bet.

• Carrier: Verizon
• Cost: $80
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: No
• International roaming: No

If you want plans, Tracfone has them. Plans upon plans. Which is fortunate if a regular monthly plan is more than you need, but a pay-as-you-go plan not enough—one special Tracfone plan lets you buy a set pool of talk, text, and data to use over the span of a year.

This offering, available only through eBay, costs $80 for 1200 minutes, 1200 texts, and 3GB data plan and lasts for 365 days. (Sadly, it seems that Verizon’s purchase of Tracfone drove up the price of the plan by $20.) This means you can stretch out that use however you see fit—a perfect fit if some months you need more and others less.

For extra savings: Keep an eye out for discounts on this plan—in previous years, it’s been possible to get it for $30 or less. You can most easily do this by creating a deal alert on Slickdeals.net.

• Carrier: Verizon
• Cost: $10 and up
• Expiration: 120 days
• Taxes included: No
• BYOD: Yes
• Hotspot allowed: No
• International roaming: No

Yes, you can still find pay-as-you-go plans, where you pay a fixed amount for each minute, text, or megabyte of data you use. Page Plus Cellular is among the best, as it allows you to pay as little as $10 to keep your line topped off—and the credit lasts 120 days. You can even roll over the credit if you add more money to your account within that four-month window.

These days, the company requires an LTE-compatible phone, so your rates will follow the “4G Plan” details: $0.06 per minute, $0.29 per minute while domestically roaming, $0.05 per text, $0.20 per international text, $0.05 + data costs for picture messages, and $0.05 per megabyte. Calls to directory assistance (411) cost $1.25 plus the standard rate per minute.

Want to go longer between top-offs? The $80 pay-as-you-go “plan” lasts one year.

Seeking cheaper rates? Tello (T-Mobile) has some of the best pay-as-you-go rates available, charging just $0.01 per minute, $0.01 per text, and $0.02 per megabyte. The catch: The minimum buy-in is $20, and credits expire in 90 days.

Can’t use Verizon or T-Mobile? H2O Wireless (an AT&T-based network) also has pay-as-you-go rates, though it’s twice as expensive for data. Credits also expire faster (90 days).