“Unlimited” has been a misnomer for years. Cellular providers must’ve turned to the wrong page in the dictionary when they were naming their service tiers, because the list of limitations on these supposedly unlimited data plans read like the terms of a parole agreement.
The biggest limitation has been data throttling. Throttling is the practice of reducing your data speeds after you hit a certain threshold of data used in a month or during times of congestion. It’s been a fixture of cell service plans for years—even on so-called unlimited plans. But for 2021, two of the big three cellular companies ditched throttling on their highest-paid tiers. All three companies also include 5G data access to all their unlimited plans now.
Below we’ve showcased what each of the major carriers offers for “unlimited” individual and family plans to help you figure out which unlimited plan is best for you, and your budget. Check out our guide to cheap phone plans if you don’t want unlimited data.
Updated July 2021: T-Mobile’s Magenta Max has replaced the Magena Plus tier. We’ve added information on how T-Mobile and AT&T have ended throttling on their highest-tier plans. Details of some plans, such as allotments of 5G data and Wi-Fi hot spot data, have changed.
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Best Overall
The Essentials plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $60/month | 2 Lines $90 | 3 Lines $98 | 4 Lines $105 | 5 Lines $113
In 2021 T-Mobile replaced the Magenta Plus tier with Magenta Max (starting at $85), which promises to be truly unlimited and not throttle your data after you hit a certain usage amount, even in times of congestion. It has three unlimited plans: Essentials, Magenta, and Magenta Max. In the past few years, T-Mobile has won speed and coverage awards from OpenSignal and other companies that monitor service quality.
Essentials is the basic, best choice for most people with big families. The Magenta Max plan offers 40 GB of hotspot data and is a good value if you tend to use more than 50 GB of data a month and hate being throttled, or if you plan to travel abroad a lot, since it also includes international data.
WIRED: 5G data speeds are available on every tier, as is international texting and unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico and Canada (possibly nonfunctional 2G data speeds on Essentials, 5 gigabytes of 4G LTE on the Magenta plans). Those aged 55-plus can also subscribe for discounts on any of the three tiers. The Essentials and Magenta plans will not throttle back your data speeds until you’ve used 50 gigabytes or 100 gigabytes of LTE data, respectively, which is quite a lot. On the Magenta plan, you also get a “free” subscription to Netflix if you have two or more lines because hey, why not. On the Magenta plans, you get unlimited in-flight Wi-Fi and texting on flights with Gogo.
TIRED: The Essentials and regular Magenta tier still throttle data. The Essentials plan only includes 3G speeds if you use your phone as a Wi-Fi hot spot, which is terribly slow. You have to pay $25 more per month (!) for the Magenta Max package to get HD video streaming. There aren’t a lot of great reasons to go with the standard Magenta plan.
Will your phone work? T-Mobile has a Phone Compatibility Test that lets you search to see whether your phone will work on its network. Most unlocked phones should work, especially those that also work on AT&T, but see our section below for our favorite devices and more info on how to liberate a phone from your current carrier.
AT&T Is More Expensive
The Unlimited Starter plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $65 | 2 Lines $120 | 3 Lines $135 | 4 Lines $140 | 5 Lines $150
AT&T also just pushed out a major revamp of its data plans. Like T-Mobile, its $85-a-month Elite top tier now removes data throttling, adds 4K video streaming capability, and has more Wi-Fi hot spot data, but the Starter Unlimited plan isn’t competitive with T-Mobile’s basic Essentials plan. AT&T also still pushes its older Mobile Share Plus data-sharing plans, which aren’t much cheaper and give you less for your money. There are three unlimited plans: Unlimited Starter, Unlimited Extra, and Unlimited Elite. We’ve detailed the pricing structure for its Starter tier below.
WIRED: Every tier includes 5G data speeds. You won’t be throttled at all on the Unlimited Elite plan, and on the Unlimited Extra plan you won’t be throttled until you hit 50 gigabytes of data. If you’re on the Unlimited Elite, you get a big 40-gigabyte bucket of mobile hot spot to tether to other devices, free access to HBO Max, and 4K video streaming.
TIRED: For the base Starter plan, data throttling could kick in any time there’s network congestion, no matter how little data you’ve already used. The Starter tier also doesn’t include any Wi-Fi hot spot, unlike T-Mobile’s cheaper basic Essentials plan which does include a bit of slow 3G data. It doesn’t have HD video streaming or international data either.
Will your phone work? AT&T has a Device Compatibility PDF you can use to check your current phone(s). Unlocked GSM phones work on AT&T and T-Mobile.
Verizon Is the Most Expensive
The Start Unlimited plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $70 | 2 Lines $120 | 3 Lines $135 | 4 Lines $140 | 5 Lines $150
Verizon still has the best coverage, but T-Mobile and others are giving it a run for its money. The carrier finally got rid of its confusingly named double unlimited plans, GoUnlimited and BeyondUnlimited, only to replace them with four unlimited plans and a kids plan. You can choose between Start Unlimited, Play More Unlimited, Do More Unlimited, Get More Unlimited, and Just Kids. We’ve outlined pricing for the starter tier below.
WIRED: Like the competition, every plan includes 5G data access. If you live in a rural area, Verizon has the strongest coverage, according to OpenSignal. Every plan (except Just Kids) includes six free months of Apple Music and six months of Disney+. All tiers include talk, text, and data to Mexico and Canada and international texting. The top-tier Play More Unlimited and Get More Unlimited plans now include access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.
TIRED: Verizon is more expensive than the other carriers. If you’re on the basic Start Unlimited plan, there’s no Wi-Fi mobile hot spot, and Verizon may throttle your internet speed during any “congestion.” You have to step up another $10 per month for 4K streaming, as Starter only allows 480p SD streaming. Verizon has two plans priced at $80 per month (for a single line) and the only two differences between them is that a year of Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu are included in the Play More package. Both the Play More and Do More plans come with a 50-gigabyte cap on data before throttling.
Will your phone work? Verizon has a Device Compatibility Search tool you can use to check if your phone is supported on the network. The carrier used to only support CDMA phones, but most unlocked GSM devices these days will work.
Why We Recommend Unlocked Phones
If you bought your phone from your wireless carrier (most people do), it was probably sold to you as a locked device that works only on one wireless carrier. We recommend you buy devices unlocked online instead because they will work on other networks, allowing you to switch.
As long as you’ve fully paid for your phone, your wireless carrier is obligated to unlock it for you. Just take it in or ask about procedures on how to unlock a device. (Read more at FCC.gov.)
If you bought your phone unlocked, there’s a chance it will work on every major carrier. Most devices will either work on either AT&T and T-Mobile, which are known as GSM carriers, or Verizon, which uses a technology called CDMA. Sometimes a device will partially (or mostly) work with a carrier, so it’s worth giving it a shot! Try WillMyPhoneWork.net if you’re unsure of compatibility.
Our Favorite Unlocked Phones
If you need to buy a new phone (or a couple for your posse), we have suggestions. For starters, check our Best Cheap Phones guide for our favorite devices that cost between $200 and $500. We also have guides on our favorite iPhones and favorite Android phones.
The Google Pixel 4A ($350) is our favorite phone. At WIRED, we’re big fans of the Pixel 4A. It’s available at Amazon. The new iPhone SE ($399) is another good choice if you want an Apple device on the cheap. Amazon has a good selection of other unlocked phones.
Pro tip: Check the phone’s model number at WillMyPhoneWork.net to be sure it’ll work on your carrier. Again, chances are high that an unlocked phone won’t work on Verizon.
How to Check Network Quality in Your Area
If you live in a rural area, before you switch to a new wireless network, do some research. Don’t trust the employees at your local Best Buy or mall kiosk. Ask neighbors, friends, and relatives nearby what their coverage is like and use OpenSignal and RootMetrics to track how effective networks are in your area. Just enter your address and you’re good to go. If you own a second home or travel for work, check those addresses, too. Chances are high that all three wireless carriers will work just fine, but it’s smart to check before switching.
If you’re not using your current unlimited plan as much these days, we have a guide on how to temporarily suspend your phone account, plus some alternative carriers to switch to if you want to save some dough.
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