Last Updated on February 9, 2026 by Ewen Finser
There are a lot of competing phone companies today. Many more than were available when I was growing up. This is, in large part, due to MVNOs or Mobile Virtual Network Operator Plans. MVNOs are service providers that don’t own cell towers or the wireless network infrastructure they use. But because they don’t own it, they can offer better benefits (like lower costs).
MVNOs tend to be much cheaper, especially for long-term pricing because contract pricing might go up annually, but MVNOs often have discounts, price locks, and more. That said, MVNO plans do come with some trade-offs for those lower prices.
This can include things like:
- Slower data during busy times (when big-carrier customers get priority)
- Extra costs or limits when traveling internationally
- Fewer phone options or device compatibility restrictions
- Less hands-on customer support
- Data throttling after you use a set amount
That’s why you should consider the aspects of a phone plan that are most important to you before deciding between the MVNOs. Basically, you’re trading some bells and whistles for a much lower bill. For a lot of people, it’s still 100% worth it.
If you are looking for an MVNO that offers cheaper pricing, with fewer frills and contract requirements, you have lots of great options. I looked at criteria like coverage, pricing, and data policies and here’s what I have concluded:
- Visible is the flagship MVNO especially for coverage and heavy data users
- Total Wireless is ideal for families looking for a prepaid, no contract option with multi-line discounts
- Mint Mobile is a top MVNO for budget (but only for the first 12 months)
- Tello is an inexpensive MVNO for seniors, low data users, and those who want a cheap backup phone
- Google Fi is your best option for regular international travel
Let’s look at each of these options in more detail.
Visible: Best MVNO Plan for Coverage and Data
Visible is ideal for remote areas and travelers because of the extensive Verizon coverage. Visible also stands out for truly unlimited hotspot data. All of the other MVNOs impose caps or hard cutoffs (Seriously Tello? Come on).
Judging by price point alone, you might see that their prices are a little higher than some of the competitors, but they do give discounts if you pay annually rather than monthly. Unlike Mint Mobile though, those are your only two options for payment structure. Still, their top two plans don’t have data throttling like other basic plans, and they have truly unlimited options.
One drawback to Visible is that they operate online only so you won’t have any options for in-person assistance. If you have a problem, it has to be done entirely online which is no different than what you get from companies like Mint Mobile but it can certainly lead to longer resolution timeframes for any issues you might encounter.
Top Features:
- Unlimited premium data
- Unlimited hotspot data
- 1080p video streaming
Pros
- Reliable Verizon network with 5G and unlimited hotspot (5 Mbps)
- Simple, transparent pricing with taxes included
- Everything is unlimited with their unlimited plans (no hard cutoffs or hidden charges)
- Spam call blocking and no contracts
Cons
- Only compatible with select Android phones
- Their base plan has deprioritized data (but the other two don’t, which is great)
- No family plan discounts
Total Wireless: Best MVNO Plan for Families
Total Wireless is an ideal alternative for families. It, too, gives you options to save money by paying in advance. This is a nice way to budget more effectively without having to sign up for a contract. However, unlike Visible, Total Wireless is a prepaid option that gives you discounts if you pay every 30 days, 90 days, 180 days, or 360 days. The more months you pay for in advance, the better the discounts.
Verizon MVNOs (Visible, Total Wireless) lead the nation in rural coverage due to Verizon’s extensive 4G LTE network, not to mention the reliable 5G UW in major cities. This means that users who opt for Total Wireless (or Visible) can get access to coverage on 70% of U.S. land area.
With Total Wireless, there are many family-friendly perks and multi-line discounts making it one of my top choices for families. The limit is five lines per plan but within that you get substantial discounts for each line you add; having four lines drops the price compared to having one line by 50%.
It is important to note that family members do not have different data limits and everyone has the same pooled, high-speed data and the same type of Hotspot data depending on the tier.
But there are also other perks, particularly international calling to over 200 countries and free Disney Plus premium subscriptions based on the tier.
Top Features:
- Top savings for family plans
- Free international calling to over 200 countries
- Disney+ subscriptions (with some plans)
Pros
- Runs on Verizon’s nationwide network
- Unlimited talk, text, and data with most plans
- Lots of family plan discounts
- Some perks like Disney available
- Includes international texting to 200+ countries
Cons
- Hotspot data is not included on all plans
- Like Visible, there is limited phone compatibility
- Customer service can be slow
Mint Mobile: Best MVNO Plan for Budget
Mint Mobile is a lot like Visible and Total Wireless in their discounts: The more months you pay for in advance, the better the discounts are. If you pay for 12 months at a time, you get the biggest discounts.
What I like about Mint Mobile is that they are always offering new deals for new customers. You can find deals where the unlimited plan is the same price as the lowest tier, 5 GB plan. And if you pay for one year in advance, you’ve effectively locked in that price for one year. But after years of tracking Mint Mobile discounts, I’ve never seen them offer major deals to existing customers. That means if you pay for a year in advance, your price jumps back to the regular monthly rate once that term ends.
That said, they are somewhere in between Tello and Visible for data usage; you can pick a cheaper price plan based on lower data usage but it only goes as low as 5 gigabytes per month.
Mint Mobile is pretty great for international calling to a few key countries, and is a better fit for those who are calling Mexico or Canada exclusively. However, that’s effectively the biggest perk they have to offer so you won’t find other things (like discounts on subscriptions) that you would with Google Fi or Total Wireless.
One downside to Mint Mobile is the network de-prioritization. Many mint mobile users will experience slower data speeds compared to primary T-Mobile customers even though they are using the same T-Mobile network.
Top Features:
- Cheaper annual plans
- High-speed data for unlimited plans
- Free calls to Mexico and Canada
Pros
- Low cost with bulk discounts for low data plans and 12-month plans (as low as $15/month)
- Unlimited data and hotspot available on their top tier plan
- Works with most unlocked phones
Cons
- Network deprioritized on T-Mobile during congestion
- Limited customer support (online-only support options, so here’s hoping nothing goes wrong when you get your new SIM)
- Video streaming capped at 480p
- Discounts typically only apply to new customers
Tello: Best MVNO Plan for Seniors
Tello is best for seniors or low data users. When I say low data I mean especially low data, basically if you only use one or two gigabytes, you can get a ridiculously cheap plan around $10 per month. But you have to be confident in your data usage.
Why?
Tello has a hard data cap. This means that once you exceed your monthly high-speed data (the most they offer is up to 35GB on the “Unlimited” plan), your data gets turned off. This can be pretty jarring because it is juxtaposed by many of the competing MVNOs (Mint Mobile) that will just slow you down once you exceed your cap.
If you reach that data cap you have to upgrade your plan in the middle of your cycle or wait until your billing cycle expires.
Top Features:
- Pay-as-you-go plans as low as $5
Pros
- Highly customizable plans, with options for changing minutes, texts, and data starting at $5/month
- Unused data rolls over
- Free calls to Mexico, Canada, and India
Cons
- No multi-line discounts
- T-Mobile network only
- Limited international roaming
- Hard data cutoff once you reach your cap. Full stop.
Google Fi: Best MVNO Plan for International Travel
Google Fi is best for travelers, with free global data in over 200 countries. Behind the Unlimited options for hotspot data offered by Visible, Google Fi comes in second place for heavy-data users with 50GB available for their premium plan.
However, they do have soft data caps depending on the plan you choose. If, for example, you have the $65 per month unlimited plus plan and you use your 50 GB of high-speed data, it will throttle to 250 kbps for the rest of your cycle. That speed is so slow that basic tasks like streaming or downloads are essentially unusable.
Now, Google Fi does cap mobile data and Hotspot data separately. So, if you have the unlimited Premium plan that gives you 50 GB allocated specifically for hotspot use and 100 GB allocated for high-speed mobile data. The only exception to this is the flexible plan where you have no fixed hotspot limit but all of your Hotspot usage counts toward the monthly data plan.
Google Fi absolutely has the best options for international coverage especially compared to other plans like Visible which only offers some international benefits like a certain number of global day passes with top tier plans. However, the drawback is that you are definitely going to pay a lot more for the plan.
That’s not the only drawback though.
T-Mobile MVNOs (Mint Mobile, Tello, Google Fi) rely on T-Mobile’s smaller 4G LTE footprint (only 62% compared to the higher 70% of Verizon). You might not think that extra 8% matters but it definitely results in spotty service particularly in rural Western and Midwest regions. So that 8% difference will certainly matter if that’s where you live.
Top Features:
- Seamless network switching between T-Mobile, Sprint, and WiFi
- Built-in global roaming
- Free VPN
Pros
- You can switch between T-Mobile and Wi-Fi
- You get international data in 200+ countries
- There are good family plan discounts
- Higher tiers get you YouTube Premium
Cons
- Taxes and fees are not included in base price, so get ready for some “hidden” costs
- Only certain phones get full network access
- Data throttling happens immediately after the 50GB on their top plan, with speeds too slow to stream or download
Summing Up
Choosing the best MVNO starts with deciding which network carrier matters most to you, based on price point, perks, and reliability.
- If you are looking for rural network coverage, pick Visible or Total Wireless.
- If you are prioritizing speed, pick Mint Mobile, Google Fi, or Tello in major cities (but Visible in urban areas).
- If you are focused on hotspot data, pick the Visible Unlimited hotspot plan. No caps.
- If you want perks, well, they almost each have those, so find the perks you like best.