Four networks to choose from

• Choose your network

  US Mobile

  US Mobile is a prepaid carrier with access to each of the Big Three carrier networks. With three unlimited plans and an affordable By the Gig plan, heavy and light users alike should be able to find a good value with this carrier.

  Pros

  • Three networks to choose from
  • Multi-month savings
  • Cheap smartwatch data

  Cons

  • No multi-line savings
  • No truly unlimited option

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  A new coverage option

  Boost Mobile

  Boost Mobile is more than a budget prepaid carrier these days with its own 5G network underway and AT&T backing it up. With a handful of unlimited plans and some bundles with a new device, Boost could be a strong pick for many.

  Pros

  • Plenty of high-speed data for most people
  • A growing 5G network plus AT&T
  • Save on a new flagship phone

  Cons

  • Some taxes and fees are extra
  • No truly unlimited option
  • No multi-line savings

Boost Mobile is a bit of an up-and-comer with its new network and plans, despite the name being around for years. Boost has gone from being a budget-oriented prepaid carrier on the Sprint network to building its own 5G network to become a legitimate fourth player alongside AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. US Mobile, on the other hand, has chosen diplomacy and provides coverage with each of the Big Three carrier networks.

Boost stands out thanks to its Infinite Access plans that come with a new Galaxy or iPhone, but doesn’t offer any extra savings to families looking to bring multiple lines. US Mobile is also focused on single-line plans with its best prices coming with annual plans as well. If you’re ready for a new phone, Boost can make a lot of sense, but US Mobile stays more competitive when it comes to standard plan pricing.

Mobile carrier features

US Mobile is an interesting carrier when it comes to how it manages to keep its plans competitive in the quickly evolving prepaid space.

One of US Mobile’s greatest strengths is its choice of networks, which allows customers to pick between the Big Three networks to get the coverage and data speeds that work best in their area. While AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon each offer strong nationwide coverage with fast 5G, one may be significantly stronger in your area. Luckily, US Mobile lets you choose your network and even allows you to easily switch after the fact.

US Mobile has also kept its plans competitive with three unlimited options that support annual payments to make them even cheaper. While it doesn’t have any truly unlimited plans, its top option with 100GB of high-speed data should be plenty for just about anyone. US Mobile also has a By The Gig plan with a low enough cost of entry that it’s also one of the best light plans around.

All US Mobile plans come with some hotspot data, so no matter which plan you choose, you can use it on whichever device you want. US Mobile also includes international calling, texting, and sometimes roaming, depending on which plan you get. If you go with a cheaper plan, you get international add-ons, including eSIMs to use while traveling abroad.

Boost Mobile, like US Mobile, is a fairly unique carrier. It was once known for having some of the lowest prepaid prices with mediocre Sprint coverage, but has reinvented itself under Dish Wireless with its own 5G network build in progress and AT&T coverage filling in the gaps. This is important because, while Boost now has solid coverage in many cities across the country, there are still plenty of gaps, especially in rural areas where AT&T thrives.

There’s nothing really special about Boost’s plan features, but it has the basics covered with hotspot data included with its two larger unlimited plans and a few international perks. The modern Boost Mobile has even held on to the old Boost Mobile Todo Mexico add-on with roaming in Mexico and Canada with 5GB of high-speed data, though it’s now called North America Connect.

Boost Mobile’s best features are its new phone deals. To start, there are two Infinite Access plans that come with a new phone included with the price. You can save up to $800 off a new Galaxy phone or $1000 off an iPhone over 36 monthly bill credits, but you also can upgrade every single year if you like. If you don’t like payment plans, you can pay for a phone in full and get a year of service included.

Mobile coverage and reception

US Mobile has access to the Big Three carrier networks, so when you activate your SIM, you can choose between Warp (Verizon), Light Speed (T-Mobile), or Dark Star (AT&T) with the ability to switch later on with a feature called Teleport. This is nice because, if US Mobile suits you, you don’t need to worry about using a network you have no experience with. It also gives you a chance to try multiple networks to determine which is best for you.

Boost Mobile, on the other hand, is hard at work building its own network and would like its customers to use that coverage as much as possible. Unfortunately, it takes quite a bit of time to build a cell phone network, so Boost is still lacking coverage in many towns, suburbs, and rural areas.

The carrier has therefore teamed up with AT&T to fill in the gaps. If you live in a city, you’ll probably see some native Boost 5G coverage, but will also likely find yourself using the AT&T network from time to time. Luckily, you don’t need to worry about which you’re using, and your phone should connect to the right network on its own.

With both of these carriers, you get full access to 5G, but data may be a lower priority than on postpaid carriers. You can upgrade your priority on the Dark Star AT&T SIM, but not the other two. For the most part, your connection priority shouldn’t be a big deal, but if you live in a congested area, you could see some slowdown in peak times. This is true of most data plans with a range of data priorities.

Phone compatibility

Since it has the three most popular networks behind it, just about any phone from the past few years made to work in the U.S. should work on US Mobile without issue. While US Mobile’s multiple networks are good for finding the best coverage in your area, they can also be good for phone models with fewer devices in the wild, such as the Nothing Phone 2a, which will technically work on T-Mobile, or something like the OnePlus 12.

Most of the best Android phones, like the Samsung Galaxy S24 series and the Pixel 9 series, should work without a hitch on either of these carriers. If you’re ready for something new, Boost is a standout with a solid range of Android phones and iPhones to choose from. You could select something cheaper like the Galaxy A35 as well to save some money. Plus, if you pay for the phone in full, you can get a free year of service with it.

If you can’t pay for your phone upfront, Boost offers 36-month payment plans on its phones, while US Mobile only offers 24-month financing through Affirm. Whether you prefer a 24-month or 36-month term depends on your upgrade habits, but if you’re looking for the lowest price tag, Boost comes out on top.

Plans

Both of these carriers offer a solid set of features with international options, hotspot data, and high-speed data. Both carriers, for instance, have a $25 unlimited plan, but neither carrier is totally unlimited with Boost offering 30GB of high-speed data, while US Mobile comes with 35GB. This also carries over to hotspot data with Boost’s base unlimited plan coming with none and US Mobile including 10GB.

Both carriers offer a solid set of plans, but it’s a good idea to understand which features you need most, and how much data you typically use. If you need less than 30GB of data in a typical month, you can get a $25 per month plan with either carrier, but if you use a lot less, you could probably save with US Mobile.

US Mobile’s plans

US Mobile has three unlimited plans and a By the Gig plan with shared data. Starting with Unlimited, the cheapest plan is called Unlimited Flex, though calling it “unlimited” is a stretch with only 10GB of high-speed data that’s slowed to 1Mbps if you use it all. At least 5GB of hotspot data is included for use on another device.

This plan is only available if paid annually at $210 per year, which works out to around $17.50 per month, so it’s still a solid value.

Moving up, Unlimited Starter is the sweet spot for a lot of people at $25 per month, or $22.50 per month if paid annually. This plan gets 35GB of high-speed data with 10GB of hotspot data. For the most part, this is a fairly straightforward plan and a good pick for those coming from another unlimited plan who don’t want to worry about running out of data on a new carrier.

Unlimited Premium takes high-speed data up to 100GB with 50GB of hotspot data, which is plenty for all but the heaviest streaming and speed testers out there. This plan also includes international calling and texting for free. Unlimited Premium users can also use the Teleport feature to switch to another network as much as they want. On Unlimited Starter and Unlimited Premium, usage in Mexico, Canada, and Puerto Rico is included.

For lighter users, US Mobile has a By the Gig plan that starts at $10 per month with 2GB of data included; also called the Light Plan, it’s $96 per year. If you need more data or more lines, you can get data at $2 per gigabyte or $15 for 10GB, and lines can be added for $8 each, making this a strong shared data family plan. It also comes with US Mobile international calling, texting, and usage in Mexico, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

One thing to note is that taxes and fees are included in the price of all US Mobile’s plans, so you don’t need to account for extra fees at the end.

Boost Mobile’s plans

Boost Mobile also has three unlimited plans, but there are quite a few differences compared to US Mobile. Starting with the base unlimited plan, you’re looking at $25 per month with 30GB of high-speed data. This plan doesn’t have hotspot data and, like US Mobile’s unlimited plan, lacks multi-line savings.

While Boost’s cheapest $25 per month plan is a good value for the features it has, it’s still a bit expensive for some lighter users. The value of this unlimited plan is also hampered a bit by not including taxes and fees like the larger plans. This plan is the basis for its two $65 per month Infinite Access plans, which include a new iPhone or Galaxy.

Infinite Access comes with the same 30GB of high-speed data but also comes with global talk and text, plus the North America Connect add-on. North America Connection allows for roaming in Mexico and Canada with 5GB of high-speed data per month. As for the savings on a new device, Infinite Access for Galaxy users save $800 on a new phone, while Infinite Access for iPhone saves $1,000 on a new phone.

Moving on up, for $50 per month, you can get the Unlimited+ plan with 40GB of high-speed data, hotspot usage, and Global Talk and Text. Boost also includes taxes and fees in the price of this plan, so there is no surprise at checkout. You can even get $300 in device savings if you’re ready for a new phone.

For just $10 more, you can get the Unlimited Premium plan that’s loaded with all the features of Unlimited+ with a few upgrades. New device savings are up to $430 and the North America Connect add-on is included. For data, you’re looking at 50GB of high-speed data, which should be plenty for most heavy users. If you’re looking for truly unlimited data, you’ll need to check out some of the other best value data plans available.

Which should you buy?

US Mobile’s plans continue to stand out among the competition thanks to a fairly simple set of features, the freedom to choose your own network, and simple pricing with taxes and fees included. US Mobile’s plans cover a wider range of people, with its Light Plan being a perfect fit for lighter users, while its top unlimited plans get double the high-speed data of Boost at 100GB.

For most people, US Mobile’s Unlimited Starter plan is a good starting point at $25 per month with taxes and fees included. You can even save a bit more by paying for a full year upfront. While you don’t have as many deals on new devices as Boost Mobile offers, if you’ve already got a phone you like or are willing to buy one unlocked, it should work great on one of US Mobile’s networks.

Boost Mobile is far from a bad value, and if you have the right set of needs, it could still be the right pick for you. For example, if you need a new phone, Boost has some of the most impressive deals around with its two Infinite Access plans that come with new devices. For those that like to pay their phone off all at once, they can get a free year of service with their new phone.

Even though US Mobile comes out ahead, Boost’s reasonably cheap unlimited plans can still be a good deal for many, especially if you want to take the new network for a swing.