Best and Worst Phone Plan Providers - Consumer Reports (2024)

Switching to a new wireless carrier may seem like a hassle, but according to a recent Consumer Reports members survey, it’s well worth the effort. While more than 40 percent of respondents said they had been using their current provider for over a decade, 7 percent had changed services in the previous 12 months—and some saved more than $40 a month.

“Verizon and AT&T are clearly getting outmaneuvered for new customers by the smaller providers,” says Martin Lachter, a research program leader in CR’s survey department. “The biggest reason for this is cost.”

Some people reported that their new provider gave them better customer service, cellular coverage, call quality, and/or data speed.

Best of the Big Three

AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon dominate the market, but they certainly don’t command our members’ hearts. If you had to pick a clear winner, it would be T-Mobile, which finished 10th among the 19 services in our ratings with middle-of-the-road marks across the board for value, customer support, data service, and cellular reception.

A significant percentage of CR members who changed providers went to T-Mobile, often drawn to the company’s cheaper plan options. Many noted that they received better customer service and/or data speeds after they went to T-Mobile.The company’s plans start at $55 per month (or $50 per month for customers 55 years and older) for one phone line with 50 gigabytes of high-speed data.

In contrast, AT&T finished dead last in our ratings, behind 18 other companies, big and small. It got a poor mark for value and a weak mark for customer support, though data service and cellular reception were both rated adequate. AT&T offers a one-line unlimited call, text, and data plan for $50 per month.

Verizon is just one step above AT&T in our ratings, falling short when it comes to customer support and getting a poor mark for value, although data service and reception are rated as acceptable. Of those CR members who had switched providers in the previous 12 months, more reported leaving Verizon than any other carrier, primarily citing cost. In fact, the number of CR members who reported leaving Verizon is more than four times higher than the number who reported joining its service.

CR members who switched to either AT&T or Verizon were also more likely to have their monthly costs increase and discover unexpected charges or fees on their bills than those who switched to T-Mobile or a smaller provider.

U.S. Cellular, now on the verge of being purchased by T-Mobile, earns the title of third-worst carrier, due in part to its low rating for value. Its marks for customer support, data, and reception are all middle of the road.

Best Small Wireless Provider

At the top of our ratings chart you’ll find a bunch of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). Due in large part to their low-cost plans, these MVNOs are now attracting new customers at a clip. In fact, nearly four times as many CR members reported switching to a smaller provider—rather than leaving one—in the 12 months before the survey.

Companies like these provide low-cost service by purchasing minutes and data from AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon, thereby saving on the operation costs tied to owning a cellular network. When network traffic is heavy, though, the big carriers slow service for MVNO customers before their own.

Consumer Cellular scored the best of all the cell phone services—including the Big Three: Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile—on our ratings list. It’s the only wireless provider to earn an excellent rating in the categories of customer support and data service. (And solid customer support can be hard to come by, we learned. Thirty-four percent of CR members who had contacted customer service in the year before taking the survey reported problems with customer service, such as long wait times and unhelpful solutions to problems.)

Consumer Cellular also earned an excellent score for value and our second-highest rating for cellular reception.

The service operates on the networks of AT&T and T-Mobile, and its plans start at $20 per month with 1GB of data for a single line. Each additional line costs a flat $15 per month. The company offers an AARP discount and its own Consumer Cellular-branded flip phones.

Other MVNOs worth considering are Mint Mobile, Ting, Cricket, and Google-Fi, which rank in that order for overall satisfaction, just behind Consumer Cellular.

Mint Mobile and Ting are the two companies other than Consumer Cellular to earn a top mark for value. Operating on the networks of T-Mobile and Verizon, Ting offers a pay-as-you-go data plan starting at $10 per month, as well as plans with monthly data allotments starting at $25 per month and unlimited data plans starting at $45 per month.

Mint Mobile uses T-Mobile’s network. Its plans, which it sells in 3-, 6-, and 12-month buckets, start at $15 per month with 5GB of data. (Fun fact: Funny man and movie star Ryan Reynolds is a part owner of the company.)

A final top performer, Google Fi, which is operated by Google and runs on the T-Mobile network, was midlevel for customer support and cellular reception but received a strong mark for value and data service. The provider offers two unlimited data plans for $50 or $65 per month when adding a single line.

Best for Cellular Reception

Only four companies in our ratings—all MVNOs—earned strong scores for reception: Consumer Cellular, Credo Mobile, Cricket, and Ting. Every other cell service provider earned a middle-of-the-road rating.

Credo Mobile runs on Verizon’s network and donates a portion of its revenue to socially progressive causes that its customers vote on. The company also earns a solid score for data service and a midrange score for value. We didn’t receive enough survey responses to rank its customer support. Credo Mobile’s plans start at $35 per month for a single line with 1GB of data.

Cricket—also mentioned above as one of the best overall small service providers—runs on AT&T’s network. In addition to its well-regarded cellular reception, the company gets favorable marks for value and data service. Cricket offers a discount if you opt for a yearlong plan and pay $300 up front. That plan is $25 per month for a single line and unlimited data. The next cheapest unlimited option is a $55-per-month plan.

Best for Minimal or No Data Usage

If you don’t need a lot of cellular data—for example, if you often have access to a WiFi network—it may be worth looking at wireless companies that charge for data on a per gigabyte basis. These plans can provide even steeper discounts.

Ting’s Flex plan, for example, costs just $10 per month per line for unlimited talk and text. Data is then $5 per gigabyte. And Google Fi’s Flexible plan charges $10 per gigabyte of data after you pay for a base $20 per month plan. Google’s plans also include built-in VPN, which can improve safety on unsecured networks.