5 carriers you should sign up for instead of T-Mobile

If you’re shopping for a new cell phone carrier in the US, there’s a good chance you’re considering T-Mobile. As one of the most well-known cell service providers in the country, it’s likely at the top of your shopping list.

But before you pull the trigger on T-Mobile, I’d advise you to first consider the alternatives. Between lackluster new plan offerings and the removal of long-beloved features like taxes and fees bundled into monthly prices, T-Mobile has seen better days.

Whether you’re considering joining T-Mobile for the first time (or are a current customer and thinking about switching), here are a few other carriers I recommend joining instead.

One of the reasons I like Visible so much is how straightforward its plans are. You have just three to choose from, all of which include unlimited talk, text, 5G data, and hotspot usage. The more expensive plans include additional perks such as 5G UW connectivity, faster hotspot speeds, higher-quality video streaming, and enhanced international coverage. You can pay for the plans monthly or yearly, and taxes and fees are included in the price you see on Visible’s website – something T-Mobile is (annoyingly) moving away from.

And speaking of those prices, they’re highly competitive. The standard Visible plan is currently available for just $20/month and has everything most people need. If you want more out of your cell service, the Visible Plus and Visible Plus Pro plans are still really well-priced at $30/month and $40/month, respectively. Visible Plus Pro is the plan I chose, and it comes with 4K UHD video streaming, Visible’s fastest hotspot speeds, and free smartwatch data.

Perhaps the biggest difference between T-Mobile and Visible is that Visible uses Verizon’s network for its coverage. This shouldn’t be an issue at all, but if you know you’re in an area with a good T-Mobile connection, you’ll want to double-check that Verizon is available in your area as well (which it almost certainly is).

One of the other carriers that was at the top of my list when I was looking for a T-Mobile replacement was Google Fi. While Visible worked out better for my situation, my colleague Andrew Grush swears by Google Fi as being the best T-Mobile alternative for most people, and I don’t disagree with him.

For starters, Google Fi uses T-Mobile’s towers for its coverage, meaning if you have good T-Mobile service where you live, you’ll be equally covered by Google Fi. Plus, unlike the other carriers mentioned below, Google Fi customers are prioritized on the same level as regular T-Mobile postpaid plans. During times of network congestion, Google Fi users are prioritized ahead of those with US Mobile, Mint Mobile, and even Metro by T-Mobile.

Google Fi’s plans are also significantly cheaper than T-Mobile’s, starting at $35/month for the Unlimited Essentials plan and going up to $65 for Unlimited Premium. T-Mobile’s cheapest Essential Savers plan costs $50/month and goes up to a staggering $100/month for the Experience Beyond plan. T-Mobile’s Experience plans have extra streaming perks you won’t find with Google Fi, but if you don’t care about those things and just want fast, reliable T-Mobile coverage, Google Fi is the better (and cheaper) way to go.

Google Fi’s Unlimited Premium plan is much better than any of T-Mobile’s plans if international data is important to you, and it’s also unique in that it comes with free data connectivity for tablets and laptops. Plus, no matter what Google Fi plan you choose, you also get free smartwatch data.

Visible ultimately worked out better for my needs and budget, but if you prefer T-Mobile to Verizon’s network — and you don’t want your data throttled when cell towers are busy — Google Fi is an easy recommendation.

If you’re unable to decide if you should get a carrier with T-Mobile or Verizon coverage — or maybe one with AT&T’s network — it might be worth joining US Mobile. Rather than relying on cell towers from one of these companies, US Mobile provides service from all three of them. All US Mobile plans can switch between the three networks (with some restrictions), while US Mobile’s two more expensive plans also allow you to use two of the three networks simultaneously, with automatic switching to whichever one has better coverage at any given time.

While that’s easily US Mobile’s most unique feature, it’s not the only reason to consider it instead of T-Mobile. You can pay for US Mobile plans monthly or annually, and all of them include taxes and fees in the listed price.

US Mobile also supports multi-line family accounts (something Visible doesn’t have), lets you choose unlimited or by-the-GB data plans, and even includes free subscriptions to services like Spotify and Netflix, depending on the plan you choose.

Sorting through all of the plan and add-on options from US Mobile can make it a little overwhelming at first, but it’s by far one of the most robust options on this list — and the only one with coverage from T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T.

If you want to keep things as simple (and cheap) as possible, Mint Mobile may be a great fit for you. Like Google Fi, Mint Mobile relies on T-Mobile towers for its cell service. You’ll be subject to throttling during high network congestion more often than if you have Google Fi, but that may be a perfectly fine compromise for you, considering how affordable Mint Mobile is.

Unlike all of the other carriers mentioned here, Mint Mobile exclusively sells its plans in bulk. Instead of paying a phone bill every month, you buy 3, 6, or 12 months of service at a time. That means a higher upfront cost, but the effective monthly rates are among the cheapest you’ll find.

For example, you can currently pay $45 to get 3 months of unlimited talk, text, and 5G data, working out to just $15 per month. Alternatively, you can pay $240 upfront to get 12 months of unlimited everything, equalling $20 per month.

Are there any downsides? Mint Mobile says you “may experience” slower data speeds if you have the unlimited plan and go over 35GB of data in a single month, and video streaming is restricted to 480p on all plans. Still, for plans that cost this little, Mint Mobile is worth checking out.

Last but not least, if you like some of the features of T-Mobile but want them for cheaper, Metro by T-Mobile could be for you. It’s on the more expensive side of things, but it also mimics the traditional T-Mobile experience better than anything else on this list.

How so? All Metro plans include the same access to T-Mobile Tuesdays that you get with regular T-Mobile plans, giving you perks like gas discounts, free MLB.TV, and more. Metro plans also come with T-Mobile’s Scam Shield technology to help prevent spam calls. Unlike all the other carriers I’ve discussed, Metro has physical stores where you can walk in to sign up for service, buy a phone, or get help with your account.

Metro’s prices range from $40 to $60 per month for its unlimited plans, with the $60 option offering perks such as 25GB of hotspot data, 100GB of cloud storage via Google One, and a complimentary Amazon Prime membership. Better yet, taxes and fees are included in all of the prices.

Your monthly bill with Metro won’t be as low as going with another carrier like Visible or Mint, but if those T-Mobile perks are important to you, Metro might make the most sense.

As happy as I’ve been with Visible in my post-T-Mobile life, there’s a good argument to make for every carrier mentioned above. And there are even more T-Mobile alternatives I didn’t include, such as Helium Mobile and Klarna’s new cell plan.

As such, I don’t think it’s fair to say that one is objectively best compared to everything else. I like the straightforward pricing and features of Visible’s plans, but you may prefer the data prioritization that comes with Google Fi, or maybe getting T-Mobile Tuesdays with Metro.

There’s ultimately no wrong choice here. So long as you pick the plan/carrier that fits your needs the best, that’s all that really matters.