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Phone Plans

The Best Prepaid Cell Phone Plans to Save Money For the Same Service and Features

By
Sara Nuss
February 23, 2023

There are a ton of cell phone plans to choose from and it can be difficult to find the one that best fits your needs. Each plan has its own features including the necessities, and even other perks such as a mobile hotspot and international calling and texting,, but overpaying for a plan is something you shouldn’t do.

With so many cell phone plan options to choose from, it’s essential to find a plan that best fits what you are looking for, and this could potentially be prepaid plans. Prepaid plans help you to save money while also giving you all of the features you need.

If you’re not sure how to approach prepaid plans, or maybe which ones are the best for you, consider these top plans and why you should choose this type of plan instead!

If you are looking to switch cell phone carriers, then consider looking into Really to help you with all of your phone services needs! At Really, you can compare phone plans to get more bang for your buck, and you can see what carriers and plans are in your area, sort by price, best value and more, and even click on the plan you wish to learn more about in an instant. 

Why You Should Consider a Prepaid Plan

While getting a plan through one of the big carriers ensures you’ll get great service and coverage, you can get the same with a prepaid plan!

Getting a cell phone plan is essential and a prepaid one can help you to save money while still getting the best features possible. Image courtesy of Inc. Magazine.

It can be difficult to decide on a cell phone plan, but are you aware that you may be paying too much for a plan through T-Mobile, AT&T, or Verizon Wireless? They may be regarded as the best carriers in the country and they strive to give their customers everything that they want in a plan, but they can be too expensive. 

If you want to save money, but still get the most out of your cell phone plan, you should consider a prepaid cell phone plan for many reasons. Let’s discuss some of the reasons we think they would fit for you!

Fits Within Your Budget

While there are many reasons to choose a prepaid cell phone plan for either yourself or for your family, the biggest reason of them all is because of how affordable they are. While you can pay hundreds of dollars for a cell phone plan through one of the big carriers, prepaid plans aim to give you the same service and coverage for a much better price.

Let’s put it into perspective, so you can get an idea of how much you can be saving with a prepaid plan. You can save up to $600 in just two years by switching to a prepaid cell phone plan, which is a bunch of extra cash in your pocket, but this also depends on the carrier you switch to and what kind of plan you get. 

Can Still Use T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, or AT&T’s Network

Another great reason to consider a prepaid cell phone plan is because you can still use T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, or AT&T’s network. 

You may be wondering how you can select the right prepaid plan with the coverage that works best in your area, and the best way to do this is by checking out a coverage map. This will be able to tell you what network works best in your area, so it can help narrow down your choices for what prepaid plans to choose. 

Unlimited Plans Available

Just like many other Americans, you may be looking into an unlimited cell phone plan, but wondering if prepaid plans can give you those kinds of options as well. The answer is that unlimited plans on prepaid cell phone plans do exist and many carriers offer more than one as well.

Having unlimited talk, text, and data is very convenient to have and while they are a little more expensive than set data allotment plans, they aren’t nearly as bad to pay for if you had an unlimited plan with a larger carrier. You can still save money even with an unlimited cell phone plan and take advantage of high-speed 4G LTE or 5G speeds.

Flexibility With Upgrading or Downgrading Plan

Another great reason why so many people prefer to use a prepaid plan over a plan through a large carrier is because of the flexibility that is offered on a month-by-month basis. With big carriers, you are normally strapped into at least a one to two-year cell phone plan where you are stuck with the plan and if you try to change it or terminate the contract, there are extra fees involved.

With a prepaid cell phone plan, you can upgrade or downgrade your plan every month with ease. Whether you need more data, so you’re not overpaying each month, a mobile hotspot, or even if you need to take someone off of your plan ASAP, you can do that at no extra cost. 

Keep Your Same Phone and/or Phone Number

Another reason why prepaid plans really are truly amazing when it comes to choosing your next plan is because they allow you to use your current phone and number on their plans. For the big carriers, many of them prefer that you get a cell phone through them to pay off. Prepaid plans allow you to save more money by using the cell phone you already have.

No matter what cell phone that you currently have, it is important to look into if it’s unlocked or not before choosing any prepaid phone plan. You can do this by contacting the carrier that you bought your cell phone from so they can tell you, or help you through the process of unlocking it for you. 

The Best Prepaid Cell Phone Plans to Check Out

Find the plan that best suits your needs all while saving more money every month!

Cell phone plans are great to have, but finding the best prepaid one that fits your budget and gives you everything you need is essential. Image courtesy of Money

Now that you have decided that a prepaid cell phone plan is exactly what you’re looking for, you now need to decide which one is the best for you. With so many prepaid plans to choose from, it can be tough to narrow down your choices on what is the best for you. 

Let’s discuss some of the most popular prepaid cell phone plans to make your decision a bit easier!

Google Fi

If you are someone who is constantly traveling for their job, or you are just looking to get one of the best unlimited cell phone plans that there is to offer, you should consider looking into Google Fi’s plans right away. Google Fi offers its customers the best plans if you need multiple lines where they offer a flexible plan and also unlimited plans too.

There are a ton of extra features that come from getting a cell phone plan through Google Fi to check out. Some of the features include:

  • Unlimited talk and text
  • Unlimited high-speed 5G data
  • T-Mobile’s 5G nationwide service and coverage
  • No contracts or activation fees
  • Built-in VPN and spam blocking
  • Data budgets available
  • Contact controls available
  • 24/7 customer support
  • Easily switch plans whenever you want to
  • Use Fi app to manage your account anytime
  • Mobile hotspot available on some plans
  • Entertainment perks available
  • 100GB of cloud storage available on some plans
  • Free unlimited international talk and text to Canada and Mexico
  • Free talk and text to over 200+ countries on some plans

Now, let’s go over the three main cell phone plans that Google Fi offers its customer, which include:

  • Flexible - $17 per line per month plus for unlimited talk, text, and $10 per GB of data used 
  • Simply Unlimited  - $20 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and data
  • Unlimited Plus - $40 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and mobile hotspot

Mint Mobile

One of the best prepaid cell phone carriers that are essential to check out based on how well their service is and also all of the good reviews they get is Mint Mobile. Owned by actor Ryan Reynolds, this MVNO offers both set data allotment and unlimited data plans while giving customers the option to choose the three-month, six-month, or year-long phone plan.

There are plenty of other reasons why people decide to get a Mint Mobile cell phone plan, and it’s because of their amazing features, which range from:

  • Unlimited talk and text
  • Unlimited 35GB of 4G LTE or 5G data with reduced data speeds after
  • Uses T-Mobile’s 5G nationwide coverage
  • 3-in-1 SIM Card Kit or eSIM for eligible cell phones
  • Keep your current cell phone and number when switching to Mint Mobile
  • Free international calling and texting to Mexico and Canada
  • 5GB of a mobile hotspot available
  • Wi-Fi calling and texting available
  • New customer discounts
  • Add two lines starting at $15 per line
  • Flexibility to change your plan if you’re not liking it
  • Manage your account with the Mint Mobile app

You also can’t beat the prices on a cell phone plan through Mint Mobile, so let’s go over some of the best ones they offer:

  • $15 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 4GB of data
  • $20 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 10GB of data
  • $25 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 15GB of data
  • $30 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and data

Boost Mobile

Trying to find the best MVNO to get for either yourself or your family is important, and Boost Mobile, a longtime successful prepaid plan carrier offers its customers some of the best prices and features possible. Using T-Mobile network coverage, you can take advantage of all of the extra perks that come from getting one of their cell phone plans and pay as little as $10 per month for a line.

Some of the features on a Boost Mobile cell phone plan are extremely noteworthy and can include: 

  • Unlimited talk and text
  • Set data allotment plans or unlimited data plans
  • Mobile hotspot available
  • New customer only deals
  • T-Mobile’s 4G LTE or 5G nationwide coverage
  • No contract plans
  • Data pack available
  • Phone insurance available to add onto plans
  • International calling to Mexico, Canada, and more
  • Boost call screener to protect against spam calls

There are a few different prepaid plans that Boost Mobile offers its customers that are also important to discuss. Some of their plans include:

  • $15 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 2GB of data
  • $25 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of data
  • $35 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 10GB of data
  • $50 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 25GB of data
  • $60 per month for unlimited talk, text, and 35GB of data

Metro by T-Mobile

If you currently have a cell phone plan through T-Mobile, one of the best things to consider is checking out their very own prepaid plan, with Metro. This MVNO offers some of the best unlimited plans out there, which are all of their plans, and they have some of the best prices and features offered as well.

You won’t be able to pass up all that come with a Metro prepaid cell phone plan, so make sure to check out what they’re offering:

  • Unlimited talk, text, and data on all plans
  • Unlimited high-speed 4G LTE or 5G data 
  • Uses T-Mobile’s incredible network coverage
  • T-Mobile Tuesday offers to get incredible deals on almost everything
  • ScamShield to protect you and your phone from spam calls
  • 5 to 20GB of a mobile hotspot depending on the plan you choose
  • 100GB Google One membership
  • A one-year subscription to Vix+
  • Unlimited talk and text to 210+ countries on their most expensive plan
  • Save money the more lines you add to your plan

Now that you know a little bit about what Metro offers on their plans, the next best thing is what plans they offer. Their three unlimited plans are:

  • $40 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and data
  • $50 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and 5GB of a mobile hotspot
  • $60 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and 20GB of a mobile hotspot

Visible

Now that you know T-Mobile’s MVNO, what about Verizon Wireless? Verizon has also been reputable when it comes to their service and coverage. If you have a cell phone plan through Verizon, why not try out their MVNO called Visible to save money and still get their great service? 

There are a ton of reasons to try out Visible and it’s because of how simple their plans are and even the features they offer, which range from:

  • Unlimited talk, text, and data
  • 4G LTE or 5G nationwide coverage
  • Unlimited mobile hotspot
  • Spam protection
  • Unlimited talk and text to Mexico and Canada
  • 5G ultra wideband on their most expensive plan
  • Unlimited roaming in Mexico and Canada on most expensive plan
  • International calling and texting to 30+ countries
  • International texting to 200+ countries
  • 24/7 access to customer service
  • Add a smartwatch for and extra $5 per month
  • No hidden fees 

Visible offers its customers two different prepaid cell phone plans to choose from to make your life a little bit easier. The two plans they offer are as follows:

  • Visible Plan - $30 per month for unlimited talk, text, data, mobile hotspot, and 4G LTE and 5G nationwide coverage
  • Visible+ Plan - $45 per month for unlimited talk, text, data, mobile hotspot, 4G LTE and 5G nationwide coverage, 5G ultra wideband, and premium network experience

The best thing about prepaid cell phone plans is that you can pay a fraction of the cost for them compared to getting a plan through one of the three major carriers, and possibly pay way more than you need to.

Why not consider one of the prepaid plans that we mentioned above and start saving money while still getting the most out of your service and coverage!

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Sara Nuss
Sara Nuss is a journalist from Pittsburgh, PA that specializes in wireless, dewi, phone plan advice & blockchain.
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Does my phone need to be unlocked?

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How much data do you get on the unlimited plan?

The plan is unlimited, but once you reach 20GB you may experience slower speeds depending on network usage.

How much hotspot data do you get on the unlimited plan?

You get 10GB of hotspot data per month, but can add more if you need to.

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