Prepaid phone plans can be a great cost-effective option for cellular connectivity. In exchange for upfront payments, they provide most people with all they need, like plenty of high-speed data, at significantly lower costs than major carriers’ postpaid plans.
Currently, our top pick among the best prepaid phone plans is Mint Mobile’s 12-month unlimited plan with the carrier’s limited-time $120 discount. Those with more modest needs or seeking to pay as little as possible should check out Tello Mobile’s Build Your Own Plan, with the option to pay as little as $5/month.
Our top picks for the best prepaid phone plans
Best overall: Mint Mobile 12-Month Unlimited Plan – See at Mint Mobile
Best runner-up unlimited plan: US Mobile Unlimited Starter Plan – See at US Mobile
Best budget: Tello Mobile Build Your Own Plan – See at Tello Mobile
Best from a major carrier: AT&T Unlimited + 10GB Hot Spot Prepaid Plan – See at AT&T
Best overall
Mint Mobile 12-Month Unlimited Plan
Mint Mobile’s annual unlimited plan offers unlimited talk and text and truly unlimited high-speed data on T-Mobile’s network (subject to deprioritization) for an unrivaled value at $20/month with a limited-time discount.
Mint Mobile is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that combines T-Mobile’s exceptional urban and suburban coverage, rapidly expanding rural coverage, fast data speeds, and some of the best customer support we’ve experienced with value-driven plans.
The budget carrier’s current deal for its 12-month unlimited plan offers the best prepaid phone plan for long-term value. It reduces the plan’s annual prepaid cost by $120, bringing the price from $360 to $240. That’s $20/month, compared to the typical $30/month pricing, for truly unlimited monthly high-speed data. While the data is subjected to slower speeds during instances of network congestion, in our testing, such deprioritization has, at worst, resulted in momentary slowdowns that aren’t uncommon even among major carriers in congested areas.
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After using 35GB of data, you still get unlimited data on LTE and 5G networks, though you may be further subjected to congestion-related deprioritization behind customers on the MVNO’s lower data tiers.
Mint Mobile advertises typical speeds between 79 and 357 Mbps, which is easily fast enough for pretty much anything most people do on their phones, whether it’s streaming a video, scrolling through a social media app, or downloading a large game or file.
Note that Mint Mobile doesn’t offer prepaid plans in the traditional sense, where customers prepay on a monthly basis and aren’t locked into the carrier’s service in any way. Rather, you still prepay for Mint Mobile service, but in three, six, or 12-month installments. If you wish to cancel Mint Mobile service, you’ll have to wait until your plan’s time period expires or risk losing the money you prepaid. The closest thing Mint Mobile has to a true prepaid plan is its three-month plans, but they’re relatively poor value compared to its 12-month plans.
If you’re ready to commit to Mint Mobile’s service for the long term, make sure to pick a 12-month plan, which, as noted above, offers the best value. Without deals or new customer incentives, Mint Mobile’s three- and six-month plans are generally more expensive than most prepaid options from other carriers.
If you aren’t ready to commit to a year of service, you can find out whether Mint Mobile works for you in the long term by taking advantage of its ongoing new customer promotion, our long-standing top pick among the best cheap cell phone plans. The introductory offer prices all three-month plans at the same typical price as Mint Mobile’s 12-month plans, starting at $15/month.
Mint Mobile offers eSIMs, a digital version of a physical SIM card for newer phones delivered via email or carrier apps. They’re quicker to receive than physical SIMs, which the carrier sends through the mail. To transfer your number, you simply need to obtain a specific PIN, like a Number Transfer PIN, from your account with your current carrier.
Read our full Mint Mobile review.
Best runner-up unlimited plan
US Mobile Unlimited Starter Plan
US Mobile’s Unlimited Starter plan includes up to 70GB of high-speed monthly data. Unique to US Mobile is the option to run on Verizon’s (Warp), T-Mobile’s (Light Speed), or AT&T’s (Dark Star) networks. Speeds are reduced to 1Mbps after the monthly data limit, which is decent compared to other budget-friendly carriers that reduce data to frankly unusable speeds.
US Mobile, not to be confused with US Cellular, is a relative newcomer. It’s a budget-friendly MVNO that offers major carrier features, like premium data, smartwatch plans, and multi-line discounts. For $25/month in a traditional monthly prepaid arrangement, or $22.50/month with an annual payment, US Mobile’s Unlimited Starter plan exceeds expectations.
US Mobile offers the unique option for customers to pick between Verizon’s, AT&T’s, or T-Mobile’s networks. These networks are named “Warp,” “Dark Star,” and “Light Speed,” respectively, on US Mobile.
You can even switch between networks once every three hours and up to eight times every 30-day cycle. The first two switches are free, after which there’s a small $2 fee, while the plan’s pricing remains the same.
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US Mobile advertises varying data speeds for its three networks, as detailed in the table below.
The best network on US Mobile is Warp, which is based on Verizon. It includes Verizon’s extensive coverage and 35GB of premium prioritized data, which means your data speeds won’t be artificially slowed down when the network becomes congested at a particular time and place.
Even if Verizon (Warp) doesn’t have the right coverage for you, you’ll be happy with the other networks available on US Mobile based on T-Mobile (Light Speed) and AT&T (Dark Star). Light Speed and Dark Star offer up to 35GB or 70GB, respectively, of high-speed data that is subject to deprioritization. However, we didn’t feel any impact from chance deprioritization when we tested the Light Speed network.
Regardless of the network you pick, the Unlimited Starter plan’s is one of the best cell phone plans with data limits that should be more than enough for the vast majority of users. If you exceed the limit, US Mobile reduces data speeds to 1Mbps until the end of the billing cycle, which is still somewhat usable. In contrast, most carriers reduce speeds to an unusable degree — between 40 and 256Kbps.
In addition to traditional SIM cards, US Mobile offers eSIM delivery for quick and easy setup. Obtaining your Number Transfer PIN from your current carrier is the only burden if you want to keep your existing number.
Read our full US Mobile review.
Best budget
Tello Mobile Build Your Own Plan
Backed by T-Mobile’s network, Tello’s unique Build Your Own plan allows you to customize your data and voice minutes to your specific needs and offers a low base price of $5/month.
Tello Mobile is an MVNO that runs on T-Mobile’s network and offers the same data speeds (79 to 357 Mbps typical) and coverage as other MVNOs that run on T-Mobile, like Mint Mobile. For a comparative analysis of the two budget MVNOs backed by T-Mobile, check out our Mint Mobile vs. Tello guide.
What separates Tello Mobile from the budget prepaid category is its Build Your Own Plan, which lets you pick and pay for what’s most important to you, whether it’s data, voice minutes, or a low amount of both. Unlike Mint Mobile, Tello offers prepaid plans in the traditional sense that you prepay monthly.
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With Tello, you can get a decent amount of data for a low monthly bill if you don’t talk on the phone often and can opt for fewer minutes. For example, you can get 10GB of data and 100 voice minutes for $16/month.
You can reduce the monthly bill even further, down to 1GB for just $5/month at the carrier’s low minimum rate.
Tello offers SIM card delivery for older phones or eSIM transfer for quicker and easier setup with newer phones. If you want to keep your phone number, you only need to get your Number Transfer PIN from your existing carrier.
Read our full Tello Mobile review.
Best from a major carrier
AT&T Unlimited + 10GB Hot Spot Data Prepaid Plan
AT&T’s mid-tier prepaid plan is the best option from a major carrier for its value. For less than most postpaid plans, you get a healthy 16GB of high-speed data before speeds are slowed to 1.5Mpbs, which is still usable for basic tasks like messaging and browsing the web. It’s only available with an annual payment of $300, which equates to $25/month.
AT&T’s Unlimited + 10GB hot spot prepaid plan offers the best value among prepaid plans from major carriers. However, it’s only available with an annual payment of $300, which equates to $25/month, so make sure you’re comfortable sticking to the plan for at least 12 months.
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By “unlimited,” AT&T means you get 16GB of high-speed monthly data and access to the carrier’s 5G network. If you use more than 16GB, data speeds are slowed to 1.5Mbps for the rest of the month, which limits what you can do. However, it is still usable for fewer data-intensive tasks, like messaging, web browsing, and even streaming music.
AT&T advertises speeds between 12 and 304 Mbps, and the carrier offers eSIM delivery.
The equivalent rate of $25/month is the best value from a major carrier and makes this the best prepaid plan for hotspot use, though many comparable MVNO and budget options are more affordable and flexible, as detailed above.
How we test prepaid phone plans
We’ve tested or personally tried every carrier included in this guide, so we’re deeply familiar with the quality of their service.
In line with our broader testing of the best cell phone plans, we apply our experience with each carrier, considering the pros and cons of their prepaid plans while weighing their value and monthly cost. We then compare each carrier’s prepaid plans to determine their strengths and weaknesses.
We also consider their annual payment pricing — an option that has become more widely available for prepaid plans.
FAQs
What is a prepaid phone plan?
A prepaid phone plan is one you pay for in advance at the beginning of the month or in longer-term intervals. It’s different from a postpaid plan, where you pay at the end of the month for the month of service you just used.
Is it cheaper to be on a prepaid or postpaid phone plan?
Prepaid plans are generally the cheapest phone plans for customers with one or two lines in their accounts. Postpaid plans can start to make more sense with three or more lines on an account due to multi-line discounts and perks like discounts on other services, which most prepaid plans don’t offer.
Do prepaid phone plans have good cell coverage?
Yes, the best prepaid phone plan providers like Mint Mobile, Visible, and Tello use the same major networks as postpaid plans, such as T-Mobile, Verizon, or AT&T, so coverage is generally strong.
However, coverage can vary depending on your location. For example, Verizon may offer better service in rural areas, while T-Mobile tends to perform better in cities and suburban regions.
What is the best prepaid phone plan on the market?
The best prepaid phone plan depends on your needs, but Mint Mobile is widely considered the best overall. It offers affordable unlimited data starting at $15—$30/month, excellent 5G coverage via T-Mobile’s network, and hotspot access.
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