10 Phone Carriers You May Not Realize Are Owned by Verizon

Verizon is the largest cellular service provider in the United States, with nearly 150 million subscribers. Around nine in 10 customers on Big Red pay a lot of their hard-earned cash for a postpaid plan with access to its 5G network, plus amenities such as satellite texting and additional digital subscription packages.

That leaves about 19 million users who use one of the company’s many prepaid brands, each offering cellular service with its own little twist. In fact, Verizon has ten active prepaid brands, excluding the company’s in-house label – the one that sells a $70 monthly plan with access to its premium 5G Ultra Wideband network.

But it doesn’t matter Verizon Prepaid. We’re about to give you a quick overview of the other carriers, explaining how they came to be, how they fell into Verizon’s hands, what they specialize in, and which ones will disappear in November 2026.

In 2018, Verizon expanded its Verizon Prepaid business by launching a separate brand called Visible. The company was the last of the Big Four at the time to open a dedicated prepaid carrier, as AT&T already owned Cricket Wireless, Sprint had Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile, and T-Mobile had Metro. While it initially insisted it was not an MVNO, Visible eventually clarified that Verizon executives were leading the charge and that the telecom giant was investing sustaining capital.

It targeted a younger audience by eschewing physical retail and opting for an entirely online service model, distributing SIM cards to iPhone owners before expanding to Android phones and opening its own device sales. Data was unlimited, although capped at 5 Mbps in its early days – I personally never experienced that cap in my usage at the time – but the limit was removed soon after.

Today, it offers three plans with increasing amounts of high-speed access for video streaming and hotspot data, starting at $25 per month and going up to $45. It is now officially branded Visible by Verizon.

TracFone started as Topp Telecom in 1996. It raised cash from Mexican company Telmex in 1999 before that company sold its cellular division to América Móvil the following year. América Móvil then acquired a majority stake in TracFone, growing it to become the leader in a variety of prepaid cellular phone companies in the United States. Verizon acquired TracFone’s portfolio from the Mexican telecommunications company in 2021. All of the following carriers on this list were brought on board as part of the TracFone deal.

Currently, TracFone offers monthly plans with options for longer durations at lower rates, much like what Mint Mobile and a few other carriers with cheap plans do – the $50 unlimited plan drops to $40 per month if you pay for a year of service at a time.

It also sells one-time allowances of minutes used between talk, text, and web usage, valid for between 30 days and a year. Customers can purchase refills for these single-use plans. You can also get cellular internet service at home through TracFone.

TracFone launched Straight Talk Wireless in conjunction with Walmart in 2009, using a network of more than 3,000 stores to sell a monthly plan capped at $30 per month and an unlimited plan at $45. This $45 plan has remained the same price and is currently dubbed Silver Unlimited. Of course, the name implies the existence of other tiers: Bronze Unlimited costs $35 while Gold and Platinum are set at $55 and $65, respectively. The biggest gains in the chain are in hotspot data and access to Verizon’s ultra-wideband spectrum. Straight Talk also sells residential Internet and landline phone services.

But just like its electronics section, Walmart’s story doesn’t end there: The big-box chain signed a subsequent deal with T-Mobile in 2010 to launch a different MVNO on that network, but the first under its own name: Walmart Family Mobile. As the word “family” suggests, Walmart was looking for multi-line accounts with an initial price of $45 per month for one line and $25 for each additional line. T-Mobile sold its share of the company to TracFone in 2016. Verizon’s version of Walmart Family Mobile now offers several plans from $20 to $47 per month, but will only charge $20 per additional line on any plan.

As an aside, T-Mobile wasn’t Walmart’s only MVNO partner in 2010, as the retailer also partnered with Sprint to launch Common Cents. Sprint discontinued Common Cents in 2011, integrating it with its Virgin Mobile-branded prepaid operations.

TracFone launched Total Wireless in 2015 as a Verizon-based MVNO focused on affordable multi-line plans. It started as another Walmart-exclusive carrier before expanding to franchise retailers. Many stores featured the Total Wireless brand above their doors, but customers could purchase phones and plans from any TracFone brand.

After acquiring TracFone, Verizon decided to leverage the Total name and its network of physical stores to increase its presence in the prepaid market. The company rebranded Total by Verizon in 2022, only to reverse the move in 2024.

Over time, marketing intensified, plans were revamped, and more locations were opened. In 2026, Total Wireless landed its 2,000th store. Total MAX 5G is one of our favorite $50 unlimited phone plans, but you can get it for $20 if you’re a new customer bringing your own phone. Total also offers data-only plans for home internet, tablets and mobile hotspots.

TracFone purchased Simple Mobile, a BYOP-only MVNO backed by T-Mobile, in 2012. It offered a $60 monthly unlimited plan at the time, and still does so as its premium product today. Four other packages are also available and start at $25.

While it still encourages potential customers to bring their own devices, Simple Mobile has some phones in its inventory, like the iPhone 16e or Samsung’s Galaxy A27. You might be better off going elsewhere to get a budget phone that’s actually worth buying.

During Verizon’s tenure, Simple Mobile has expanded its strengths to include international roaming data as well as unlimited global calling on every plan. In 2024, the state of California selected the carrier to provide LifeLine service to serve youth up to age 21 under a renewed program. Simple Mobile is one of three Verizon Value brands to offer LifeLine service: TracFone and SafeLink Wireless are the others.

SafeLink Wireless, like Assurance Wireless as part of T-Mobile’s prepaid carriers, participates in the federally funded Lifeline program that provides subsidized Internet access to low-income, native, and certain other populations at little or no cost.

During their annual eligibility determination, signers can bring an existing Verizon-enabled smartphone and receive unlimited talk and text, 10GB of data, and a separate pool of 5GB of hotspot data for free every 30 days. The operator offers phones, top-ups and paid plans for sale, but asks buyers to check their eligibility to see these options.

SafeLink also offers a free three-month subscription to Amazon Prime for new customers who have not taken advantage of a prior promotion. After that period, users enrolled in certain government benefits can re-enroll in Amazon’s Prime Access program for $7 per month, down from $15. Other programs, such as Amazon Prime for young adults, also offer discounted prices.

Verizon is close to completing the shutdown of three legacy TracFone brands: Page Plus, Net10 and GoSmart. The trio ended service in most of the United States in November 2024; service to California continues until November 2026. Net10’s homepage features messages encouraging customers to join sister brand Simple Mobile.

TracFone launched Net10 in 2005, at the end of an era of per-minute plans and premium call rates: calls cost 10 cents a minute, text messages 5 cents each. GoSmart was launched by T-Mobile in 2013 and offered simple, unlimited talk and text plans with varying data allowances, priced between $30 and $45 per month. Although it wasn’t explicitly mentioned at the time, TracFone picked up GoSmart from T-Mobile with the acquisition of Walmart Family Mobile. 2013 was also the year TracFone purchased Page Plus. Its contemporary offerings were highlighted by a $70 smartphone-friendly package.

Removing these MVNOs, TracFone hopes, should streamline operations and help make Verizon, a rookie in the prepaid space, more competitive with other carriers owned by AT&T and T-Mobile.