Mint Mobile vs. Verizon: Which carrier is best for your needs?

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Mint Mobile offers fantabulous worth against a awesome bearer for illustration Verizon, though it lacks high-end features for illustration prioritized premium data. Mint Mobile; Verizon; Business Insider

When comparing Mint Mobile to Verizon, you're comparing a smaller, value-minded bearer to a awesome bearer that offers premium features for illustration faster information speeds, much hotspot data, and various different perks.

Mint Mobile is simply a mobile virtual web usability (MVNO) owned by T-Mobile. It uses T-Mobile's web for sum and work and tin beryllium considered a fund type of T-Mobile. Verizon is simply a awesome bearer that owns its ain network, and acknowledgment to nan premium features connected its postpaid unlimited plans, it tin beryllium considerably much expensive. Verizon besides has somewhat cheaper prepaid plans without high-end features, but its comparative "budget" options ray successful comparison to nan scheme assortment and cost-effectiveness of Mint Mobile, which offers immoderate of nan best inexpensive compartment telephone plans connected nan market.

Apart from pricing, nan main differentiator betwixt Mint Mobile and Verizon is web coverage. If you observe that 1 aliases nan different has mediocre sum successful your area, that unsocial could settee your decision.

Plan offerings

Both Mint Mobile and Verizon connection a assortment of information plans, including unlimited plans. However, Mint Mobile offers much plans pinch constricted information that consequence successful a substantially little monthly bill, while Verizon's plans are mostly much costly crossed nan board.

Mint Mobile offers prepaid plans for three, six, and 12 months. The MVNO is nan amended action for individuals and families (or friend groups) pinch aggregate lines looking for a comparatively little monthly bill, moreover if nan bearer doesn't supply discounts for further lines. It becomes particularly affordable if you take a constricted information scheme complete a longer prepaid period.

The floor plan beneath compares nan per-line costs of Mint Mobile's champion worth offering (12-month prepaid plans) to Verizon's mobile scheme offerings (with nan autopay and paper-free billing discount enabled), which see prepaid plans for constricted aliases unlimited information and 3 different postpaid unlimited plans.

For those who request comparatively constricted data, immoderate of Mint Mobile's plans presents amended worth than Verizon's 15GB prepaid plan. Read our afloat Mint Mobile review for a complete position of nan MVNO's scheme offerings.

Those who want unlimited information connected a fund should besides disregard Verizon's prepaid plans successful favour of nan much cost-effective unlimited plans from Verizon's MVNO, Visible Wireless. See our afloat Visible Wireless review aliases our guideline to Mint Mobile vs. Visible for a comparative breakdown of nan 2 fund carriers.

Premium features

Mint Mobile offers a fewer premium features, including mobile hotspot data, but it comes obscurity adjacent nan postulation of high-end features and perks connected Verizon's mainstream unlimited plans.

"Unlimited" limits

Mint's nominally "unlimited" information scheme fundamentally offers 40GB of monthly data. After you've utilized 40GB of monthly 5G aliases LTE information (subject to deprioritization), information speeds will beryllium drastically reduced to 3G speeds (512kbps), which leaves astir data-intensive tasks "limited and/or inaccessible," arsenic Mint puts it.

When Verizon says "unlimited" data, it mostly intends conscionable that. Verizon has nary information headdress for high-speed information connected its postpaid Unlimited Plus and Unlimited Ultimate plans, and its only constricted "unlimited" scheme is nan postpaid Unlimited Welcome option, which has a whopping 500GB of monthly data.

Verizon's prepaid Unlimited and Unlimited Plus plans connection unlimited data, but it's taxable to deprioritized speeds. However, nan Unlimited Plus prepaid scheme guarantees 50GB of premium, prioritized monthly data.

You should opt for a Verizon postpaid scheme if you expect to usage much than Mint's 40GB limit for its unlimited scheme aliases don't want to acquisition artificially deprioritized speeds. Even if you someway transcend 500GB of information successful a azygous month, Verizon says speeds are reduced to 4Mbps, which is capable for societal media apps, euphony streaming, and lower-resolution video streaming astatine 720p.

Premium data

Only Verizon's high-end Unlimited Plus and Ultimate plans characteristic genuinely unlimited premium data. Premium information remains arsenic accelerated arsenic nan web allows successful your sum area, and it's prioritized against regular information for MVNO customers and those paying for little costly plans.

All Mint Mobile plans, Verizon's prepaid plans beneath nan Unlimited Plus tier, and Verizon's Unlimited Welcome postpaid scheme connection regular information that tin beryllium deprioritized astatine immoderate time, which intends speeds tin beryllium artificially slowed comparative to higher-paying customers successful congested areas.

To beryllium sure, moreover premium information tin besides go slower than accustomed during web congestion. However, successful our testing, it's usually not to nan grade of modular data.

Mobile hotspot

Mint Mobile offers a mobile hotspot that pulls from your regular information plan. For instance, pinch nan 15GB information plan, you stock those 15GB pinch your regular telephone and mobile hotspot data. Oddly, Mint Mobile's Unlimited scheme has a 10GB limit for mobile hotspot, which is technically little than you'd get pinch nan 20GB aliases 15GB plans.

For Verizon's postpaid plans, only nan Unlimited Plus and Ultimate plans see 30GB and 60GB of mobile hotspot data, respectively. The Unlimited Welcome scheme doesn't see mobile hotspot data. You tin bargain hotspot plans ranging from $20/month for 15GB to $80/month for 150GB. It's a bad woody if you often request mobile hotspot connectivity, but you tin adhd and region hotspot information erstwhile you want (on a monthly basis), truthful it's a bully action if you occasionally request it.

Verizon's prepaid plans connection various mobile hotspot information tiers that are mostly little cost-effective than Mint Mobile's comparable offerings. Verizon's 15GB prepaid scheme pulls from your monthly information allotment, while its Unlimited scheme offers only 5GB of mobile hotspot data. The Unlimited Plus Plan guarantees 25GB of prioritized, high-speed hotspot data.

Smartwatch and tablet connectivity

Verizon, not Mint Mobile, is nan prime for those pinch data-connected smartwatches aliases tablets. Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

Mint Mobile doesn't connection abstracted plans for smartwatches aliases tablets that support cellular connections, for illustration nan best Apple Watch pinch WiFi + Cellular, aliases nan best iPad pinch WiFi + Cellular.

In contrast, Verizon's postpaid unlimited plans support nan aforementioned cellular-connected devices pinch abstracted optional plans. Smartwatch plans commencement astatine $15/month, and tablet plans astatine $30/month. Note that Verizon's Unlimited Plus and Ultimate postpaid plans see a 50% discount for connected instrumentality plans.

Family aliases group plans

Mint Mobile lets you create a family scheme pinch up to 5 lines but doesn't connection multi-line discounts. Rather, nan family scheme allows nan relationship holder to negociate nan lines. You tin operation various Mint Mobile plans nether a family plan.

Verizon lets you create a family scheme pinch up to 10 lines, and nan value per statement tends to get little pinch each line. For example, six to 7 lines connected Verizon's Unlimited Welcome scheme trim nan per-line costs to $27/month (with autopay discount) compared to $30/month pinch 4 lines. In a Verizon family plan, you tin besides operation and lucifer and person different plans for each line.

Contracts

While Mint Mobile is simply a prepaid bearer without contracts, it has nary monthly costs option. It only offers three-, six-, aliases 12-month prepaid plans. You could move to a different bearer earlier your plan's play runs out, but you will already person paid Mint Mobile for that scheme period, and you won't get a prorated refund. With that successful mind, Mint Mobile locks you successful for whichever scheme play you spell for, unless you forfeit your payment.

Verizon offers prepaid plans without a statement and postpaid plans pinch a contract. Its mainstream unlimited plans are postpaid pinch a statement for month-to-month aliases two-year costs periods. With nan month-to-month option, you tin cancel your work whenever you want to without incurring an early termination fee. Surprisingly, Verizon is much elastic successful this measurement than Mint Mobile, but location are different ways you tin fastener yourself successful pinch Verizon.

Verizon deals pinch a 36-month (three-year) commitment

If you return advantage of a Verizon telephone woody — to person a free iPhone 16, for lawsuit — you'll beryllium connected nan hook pinch an eligible Verizon scheme and that iPhone 16 for 36 months.

If you break nan telephone deal's requirements earlier nan 36-month play is up, you'll person to salary nan remaining equilibrium based connected nan number of months near successful nan period.

New Verizon customers looking astatine nan deals for nan iPhone 16 series should besides statement that nan statement tends to require signing up for nan Unlimited Ultimate postpaid plan, nan carrier's astir costly tier. Existing Verizon customers whitethorn not beryllium beholden to that requirement.

Verizon besides offers a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) promotional credit. In this credit, you perpetrate to 36 months of Verizon work but tin upgrade to a different telephone that you bargain independently of Verizon. If you break nan position of nan credit, for illustration changing to a non-eligible plan, you'll beryllium nan remaining equilibrium of nan 36-month promo credit.

If you for illustration nan elasticity to cancel service, alteration plans, aliases upgrade phones whenever you want, we urge avoiding immoderate woody aliases promotion pinch a time- aliases plan-based requirement, for illustration a caller telephone woody aliases BYOD discount. With that successful mind, your champion stake is to bargain your telephone separately from Verizon, arsenic the best iPhones and Android phones are disposable unlocked from various retailers, and see nan astir cost-effective scheme for your needs.

Coverage

Mint Mobile's sum representation is nan aforesaid arsenic T-Mobile's, arsenic some tally connected nan aforesaid network. Mint Mobile

Mint Mobile is simply a mobile virtual web usability (MVNO) that operates connected and matches T-Mobile's nationwide web coverage, while Verizon has its ain network.

Generally speaking, T-Mobile (and, therefore, Mint Mobile) has fantabulous sum successful cities, suburbs, and highways. Meanwhile, Verizon has much wide sum that reaches much extensively into nan agrarian parts of nan US.

Your first privilege successful deciding betwixt nan 2 carriers should beryllium assessing Mint Mobile's and Verizon's respective sum maps to get a wide consciousness of really good nan areas you predominant are covered.

Verizon mostly has amended sum successful agrarian areas than Mint Mobile (and T-Mobile). Verizon

With truthful overmuch variety successful sum crossed nan country, it's intolerable for america to opportunity whether Mint Mobile aliases Verizon will activity champion for you successful your circumstantial location, and sum maps unsocial whitethorn not beryllium capable to relationship for real-world usability.

To that end, we'd urge you inquire family, friends, and neighbors successful your area which web they usage and whether they're happy pinch their service. If they're unhappy, you tin inquire which bearer they've heard useful best. You tin besides broaden your study by asking locals connected societal media platforms for illustration Facebook aliases Nextdoor. It's besides worthy looking into sum for out-of-town destinations you usually visit.

Data speeds

Mint Mobile offers 4G LTE and basal 5G entree connected T-Mobile's web pinch a maximum estimated velocity of 357Mbps, which is much than accelerated capable to usage data-intensive apps for illustration societal media and watercourse euphony and video. However, nan MVNO is taxable to deprioritized speeds astatine immoderate time.

All of Verizon's plans connection entree to 4G LTE and basal 5G, and each of its unlimited postpaid plans (and nan Unlimited Plus prepaid plan) includes entree to precocious 5G networks. These networks supply faster high- and mid-band 5G connections, besides known arsenic mmWave and C-Band 5G. Verizon calls its faster 5G networks "5G Ultra Wideband."

While Verizon Unlimited Welcome postpaid customers tin link to Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband network, speeds are constricted to 25Mbps. In contrast, nan Unlimited Plus and Unlimited Ultimate postpaid plans tin scope up to 634Mbps.

Anyone tin use from nan higher speeds of nan Unlimited Plus and Ultimate plans, but fewer arguably request them. My home's 300Mbps net relationship is much than capable for simultaneously streaming a 4K video, a video meeting, a Twitch stream, a smart location camera stream, scrolling done photos and videos connected societal media, and web browsing.

Still, precocious 5G networks besides person overmuch higher capacity than basal 5G, which intends they tin support much web postulation pinch little consequence of congestion and slower information speeds.

Perks and discounts

Mint Mobile's superior discount is simply a long-standing new customer promotion that sets immoderate of its three-month plans, moreover nan unlimited (40GB) plan, astatine $15/month. After 3 months, pricing returns to modular rates. It's much of a short-term proceedings connection that helps you determine whether Mint Mobile is for you.

Verizon offers discounts connected services that thief trim your monthly expenses, astatine slightest if you already subscribe to nan services nan bearer discounts. Verizon

Verizon's unlimited plans person galore much tempting discounts and perks. With each discount applied, including auto-pay, paper-free billing, existing Fios customer, and BYOD discounts (if you're comfortable pinch nan BYOD 36-month commitment), Verizon's mid-tier Unlimited Plus postpaid scheme pinch 4 lines tin beryllium moreover much affordable than Mint's Unlimited prepaid plan.

Verizon could really coming amended wide worth than Mint Mobile if you worth definite perks, for illustration discounts connected nan Disney Bundle, Netflix and Max, Apple One, Walmart Plus, Apple Music Family, aliases YouTube Premium. Even better, each statement tin prime a perk, truthful savings tin heap up quickly if you person 4 aliases much lines successful your account.

There are galore perk and discount combinations, truthful you tin cipher which discounts you tin usage and which perks make nan astir consciousness for you, arsenic good arsenic really galore lines you need, for nan champion value from Verizon.

Customer support

Mint's mobile app stands retired arsenic peculiarly straightforward to use. Eve Montie/Business Insider

Mint Mobile has 1 of nan champion apps successful nan business for managing your plans and getting related information, for illustration really overmuch information you've used. If you commencement disconnected pinch a little information plan, you tin quickly move successful nan app anytime to a scheme pinch much aliases unlimited data. Reaching a quality for support is amazingly speedy and easy done nan in-app chat characteristic aliases by calling Mint's dedicated support line.

My acquisition pinch Verizon customer support has been mostly rather good. It's a monolithic company, truthful it's somewhat understandable that reaching a quality for support tin return longer than a smaller bearer for illustration Mint. Yet, I've been capable to scope customer support reasonably promptly by matter chat and connected nan phone, though how agelong it takes will disagree connected different days. Verizon besides uses a call-back strategy that calls you erstwhile it's your move successful statement to get support connected nan telephone alternatively of waiting connected hold.

The My Verizon app is fine, but it's much cluttered than nan Mint Mobile app. Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

While Verizon's app and website for relationship guidance mostly work, they aren't arsenic intuitive aliases user-friendly arsenic Mint Mobile's. You tin besides brushwood galore Verizon ads and calls to upgrade phones, lines, and services that clutter nan wide acquisition of utilizing nan app.

Which should you motion up for?

Mint Mobile and Verizon connection a assortment of plans for different needs and budgets. Eve Montie, Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

Whichever bearer has nan champion web sum for you should beryllium your superior deciding factor. Mint Mobile's affordable prices won't matter if T-Mobile's web doesn't supply nan sum you need, for example. Conversely, taking advantage of Verizon's premium features and perks won't make consciousness if Verizon doesn't activity good successful your area.

However, if some Mint Mobile and Verizon person comparable sum successful your area, see nan following:

Mint Mobile is nan champion action for budget-conscious individuals, groups, aliases those who cognize they don't request monolithic amounts of monthly data. It's nan much cost-effective bearer crossed nan committee for those who thin to usage their phones only for calls, messaging, and moving basal apps.

Verizon is simply a awesome bearer pinch prices that bespeak much precocious scheme offerings and features. Heavy information users mightiness want aliases moreover request nan carrier's options for extended hotspot data, super-fast precocious 5G networks, aliases unlimited premium data.

If Mint Mobile's information limits look restricting, Verizon's postpaid unlimited plans are among nan best compartment telephone plans for larger families aliases friend groups pinch 4 aliases much lines, arsenic plans tin go importantly much affordable than one- to three-line plans. If immoderate of Verizon's premium features are appealing aliases necessary, nan carrier's prices are justifiable, whether you person a single-line relationship aliases 10 lines, and you tin return advantage of perks and discounts to thief trim nan monthly measure further connected services you're already subscribed to.

Verizon's Unlimited Welcome scheme is nan worst woody successful its postpaid lineup. While comparable to Mint Mobile's Unlimited scheme successful position of features, pinch its constricted information speeds comparative to Verizon's mid- and top-tier plans, nan Unlimited Welcome scheme costs importantly much for one, two, aliases 3 lines than Mint's Unlimited plan. Only see Verizon's Unlimited Welcome scheme if you person astatine slightest 4 lines to adhd to your account.

Likewise, we wouldn't urge immoderate of Verizon's prepaid plans against Mint Mobile's much affordable offerings for constricted information aliases nan much cost-effective unlimited plans from Verizon's MNVO, Visible Wireless.