Cheapest phone plans in the US, by starting price

The cheapest phone plans in the United States start at $10 a month, and you will not find them on the main plans pages of Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile. They come mostly from MVNOs, mobile virtual network operators, which rent those same networks and sell service for less. This page ranks every brand we track by its lowest monthly price for one line.

Every brand, cheapest first

Each price is the lowest one the brand’s own site showed for a single line when we read it. It is not always a price you can pay month to month. Mint Mobile’s needs a year paid up front, Tello’s is labelled as an introductory rate, and Consumer Cellular’s shown prices include a $5 credit for AutoPay and e-billing. Follow a brand’s name for its full plan list, the conditions and the date we checked.

What the lowest price buys

A starting price is a small plan. Here is what sits behind the cheapest ones.

Three things that change the real price

Taxes and fees. US Mobile, Visible, Metro by T-Mobile and Total Wireless include them in the advertised price. Most others add them at checkout. T-Mobile’s own postpaid plans add a fee of $5.49 a line each month.

Paying ahead. Mint Mobile’s low prices need 12 months paid at once. Straight Talk’s Silver Unlimited is $45 by the month and works out to $30 if you pay $360 for a year. H2O Wireless also discounts longer terms.

Automatic payments. Many brands take $5 off from the second month if you let them charge your card. Each brand’s page gives the price with and without.

The cheapest unlimited data

If you want unlimited data, the lowest prices we found were $25 a month, at Visible, Tello, US Mobile, Ting Mobile, AT&T Prepaid and Straight Talk’s bring-your-own-phone plan. They are not the same thing at all. The differences are set out on our unlimited plans page.