“Unlimited” is a funny term. Unlimited cell phone plans often come with a long list of footnotes, terms, conditions, and exceptions. Mercifully, all of the Big Three cell companies have, by now, ditched throttling on their most expensive plans and include 5G data access in all their unlimited plans. Yet there are still many differences in the services they offer, and there are many differences between each carrier’s various tiers.
Cheaper “unlimited” tiers do offer unlimited talk and text. But they still have rules on how much data you get before they start throttling your speed, and some “unlimited” plans may throttle your data at any given time. It’s been a fixture of cell service plans for years.
It can be overwhelming, which is why I’ve broken it down. Below, I’ve highlighted what each of the three major carriers offers for “unlimited” individual and family plans to help you figure out which unlimited plan is best for you and your budget.
If you absolutely want to avoid slower data speeds at peak times, you’ll likely be choosing among the plans here. But look to our guide to the Best Prepaid Phone Plans for lower costs at the expense of some limitations. Also check out WIRED’s guides to the Best Android Phones, Best iPhones, and Best Cheap Phones.
Update February 2026: We updated prices and plans for all three major carriers. We added T-Mobile’s Essentials Saver Plan and rebranded Better Value Plan as well as AT&T’s rebranded Premium PL, Extra EL, Saver SL, and Value Plus VL plans.
The Best Unlimited Plan Right Now: T-Mobile Experience More/Better Value Plans
The Essentials plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $60/month | 2 Lines $90 | 3 Lines $90 | 4 Lines $100 | 5 Lines $125.
Essentials Saver plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $50/month | 2 Lines $80 | 3 Lines $140
Experience More/Better Value (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $85/month | 2 Lines $140 | 3 Lines $140 | 4 Lines $170 | 5 Lines $200
Experience Beyond (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $100/month | 2 Lines $170 | 3 Lines $170 | 4 Lines $215 | 5 Lines $260
T-Mobile has the best 5G coverage among the big three, the highest 5G speeds, the fastest downloads and the best overall reliability, according to analysis from OpenSignal and Ookla. The carrier also makes claims to winning on value, when you take into account perks that include entertainment bundles, airplane WiFi, and access to satellite data in emergencies.
T-Mobile has rebranded its unlimited offerings this year but still offers three (or kinda four) main unlimited talk and text plans: Essentials, Experience More, and Experience Beyond. Only the two Experience plans offer true unlimited 5G data without any throttling or deprioritizing (i.e., making your phone stand in line for data behind other, more important, phones during peak demand.)
For merely occasional jet-setters and those who want consistent phone upgrades, Experience More is the best affordable phone plan among all services. This adds WiFi during flights, 4K video, 60 gigs of high-speed mobile hot-spotting, a modicum of international data, a AA membership, free ad-supported Netflix, and cheap ($3) Apple TV. It’ll also let you upgrade your phone every two years so random children don’t make fun of your ancient iPhone at a rest stop (yes, this has happened to me.)
If you want 3 lines or more and you’re a new T-Mobile customer (or a 5-year T-Mobile customer), you have access to an even better deal. The limited-time-only Better Value plan is in fact., possibly the best deal in phonedom at the moment. For the same price as the 3-to-5 line Experience More plans, you add free ad-supported Hulu, access to the T-Satellite emergency network, unlimited mobile hot-spotting, 30 gigs of international data in hundreds of countries, plus additional watch and tablet lines for just $5 a line. With the exception of phone upgrades every two years instead on every year, the perks are actually better than T-Mobile’s highest price plan, at a much lower price. This sale price is also locked in for 5 years.
If cost is more important to you than perks, and you don’t travel a lot internationally, the Essentials plan is what we recommend for people with big families. It’s no frills, just the phone, ma’am, with no subscription money going to streaming services or international carrier fees. Your hot spot is limited to 3G speeds if you’re a laptop warrior, an important consideration for many, and video streaming is 480p. But at its price point, Essentials is the only plan among the big three carriers to offer premium data (up to 50 GB) that won’t be throttled. If you’ve got home WiFi, that 50GB should be sufficient for most people. Besides, it’ll teach your teens how to budget, and how to ask for the WiFi password instead of using their own data. But take note: Data in Canada and Mexico will be so slow you might as well have an old flip phone.
Note that the Essentials Saver plan—for years a kinda unadvertised super-discount plan—is basically identical to T-Mobile’s Essentials plan but $10 cheaper for a single line. The difference is that you don’t get any version of phone financing, it’s only good for up to three lines, and you don’t get any special discounts for extra lines. At three lines, it’s a terrible value compared to other plans. But if you’re single and already have a phone, it’s the cheapest plan on offer, and you still get 50 gigs of utterly unsquelched data. Just make sure to buy your own cheap phone.
Do you actually need Experience Beyond, T-Mobile’s most premium plan? Maybe not, unless you are a true digital nomad or a nomad in general—or just hate the idea of limitation. If this describes you, the Beyond plan offers unlimited high-speed mobile hot-spotting, doubles or triples your international data, and lets you upgrade your phone every year so that no one ever has anything you don’t. It also adds ad-supported Hulu (but not Disney). Most essential for backcountry trekkers, Beyond adds access to T-Satellite data, which is to say Starlink data. So if you happen to get mauled by a bear miles from the nearest cell tower, you can still share your location, text 911, and send SMS messages and photos. This service can be added to other plans for a $10 premium.
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, 30 GB of 5G data on Experience and Better Value plans). First responders, military and veteran families, and those aged 55-plus all get discounts. (For those 55 and up, T-Mobile is by far the most economical.) The Essentials plan will not throttle back your data speeds until you’ve used 50 GB, which is still a lot. Experience and Better Value plans don’t throttle, and offer in-flight Wi-Fi and texting on flights with Gogo. They also offer free or discounted Netflix (with ads) and Apple TV, pls Hulu with ads for the Beyond and Better Value plans.
TIRED: The Essentials tier still throttles data, and only includes 3G speeds if you use your phone as a Wi-Fi hot spot, which is terribly slow. HD streaming only available for Experience and Better Value plans. At $15 more per line, the Beyond plan offers only a few perks that’ll likely be relevant to most people.
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.
Best Phone Plan for Video and Gamers: Verizon Unlimited Ultimate
The Unlimited Welcome plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $55 | 2 Lines $95 | 3 Lines $115 | 4 Lines $100 | 5 Lines $130
The Unlimited Plus plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $70 | 2 Lines $120 | 3 Lines $135 | 4 Lines $160 | 5 Lines $205
The Unlimited Ultimate plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $80 | 2 Lines $145 | 3 Lines $175 | 4 Lines $200 | 5 Lines $255 Verizon is the best situated to compete with T-Mobile, in part by being so modular—allowing its users to sever pretty much all the perks and just buy the data for cheaper. This said, Verizon hiked prices on its phone plans over the past two years, which company executives this year admitted caused millions to shed Verizon service, The company’s new CEO, Daniel Schulman, has pledged to avoid “empty price increases” moving forward, and rates have held steady in 2026 on unlimited premium data, with the option to lock in the price for 3 years. For existing customers, the company has also returned to its reliance on loyalty discounts, unlockable through the MyVerizon app.
Verizon doesn’t compete with T-Mobile on the array of perks included with premium plans, nor on 5G download speed or the overall user experience, according to analysis by OpenSignal and Ookla. But Verizon has a few advantages over T-Mobile. Because Verizon severs perks and entertainment from its premium plan—offering discount streaming instead as an add-on—Verizon’s Plus and Ultimate plans are your cheapest path to unlimited 5G data.
Verizon also has the edge on gaming and 5G video experience, according to OpenSignal, with a raft of partnerships with gaming and video companies. And while AT&T might have the best availability in farthest-flung places, Verizon still barely edges it out for best overall coverage. Two decades later, we can still hear you now, bro.
But as for Verizon’s lowest cost option, Verizon Welcome? Just as with AT&T, throttling for congestion can happen at any time, and video quality is limited. But if you want 4 phone lines, dear lord it’s cheap: just $25 a line, with discounted streaming add-ons possible.
WIRED: Like the competition, every plan includes 5G data access (but 5G is slower on the Start plan). Verizon has the best coverage area overall, according to OpenSignal, as well as the best gaming and 5G video experience. Up to 40 percent discounts on streaming services, as well as some international features and better video streaming, can be added as options.
TIRED: The basic Welcome Unlimited plan offers no Wi-Fi mobile hot spot, and Verizon may throttle your internet speed during any “congestion.” It includes 5G access, but not the fast version, and only 480p video. The “unlimited” mobile hot spot and international data on the premium Ultimate plan has some fine print, with lowered data speeds after certain thresholds. In general, check the fine print on each plan: More than other carriers, Verizon deals heavily in asterisks.
Will your phone work? Verizon’s website has a “Bring Your Own Device” feature you can use to see if your phone is supported on the network.
Best Unlimited Phone Plan for Rural and Military/First Responders: AT&T Unlimited Premium
Value Plus VL plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $52 | 2 Lines $104 | 3 Lines $114 | 4 Lines $124 | 5 Lines $155
The Unlimited Starter SL plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $66 | 2 Lines $122 | 3 Lines $138 | 4 Lines $144 | 5 Lines $155
The Unlimited Extra EL plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $76 | 2 Lines $113 | 3 Lines $153 | 4 Lines $164 | 5 Lines $180
The Unlimited Premium PL plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $86 | 2 Lines $152 | 3 Lines $183 | 4 Lines $204 | 5 Lines $230
If T-Mobile is the king of 5G speed and coverage across the most populated areas of the United States, AT&T offers better coverage for lower-speed 4G LTE in more sparse areas, especially in the American west.
AT&T offers three tiers. These tiers have been rebranded slightly in 2026, with some updated offerings.
AT&T’s top-tier, $86-a-month Unlimited Premium PL includes 4K video streaming capability and 60 gigs of mobile hot spot, and has no data throttling. It also rings in at a lower price than T-Mobile’s, but doesn’t quite offer T-Mobile’s breadth of international data (aside from a somewhat random selection of Latin American countries), in-flight, or entertainment options, nor does it offer T-Mobile’s unlimited mobile hot spot. On its face, this makes AT&T’s top-tier plan a bit more comparable to T-Mobile’s less expensive mid-tier plan.
The $76 a month Unlimited Extra EL has half the mobile hot spot data (30 gigs), no international roaming, and still has throttling after 75 gigs of data, making it comparable to a beefed-up version of T-Mobile’s most basic Essentials plan.
The basic Unlimited Starter SL plan just isn’t competitive with T-Mobile’s basic Essentials plan. It costs more than T-Mobile or Verizon’s low-tier plans, and throttles data during congested times without any premium data ceiling. This lowest-tier plan does have a welcome 5G of hot spot data, before being throttled down to 128KBps. Note that if you click the “Other Plans” tab on AT&T’s site, you can access a slightly discounted 55-and-older plan that’s similar to the Starter plan but with slightly more hot spot data.
The new Value Plus VL plan, like T-Mobile’s Essentials Saver plan, removes some phone financing options in exchange for extremely low prices. Unlike T-Mobile’s bargain basement plan, it offers a nice price break when you hit three phone lines. Data’s unlimited, but throttling is possible at all data usage, and streaming is limited to “standard” 480p.
But AT&T’s focus on coverage for sparsely populated areas and a lower price point for unlimited high-speed data may still make it the plan of choice for many people. I also like that AT&T lets you mix and match different plans for different lines, meaning you can give yourself a Premium line and stick your freeloading 12-year-old with a lower-cost Starter. AT&T’s military discounts are also kinda unbeatable, as are first responder discounts through the FirstNet & Family wireless network. The company now offers a downloadable ActiveArmor app that can block spam calls, and offers some identity theft protection, and protection while using public WiFi networks. The latter two services cost $4 a month on the lowest-tier plan, but are included with the Extra and Premium plans.
WIRED: Every tier includes 5G data speeds. AT&T’s 4G LTE coverage is unmatched in less populated areas. You won’t be throttled at all on the Unlimited Premium plan, and on the Unlimited Extra plan, you won’t be throttled until you hit 75 GB of data. If you’re on the Unlimited Premium, you get a big 60-GB bucket of mobile hot spot to tether to other devices and 4K video streaming. Great discounts for military and first responders.
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 unlimited (but slow) 3G-network data. It doesn’t have HD video streaming or international data either. The mid-tier plan offers only standard streaming and throttles after 75 GB, unlike T-Mobile’s. (Though to be fair, 75 GB is a lot.) No unlimited hot spot option included with any plan.
Will your phone work? AT&T has a Device Compatibility PDF you can use to check your current phones.
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 until it’s paid off. As long as you’ve fully paid for your phone, your wireless carrier is obligated to unlock it for you, though there can be a delay (up to a year per FCC rules, though 60 days is the most common standard). 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 or through a different network, you may need to find the IMEI number in your device settings, then check in with your desired carrier or its website to make sure your device is compatible (and actually unlocked). Here are some helpful resources for AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. Internationally, sites such as FrequencyCheck.com may be useful, but don’t assume that these contain up-to-date information: On a February 2026 check-in, we noted a number of 2025 phone models that were not yet featured on the site.
How to Check Network Quality in Your Area
If you live in a rural or topographically challenging area, do some research before you switch your carrier. Ask neighbors, friends, and relatives nearby what their coverage is like. But also use the FCC mobile broadband map to track how effective networks are in your area. Just enter your address and you’re good to go. Otherwise, you can download the OpenSignal app to check on your location. Chances are high that all three wireless carriers will work just fine, but it’s smart to check before switching.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: wired.com
