Best Cheap Phone Plans 2022 (We Read All the Fine Print)
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- Опубликовано: 22 май 2024
- Here are CNET's top budget phone plan picks in 2022, with one plan costing $0 a month!
Mint Mobile: cnet.co/3adPNh9
Visible: cnet.co/38nz8Hz
Boost Mobile: cnet.co/3sZb5We
TextNow: bit.ly/3lLY0fd
Tello: cnet.co/3wQx3NL
Google Fi: bit.ly/3MU1JTS
Cricket: cnet.co/3wPu6Nb
*CNET may get a commission from these offers
Never miss a deal again! See CNET’s browser extension 👉 bit.ly/3lO7sOU
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:29 How Can a Plan Cost $0?
0:48 Prepaid Plans & MVNOs
2:36 Cheapest Unlimited Data Plans
4:08 Cheapest Buy in Bulk Plans
5:14 Cheapest Basic Phone Plans
6:03 Best Group Plans
7:11 What To Do Before Switching
Cheap phone plans are great, but there are often caveats to keep in mind before switching to one. Let's break down CNET's best budget phone plan picks, along with the fine print, so you can decide if one of these plans fits your needs. **Keep in mind that these plans are only available in the US and the plan costs we highlight may not include taxes and fees.
For more information, check out some of our written coverage on phone plans below.
Cheap Phone Plans Compared: 8 Affordable Alternatives to Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T cnet.co/3lNAG0s
Best Phone Plan Deals: Options Starting at Just $15 a Month cnet.co/3z27ESB
Best Unlimited Data Plans for 2022 cnet.co/3wRBhn1
Best Prepaid Phone Plans in 2022 cnet.co/3Gvjdne
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I've been with Mint Mobile since they started their company and haven't looked back since. I no longer need unlimited data since I'm always on Wi-Fi at home and at work so I recently switched off of that plan to one with a smaller data limit and saved even more than I was already saving when I had Mint's unlimited plan. If you have excellent T-Mobile coverage where you live, work and play, Mint is an excellent choice to save a lot of money; that is of course if you're willing to pay for a year of service up front. I just use my tax return money every year to cover my Mint Mobile bill.
Maybe some day you will figure out that you can get a better deal with other companies 🙂 and you will realize how you have been shafted all this time... Thanks for your comment hope you have a wonderful day..
@@rdspecs4964 What? Why say anything unless you have something to add like a better company.
And how much is it
@@rdspecs4964 Which mvno do you use? I need a plan soon , I was with Redpocket but no good deals this year for existing customers. Thanks
@@plum_loco Visible, Hello work good too.
Well I use Visible($25) and Cricket wireless ($55). I use both an iPhone for personal use and a S20 Ultra 5G for business. In all 80 bucks and can use both plans as hotspots. If one network goes down (which has happened with Verizon too many times for my liking) I’m good. I go Mexico a lot so Cricket works there without me having to do anything or buy any sims for international use!
I definitely cosign Mint. I got the unlimited mint plan for my older phone, so i could use it as a media device and it's worth price.
For me Mint used to be great, but since I moved to the southwest, the service is TERRIBLE. Beware of this.
As a light data user, I recently switched from T-Mobile (after 20 years) to the Tello 5GB plan at $19/mo and it's been great...and I'm saving more than $400/yr. I went with Tello over Mint because I don't like the idea of having to lock myself into paying a full year in advance if it turns out that I don't like the service. So far with Tello, overall service quality is every bit as good as T-Mobile.
I have US Mobile prepaid. It is 17 before tax , unlimited talk and text with 5g of data.
You listed a bunch of services that lease T-Mobile network but you didn’t mention T-Mobile’s connect plans. They are similar to mint plans only you don’t have to pay ahead to get the cheap price.
I have an iPhone 13. I use visibles 30 dollar unlimited plan. It’s great, I only really get throttled if I go to a sporting event or concert. The 45 dollar plan is great, and you get speeds comparable to Verizon’s top tier post paid plans
I use boost mobile as a back up line and have racked up more the 50 bucks in a month with the boost one app
Thanks for the info. I'm getting ready to switch from Mint to Visible. Did one year with Mint, but most of my work is app based so I use alot of data. I also considered Red Pocket Mobile.
Omigosh do not get Visible..Horrible horrible deprioritization speeds . I'm leaving Visible right now and getting Tello.
Check out US Mobile
@@1800llamas they cut u off when u use all the data lol 😂 and the white Sim card u can only get the 40gb plan u have to have a Verizon compatible phone to get 100gb data plan
Please get visible. I’ve tried so many services throughout the years and it’s completely worth it. Mint sucked in my area but visible is amazing.
@@mygins5820 yes that reminded me that it was pretty bad on the website. I DMed them on Twitter and the communication is way better there!
I am on the other end. Visible so slow can't even open a website, and Mint Blasing fast speeds and works great for me.
I’m now a VERY HAPPY and satisfied customer of US Mobile. I can’t believe I waited this long to switch. 🙏📱
What kind of speeds do you get and where are you licated?
Excellent video a update on visible they have change up the whole deal new customers have to choose either a $30 or $45 plan and no option for party pay. However I hear it's much better in areas that it used to suck in now so may be worth the $5 more. Personally never used it. I been with mint a couple years now and have found it to be very good and tough to beat on price. I am considering switching to boost yearly plan only for new customers at $25 a month by paying $300 up front for the "unlimited" plan the almost identical plan at mint is $360 a yr plus taxes and fees. No taxes or fees on most but not all boost plans.
what about for international plans?
I have 4 lines on a family plan with T mobile, unlimited data and text/ calling, always good speed. 45.00 per month each person. Can’t beat it plus 2 dollar Netflix.
I use Ting. It’s a good one to use.
Love the video! But just FYI, 2G stands for second generation not two gigabyte.
Just got an Unlocked Nokia 225 on Tello and it’s fantastic. Unlimited 4G LTE VoIT running through T-Mobile, wide coverage area, monthly with no annual contract whatsoever, plus free for students for the first month, with every other month being $20.
Also mint mobile and visible both steal and sell your data
I just changed from Verizon to Mint. Verizon cost me about $67 a month, and Mint cost me $15 a month with only one difference that I can see. I now have 5G.
what is the best pay as you go?
like pay $5 for 100 minutes or txts, and they last forever until you use them all up.
I switched from t mobile to us mobile. T mobile works well in big city, but I travel a lot. T mobile has no service in a lot of rural areas. It’s scary to driving at night without service.
i had MintMobile for 6 months, but now happily use tracfone- where are the new phones!
I think the biggest mistake people make is buying a carrier specific phone these days…. If you look into your carriers phone bill because you got your phone for cheap through att or whatever you still end up paying for the entirely of the phone by the end of that contract. It’s better to just buy and Unlocked phone directly from Apple, Samsung, or whomever.
I am definitely going from T-Mobile to Mint Mobile definitely
T-Mobile has gone downhill as of late
Will be switching from T-Mo to Visible since T-Mo is way too expensive and has zero coverage in my area.
Can you do an update now that Visible is changing their plans? Is there a comparable T-Mobile mvno that has a similar plan to Visible's $45/month plan?
US Mobile has a 50gb plan on t-mobile for $45
I use cricket and applied for the California help line and before my bill was 30 dollars a month with great service and 5 gigs of high speed service and then I applied for the help line in California and now I don't pay anything I have free cricket service and its month to month no plan 😀 all I have to do is use it and it's free .... but I use wifi alot but it's free
All new visible mobile plans out there now.
Buying in bulk doesn’t work for me. I use well over 30 GB of data each month. Make sure to read the fine print on these plans. I only do prepaid from Cricket, AT&T prepaid, Metro by T-Mobile, T-Mobile prepaid, Boostmobile, or Verizon prepaid.
Visible is unlimited no data cap. I use also over 30 gb
@@Watch-0w1 Visible is picky about accepting certain unlocked devices. It wouldn’t allow me to use my Samsung Galaxy S10 which was unlocked. Not to mention I was able to use it on Verizon itself. That turned me off from Visible.
@@Nomadicways yeah I not 100 on what work. My S10+ work but not a s8.
Also I currently using a LG wing Verizon version that I bought after LG wing t mobile version didn't work. The both were unlock.
Visible have it con that I put up with because 25 pricing for truelly unlimited data
They also have a free trial that you can use to test which phone work. No credit card required
Tello is $29 a month plus tax for unlimited, I don't know why this wasn't mentioned but then again it was a T-mobile option, so they probably decided to use Mint instead
Tello and Mint is not true unlimted,, BUT Mint have 10gb more than Tello. Tello has on 25gb of data while Mint has 35gb of data before it is capped to 2G speeds.
I use a esim from Orange Luxemburg whitch allows free US-Roaming as well.
I can use up to 250 GB than the speed will slowed down to only 512kbit's!
Why are the US-Plans so bad?
Amazing! How much per month is this plan?
@@evankaden657 39 Euro so 40 us Dollar only
What about Metro?
Stetson Doggett on RUclips is great at breaking down mobile plans.
I’m visible at 35$ a month I love the hotspot I use it often
Excellent explanation 💯💖💖💖💯💯💯 I'm leaving Visable for MINT Mobile after 2 almost 3 years Visable resist changing my current 40.00 plan to their NEW 30.00 dollar plan saying my Brand NEW Samsung S21 FE is Not Compatible & trying to Force me into purchasing a New Visable phone.
My Samsung S21 FE is Unlocked 🔓 Thank Goodness.
I live in New Zealand and I have an iPhone 14 Pro Max, my Mother has a iPhone SE 22 my parents my sister and I are going to be visiting Seattle and Los Angeles in May 2023 we want to get a temporary line for both the phones I have mentioned and have been told they wont work on Verizon what would you recommend for us in this situation?
Are all the phones unlocked? If they are then I don’t see why you would not be able to get on an American plan.
@@plum_locoThey won’t work on Verizon but will work on AT&T and T-Mobile
Surprised metro didn’t make the list
straighttalk 45 a month unlimited everything and data only slows after 60 gb month
Definitely sticking with what I got. which is AT&T prepaid $30 a month with 5Gigs of data. not going back to postpaid $85 a month Which for 3years
US Mobile may be a good choice for you. They're the best deal in wireless right now.
I use Tracfone.
Just get family mobile for $24 unlimited plan makes sense to me ☺️
What do you think about Spectrum mobile?
I really like it, but that's because I'm happy with only 1Gb of data for $14 per month. However, those who use the internet features when away from their personal router may use a lot more data, and end up with a higher bill. You really need to call them and compare their prices.
Mint charges a hidden $18.50 admin fee plus $2.80 tax both yearly totals that they do not tell you about or make any mention of.
Red Pocket
Visible works well for us. Unlimited allthethings, decent in our area, free hotspot from our phones for the kiddos, and being able to include randos in our party plan (since there are only two of us for now) is a good way of bringing the cost down to $25 (after taxes!). I haven't tried the others on the list so I don't know how they compare service-wise but they work well for us!
Visible is trash.. lol nothing but complaints from users on all forums..
Well naturally, you think people flock to forums to sing the praise of their mobile carrier? Of course not, complaints are always the loudest and you can find that for anyone I'm sure. Anyway, not trying to convince you or anything but they're far from trash, at least in my area.
@@doslover don't waist your time replying to ignorante comments like that one
Yep every carrier service varies depending where you live unfortunately
I had Tracfone and the service was great until my phone locked me out and they wanted$300 dollars to unlock the phone. So I bought a new phone, it was defective. I contacted TracFone and they told me to send that phone back for a replacement phone. I did and I am still waiting , after 2 months,for my replacement phone and I am getting the run around from them. I absolutely loathe TracFone with a passion.
How about tech support for these cheaper providers, please?
None
She has such a beautiful voice.
Hello mobile is $25 monthly and unlimited 5g
2:43 cheapest unlimited data plan $30/mo. Mint Mobile uses T-Mobile network.
With Mint mobile my data was used up very quickly now using Visible $25 a month unlimited talk text 5G with hotspot
I had Visible, 5 lines, for > 1 year. It's service can be sketchy especially laggy data. Nevertheless, we are moving to US Mobile
I'm looking at them now.
How's the service in your area?
@@bid9086 Visible $45 > $30 Plan. I had dropped calls & super laggy data on $30 Plan.
@@71_button
I keep hearing that.
Thanks for the response. 👍
Us mobile seems like the best option.Mixed reviews as well but overall people seem to like it.
What about US Mobile. I use them and have 30GB data with unlimited calls and unlimited text for $30. Why they didn't make this list?
And TELLO gives you free international calling to 60 countries. Mint does not. So if your family (like mine) lives in Europe, it's Tello all the way.
@@MortalHuman bro tello is more for immigrants like you and these plans are for American citizens that don't care for calling aboard like immigrants like you do
@@MortalHuman Mint has free international to 80 countries including the UK, Canada and Mexico.
The AT&T yearly plan has been the most convenient for me. $300 per year for 8GB data a month. 😊
12gb month less than $2 here
It's 16gb 300$ now new promo
DO NOT GET VISIBLE...That's why I'm here, looking for a new data plan. HORRIBLE deprioritization all the time...unusable. I FORBID YOU TO GET VISIBLE.
What area are you in
@@SanJose408Alex Small Town in Rhode Island. I think the main issue is Verizon, regardless of where you live. Horrible speeds. Horrible deprioritization . I'm switching to Tello. You customize your own plan! Mine is 10 gigs data, 300 minutes talk, unlimited text, $22 per month . I'm waiting for their sim card to come in the mail.
They are the worst! Omg! I tired them for 2 days lmao- I was about to lose my phone number so I ported out to a Stetson suggestion Service, US Mobile. It’s great! I did eSim too!
Hello mobile is $5 for unlimited talk text n some data
It's a bummer that Visibles CEO is changing everything. Now there are two plans and pricing has gone up.
If you're tech savvy you could port out then back to visible and get the 5 bucks off paypal offer and get the basic plan for 25 bucks instead of 30. But for some it's too much of a hassle
jokes on you im watching this on us mobile with data saver mode on at 240p
Mint is literally just an add campaign for T-Mobile to sell more minutes.
I'm a student and looking forward to buy a iPhone 13 pro. Is my choice correct?
Androids over iPhones; Apple is far too overpriced for what its worth.
Wait for iPhone 14 pro
Yes buy iphone13 pro
very worth it
Depends, if you have the money to front now, it'll last longer than Androids due to its chipset and lengthy OS support.
Why no mention of roaming charges and service abroad?
my thoughts exactly...
It's very difficult to find an inexpensive plan for the elderly. They are not streaming Netflix; they just want to call their grandkids. The most they might learn to do is a few texts. Moreover, many live far from some cell towers, so some carriers work better than others.
Meanwhile in UK £10 unlimited everything
My sister has been on a Vodafone SIM-only deal for almost 2 years. Cost: £20 (c.$25) per month - 100GB data, unlimited calls\texts.
One week before her deal was due to end *Vodafone called her* to encourage her to stay with them,
The result?
*200GB data (5G included),* unlimited calls\texts for.....drum roll.... *£18.00 ($23) per month!*
American phone plans are, in comparison, a complete ripoff.
@@idlesurfer214 I got £15 unlimited everything including data with o2
@@AsifAzam Nice one! It boggles my brain how Americans think that paying $100 a month for 30/40/50gb of data *is a good deal* - I don't care how many lines that includes (which I also think is ridiculous).
They seem happy to pay *multiple-times more for the mobiles* than we in the UK and Europe; *multiple-times more for prescription drugs than the rest of the world,* yet rant, rave, and threaten civil war, when they have to pay a few more cents for a gallon of petrol (gas).
America is "exceptional" - but not in a good way.
Mint mobile isn’t guaranteed to work , as well as your 30 a month unlimited plan turns into 40 after the first 3, and yes my service never worked and I was on the phone for hours with them to solve nothing.
Those off brand wireless companies that are under the wing of their big brothers are those wireless companies way of using a loop hole in regulations that prevent prioritized tiers.
30gb then 3g is a terrible use of the word unlimited
I am guessing T Mobile spends a lot to advertise on CNET.
You wish
I see this was paid my Mint Mobile..lmao.. No mention of US Mobile huh why????
Once she recommended Mint Mobile I tuned out and knew she was talking BS!
Love the information! I’m shopping now for a phone service.
Don’t love the vocal fry though.
5:09 Boost mobile is terrible if you travel for work like I do I could walk down a street and lose my signal The internet speeds are capped at 10GB saids unlimited but its false advertisement I paid $50 and lost most of my internet in a week Its terrible service also the customer service is in another country if that lets yk what kind of service you get
Spectrum is pretty solid
Spectrum could not activate our phones . We never got to use them even one day ,they then refused to refund our money stating restocking fees . On phones we never got to use cause they could not activate them . Be Careful
@@adambrock7692 That was a bad decision made by a phone rep. Call them back and explain the problem to someone else. If necessary, ask to speak with a supervisor.
@@montanaman3911 oh trust we have . We also reached out to BBB and corporate . Who makes promises and never has refunded us .
@@montanaman3911 We asked to speak with a supervisor was informed ,We could not. Mind you this was after a couple of months . Still could not activate phones and Charter refused to help . Corporate made promises months later ,still waiting .
How much did Netflix pay for that stranger things ad
I'm white we don't all know each other so it would be harder to find people to join to lower my bill. What I'm saying I would be responsible for the hole bill.
😊😊😊😊😊😊🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Very heavy data user 200-300 a month none of this plan will be good for me.
ATT family plan works out to $45 per device all in (taxes and fees). This is more or less true unlimited everything plus HBO Max access. Not amazing but solid.
Edit: plan includes hotspot too
Mint is 300 for the year
@@thecunninlynguist 200-300 gb a month
Maybe get off the phone and use Wifi instead of mobile data lmfao..
Don't have wifi at my house cell data speeds are fast enough for what I use it for
Do not go with visible, don’t even consider it.
red pocket...? hello...?? anyone...?
*Please seek a vocal coach* 😖
outdated
Calm down
in the US........... (Dont forget you have a worldwide audience)
Yeah, us American's get screwed with Mobile and Internet costs. It's sad.
@@BruhHowDidIGetHere Nere in the UK, my sister has been on a Vodafone SIM-only deal for almost 2 years. Cost: £20 (c.$25) per month - 100GB data, unlimited calls\texts.
One week before her deal was due to end *Vodafone called her* to encourage her to stay with them,
The result?
*200GB data (5G included),* unlimited calls\texts for.....drum roll.... *£18.00 ($23) per month!*
American phone plans are, in comparison, a complete ripoff.
@@idlesurfer214 Very true. The USA is far behind Europe and other countries when it comes to technology in general.
Voicebburn atbend ofnevery sentence. Why dobso many women dobthisnnow
Her lips really weird me out
HORRIBLE visible service 😮😮😮😮😮
Don't get simple mobile