First and foremost, I must say there is no real best Verizon MVNO unlimited data plan. Anybody that tries to tell you otherwise is full of baloney. The reason is that there really isn’t just one plan that’s best for everybody. Some Verizon MVNO unlimited data plan providers have really crappy customer service. While others may come with certain limitations like little to no hotspot. So the best Verizon MVNO OR prepaid unlimited data plan is whichever one best fits your own personal needs and works where you live. Having said that, there are some providers that offer really good and old-fashioned bang for the buck value. So let’s take a look at a couple of those, and maybe you’ll find one that best fits your own personal needs.
1). Visible
I don’t think you can have a list of the best valued Verizon MVNO and prepaid unlimited data plans without mentioning Visible. Visible is a prepaid brand that is actually owned by Verizon Wireless. They made their ownership of the brand more clear when they rebranded Visible to Visible by Verizon in June 2022.
Visible offers two unlimited data plans with all-in pricing and no multi-line discounts. The cheaper of the two plans is priced at $25/month and the more premium plan, called Visible+, is priced at $45/month (through January 2, 2024, it’s $35/mo for new customers). Both plans continue to offer great bang for the buck value, with the best value for most people being the $25 plan.
Both of Visible’s plans of course include unlimited talk and text. They also come with unlimited calling to Mexico and Canada and spam call protection. WiFi calling is supported. The basic plan has access to Verizon’s 4G LTE and 5G Nationwide networks, whereas the Visible+ plan adds 5G Ultra-Wideband (includes C-Band (fast) and mmWave (ultrafast)) connectivity for even faster data speeds in locations that have access to that network. 5G Ultra-Wideband is available in select cities and metropolitan areas whereas Verizon’s 5G Nationwide network is available in over 2,700 cities. Some $25 plan Visible customers do claim their plan includes 5G UW connectivity but only on C-Band and with speeds limited to 200Mbps.
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The Visible+ plan also includes a few other features not available on the basic $25 plan. Those additional features add:
- 50GB of premium data which is data that does not slow down when compared to other customers on the same network when the network is busy. This premium data only applies to data consumed over Verizon’s 4G LTE and 5G Nationwide networks. Data consumed over 5G UW is unlimited premium data.
- Talk, text, and data roaming in Mexico & Canada – Canada & Mexico data speeds are reduced to 2G or 64kbps-128Kbps after 0.5 GB of data has been consumed in a day
- Up to 500 minutes of international calling from the US to over 30 countries and international texting from the US to over 200 countries.
One thing that makes both of Visible by Verizon’s unlimited plans unique is that they include unlimited mobile hotspot. However, only one device can connect to the hotspot at a time and data speeds are limited to a maximum of 5Mbps. Still, there isn’t another low-cost provider on the market offering unlimited hotspot usage at data speeds that are that fast.
Visible by Verizon’s unlimited data plans also include domestic roaming on Verizon’s extended network. This will allow you to roam onto the towers of other wireless providers in areas where Verizon doesn’t have its own native network for enhanced coverage in rural areas.
Visible by Verizon also offers iPhone customers with eSIM, a free 15-day trial. No credit card or other payment method is needed for the trial. You also do not need to port your number in for the trial.
It Might Be Priced Right, But That’s Not Enough For Everyone
Ask anyone about Visible and you’ll certainly find your fair share of completely mixed and opposing opinions. The Visible Reddit thread is certainly filled with them. MVNOs, in general, can be hit or miss based on location. While Visible may not technically be an MVNO depending on how you want to define MVNO, it certainly has some of the issues associated with them. One common issue is that the quality of service can vary greatly by location, primarily caused by network congestion present in one area that isn’t present in another. If you’re in an area with high ping times and subpar data speeds, Visible by Verizon’s $25 plan certainly won’t be for you. However, you may still fare much better on its $45/plan thanks to the inclusion of premium priority data and full access to Verizon’s 5G UW band network.
Another area where Visible by Verizon may fall short is with customer support. There are no stores to go through to contact support, and no real customer support phone number to call. You pretty much are left with online chats and social media support for help. So if you have a serious problem, you may have a hard time getting it resolved both quickly and correctly.
2). US Mobile
US Mobile fits the true definition of an MVNO. The company purchases talk, text, and data at bulk rates through both Verizon Wireless and also T-Mobile. But we’re interested in their Verizon Wireless based network and plans which they call Warp 5G, since they are directly comparable to Visible as they are on the same network.
US Mobile has three “unlimited plans.” Its flagship unlimited plan is called Unlimited Premium. It comes with 100GB of high-speed data before throttling and is priced at $50/month. Its mid-tier unlimited plan is called Unlimited Essentials. It has 50GB of data at up to 5G data speeds before throttling and is priced at $40/month. Its $25/month entry level unlimited plan, Unlimited Basic, includes 30GB of data at up to 5G data speeds before throttling.
Throttled data speeds are much higher than most other providers and are at a very usable speed of 1Mbps. Most other providers offer throttled data speeds that are around 10x slower at 128Kbps. Taxes and fees are included in their prices, something that many other providers bill you in addition to their advertised rates.
All their advertised unlimited plans allow subscribers to use their phones as a mobile hotspot. The $25/month 30GB plan allows subscribers to use 5GB of their data allotment for hotspot. The $40/month 50GB plan allows 10GB to be used, while the $50/month 100GB plan allows 50GB.
Besides US Mobile’s great pricing, their plans includes some pretty unique features that also help to make US Mobile a compelling choice for consumers. But we’ll come back to those in a bit.
US Mobile Unlimited Plans Multi-Line Pricing
Two of US Mobile’s unlimited plans offer multi-line discounts. The $40 plan is $35/month with two lines, and $30/line with three or more lines. The $50 plan is $45/line with two lines and $40/line with three or more lines. Unfortunately, there are no additional line discounts on the $25/month Unlimited Starter plan.
US Mobile Unlimited Premium Plan Details And Perks
US Mobile’s Unlimited Premium plan comes with a whole lot of extras compared to Unlimited Starter. The plan has 100GB of high-speed priority data before throttling and it also allows up to 50GB of data to be used for mobile hotspot. It also includes native international roaming but only when used as a T-Mobile based plan. With native international roaming, customers can travel to 100 countries and use their phones without making any changes to it as if they are in the USA. International roaming allows for 10GB of high-speed data to be used, 1,000 texts, and 500 minutes. US Mobile does plan to add this feature to its Warp 5G Verizon based plans.
All of US Mobile’s unlimited plans come with priority data access when connected to Verizon’s 5G network with a 5G capable device. That means during times that the network is congested, data speeds won’t slow down compared to Verizon’s postpaid customers. Other Verizon MVNO customers however may notice reduced data speeds compared to US Mobile when the network is congested. However, if you are connected to US Mobile and on Verizon’s 4G LTE network, data speeds will slow compared to Verizon’s postpaid customers and be the same as other Verizon MVNOs.
Special Perks Help To Make US Mobile’s Unlimited Premium Plan Unique
What really makes US Mobile stand out is that their Unlimited Premium plan includes special perks. Special perks include getting your streaming subscriptions paid for you if have multiple lines of service. Customers with at least 3-lines of service can choose to get one of the following subscriptions paid for by US Mobile:
- Slacker Plus LiveXLive
- Pandora Plus
- Audible
- Spotify Family
- Apple Music Family
- Apple TV Plus
- Disney Plus Bundle with Hulu and ESPN+
- Netflix Standard subscription
- HBO Max
- Playstation Plus
- Xbox Live Gold
In order to get your subscription paid for by US Mobile, you must email them each month a receipt for your streaming service bill. US Mobile will then credit your account for the cost of that service. Unfortunately, perks can only be claimed for 12 continuous months. After that, they are no longer available.
Free Trial
Like Visible, US Mobile does offer new customers a free trial. If you have an eSIM-enabled device, you can get the free trial instantly. If not, you can still order a free SIM starter kit. The SIM kit is totally free as shipping charges for standard 5-day shipping are paid for by US Mobile. However, customers that can’t wait to start their trial can upgrade to expedited shipping for as little as $2 for 2-day delivery or $10 to overnight it.
US Mobile’s free trial is for 50-days with 50GB of premium priority data with a number transfer. Customers with 1-line will get a $50 gift card after 12 months of continuous service. Customers that port a second line will receive an additional $50 gift card. Two is the maximum number of gift cards that US Mobile will give out per account.
The Downsides
There aren’t many downsides to US Mobile’s plans. The biggest one is that customers who want a truly unlimited high-speed data plan with data speeds that never slow down won’t find them at US Mobile. And US Mobile does not have any stores that you can go into if you prefer in person support.
- Unlimited Minutes
- Unlimited Texts
- Unlimited GB Hotspot
- Unlimited Minutes
- Unlimited Texts
- Unlimited GB Hotspot
3). How Do US Mobile And Visible Compare To Verizon Wireless?
Verizon’s postpaid wireless plans and even their prepaid plans are considerably more expensive than both Visible and US Mobile. Verizon’s cheapest postpaid unlimited plan starts at $75/month or $65/month with autopay billing enabled. It’s unlimited prepaid plan is priced as low as $50/month with autopay billing or customer loyalty discounts applied but it starts at $60/month. Verizon’s plans do not include taxes and fees, which are additional costs to consider.
Verizon’s Postpaid plans have high network data access priority, so during times of network congestion, data speeds should be faster than Visible’s base unlimited plan but similar to both US Mobile as long as you’re on the 5G network, and Visible by Verizon’s flagship Visible+ unlimited plan.
Their plans also come with the option to add streaming subscription perks but for an additional fee of $10/month per perk. Some perk options include a Walmart+ subscription, an Apple One subscription, and a $15 credit to spend each month on your favorite +play subscriptions including Netflix, Xbox Game Pass, Max, Paramount, MasterClass, and more .
Cheapest Unlimited Plans From Visible by Verizon, US Mobile, Verizon Prepaid, & Verizon Postpaid Compared
A table comparing Visible by Verizon, and US Mobile cheapest unlimited plans to Verizon’s cheapest unlimited postpaid and prepaid plans is below. Visible by Verizon and US Mobile’s plans do not offer autopay billing discounts. The prices shown for Verizon Prepaid and Postpaid include their respective autopay billing discounts.
| Visible | US Mobile | VZW Prepaid | VZW Postpaid | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Line ($) | $25 | $25 | $50 | $65* |
| 4-lines ($) Price Per Line | $25 | $25 | $140 | $120* |
| Taxes Included? | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| High Speed Data | Unlimited | 30GB, then unlimited 1Mbps | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Priority Data | No | Yes | No | No |
| Hotspot | Yes | 5GB | 5GB | No $10 Upgrade |
| 5G Ultra-wideband | No $15 Upgrade | Yes | No $10 Upgrade | No $10 Upgrade |
| WiFi Calling | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
*Verizon’s postpaid plans are $5/line cheaper for BYOD customers.
A couple of other quick points to make about the prices in the table. For both postpaid and prepaid Verizon Wireless plans, autopay must be enabled to get the prices shown. The Verizon postpaid and prepaid plans are both $10/month higher without autopay billing enabled. Subscribers that don’t want to enable autopay billing on their prepaid plan can opt for a customer loyalty discount. The plan starts out at $60/month, and after 3-months of service, it drops to $5/month, after 9-months it’s $50/month.
If you want to compare more Verizon MVNO plans to Verizon’s Postpaid plans, check out the full list of Verizon MVNO phone plans.