Looking for more data? Here are the best unlimited data plans
How do you use your cell phone? If your answer includes streaming music, watching videos or using your device as a Wi-Fi hot spot, it might be time to consider an unlimited data plan.
Stream聽just 30 minutes of video per day and you鈥檒l use聽more than 5GB of data per month. Jam out to Spotify for an hour or two each day and you鈥檙e looking at another 2GB to 4GB of monthly data usage. Use your phone as a mobile hot spot 鈥� which lets you use聽other devices, such as a laptop or tablet, on your phone鈥檚 high-speed data connection 鈥� and you can quickly burn through a dozen or more gigabytes in a billing cycle.
When you hit the double digits, a聽聽with unlimited data is often your best bet. But keep in mind that even unlimited plans have some restrictions聽鈥� all of them聽cap high-speed data usage at around 23GB per month. If you hit that threshold, your connection聽might聽be 鈥渄eprioritized,鈥� that is, slowed considerably. Even if you buy an unlimited plan, you should still connect to Wi-Fi when you can to conserve your data.
Best unlimited data plan
聽unlimited data plan is a great value for heavy data users. It costs聽less than buying a few gigabytes from聽other carriers and even聽厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 own 12GB plan. AT&T and T-Mobile also offer unlimited data plans, but they both cost聽at least $20 more each month. Verizon does not offer an unlimited plan.
厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 plan isn鈥檛 the best deal out there, though. That distinction聽goes to Boost Mobile, a prepaid carrier that uses 厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 network. But聽Sprint has an聽edge over Boost: It聽lets you聽pay for your device in installments. Boost and other prepaid providers typically require you to shell out full price for your device upfront 鈥� that鈥檚聽as much as $600 for the latest iPhone聽or Samsung model.
- Plan name:聽Sprint Unlimited Talk, Texts and Data.
- Monthly price:聽$75.
- Plan at a glance:聽Unlimited minutes, texts and high-speed data, plus 3GB mobile hot spot allowance.
- Why we like it:聽It鈥檚 cheaper than AT&T and T-Mobile鈥檚 unlimited plans, and unlike AT&T鈥檚 plan, doesn鈥檛 require you to bundle your cable and wireless services.
Things to know:
- You can add additional lines to your plan for $60 per month per line.
- Sprint charges a $30 activation fee for each new line.
- Mobile hot spot usage is capped at 3GB per month, and you鈥檒l pay $15 per gigabyte for additional聽hot spot data. Avoid using your phone for Wi-Fi on other devices, or consider a plan with a larger聽.
Other Plans at this price point:
- : 6GB for $80.
- : 5GB for $75.
- : 10GB for $80.
Best prepaid unlimited data plans
聽gives聽customers unlimited data for $15 less per month than Sprint does, while still using 厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 nationwide network. It also offers a聽$5 monthly discount to those who聽opt for autopay.
聽offers an equally great deal 鈥� minus the autopay discount 鈥� on T-Mobile鈥檚 network. Plus, customers with a聽聽avoid a credit check and any long-term ties to the carrier.
, which is owned by AT&T, also offers an unlimited plan 鈥� but at $70 per month and with no mobile hot spot option, it didn鈥檛 make the cut.
- Plan name:聽Boost Mobile Unlimited.
- Monthly price:聽$60 ($55 with autopay).
- Plan at a glance:聽Unlimited minutes, texts and high-speed data, plus 8GB mobile hot spot allowance.
- Why we like it:聽An unlimited plan with none of the commitments and a $5 monthly discount for automatic payments.
- Plan name:聽MetroPCS Unlimited.
- Monthly price:聽$60.
- Plan at a glance:聽Unlimited minutes, texts and high-speed data, plus 8GB mobile hot spot allowance.
- Why we like it:聽One of the cheapest unlimited plans available, and it has a generous amount of hot spot data.
Things to know:
- Boost: The company assesses payments made in store or by phone with a customer service agent $3 鈥渃onvenience fee.鈥� And you鈥檒l pay full price to purchase a new phone,聽but if you have a phone through Sprint,聽.
- MetroPCS: You can save $5 per line each month 鈥� up to a maximum of five lines 鈥� if聽you make your plan a聽. But you鈥檒l pay聽a service fee of $2 to $3.50 for each payment made over the phone, in a store or at a Western Union location. You鈥檒l also pay retail price for a new phone. Smartphone prices range from $29 to nearly $650. But if you聽,聽you might be able to activate it聽with the carrier. Keep in mind that T-Mobile owns MetroPCS and, when there are demands on the network, it gives priority to T-Mobile branded customers. That means MetroPCS customers in busy areas might have slower data speeds.
How others compare:
- Cricket Wireless: Unlimited for $70.
- Sprint: Unlimited for $75.
- Verizon: 3GB聽for $65.
Best unlimited data plan for mobile hot spot users
Sometimes you just need Wi-Fi. T-Mobile鈥檚 unlimited聽plan includes 14GB of mobile hot spot data each month, which far exceeds the 3GB allowed on聽厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 unlimited plan and is nearly double that offered by聽Boost and MetroPCS.聽You鈥檒l pay a premium for that access, though. T-Mobile鈥檚 unlimited plan costs $20 more per month than 厂辫谤颈苍迟鈥檚 and $35 more than most of the prepaid options out there.
- Plan name:聽T-Mobile Unlimited Simple Choice.
- Monthly price:聽$95.
- Plan at a glance:聽Unlimited minutes, texts and high-speed data, plus 14GB mobile hot spot allowance.
- Why we like it:聽It鈥檚 pricier than other plans, but you get nearly double the data for mobile Wi-Fi usage.
Things to know:
- T-Mobile charges a $20 鈥淪IM Starter Kit鈥� fee for new activations.
- You can have up to six lines on one account.聽聽don鈥檛 share data, so you鈥檒l choose between 2GB, 6GB, 10GB and unlimited data packages for each additional line.
- T-Mobile鈥檚 unlimited plan is available as a prepaid plan for the same price.
How others compare:
- AT&T: Unlimited for $100. A DirecTV or U-Verse subscription is required.
- Sprint: Unlimited for $75.
- Verizon: 12GB for $100.
Kelsey Sheehy is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email:ksheehy@nerdwallet.com. Twitter:聽. This article first appeared at .
