Compare cell phone companies: Cheap plans from $5/mo

Compare cheap cell phone plans: Switch & save $600 per year
man pointing at stars
Network: T-Mobile
vs
Network: T-Mobile
vs
Network: Verizon & T-Mobile
Tello
Mint Mobile
US Mobile

Network

T-Mobile
T-Mobile
T-Mobile & Verizon

Data Speed

5G & 4G LTE
5G & 4G LTE
5G & 4G LTE

3G Network

GSM
GSM
GSM & CDMA

Mobile Hotspot

Bring Your Phone

Keep Your Number

Credit Check

Customer Service

24/7
24/7
24/7

Money Back Guarantee

Yes - 3 days
Yes - 7 days

5G

Contract

No - prepaid
No - 3 mths prepaid
No - prepaid

Taxes/fees included

VoLTE

WiFi Calling

Visual Voicemail

Multi-line Discounts

Multi-month Discounts

International Calls

Yes - Includes Mexico, Canada & China
Yes - Includes Mexico & Canada

International Roaming

By
Rob Webber
Rob Webber

Rob Webber

Founder

About Rob

Rob has 15+ years experience running price comparison & review websites that empower consumers to find the cheapest cell phone services, cell phone deals, home phone, and internet providers available. He has been published in Forbes, US News, Entrepreneur, Huffington Post, Inc.

Rob's Expertise

5G wireless networks, cell phone plans, cell phone deals, MVNOs, internet services, tablets, comparison shopping, money saving, reviewing telecom products & services

- Last updated on May 14th, 2023

MoneySavingPro independently researches the products & services to bring you our recommendations. We may earn money when you click our links - disclosure policy.

Struggling to decide which cell phone plan to choose? With our cell phone plans comparison, you can group together three at a time to help find the best deal for you.

We know that choosing a new plan can be confusing with so many choices, but at MoneySavingPro, we not only like to save you money but make the decision-making process easy.

You can compare three plans at a time side by side, including review ratings and features. And when you've chosen your favorite carrier, you can compare all of their available low-cost plans.

Compare Cell Phone Companies

What are the benefits of cheap cell phone carriers?

By switching to a Mobile Virtual Network Operator, or MVNO, you're giving yourself a ton of freedom. Freedom to switch whenever you want, freedom from contracts, and financial freedom. It's just a few of the reasons why we love them.

  • Same great nationwide coverage: Operating on the very same networks as the big guys, cheap cell phone carriers give you the coverage you can rely on.

  • Much lower prices: Save up to $600 per year on your cell phone plan. How come MVNOs are cheaper? They don't have the huge overhead, and advertising costs the big guys do.

  • No contracts: You can forget getting stuck in a two-year agreement. You decide when to switch carriers.

  • Same cell phone service: You may be paying less, but this doesn't mean you're sacrificing great features. You can find unlimited everything plans easily. Usually, a prepaid phone plan comes with unlimited talk and text as standard, high-speed data, and mobile hotspot data features.

  • Keep your phone and number: Bring your own phone plans are great because they allow you to keep your phone and number so you can cut out pricey device payments.

  • Customize your plan: There's a huge amount of choice. Decide how much data you need, and opt for unlimited or no data, unlimited data plans come at a much better price with an alternative carrier. You can pick a plan to fit your budget and your usage - not one your carrier says you need.

  • Great customer support: Happy customers are what smaller mobile providers want. And they're known for giving them their full attention. You can forget feeling like an anonymous number, lost in the crowd.


Compare T-Mobile cell phone service

Plan Data Monthly Price Annual Cost
T-Mobile Magenta Unlimited $70 $840
T-Mobile Magenta Max Unlimited $85 $1,020

The best phone service on T-Mobile

Mint Mobile 15GB plan * Only $60 for 3 Months

Unlimited mins

Unlimited texts

15GB

4G/5G data

$20 /mo*

T-Mobile wireless network

T-Mobile vs Mint Mobile comparison

Keep your T-Mobile phone, number & coverage: Save $600 per year

Carrier

Network Coverage

4G/5G Data

Price

Annual Cost

T-Mobile

T-Mobile 4G & 5G

Unltd*

$70/mo

$840/yr

Mint Mobile

T-Mobile 4G & 5G

15GB

$20/mo

$240/yr

*Don't waste money on unlimited data - Avg. data usage is only 3-5GB

Savings

$50/mo

$600/yr

Compare the cheapest T-Mobile phone plans


Compare Verizon cell phone service

Plan Data Monthly Price Annual Cost
Verizon Play More Unlimited Unlimited $80 $960
Verizon Do More Unlimited Unlimited $80 $960
Verizon Get More Unlimited Unlimited $90 $1,080

The best phone service on Verizon

US Mobile 15GB plan * 100 Days FREE Trial

Unlimited mins

Unlimited texts

15GB

4G/5G data

$20 /mo

Verizon & T-Mobile wireless networks

Verizon vs US Mobile comparison

Keep your Verizon phone, number & coverage: Save $720 per year

Carrier

Network Coverage

4G/5G Data

Price

Annual Cost

Verizon

Verizon 4G & 5G

Unltd*

$80/mo

$960/yr

US Mobile

Verizon 4G & 5G

15GB

$20/mo

$240/yr

*Don't waste money on unlimited data - Avg. data usage is only 3-5GB

Savings

$60/mo

$720/yr

Compare the cheapest Verizon phone plans


Compare AT&T cell phone service

Plan Data Monthly Price Annual Cost
AT&T Unlimited Extra Unlimited $75 $900
AT&T Unlimited Elite Unlimited $85 $1,020

The best phone service on AT&T

Boost Mobile unlimited data plan * 50% Off First Month

Unlimited mins

Unlimited texts

Unlimited

4G/5G data

$12.50 /mo*

$25/mo

AT&T & T-Mobile wireless networks

AT&T vs Boost Mobile comparison

Keep your AT&T phone, number & coverage: Save $612 per year

Carrier

Network Coverage

4G/5G Data

Price

Annual Cost

AT&T

AT&T 4G & 5G

Unltd*

$75/mo

$900/yr

Boost Mobile

AT&T 4G & 5G

Unlimited

$25/mo

$288/yr

*Don't waste money on unlimited data - Avg. data usage is only 3-5GB

Savings

$50/mo

$612/yr

Compare the cheapest AT&T phone plans


Compare network service coverage

NETWORK

OVERALL

RELIABILITY

SPEED

DATA

CALL

Verizon Coverage

95

96

94

96

94

AT&T Coverage

94

94

95

96

92

T-Mobile Coverage

86

88

82

89

82

Source: RootMetrics RootScore 2022 report

When it comes to 5G network coverage T-Mobile scores the highest according to the J.D. Power 2023 wireless network study.

Find the best cell phone service in your area

Enter your zip code below to find your area's best cell phone service.

Switch & Save $600 per year
Find Cheap Cell Phone Plans in Your Area

Compare carrier customer service

CARRIER

TRUSTPILOT USER RATING

Reach Mobile TrustPilot score

4.9

Tello TrustPilot score

4.6

US Mobile TrustPilot score

4.6

T-Mobile TrustPilot score

1.5

Verizon TrustPilot score

1.3

AT&T TrustPilot score

1.2


Cell phone plans comparison chart

Carrier

Network

Data

Price

Tello SIM card - Horizontal Tello

T-Mobile

1GB

$10/mo

US Mobile SIM card - Horizontal US Mobile

Verizon & T-Mobile

2GB

$12/mo

Boost Mobile SIM card - Horizontal Boost Mobile

AT&T & T-Mobile

5GB

$15/mo

Mint Mobile SIM card - Horizontal Mint Mobile

T-Mobile

15GB

$20/mo

Boost Infinite SIM card - Horizontal Boost Infinite

AT&T & T-Mobile

Unltd

$25/mo


Cell phone companies list

T-Mobile MVNOs

Verizon MVNOs

AT&T MVNOs

Boost Mobile

US Mobile

Red Pocket

US Mobile

Red Pocket

Good2Go Mobile

Ultra Mobile

Twigby

PureTalk

Tello

Affinity Cellular

H2O Wireless

Red Pocket

Reach Mobile

Straight Talk

Mint Mobile

Spectrum Mobile

Tracfone

Consumer Cellular

Total by Verizon

Kroger Wireless

Republic Wireless

Ting

Optimum Mobile

Simple Mobile

Lycamobile

Gen Mobile


Compare cell phone service FAQs

What is the best cell phone service?

The best cell phone service will vary depending on where you live. You can check cell phone coverage in your area with our ZIP code checker.

What are the best cell phone companies?

MVNOs offer the best value cell phone service. With plans as low as $5 per month, they operate on the major wireless networks, so you'll still have the same nationwide coverage.


Recap: What is the best cell phone service?

Comparing cell phone plans can be confusing, but checking them out side by side can make it easier to find the most suitable plan.

Finding the best deal can come down to a number of factors, including the best cell phone coverage in your area and if you're looking to bring your own device, you'll need to check your phone is compatible with the carrier.

Once you've chosen your carrier, you can check out all of their cheap cell phone plans that can save you up to $600 a year.