“Unlimited” is a funny term. Unlimited cell phone plans often come with a long list of footnotes, terms, conditions, and exceptions. Mercifully, all of the big three cell companies—Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile—have, by now, ditched throttling on their most expensive plans and include 5G data access in all of their unlimited plans. Yet there are still many differences in the services they offer, including differences between each carrier's various tiers.

Cheaper “unlimited” tiers do offer unlimited talk and text. But they're not universally unlimited in that they still have rules on how much data you get before the carriers start throttling your speed. Some supposed unlimited plans may throttle your data at any given time. It's been a fixture of cell service plans for years.

These details can be overwhelming to sort when trying to pick the best unlimited cell phone plan for your needs. Below, I've highlighted what each of the three major carriers offers for “unlimited” individual and family plans to help you figure out which option is best for you and your budget.

If you want to avoid slower data speeds at peak times, you'll likely be choosing among the plans here. But look to our guide to the Best Prepaid Phone Plans for lower costs (at the expense of some other limitations). Also check out WIRED guides to the Best Android Phones, Best iPhones, and Best Cheap Phones.

Update May 2026: I took note of Verizon's price increase and additional features for its top plan. I also considered AT&T’s reconfigured Elite, Extra 2.0, Premium 2.0, and Value 2.0 plans. Finally, I updated prices and plan details for all three major carriers.

The Best Unlimited Plan Right Now: T-Mobile Experience More/Better Value

The Essentials plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $60/month | 2 Lines $90 | 3 Lines $90 | 4 Lines $100 | 5 Lines $125

Essentials Saver plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $50/month | 2 Lines $85

Experience More/Better Value (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $85/month | 2 Lines $140 | 3 Lines $140 | 4 Lines $170 | 5 Lines $200

Experience Beyond (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $100/month | 2 Lines $170 | 3 Lines $170 | 4 Lines $215 | 5 Lines $260

T-Mobile has the best 5G coverage among the big three, the highest 5G speeds, the fastest downloads, and the best overall reliability, according to analysis from OpenSignal and Ookla. The carrier also makes claims to winning on value, taking into account perks like entertainment bundles, airplane Wi-Fi, and access to satellite data in emergencies.

T-Mobile has rebranded its unlimited offerings this year but still offers three (well, kind of four—I'll explain below) main unlimited talk and text plans: Essentials, Experience More, and Experience Beyond. Only the two Experience plans offer true unlimited 5G data without any throttling or deprioritizing (i.e., making your phone stand in line for data behind other, more important phones during peak demand).

For occasional jet-setters and those who want consistent phone upgrades, Experience More is the best affordable phone plan among all services. It includes Wi-Fi during flights, 4K video, 60 gigs of high-speed mobile hot-spotting, a modicum of international data, a one-year AAA membership, free ad-supported Netflix, and cheap ($3) Apple TV. It'll also let you upgrade your phone every two years so random children don't make fun of your ancient iPhone at a rest stop. (Yes, this has happened to me.)

If you want three lines or more and you're a new T-Mobile customer (or a five-year T-Mobile customer), you have access to an even better deal. The limited-time-only Better Value plan is in fact, possibly the best deal in phonedom at the moment. For the same price as the three-to-five-line Experience More plans, you add free ad-supported Hulu, access to the T-Satellite emergency network, unlimited mobile hot-spotting, 30 gigs of international data in hundreds of countries, plus additional watch and tablet lines for just $5 a line. With the exception of phone upgrades every two years instead of every year, most perks are better than T-Mobile's highest-price plan, at a much lower price. This sale price is also locked in for 5 years.

If cost is more important to you than perks, you have a big family, and you don't travel a lot internationally, the Essentials plan is probably best. It's no frills, just the phone, ma'am, with no subscription money going to streaming services or international carrier fees. Your hot spot is limited to 3G speeds, which is an important consideration for many laptop warriors, and video streaming is 480p. But at its price point, Essentials is the only plan among the big three carriers to offer premium data (up to 50 GB) that won't be throttled. If you've got home Wi-Fi, that 50GB should be sufficient for most people. Besides, it'll teach your teens how to budget and how to ask for the Wi-Fi password instead of using their own data. But take note: Data in Canada and Mexico will be so slow, you might as well have an old flip phone.

Note that the Essentials Saver plan—an under-advertised super-discount plan for many years—is basically identical to T-Mobile's Essentials plan in terms of data speeds and service. But it's $10 less and does not offer access to any phone promo discounts, phone financing, or multi-line discounts. It's also good for only up to two lines. But if you're single and already have a phone, it's the cheapest plan on offer, and you still get 50 gigs of utterly unsquelched data. Just make sure to get your own cheap phone.

Do you actually need Experience Beyond, T-Mobile's most premium plan? Maybe not, unless you are a true digital nomad or a nomad in general—or just hate the idea of limitation. If this describes you, you'll like that the Beyond plan offers unlimited high-speed mobile hot-spotting, doubles or triples your international data, and lets you upgrade your phone every year so that no one ever has anything you don't. It also adds ad-supported Hulu (but not Disney). Most essential for backcountry trekkers, Beyond adds access to T-Satellite data, which is to say Starlink data. So if you happen to get mauled by a bear miles from the nearest cell tower, you can still share your location, text 911, and send SMS messages and photos. This service can be added to other plans for a $10 premium.

WIRED: 5G data speeds are available on every tier, as is international texting and unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico and Canada (possibly nonfunctional 2G data speeds on Essentials, 30 GB of 5G data on Experience and Better Value plans). First responders, military and veteran families, and those aged 55-plus all get discounts. (For those 55 and up, T-Mobile is by far the most economical.) The Essentials plan will not throttle back your data speeds until you've used 50 GB, which is still a lot of data. Experience and Better Value plans don't throttle, and both offer in-flight Wi-Fi and texting on flights with Gogo. They also offer free or discounted Netflix (with ads) and Apple TV, plus Hulu with ads for the Beyond and Better Value plans.

TIRED: The Essentials tier still throttles data and includes 3G speeds only if you use your phone as a Wi-Fi hot spot, which is terribly slow. HD streaming is only available for Experience and Better Value plans. At $15 more per line, the Beyond plan offers only a few perks that are likely to be relevant to most people.

Will your phone work? T-Mobile has a Phone Compatibility Test that lets you search to see whether your phone will work on its network. Most unlocked phones should work.

Best Phone Plan for Video: Verizon Unlimited Ultimate

The Unlimited Welcome plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $55 | 2 Lines $95 | 3 Lines $100 | 4 Lines $100 | 5 Lines $130

The Unlimited Plus plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $70 | 2 Lines $125 | 3 Lines $145 | 4 Lines $160 | 5 Lines $205

The Unlimited Ultimate plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $85 | 2 Lines $155 | 3 Lines $190 | 4 Lines $220 | 5 Lines $280

Verizon is the best situated to compete with T-Mobile, in part by being so modular—allowing its users to sever pretty much all the perks and just buy the data for a cheaper cost. That said, Verizon hiked prices on its phone plans over the past two years, which company executives recently admitted caused millions to leave the carrier.

The company's incoming CEO, Dan Schulman, pledged to avoid “empty price increases” moving forward, but rates have still climbed a bit in 2026 for its top-tier plan. Verizon compensated by adding identity protection and family location monitoring to the service. Streaming bundles also increased in price in May 2026. For existing customers, the company returned to its reliance on loyalty discounts, unlockable through the MyVerizon app.

Verizon doesn't compete with T-Mobile on the array of perks included with premium plans, the 5G download speed, or the overall user experience, according to analysis by OpenSignal and Ookla. But Verizon has a few advantages over T-Mobile. Because Verizon severs most perks and entertainment from its premium plan—offering discount streaming up to 40 percent as an add-on instead—Verizon's Unlimited Plus plan is still your cheapest path to unlimited, unthrottled 5G data. For $15 more, the Unlimited Ultimate plan adds unlimited international data and phone, 4K streaming, smartwatches, family location monitoring, and identity protection.

Verizon also has the edge on 5G video experience, according to OpenSignal, and also offers a raft of partnerships with gaming and video companies. And while AT&T might have the best availability in farthest-flung places, Verizon still barely edges it out to offer the best overall coverage. Two decades later, we can still hear you now, bro.

But as for Verizon's lowest cost option, Verizon Welcome? Just as with AT&T, throttling for congestion can happen at any time, and video quality is limited. But if you want four phone lines, dear lord, it's cheap: just $25 a line, with discounted streaming add-ons possible.

WIRED: Like the competition, every plan includes 5G data access (but 5G is slower on the Welcome plan). Verizon has the best coverage area overall, according to OpenSignal, as well as the best 5G video experience. Up to 40 percent discounts on streaming services, as well as some international features and better video streaming, are optional add-ons.

TIRED: The basic Welcome Unlimited plan offers no Wi-Fi mobile hot spot, and Verizon may throttle your internet speed during any “congestion.” It includes 5G access, but not the fast version, and only 480p video. The “unlimited” mobile hot spot and international data on the premium Ultimate plan have some fine print, with lowered data speeds after certain thresholds. In general, check the fine print on each plan: More so than other carriers, Verizon deals heavily in asterisks.

Will your phone work? Verizon's website has a “Bring Your Own Device” feature you can use to see if your phone is supported on the network.

Best Unlimited Phone Plan for Rural and Military/First Responders: AT&T Extra 2.0

Value 2.0 plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $50 | 2 Lines $90 | 3 Lines $105 | 4 Lines $120 | 5 Lines $150

The Extra 2.0 plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $70 | 2 Lines $120 | 3 Lines $150 | 4 Lines $160 | 5 Lines $200

The Premium 2.0 plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $90 | 2 Lines $160 | 3 Lines $195 | 4 Lines $200 | 5 Lines $250

The Elite plan (with autopay, taxes/fees not included): 1 Line for $110 | 2 Lines $200 | 3 Lines $255 | 4 Lines $280 | 5 Lines $350

T-Mobile may win for 5G speed and coverage across the most populated areas of the United States, but AT&T offers better coverage for lower-speed 4G LTE in more sparse areas, especially in the American West.

AT&T offers four tiers, which have already been rebranded twice in 2026 with some updated offerings. But perhaps the biggest addition has been a “turbo” feature that adds an extra layer of pay-to-play user priority for some customers. Essentially, customers who pay more get better data speeds than ostensibly unthrottled users. There's priority, and then there's priority, I guess.

The basic Extra 2.0 plan is both AT&T's best-value plan and its most popular. It grants unlimited everything and high-speed data up to 100 gigs starting at $70 a line. You don't get “turbo” without paying $7 more a line, but the Extra 2.0 with turbo is by far the most economical way to get AT&T's fastest rates. However, it comes at the expense of 4K streaming and included international roaming outside Canada and Mexico. If you hang mostly on this continent, this won't bother you. You also won't get service for your smartwatch or tablet. And hot spot data is limited to 50 gigs. This is all probably fine for most people, though the lack of 4K streaming will be a dealbreaker for some.

On the other hand, AT&T's top-tier, $110-a-month Elite plan is the most expensive unlimited plan I am aware of. It includes automatic “turbo” priority, 4K video streaming capability, 250 gigs of mobile hot spot, and watch and tablet capability. It offers unlimited data, talk and text in a seemingly random selection of Latin American countries, and 20 gigs of data in 210 additional destinations. Which is to say, the biggest perk of the stratospherically priced plan is the ability to push ahead in line.

The $90 a month Premium 2.0 plan is still more expensive than all of Verizon's plans. Hot spot data is extensive (100 gigs), and data is unlimited but it's not "turbo" unless you pay $7 more per line. You get international data, talk, and text only in 20 Latin American countries, plus Canada and Mexico. Smartwatch and tablets aren’t included, but you do get a half-off discount if you'd like to add either.

The new Value 2.0 plan, like T-Mobile's Essentials Saver plan, removes some phone financing options and might make your phone cost more per month if you buy it through AT&T. Which is to say, this is a BYO phone plan. Talk, text, and data is unlimited, but a paltry 5 GB of data is high-speed. After you burn through it, speeds can be throttled to near-unusable 2G levels. The hot spot is a bare-bones 3 GB. Unless AT&T is the only service that works in your area, it's hard to see this as competitive with T-Mobile or Verizon's budget plans.

But AT&T's focus on coverage for sparsely populated areas and a lower price point for unlimited high-speed data may still make it the plan of choice for many people. I also like that AT&T lets you mix and match different plans for different lines, meaning you can give yourself a Premium line and stick your freeloading 12-year-old with a lower-cost Value plan. AT&T's military discounts are also unbeatable, as are first responder discounts through the FirstNet & Family wireless network. The company also now offers a downloadable ActiveArmor app that can block spam calls and offers some identity-theft protection and protection while using public Wi-Fi networks.

WIRED: Every tier includes 5G data speeds. AT&T's 4G LTE coverage is unmatched in less populated areas. You won't be throttled at all on the Unlimited Premium plan, and on the Unlimited Extra plan, you won't be throttled until you hit 75 GB of data. If you're on the Unlimited Premium, you get a big 60-GB bucket of mobile hot spot to tether to other devices and 4K video streaming. There are great discounts for military and first responders. The universal spam protection is nice.

TIRED: The top two plans are among the most expensive in existence. “Turbo” is really just an extra tier of user priority, which devalues other priority data. For the base plan, data throttling kicks in after only 5 gigabytes—less than most people use. Lower-tier plans offer only standard-definition streaming. International options are universally much worse than T-Mobile's. No unlimited hot spot option included with any plan.

Will your phone work? AT&T has a Device Compatibility PDF you can use to check your current phones.

Why I Recommend Unlocked Phones

If you bought your phone from your wireless carrier (most people do), it was probably sold to you as a locked device that works only on one wireless carrier until it's paid off. As long as you’ve fully paid for your phone, your wireless carrier is obligated to unlock it for you, though there can be a delay (up to a year, per rules from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), though 60 days is the most common standard). Just take it in or ask about procedures on how to unlock a device.

If you bought your phone unlocked or through a different network, you may need to find the international mobile equipment identity (IMEI) number in your device settings, then check in with your desired carrier or its website to make sure your device is compatible (and actually unlocked). Here are some helpful resources for checking this information with AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile.

Should You Get a Prepaid Phone Plan Instead?

The old wisdom was that unlimited plans were universally better—and that lower-cost prepaid plans were a compromise one made when dealing with all-too-human concerns like “budgeting money for food instead.” The presumed downside of this compromise is that prepaid plans have to buy access to bandwidth on the networks of Verizon, T-Mobile, or AT&T. And so the data used by these plans is subject to throttling during times of congestion.

That's all still true. What's newer is the ubiquity of 5G, which—for now—offers a great deal of surplus bandwidth. This means throttling is not as big a problem as it used to be for everyone, including those using prepaid phones.

To test this hypothesis with budget prepaid carrier Tello Mobile, I spent weeks this past year roaming around my city of Portland, Oregon, with multiple phones. One, an older iPhone 13, was tuned to T-Mobile. The other, a 2025 Motorola Razr, was hooked up to Tello Mobile. In all but the most remote and service-starved areas of my city, speeds were slightly slower on Tello but pretty comparable–and still mostly faster than 400 Mbps. This was true even near a sold-out basketball game.

Given that prepaid carriers can cost half or even a quarter as much as unlimited plans, it's worth considering one if you don't plan to do a lot of international travel. International travel is a very weak point for prepaid plans. Check out WIRED's guide to the best prepaid plans to get more information.

How to Check Network Quality in Your Area

If you live in a rural or topographically challenging area, do some research before you switch your carrier. Ask neighbors, friends, and relatives nearby what their coverage is like. But also use the FCC mobile broadband map to track how effective networks are in your area. Just enter your address, and you’re good to go. You could also download the OpenSignal app to check on your location. Chances are high that all three wireless carriers will work just fine, but it’s smart to check before switching.

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