Best US carriers?

[TMavC5]

If you like Verizon's coverage but hate Verizon, Xfinity Mobile would be a great option. I am on Xfinity Mobile and I love it. It's $45/month for unlimited data (throttled at 22GB, obviously) but then you get millions of WiFi hotspots with it. I'm paying the same amount on Xfinity Mobile as I did on T-Mobile. On T-Mobile, I was not on a device payment plan. The price was just service and data. On Xfinity Mobile, I am on a DPP+service+data.

Yeah the speed is amazing on Xfinity. I already switched one line to Xfinity, two more will be going as soon.

 

[Almeuit]

Great time to dump the big carriers and get on a GSM network lik cricket use AT&T Towers excellent reception cheap service

In two years most networks will all be LTE so gsm and cdma won't matter as much .

 

[Almeuit]

Definitely awesome price you go there. Must be grand father prices. You won't or can't get those anymore for new customer.View attachment 280208

Yep I got the unlimited intro plan and I have a lot of lines.

Also the won't or can't part isn't true . Just always have to do a little research and it's possible to get my plan.

As I said though it isn't bad.. it just isn't always going to be the best for everyone.

 

[TMavC5]

Yep I got the unlimited intro plan and I have a lot of lines.

Also the won't or can't part isn't true . Just always have to do a little research and it's possible to get my plan.

As I said though it isn't bad.. it just isn't always going to be the best for everyone.

Yeah, I'm sure I can get some type of discount through my company or some sort of intro pricing. But you can't beat what Xfinity is doing though. Pretty damn good price without any type of discount.

 

[Almeuit]

Yeah, I'm sure I can get some type of discount through my company or some sort of intro pricing. But you can't beat what Xfinity is doing though. Pretty damn good price without any type of discount.

Oh no I don't mean any work discount. I just mean my actual plan.

Either way I digress. It's definitely good for individual who want a good price for data and are okay with a hard speed cap once over the limit (and of course have Xfinity at home).

 

[Almeuit]

I'm going to upgrade from the s7 to the s9 and my Verizon contract is done. Just wondering what everyone thinks is the best carrier. Not sure if I should look into changing. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks

Oh also just thought about it.. if T-Mobile works well MetroPCS is also a cheap option. You could snag a SIM from Metro to test the T-Mobile coverage in your area.

 

[txa1265]

Yeah, agree with others on the 'it's all about your location'. In the Corning NY (central NY) area, it is ALL about Verizon. Sure others have some 'coverage' or so they claim, but not really. Puts consumers at a competitive disadvantage.

 

[o4liberty]

With so many deals nowadays I would purchase an unlocked device and you can use almost any carrier without being locked into just one.

 

[anon(5376293)]

I was interested in Xfinity Mobile when I heard about it, but it currently only supports iPhones. Hard pass.

Also, this:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanwh...-isnt-a-very-good-deal-when-you-look-closely/

 

[hgoldner#CB]

This is the same question as "what's the best flavor of ice cream" with the exception that location matters. As is obvious from above, your mileage will vary depending upon your location. In Greater Philadelphia, AT&T has deadspots which are older than many on this forum. Verizon has best Greater Philadelphia coverage; no surprise since its headquarters is here. But as you see from above, other carriers may be stronger in other areas of the nation. Generally, from my handset testing experience for the last several years, Sprint has had the weakest coverage on average nationwide.

 

[Mill1978]

I travel all along the East coast and Verizon never lets me down. I've tried sprint and t mobile but they just don't cut it

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

Verizon or T-Mobile, depending on location. If you're a traveler, cross T-MO off.

 

[DsM]

For best coverage, especially if you travel, the detested Verizon is necessary.

By the way I use over 50 gigs a month and haven't had a problem w/throttling.

 

[LazyLightning]

The last building I worked in I had AT&T and the people with Verizon had no reception. AT&T worked well. Sounds like most of you would move to xfinity if you were changing service.

My bill with taxes is $70.31 a month on Verizon. Only drawback is that I only have 2GBs of data. I only go over around twice a year, usually have a wifi connection. I also somehow snuck through with the $199 2 year upgrade for my S7. Looks like they aren't offering that anymore

 

[wpavlik2]

Well... It depends on your location how good certain ones would be. I think Verizon has the best comprehensive coverage nationwide. AT&T has good coverage as well. In my area, Sprint is horrible and T-Mobile is pretty crappy too.

If you're mainly in an urban area, you shouldn't have issues with any of them. Further out, AT&T and Verizon are probably you're best bet.

I think in areas where T-Mobile has a presence they have great speed and service.
The problem with T-Mobile is they aren't EVERYWHERE yet. There are gaps in their coverage. Verizon on the other hand is EVERYWHERE because they are the owners of all the combined bandwith from consuming all the little regional carriers over the years. Their data speeds are seemingly lower than T-Mobile in area where both are served. I understand there are a NUMBER of factors that affect that metric though.
My work phone is a VZW but my personal Cell has been on T-Mo for a few years and for the most part, I've been really happy with them.

 

[Almeuit]

The last building I worked in I had AT&T and the people with Verizon had no reception. AT&T worked well. Sounds like most of you would move to xfinity if you were changing service.

My bill with taxes is $70.31 a month on Verizon. Only drawback is that I only have 2GBs of data. I only go over around twice a year, usually have a wifi connection. I also somehow snuck through with the $199 2 year upgrade for my S7. Looks like they aren't offering that anymore

Since you are a late data user it sounds like Xfinity would work if you have Xfinity at home otherwise I would look for some type of prepaid carrier like MetroPCS or something.

Or in this case since you said AT&T work you can use Cricket which is their prepaid carrier.

 

[CheddarFingers]

I cannot say AT&T is the best as that is relative, but on a large missions trip driving to the middle of an Apache Indian reservation in AZ, only my phone worked with AT&T coverage getting 3G. All the other adults and kids sporting Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Cricket had zero signal. Nothing like sharing a single phone with dozen plus kids calling home touching base with parents because they couldn't get basic cell service.

Like I said, not sure what "best" encompasses. But it's hard to beat AT&T coverage in the states for remote areas.

 

[lafountain]

I personally have been happy with Sprint for the last 15 years, but recently have had issues when I travel for work and this is causing me to consider leaving them this year. Ultimately what is best for you is going to be different than what is best for just about everyone else. We don't live where you live (more than likely) so your best bet is which carrier is the best in your area and go with them. Sprint was great where I lived in Texas, Sprint is pretty good where I now live in Maryland, but I now travel for work once in a while and they have been hit or miss on the places I have traveled.

 

[mogelijk]

I was interested in Xfinity Mobile when I heard about it, but it currently only supports iPhones. Hard pass.

Also, this:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanwh...-isnt-a-very-good-deal-when-you-look-closely/

Two issues: First, the Forbes article is out of date and false. There are parts that are true, to get the best price you need to have Xfinity Home Internet service. As for phone pricing, Xfinity charges the normal "carrier rates," which may be overpriced compared to a sale price some retailer is offering, but is still priced normally. OTOH, they often have great deals on phones -- such as now being able to get a $250 Visa gift card, though after 4 months, if you purchase a Samsung phone, and the deal includes the S9 and S9+.

And, obviously, since Xfinity sales Samsung phones they definitely don't only support iPhones. I'll give that a half true rank, since if you want to BYOD you can currently only use an iPhone -- though several have swapped the SIM into an Android after the line was set up. Though Android BYOD is supposed to be available soon. Again, though, with this being an S9 thread, for anyone wanting to switch to XMobile, this is a great time/deal since you can get the gift card with the S9.

Last, obviously the "best carrier" for an individual is based on where they live and what plans that carrier has. However, even if you have 5 (or so) Verizon lines and pay less than $45 per line, Xfinity could still be cheaper. The difference here is that with Verizon with their current Unlimited, every line has to be Unlimited. With Xfinity, you can have just a couple of lines as unlimited, with the rest pay by the GB lines. So, while you might pay $40 on all your lines with 5 lines ($200+tax/fee) with Verizon, with Xfinity you might pay $45 for two lines, $12 for two lines (1GB each) and $24 for a third line (2GB); if my quick math is right, $138 for the five lines.

One other positive, if you currently have Xfinity Home Internet then there is no hard credit pull when you sign up. Instead, they look at you current Xfinity account for the "credit check." Basically, if you have no outstanding late balance you can buy the phones on a monthly plan (no interest). Also, if for some reason you decide to leave Xfinity mobile, they do not require you to pay off the phones immediately -- instead the phone payments are added to your Xfinity Home bill, making it easier to switch if the service isn't working for you. I should mention that the phones are locked to Xfinity Mobile when you purchase them, but their unlocking policy is basically to unlock the phones on request.

Xfinity Mobile is a great deal, if the plans work for your situation (including being or signing up to be an Xfinity Home Internet customer).

 

[Almeuit]

I cannot say AT&T is the best as that is relative, but on a large missions trip driving to the middle of an Apache Indian reservation in AZ, only my phone worked with AT&T coverage getting 3G. All the other adults and kids sporting Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Cricket had zero signal. Nothing like sharing a single phone with dozen plus kids calling home touching base with parents because they couldn't get basic cell service.

Like I said, not sure what "best" encompasses. But it's hard to beat AT&T coverage in the states for remote areas.

I know people that have the exact same experience as you except Verizon was the only one that worked.