Best Unlimited Data Plans 2021

If you consider yourself a power user of your smartphone, an unlimited phone plan is a no-brainer. From streaming videos to photo sharing and more, you’ll have plenty of data to enjoy your favorite wireless activities without worrying about overage charges.

This guide will walk you through the best unlimited data plans for your needs, whether you want the most perks or the cheapest unlimited data plan.

Best cheap unlimited plan: Visible’s Unlimited Plan

Value for Money: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Coverage: ★ ★ ★ ★
Features & Perks: ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Generally, if you’re looking for a cheap unlimited plan, you’ll want to go with Visible, the Verizon-owned prepaid carrier. Visible’s $40 Unlimited Plan, the only plan the carrier offers, includes unlimited mobile hotspot data (at 5Mbps speeds only), the best coverage on Verizon’s network, and for a limited time, new customers will pay just $25 for the first month. So while this plan may not be the cheapest, it’s our pick for the best unlimited data plan when it comes to value for money.

Visible offers the top-notch coverage of Verizon’s network at a significantly reduced cost, making them one of the top up-and-coming wireless carriers.

Visible Unlimited Plan pros

• One of the cheapest unlimited plans
• Great coverage
• Unlimited mobile hotspot (@5Mbps)
• Your first month is discounted

Visible Unlimited Plan cons

• No global roaming benefits
• Speeds may be slowed when network is busy

Best unlimited plan for coverage: Verizon’s Get More Unlimited

Value for Money: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Coverage: ★ ★ ★ ★
Features & Perks: ★ ★ ★ ★

If coverage is the most important thing to you, then Verizon is the way to go. With the most nationwide coverage, Verizon’s unlimited plans are sure to give you everything you need when traveling from coast to coast.

Verizon has 5 core unlimited plans to choose from—1 prepaid, and 4 postpaid. On top of that, there are discounted options starting at just $60/month for:

• Military and veterans
• Nurses
• First responders
• Teachers

If you want the cheapest option, then Verizon’s prepaid unlimited plan is an excellent alternative. At just $65/month, you’ll get a basic unlimited data plan that also includes unlimited calls to Mexico and Canada.

If you’re wanting the best unlimited data plan that Verizon has to offer, then opt for Verizon’s Get More Unlimited Plan. It not only comes with mobile hotspot data and 75GB of guaranteed high-speed data before your speeds could be slowed, but you also get a year of Disney+ for free! Note that this is one of the most expensive unlimited data plans on the market, but if it’s premium you want, it’s premium that you’re going to get!

Verizon Get More Unlimited Plan pros

• Best coverage in the U.S.
• Free year of Disney+
• Free Apple Music subscription
• 5G capable
• Guaranteed 75GB of high-speed data before network congestion could affect your speeds
• 30GB high-speed mobile hotspot data
• Unlimited talk and text to and from Mexico and Canada
• Discounts for military, first responders, nurses, and teachers

Verizon Get More Unlimited Plan cons

• Most expensive unlimited data plan
• Taxes and fees not included
• Senior plan discounts only offered to Florida residents

Best unlimited data plan with perks: T-Mobile Magenta MAX

Value for Money: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Coverage: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Features & Perks: ★ ★ ★ ★

T-Mobile’s Magenta Plus plan, our previous pick in this category, has upgraded to Magenta MAX… and it’s even better tha before. In addition to the same travel and entertainment perks included, you now get “truly” unlimited data on Magenta MAX… that means your speeds will never be slowed down, no matter how much data you use. And T-Mobile doubled the amount of hotspot data you get in your plan, from 20GB all the way to 40GB.

Get Free Entertainment Subscriptions with Your Plan!

At $85/month, this plan is great for families, travelers, and anyone who loves to binge-watch Netflix on your phone.

T-Mobile Magenta MAX Plan pros

• No deprioritization threshold
• Includes unlimited calling to and from Mexico and Canada
• Unlimited data (slower) in more than 200 countries
• 5GB of 4G LTE data in Mexico and Canada
• Unlimited HD video streaming
• Unlimited in-flight WiFi on eligible flights
• Includes a 2-screen Netflix subscription for free (with 2 or more lines)
• 40GB of 4G LTE mobile hotspot data (then slowed to 3G speeds)
• Discounts for multiple lines
• Netflix Basic w/ 1 line, Netflix Standard w/ 2+ lines

T-Mobile Magenta MAX Plan cons

• Single-line cost is pricey at $85/month
• International data (excluding Mexico and Canada) is at 256Kbps only

Best prepaid unlimited plan: Mint Mobile 3-Month Unlimited Plan

NEW OFFER!

Value for Money: ★ ★ ★ ★
Coverage: ★ ★ ★ ☆
Features & Perks: ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Mint Mobile’s multi-month plan prices have always been a great deal, but surprisingly, they haven’t offered an unlimited data option… until now. The carrier’s brand new unlimited talk, text, and data plan costs just $30/month—even cheaper than Visible!—when you sign up for a 3- or 12-month data plan.

Mint Mobile Unlimited Plan Pros

• Majorly affordable
• 5G access for free
• 5GB mobile hotspot data
• Free calling to Canada and Mexico
• SIM card is free (which other prepaid carriers charge for)
• High deprioritization threshold (35GB)

Mint Mobile Unlimited Plan Cons

• You have to pay for all service months upfront
• $30/month price not available for 6-month plan package
• No extra entertainment perks

How we choose the best unlimited data plans

Each month we take a look at all of the unlimited data plans offered across carriers in the U.S., including prepaid and postpaid plans. We look at what we think are the most important factors when choosing a cell phone plan, including:

• Amount of high-speed data (as well as deprioritization thresholds)
• High-speed mobile hotspot data allowance
• Entertainment perks
• Monthly price
• Coverage

Taking all of these factors into account, we handpick the unlimited data plans that provide the most value depending on what your needs are when it comes to a cell phone plan.

Which states offer the fastest (and slowest) mobile data speeds?

It’s good to live in the northeast if you rely heavily on your phone for browsing, streaming, shopping, and other internet-related activities. Test results indicate that New Hampshire has the fastest cellular data speeds in the country, followed by Rhode Island and Connecticut. Iowa, West Virginia and Arkansas are home to the slowest speeds (respectively).

New Hampshire’s 28.9 megabits-per-second average download speeds are a full 3.5 megabits faster than Rhode Island’s. Rhode Island (25.4), Connecticut (25.1) and New Jersey (24.4), meanwhile, are far closer to one another. South Dakota is the only non-northeastern city to make the top five.

States with the fastest mobile data

States with the slowest mobile data

How Let’s Talk collected the data

The Let’s Talk team analyzed data from ~100k mobile speed test results taken on HighSpeedInternet.com and ranked the states according to that data. Vermont and North Dakota were excluded from the ranking because of insufficient data.

Download vs upload speed

Uploading constitutes a relatively small fraction of our overall internet activities; downloading is what we’re mostly doing when we load a web page, stream a video, or play a game. That’s why download speeds are important to consider when analyzing cellular data, and why we’ve highlighted them in our report.

About Let’s Talk

Let’s Talk simplifies the search for the perfect cell phone plan—say goodbye to reading fine print, comparing dozens of plans side by side, and interpreting confusing language. Our experienced team of writers take a fine-tooth comb to all of the phone plans and phone deals out there to discern what the best cell phone plans are. We compile the top results in highly-organized and easy-to-read articles that we update on a regular basis according to market changes. When you land on one of our pages you can rest assured that you’re getting timely information.