Last Updated on December 25, 2025 by Ewen Finser
I was a loyal Verizon customer for about 8 years before I realized I could still take advantage of their networks but pay less. Still, despite what my wife told me, I had to research it on my own, and make the spreadsheets (I can hear her groaning from here). Trust the spreadsheets.
So when is Total Wireless or Verizon Prepaid best for you? Here’s what I’ve learned.
Total Wireless vs. Verizon Prepaid: Bottom Line
- Total Wireless: Best for people who want a cheaper price, particularly for a family plan and the potential for other features (Disney+, here I come)
- Verizon Prepaid: Best for people who want better international calling options, financing for new phones, or better data priority
Below is a quick table comparing the two:
Features | Total Wireless | Verizon Prepaid |
Plans | Better discounts for multiline plans, more options for bundling | Less aggressive discounts but up to 8 lines per plan, with a la carte services |
Pricing | Generally cheaper, with taxes and fees included (between $40-$60) | More expensive per line, with extra taxes and fees at checkout (between $50-$80) |
Data | Unlimited but often deprioritized data | Priority data |
Speed | (4G LTE/5G) Download: 11-200 Mbps; Upload: 3-53 Mbps. | Similar, but more consistent especially during peak times |
Video Streaming | Capped at 480p (Base/5G Unlimited) or 720p (5G+ Unlimited) | Base unlimited is 480p; premium plans can include up to 4K UHD streaming |
Mobile Hotspot | Base plans: 5GB or 15GB high-speed, then slowed. Top plan has unlimited data at 5 Mbps | Unlimited data plans include 5GB high-speed, then slowed. Premium plan has 25GB high-speed |
Coverage | Verizon 5G and 5G UW | Verizon 5G and 5G UW |
Plans
Let’s start with their plans for phones (I’ll get to everything else shortly).
Verizon Prepaid
Verizon Prepaid offers plans for basic flip phones and smartphones.
The flip phone plans include voice and text only or prepaid plans with data. The cost is based on whether you are bringing your own phone or buying a phone with your plan.
The smartphone plans are as follows:
- Unlimited Ultimate 5GUW: This top-tier plan has 5G UW with enhanced streaming and video calling, unlimited hotspot data, unlimited international data, talk, and text when traveling, phone upgrades, and 50% off data plans for (2) items including a watch, tablet, or other device.
- Unlimited Plus: This mid-tier plan has 5G UW, 30 GB hotspot data, phone upgrades, and 50% off data plans for a watch, tablet, or other device.
- Unlimited Welcome: This is the most basic with 5G and new phone upgrades
Total Wireless
Total Wireless offers unlimited prepaid phones as follows:
- Total 5G+ Unlimited: Unlimited data plus unlimited hotspot data, calling to 180 countries and texting to 200+ countries, Disney+
- Total 5G Unlimited: Unlimited data plus 15 GB of hotspot data, calling to 180 countries and texting to 200+ countries, Disney+ for 6 months
- Total Base 5G Unlimited: Unlimited data plus 5GB of hotspot data, calling to 85+ countries and texting to 200+ countries
Price
How does the price compare? I wish I could say one is “cheaper” than the other, but the math I went through comparing these two price points felt like my college algebra class all over again.
Verizon Prepaid
Verizon’s Prepaid options will be more affordable the more lines you add. Here is a sample of the costs based on the number of lines (per line, per month):
Number of Lines | Unlimited Ultimate 5GUW | Unlimited Plus | Unlimited Welcome |
1 | $80 | $70 | $55 |
2 | $72.50 | $62.50 | $47.50 |
3 | $58.33 | $48.33 | $33.33 |
4 | $50* | $40 | $25 |
*This cost remains the same for between 4-8 lines.
NOTE: Verizon Prepaid is the only one of the two that offers up to 8 lines, so for larger groups or families, this is the best option.
There are always different deals, and right now Verizon Prepaid has things like:
- 3-year price lock guarantee
- 40% off streaming services
- Free phone on any of the myPlan options with tradein options
Verizon Prepaid also gives discounts for things like auto pay or paperless billing, military and first responders.
Total Wireless
Total Wireless does not offer discounts for multiple lines except that you get a 4th line “for free” meaning, you would pay the same monthly amount for lines 1, 2, 3, but once you have another kid or you add your parents, then you aren’t paying for the fourth.
Their prices are as follows:
- Total 5G+ Unlimited: $65 ($60 if you sign up for auto pay after 1 month of full price–yeah, that gave me a bit of a scrunch-face-moment too)
- Total 5G Unlimited: $55 (again, $50 after the first month if you sign up for auto pay)
- Total Base 5G Unlimited: $40 per month. What a nice, clean number. Phew.
Other Services
Ok, here we are at the “get to them shortly” part.
Verizon Prepaid
Verizon Prepaid offers:
- Cellphone plans
- Smartwatch plans
- Tablet plans
- Hotspot and router plans
When you get their Unlimited Plus plan, you have the option of adding one of these other services for, and pay attention here folks, “up to 50% off”.
If you get their Unlimited Ultimate plan, then you can add two for, again, stay awake here, “up to 50% off.”
Costs for Other Plans with Verizon Prepaid
Now I said “pay attention” because I didn’t the first time I signed up with an additional service and it cost me. Literally.
I thought, “Oh hey, 50% off my mobile hotspot plan. That’s great. I use that all the time.”
I was wrong.
The Verizon Prepaid fine print actually says:
“50% off Unlimited and Unlimited Plus for tablets; Essential and Plus plans for mobile hotspot devices; Unlimited for HumX; Unlimited + In Car WiFi for Hum+; and Unlimited and Number Share Unlimited for smartwatches. $20 off Premium and Pro plans for mobile hotspot devices.”
So, you only get 50% off some plans for some devices, or twenty doll hairs (not percent) off your hotspot plan.
Costs for Other Perks with Verizon Prepaid
Now, I already touched upon the other plans (services) but Verizon Prepaid also lets you add, a la carte, different perks. These basically mean discounts on things you a) might already be using but can now use for less or b) haven’t yet used but can now use for less.
The list includes things like:
- $10/mo for Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ with ads
- $10/mo for Netflix and HBO max with ads
- $15/mo for Apple One
- $10/mo for Apple Music Family
- $10/mo for YouTube Premium
- $10/mo for Google AI Pro
- $10/mo for Second Number (using the same phone–wait, if my work cell and personal cell come to the same phone, how am I going to pass the time grabbing both from my purse and answering the wrong one?)
These are all things you can add monthly. If you already have any of these, Verizon Prepaid gives instructions on how to just switch the payment discount to your regular subscription.
Total Wireless
Total Wireless gives discounts when you bundle other services. This is much clearer and easier to utilize as compared to the weird “up to” discounts you get with Verizon Prepaid.
In fact, new customers that add things like home internet often save 50%, and mobile bundles can save around $15 per month, with phone plans reduced to around $35 per month.
Otherwise the plan costs are:
- Home Internet: $60 per month
- Mobile hotspot: $30-$50 per month based on GB
- Tablet: $50-$60 per month based on hotspot data
So in this case it would seem like Total Wireless doesn’t have nearly as many services, nor does it have the option of giving you discounts for other subscriptions but the discounts you get for bundling home internet, tablet or mobile hotspot plans is more substantial.
Speed
Both providers offer somewhat similar speeds but the difference is really whether or not it gets throttled.
In case you don’t know, sometimes the cheaper plans like prepaid plans get deprioritized which means when there’s a lot of people trying to use the same towers in the same place at the same time, cell phone providers will actually rank who gets access to faster speeds and who gets downgraded to slower speeds based on the plan they have.
Verizon Prepaid
So, Verizon Prepaid usually has upload speeds between 3 and 53 Mbps with download speeds between 11 and 200 Mbps. However, you’ll find that your speeds remain pretty consistent especially during peak hours and that may or may not be relevant to you.
Verizon will absolutely slow down the speed for the base plans, deprioritizing them but the unlimited plus plan tends to have 50 GB of prioritized data.
Total Wireless
Total Wireless has basically the same download and upload speeds, but during peak times you might notice a lag because your plan could be deprioritized especially if you don’t have the top to your plan.
Most of their plans are deprioritized during peak hours which means that if the network is congested your speeds will slow down pretty heavily.
Video Streaming
Personally I don’t use my phone for video streaming but my kids do so it’s important that they have good quality streaming especially when they are doing videos for school.
Verizon Prepaid
Verizon Prepaid video streaming with the base unlimited plan is 480p which is pretty standard but premium plans give them up to 4K ultra high definition streaming.
Total Wireless
Total Wireless is capped at 480p for the base or the mid-tier 5G unlimited plan and even with the Premium plan it only reaches 720p.
Mobile Hotspot
Mobile hotspot speed and data was very important to me as someone who uses my phone as my hotspot when I’m on the go.
Verizon Prepaid
Verizon Prepaid has 25 GB of high-speed mobile Hotspot data on the Premium plan. If you opt for the unlimited plans, the low and mid-tier plans, they only give you 5 GB of high speed and after that it actually gets slowed down so hopefully you get the majority of your important work done at the outset.
Total Wireless
Total Wireless has base plans that feature 5 GB or 15 GB of high speed Mobile Hotspot data but after that it gets slowed down. Maybe it’ll slow down at the same time your coffee energy wears off.
If you opt for the top plan, you get unlimited data but the speed is five Mbps no matter how much you use.
Summing Up
A big part of the reason I was hesitant at first to switch from my Verizon Prepaid was the fear that one day something would go wrong and I would need customer service. When I did the math my spreadsheet told me that I had been paying a lot of money every year just to overcome an invisible anxiety.
Now that I’ve done the math I realize that Total Wireless is a lot less complicated for me but it might not be for you.
Verizon Prepaid is best if:
- You want a smartwatch plan
- You want the a la carte subscription savings
- You have more than 5 lines
Visible is best if:
- You want unlimited data with clear pricing
- You want to bundle hotspot, tablet, or home internet
- You prefer Disney+ as a perk