What Cell Phone Provider Has The Best Service
Best phone carriers of 2022
Picking the all-time telephone carrier is always a claiming, merely never more than so when new devices become available. New phones requite you the adventure to consider a new provider for your cell telephone service — particularly if y'all tin can go a better deal on that telephone past switching over to a new carrier and committing to ane of that provider's best cell phone plans.
Fifty-fifty if you're not thinking virtually a new carrier because of a new telephone purchase, it pays to compare the best phone carriers every now and so. With prices ascent in other areas of life, finding a better phone program could cut some of your monthly expenses.
That said, finding the best phone carrier requires more than merely picking the carrier who charges y'all the least for information each month. Phone carriers likewise stand out with their network coverage, specially as wireless providers are expanding their 5G networks. Y'all should consider customer service — the all-time telephone carriers can handle questions nearly billing as hands every bit helping yous troubleshoot your device. And some carriers brand a mark past showering subscribers with plenty of perks.
Sounds similar a lot to keep rail of, doesn't it? That's why we're here, since we've done all the research for you. Correct now, T-Mobile and Verizon are battling each other for the title of all-time telephone carrier. If y'all're willing to wait beyond the major wireless providers at some of the height MVNOs offering cell phone service, yous can find expert value from smaller operators like Mint Mobile and Visible.
Today's summit 3 best value phone carriers
The best telephone carriers overall
When it comes to the best mix of information plans, coverage and perks, T-Mobile is a tough phone carrier to beat out. While its merger with Sprint has introduced a few customer service struggles initially, T-Mobile withal emerges as the best phone carrier, thanks to some great data plans, excellent perks and a growing 5G network.
T-Mobile offers the all-time unlimited data plan in the business, with its $lxx Magenta plan that bakes taxes and fees into the price of the program and besides lets yous employ your data when y'all're overseas (albeit at slower speeds). Healthy discounts as you add lines too make Magenta the best family prison cell phone programme, specially when T-Mobile waives the toll of a third line equally information technology does nether a frequent promotion.
If you don't need all that data, T-Mobile's 3GB and 6GB prepaid plans are amid the cheapest y'all'll find, and the company has added a $10/month 1GB plan likewise. Those plans also include 5G coverage, which is something other carriers ofttimes restrict to their nearly expensive plans. For that reason, we think T-Mobile offers better value than other big-name carriers.
In our LTE network testing, nosotros found T-Mobile's LTE download speeds were fast, even if Verizon and AT&T both finished ahead of the Uncarrier the concluding time we tested. More recent testing past Ookla gives T-Mobile a clean sweep of top speeds for both 5G and overall. Rootmetrics also gives T-Mobile the nod equally the carrier with the fastest and almost bachelor 5G coverage.
Speaking of 5G, T-Mobile's 5G service now reaches more than than 310 million people across the country. Of that total, 210 1000000 tin can access its faster Ultra Capacity 5G service.
What really sets T-Mobile apart is the perks it extends to customers. Weekly T-Mobile Tuesday giveaways include prizes and benefits while T-Mobile's Squad of Experts plan likewise provides first-class customer service to subscribers. Family plan subscribers can get the cost of a Netflix business relationship covered equally office of their plan, and T-Mobile now provides ane free yr of both Apple Telly Plus and Paramount Plus to Magenta and Magenta Max subscribers.
Verizon'south plans may be pricier than the competition. But at that place's plenty to similar well-nigh the nation's biggest wireless carrier, starting with the reach and operation of its network. When nosotros've tested LTE speeds, Verizon has come up out on top, though for the 2d half of 2021, testing firm Rootmetrics placed AT&T ahead of Verizon in more categories for the offset time.
At the start of this twelvemonth, Verizon gave its 5G service a big heave by enhancing its existing Ultra Wideband 5G network with C-Band spectrum. More than 100 million people now bask faster speeds, while Big Red's nationwide network delivers lower-spectrum 5G coverage to 230 million people. (That network'southward not most as fast as Ultra Wideband.) Verizon besides makes it easier to experience 5G by accepting whatever telephone — even broken ones — to reduce the toll of upgrading to a 5G telephone. The carrier is moving to 36-month agreements, increasing how long you demand to tie yourself to Verizon if y'all buy your phone in installments or go some of the all-time Verizon phone deals.
Every bit for the cost of service, yous will find cheaper and easier-to-decipher unlimited data plans at T-Mobile, but Verizon's electric current plans do include interesting perks. Verizon'southward 5G Do More than plan, which costs $80 a month for one line (and $180 for four) includes 600GB of deject storage and a 50GB ceiling before Verizon will throttle your speeds. Play More, which costs the same, includes admission to a bundle of Disney streaming services (Disney Plus, ad-supported Hulu and ESPN Plus) too as a subscription to a streaming gaming service — either Apple Arcade or Google Play Laissez passer.
Verizon's prepaid plans are particularly attractive, cheers to a serial of escalating discounts. You'll pay $45 a month for Verizon'due south 15GB prepaid programme afterward a $5 autopay discount, merely if you stick with Verizon for three months of service, that rate falls to $xl. After nine months, another $5 discount cuts your charge per unit to $35. All Prepaid plans get 5G service, too, though Ultra Wideband coverage is reserved for prepaid customers with unlimited plans.
Verizon has fared well when we've tested customer service for phone carriers, and information technology continues to offer an extensive selection of phones, including Ultra Wideband versions of some phones designed specifically for Verizon'due south network. If you don't mind paying a picayune more than on your monthly bill, Verizon provides the functioning and service that justifies the actress cost.
AT&T finds itself in an awkward position among the remaining major carriers. AT&T'south monthly rates and promotions tin can't lucifer what T-Mobile offers, and Verizon still has the larger overall network (though AT&T bests Verizon on reliability and speed according to testing firm Rootmetrics). That leaves AT&T in third place in our all-time telephone carrier rankings, just at that place are some notable brilliant spots for the carrier.
For ane, AT&T typically fares well in operation testing, as noted by its stiff showing in Rootmetrics testing for the second one-half of 2021.Similar Verizon, AT&T is launching C-Ring 5G, which brings faster speeds, though AT&T has only added this coverage to a handful of cities at nowadays.
When it comes to plans, AT&T'due south about appealing unlimited data option is its most expensive offering — an $85-a-month Unlimited Elite programme that includes the HBO Max streaming service. AT&T has removed any cap on data consumption and so Unlimited Elite customers won't have their speeds slowed, and you lot become more hotspot data, too. In May, Unlimited Elite subscribers will be able to use talk, text and data for free when traveling in 19 Latin American countries.
The cheaper unlimited tiers at AT&T didn't compare as favorably to T-Mobile and Verizon plans, though that's irresolute a trivial bit. Kickoff, AT&T added 5G coverage to all its unlimited plans, matching its rivals. And at present if you just need one line of data, a $50/month Value Plus Program offers unlimited talk, text and data (though AT&T does reserve the correct to tedious your speeds when the network's congested.)
AT&T's prepaid options provide a lot of data, likewise. A particularly strong selection gives yous 15GB of information for $40 a month. However, if you can swing the upfront costs, paying for a full year of service, gets you 8GB of information at $25/month. AT&T's cheapest unlimited data programme is at present available through Walmart when you activate a telephone in one of the retailer's stores.
Variety is not the spice of life when information technology comes to Visible's service options, equally the discount carrier and Verizon MVNO offers merely one service plan. But information technology'due south a really good option — you get unlimited data for $40 a month over Verizon'due south LTE network, which has been the top performer in our testing.
Visible used to place a cap on data speeds when the carrier debuted, but that restriction has since been lifted. That means you tin savour the full power of Verizon'due south network, with your speeds slowing only should the network get besides congested. (That's standard operating procedure for networks like Visible that utilise another carrier'southward towers for their coverage, though.) 5G service is now available through Visible using Verizon's coverage, with both the iPhone thirteen and Galaxy S22 models. Other 5G phones are supported as well, though you should double-check which ones with Visible.
Compared to the all-time cheap cell phone plans, Visible has the best option for families cheers to the generous discounts every bit you add together lines to your plan. Ii lines of unlimited data at Visible reduces the per-line cost to $35, while a family of iv pays a total of $100 (or $25 per line) each month. Your Visible Party Plan isn't express to people living at the same address — it can embrace friends, distant relatives or roommates. And a referral program tin reduce your beak to just $5 for the month afterward a new client you've referred joins Visible.
Visible got its start equally an iPhone-only carrier, though it subsequently added Android phones to the mix, from flagships like the Galaxy S22 and Pixel six to budget offerings similar the Samsung Galaxy A53. A new early on upgrade plan lets you switch to a new device later on yous've paid off 50% of your phone. You tin likewise bring your ain device to Visible. And iPhone owners tin try out Visible for free for 15 days using their own device.
Mint Mobile offers some of the lowest rates around, provided you're willing to pay for coverage upwardly front. Pricing starts at $15 a calendar month for 4GB of LTE data — that'south better than even T-Mobile'south Simple Connect programme. Merely that price is only available through the showtime 3 months of your service. To maintain that low rate, you lot've got to sign up for a yr of coverage, limiting your flexibility to change carriers if you're not satisfied. (That approach as well holds true for Mint'due south 10GB and 15GB plans as well as the carrier'due south $xxx-a-month unlimited information plan.) Mint's family plans promise the same discounted rate for each line of data, and you tin can mix and match different data allotments.
Mint uses T-Mobile'southward network to provide coverage, so you should wait fast operation, particularly if you live in an urban area. Mint says you lot'll go 5G or 4G coverage depending on which bespeak is stronger — bold y'all've got a 5G-compatible phone, of course.
Speaking of devices, Mint sells both iPhones and Android handsets, at a broad range of prices. Yous tin also bring your current phone to Mint if y'all prefer. Our Mint Mobile vs. AT&T and Verizon vs. Mint Mobile comparisons offer a closer expect at how this discount service compares to bigger phone carriers.
Metro Past T-Mobile — formerly MetroPCS — remains i of the best telephone carriers if you don't want to spend a lot of money on your prison cell phone service. That said, Metro is facing stepped-up competition from big-proper noun rivals and obscure discount carriers alike. Parent visitor T-Mobile stole some of Metro'due south thunder by offering a super-cheap $fifteen/month jail cell phone plan, while Verizon has doubled the amount of data it packs into its prepaid packages.
Still, there's plenty to like about Metro, which benefits from using T-Mobile's cellular network for its coverage. Even though Metro traffic can slow down when T-Mobile's towers get congested, in our testing, that's been a rare occurrence. More importantly, Metro customers with 5G-capable phones tin enjoy T-Mobile's 5G coverage, which now stretches coast to coast.
Verizon may offering more than information to prepaid customers, simply Metro'southward $xl-a-month plan still includes a generous helping of 10GB of data, with streaming music from more than than forty services not counting against your cap. Metro's unlimited plans — $50 for the entry level plan and $60 for a plan that includes an Amazon Prime membership and more than hotspot information — are pretty attractive, also.
Metro has a good selection of phones, with around a third of the handsets on sale costing less than $200. You can detect additional savings if you port over a phone number when signing up for service with Metro.
With the Pixel 6a expected to go far this month, Google Fi deserves some attending among the best phone carriers. Pixel devices are optimized for Google'south wireless network, allowing them to seamlessly switch between the carriers that provide Google Fi's coverage — T-Mobile and United states of america Cellular at this point — then you lot'll always accept the all-time connectedness bachelor. Compatible tertiary-political party devices, which include the Samsung Galaxy S22, Galaxy Z Flip 3 and several Motorola handsets reap the same benefits.
Google Fi's pricing is pretty compelling if you don't use a lot of data. Google charges you lot $xx for unlimited talk and text and then only $10 for each gigabyte of data yous use. But that'south adjusted to the precise amount of data you eat — if you utilise ii.5GB, say, y'all'll pay $25 instead of Google rounding up to $30.
Unlimited data plans are now more compelling later on Google dropped prices on its ii unlimited offerings. The all-time plan, Unlimited Plus, costs $65 a month and features the ability to use your data overseas in more than 200 countries at no extra price. If you don't need that feature, the Simply Unlimited program now costs $fifty a month for one line of data. Discounts on boosted lines are available.
Consumer Cellular is a good option for your cell phone service if you don't need a lot of information each calendar month or you don't need unlimited talk minutes. (Or both!) The carrier has minor data tiers available at reasonable prices, and you tin can switch around your data allocation on a monthly basis if you anticipate needing more data.
The 3GB plan probably offers enough data for many users who don't stream music and movies and at $25, information technology's a pretty affordable option.
Because Consumer Cellular offers an additional 5% disbelieve on monthly rates to AARP members, it'due south become a hit with seniors. The carrier uses both AT&T and T-Mobile for its coverage, and so it'south probable y'all'll get good network performance no matter where you are. (And if you lot buy an iPhone thirteen or 5G-ready Android phone through the carrier, y'all can savor 5G coverage.) Consumer Cellular does take some criticism for client service, but it's generally regarded every bit any easy service for managing your plan and keeping your cell phone costs depression.
Once owned and operated past Sprint, Boost Mobile is at present the property of Dish in a $1.four billion purchase spurred by the Sprint-T-Mobile merger. Heave is keeping its proper name, and it's in the process of switching over to AT&T'due south network as Dish looks to build out its own network.
Boost continues to offer the same plans as before, with your best choice being one of the visitor's two unlimited plans. The $l plan features 12GB of hotspot data. For $threescore a calendar month, you get Hd video streaming and 30GB of hotspot data. Both unlimited data plans slow your speeds after y'all use 35GB of data in a month.
Boost'southward unlimited prices compare favorably to what you get from Metro by T-Mobile, though T-Mobile'southward prepaid service doesn't put caps on music and game streaming like Heave does. The best tiered plan at Heave gives you 5GB of information for $25 a month, with 2GB ($xv) and 10GB ($35) options as well.
If y'all already get your net service from Comcast — and since information technology's the nation'southward biggest internet service provider, you probably do — Xfinity Mobile offers you the opportunity to save coin on your monthly telephone neb. The Comcast-backed phone carrier uses a combination of Verizon'south cellular towers and Xfinity hotspots to offer nationwide phone coverage.
Xfinity's best programme for individuals is its $45 unlimited program. Not just is that cheaper than what you'll pay for unlimited coverage at the major phone carriers, it likewise includes access to Verizon's 5G network if y'all have a 5G-capable phone. That means you can get 5G for well-nigh half the cost of what you lot'd pay for a Verizon unlimited information plan.
Xfinity Mobile has added discounts on additional lines, eliminating one of the big cons confronting this best phone carrier pick. While a single line of unlimited services costs $45 a month, a 2nd line of data brings the per line cost down to $forty. A family of 4 pays $120 each month, or $thirty per line.
Don't need unlimited data? Xfinity also offers by-the-gig pricing, starting at $15 for 1GB of data. (The 3GB plan for $30/calendar month is the more generous option.) Y'all tin switch between unlimited and by-the-gig plans for months were you don't need a lot of data.
You'll detect a good pick of phones at Xfinity, including the latest iPhone and Android flagships, such as the iPhone 13 and Milky way S22. These days, Xfinity offers better support for bringing your own device beyond just the iPhone; recent Samsung Milky way and Google Pixel devices are supported, too, if you already own those phones.
What to look for when choosing a phone carrier
The first thing to consider when determining the all-time telephone carrier for your needs is to figure out who has the best coverage in your area. Concentrate on the places where yous spend a lot of time and need cell phone service, such as your home, office and frequent hangouts. Our network performance testing looks at download speeds in select cities, and third-political party testing can give you an idea of how networks perform on boilerplate. Simply to truly get a motion-picture show of local network coverage, y'all'll need to ask friends and family about their feel.
If yous're comfortable looking beyond one of the major cell phone providers, you can always endeavor a discount carrier. These MVNOs plough to the larger networks to provide cellular service, and then be certain to discover out which network a discount carrier uses to brand sure information technology's one that provides good service to where y'all live and work.
Once y'all've figured out which telephone carriers offer the best coverage in your areas, look at plans and pricing. You'll need to effigy out how much data yous need — whether an unlimited program is required or if you tin opt for a cheaper program with tiered information. We've analyzed the best jail cell phone plans overall to assistance you find one that fits your needs.
One other thing to consider when picking carriers is perks that come included with a monthly subscription. You'll find more of these with larger carriers, while discount carriers and prepaid cellular service tends to skimp on the extras. Popular perks include streaming service subscriptions, high-speed hotspot data and the power to use your programme while traveling overseas. (Speaking of overseas travel, we've also got a await at the best international telephone plans from the major carriers.)
How we test telephone carriers
We've previously tested network performance past heading out to eight United states cities and running Ookla'due south Speedtest app to measure download speeds. For real-globe testing, nosotros download a sizable app off of Google Play and time how fast it takes to get the app on a smartphone. The coronavirus pandemic impacted our ability to travel in recent years, so we've placed a swell weight on network performance reports from third-party firms including RootMetrics, Opensignal and Ookla.
Below, you'll run into a round-up of the well-nigh recent information from each third-party testing firm, with the median download speed recorded for each of the three major carriers. (MVNO customers tin expect speeds similar to that of their parent network, with the caveat that an MVNO's speeds might be slowed down if a network is congested.)
| Ookla | Opensignal | RootMetrics | |
| AT&T | 56.1 Mpbs | 35.iii Mbps | 38.ane Mbps |
| T-Mobile | 117.8 Mbps | 54.ane Mbps | 79.8 Mbps |
| Verizon | 62.6 Mpbs | 30.2 Mbps | 40.8 Mbps |
| Catamenia tested | 1Q, 2022 | January 2022 | 2H, 2021 |
We continuously review cell phone plans to compare how much data each carrier offers and how unlimited plans vary at each provider. Nosotros too await at the best prepaid phone plans, including extras you accept to give upwardly for the lower price to evaluate whether those are good deals or not.
We've done customer support testing in the past where we contact carriers incognito to inquire them questions both near their service as well as phones they offer. We conduct this undercover testing both over the phone and through social media support accounts on Twitter and Facebook.
Finally, we make a note of the different perks that are available through each carrier, whether it'south plan add together-ons similar streaming services and hotspot data, regular giveaways or the ability to utilise data when traveling in other countries.
What Cell Phone Provider Has The Best Service,
Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/best-picks/best-phone-carrier
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