5 of the Best $50 Unlimited Phone Plans You Can Find

If you want to save money and still have an unlimited phone plan for your device, you can find several options for $50 or less per month. Unlike in the past, where you had to spend a fortune each month to benefit from unlimited service, you can now find this option at more reasonable prices. Smaller carriers made this possible as they began offering services at lower costs and created healthy competition for consumers.

However, while there are several unlimited cell phone plans for up to $50, you need to do some research to decide which one best suits your profile. The price companies advertise may also not be final, as taxes, fees, and other conditions can change the amount charged at the end of the month. Also, many advertise unlimited service but reduce data speed after using it for a while.

Below, we’ve rounded up some of the best phone plan options you can find if you want unlimited service at a reasonable price. By considering factors like the most reliable phone carriers and what each carrier offers beyond the basics, you can find the perfect smartphone alternative and enjoy the Internet in a way that fits your life…and your budget.

One of the best $50 unlimited phone plans you can find in this price range is Cricket Wireless. It offers unlimited data when you use AT&T’s 5G network, plus 15 gigabytes (GB) of hotspot data, plus Internet access in countries like Mexico and Canada. When you subscribe to this service, you also get international text messaging and 100 GB of cloud storage.

Plus, if multiple people want to sign up for the plan, Cricket Wireless offers discounts for multiple devices, making it a great deal to share. However, even with a useful feature set, it has some issues. Videos viewed over the mobile network are limited to 480p resolution, and AT&T postpaid customers may have priority over you during peak network times. So ask yourself whether these tradeoffs make sense for what they offer, especially if you’re also evaluating other low-cost phone carriers that use AT&T’s network.

T-Mobile’s network ranks among the fastest in the United States for people using 5G internet, so the Metro Flex Starter plan works well for a cell phone. For that price, you get unlimited data, eight GB of hotspot data, and phone upgrades included. This way, after 12 months of exchange, you will be able to replace your device under the same conditions that they offer to new customers.

Metro is one of the most popular cheap phone carriers on the T-Mobile network, and the price becomes even more attractive when more people sign up: with four lines, each person would pay about $30. Another interesting point is the five-year price guarantee on calls, texts and data, which adds extra security for anyone who doesn’t like an operator changing their bill after a few months.

However, Metro only offers the $50 plan if you keep AutoPay active – without that, you pay $55. The eight GB hotspot is also smaller than what other carriers offer, so if you plan to share the internet with other devices, you might miss out on that extra data.

Total Wireless Total MAX 5G is one of the most comprehensive unlimited phone plans under $50, especially for anyone who wants to use Verizon’s network without paying postpaid prices. For this price (requiring automatic payment), the plan includes unlimited 5G ultra-wideband, unlimited calls and texts, and unlimited hotspot usage, although its speeds remain capped at 5 Mbps. This makes it an attractive option for users who want a stable and good quality mobile connection.

The plan also adds useful benefits beyond basic Internet access, including roaming in more than 140 countries, international calling and texting to more than 200 countries, 100 GB of cloud storage, and spam protection. On the downside, the cost is $55 per month if you don’t want to use autopay, and the hotspot cap may limit heavier usage on laptops or tablets. Even so, Total MAX 5G deserves the attention of budget carriers because it combines Verizon coverage with benefits that many competitors reserve for more expensive plans.

For those looking for an even more affordable phone plan without Internet limitations, Visible Plus might be the best option you’ll find. Visible Plus is one of the best cheap phone carriers that use Verizon’s network, especially for users who value consistent speeds without paying postpaid prices. For just $35 per month, it offers unlimited premium data on 4G and 5G with no deprioritization during peak hours.

If you’re willing to pay a little more, Visible Plus Pro costs $45 and lets you watch videos in 4K UHD. The hotspot is also unlimited, but its speed remains capped at 15 Mbps, which generally works well for browsing and even watching online streaming.

However, this hotspot speed is also one of Visible Plus’s biggest problems: connecting multiple devices at the same time may not work very well. Additionally, because this is a prepaid plan on Verizon, the experience in congested areas may vary compared to the carrier’s postpaid customers, although Verizon does not consistently deprioritize Visible service. Rather, it’s about prioritizing Verizon’s core customers when traffic is high.

US Mobile Unlimited Premium is another great value plan for anyone who wants cell phone service but also needs to pay attention to a few conditions. For $32.50 per month, with taxes and fees already included, you get unlimited data with no data caps or deprioritization, unlimited hotspot, and 20GB of international roaming data in over 125 countries, perfect for anyone who wants to travel but doesn’t want to get an eSIM just for that purpose.

US Mobile also gives you great freedom in choosing the network you want to use. You don’t need to stay tied to a single carrier, but you can choose between Warp (Verizon), Light Speed ​​(T-Mobile), or Dark Star (AT&T), and you can switch whenever you want via eSIM at no extra cost on the Premium plan. Without an eSIM, you get two free swaps, then pay a fee each time you switch (or switch back). The amount of data you get for using the hotspot also changes depending on the selected network.

The only thing to watch out for is that achieving these more aggressive US mobile prices depends on its payment model. The price of $32.50 applies to an annual contract paid in one go. If you subscribe monthly, it costs around $44. So if you don’t want to pay the entire amount at once, it’s not as good a deal on a monthly basis.

It’s worth noting that while these plans are marketed as unlimited, the vast majority of them reduce data speeds after reaching a certain cap. With this in mind, we based our choices on the plans that offer the best conditions within these limits, such as a higher data limit for users or some useful benefits like roaming and cloud storage. We also considered cheaper alternatives within the same carrier when the value was hard to ignore.

Network reliability was another key factor, as we preferred plans that ran on Verizon, T-Mobile, or AT&T networks with nationwide 5G coverage. Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) running on their own infrastructure were excluded from this list because their networks are not as well tested and may not be as reliable as those running virtually on one of the three major carriers. Finally, we prioritized plans tailored to different user profiles, because not everyone signs up alone: ​​the availability of multi-line discounts and family-friendly options was also part of our evaluation.