AT&T vs UScellular: Who Should You Go With?

Whether you’re deciding to move to a new state, city, need to change your spending budget, or are simply looking for a change in carriers, the time to switch has come. You might have been researching a bunch of different carriers, crossing off names on your list, and finally coming down to two names: AT&T and US Cellular (more commonly displayed as UScellular). 

One is a part of the “big three” alongside Verizon and T-Mobile, which has been in the phone game for decades now with millions of customers. And the other, who has also been in the game for decades, is a smaller independent cell phone company with coverage that may not be up-to-par with the others, but maybe be exactly what you need in your area. 

AT&T vs UScellular is definitely a unique match-up and we’re here to cover it! Giving you the coverage and phone plan information you need in order to make a decision on who you should sign up for. There’s a lot to consider when you’re looking for a new wireless carrier and we want you to have an easy-to-follow guide that won’t get too complicated so you can leave with your clear answer. Let’s get started!

• Quick Overview: AT&T and UScellular
• What the Coverage Looks Like from Both Providers
• How the Plans Compare: From Price to Features
• The Verdict

Quick Overview: AT&T and UScellular

Before we go over what the coverage and plans look like from each provider we should first talk about the two companies separately so you can get an idea of what to expect from each as you begin to compare the two.

-> AT&T

Both AT&T and UScellular have been around since the 80s, funnily enough they both got their start specifically in 1983 in Chicago! How wild is that? AT&T obviously has a large footprint, with millions of customers and coverage spanning not just the United States but other countries as well, it’s safe to assume they have a good baseline. 

We’d say the major draw AT&T brings is their data limits. A good data threshold is sought after by a lot of people, especially those always on the road or are hardly connected to wifi. And normally the more you would use your data the slower the speeds get, thanks to throttling. But one cool thing about AT&T is they have a plan specifically built for our endless data users, the AT&T Unlimited Premium® PL plan to be exact, as the data never slows down no matter how much you use it- (and UScellular had their own version of this plan too).

And even without that plan, AT&T has got many plans built for users who need lots of gigabytes each month. They also have a few international benefits that are nice for travelers. 

But we will get into that when we cover their plans in full, first we have to introduce you to UScellular. 

-> UScellular

Normally when people think of wireless carriers they will either put them under the “independant” category which describes providers who own their own infrastructure to provide coverage to customers; or they put them in the “MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator)” category which describes a smaller wireless carrier that doesn’t own their own cell towers and will instead piggyback signal off of a company that does- like AT&T for instance. 

There aren’t a lot of small(er) providers that aren’t MVNOs, but UScellular is one of them. They, just like AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, own their own cell towers, in fact you might not know that they are the “fourth largest wireless carrier in the United States.” They have an estimated 5.1 million customers and recently announced at the beginning of this year (2024) that they have discontinued their 2G and 3G coverage options and instead will focus their efforts on expanding their 4G LTE and 5G networks. 

There have been mixed reviews online when it comes to the brand, some with great experience and others with some not-so-nice things to say. They seem to be hit or miss with a lot of people, while AT&T looks to have a better overall track record.

A REALLY Helpful Tip

Data throttling is “the dramatic slowing of your data speeds to the point that it becomes almost unusable,” and this will happen when a person goes over their monthly allotment of data. Carriers will normally tell you how much data you can use before your speeds slow either in the plan itself or at the bottom of the screen in fine print, so be on the look out when shopping so you can buy a plan with a threshold number you can comfortably sit under and not worry about losing your fast(er) speeds.

But, before we can judge, we have to take a look at a few things, and first things first is coverage…

What the Coverage Looks Like from Both Providers

Now we move onto one of the most important aspects of a wireless carrier: coverage! Let's take a look at both provider’s coverage statistics so you can see which one works best for you and your area:

-> AT&T

As the internet has evolved there’s been a lot of research into wireless technologies like 4G LTE and 5G. And because our two companies we’re comparing today have been around since the 80s there has been a lot of research dedicated to their coverage throughout the country. AT&T is most commonly compared to its two leading competitors: Verizon and T-Mobile since they are all similar in stats. For instance a report states that there actually isn’t a huge difference between the three, only a few percent separate them. 

For our 5G fans, T-Mobile reigns supreme at the moment, with Verizon overtaking in the 4G LTE field. AT&T sits comfortably between the two when comparing 4G LTE coverage and for 5G they are above Verizon but below T-Mobile, they've been expanding their footprint to hopefully catch up.

When you go to a carrier’s website you will normally see a tab called “Coverage Map” or “Coverage” – there you will see a map detailing how far their signal reaches. You’ll also be able to zoom in and out of the map so you can get a clear view of your address and what the coverage is like in your area. 

As for AT&T, they cover a majority of the United States along with parts of Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. If you want to see where coverage falls in your area and do further research, view the AT&T Coverage Map in full here.

-> UScellular

A look at UScellular’s “5G+ Coverage, 5G Coverage, 4G LTE/Other Coverage, and No Coverage” looks like via their Coverage Map.

From a quick glance you can see immediately that UScellular has far less surface area coverage than AT&T. When you zoom in the amount of coverage they first seemingly show is false, as their coverage is only available in certain regions in the country. However, UScellular has reciprocal roaming agreements which means you can get coverage under the UScellular name but it won’t actually be from USceullar itself- instead it will be from other providers. 

Rural midwest residents will have the best luck and best coverage from UScellular compared to those in unhighlighted zones via their coverage map.

They do show all of their coverage types: 5G+ Coverage, 5G Coverage, and 4G LTE/Other Coverage so you can get a clear idea what the coverage will be like in your area if you are in one of their directly covered locations. Overall UScellular falls short when compared to AT&T and other MVNOs.

You can find out if your area is directly covered by UScellular by viewing their Coverage Map.

How the Plans Compare: From Price to Features

Let’s next look at the phone plans of each provider so you can see how the prices, data, and add-ons compare to each other, starting with AT&T’s postpaid plans first:

Plus, they also offer two “value-friendly” plans which are:

Now one thing that’s good to note when looking at these plans is the listed price is not the finalized monthly price. These prices exclude taxes and fees and are the price you’ll pay if you sign up for their AutoPay service. So be aware of that when you’re factoring in your budget for the month. 

With AT&T you’re getting large amounts of data along with access to their security app, and international benefits.

UScellular has two categories of unlimited plans, “Promotional Unlimited” and “Unlimited Evolved,” which are recommended depending on if you’re going to be buying a new phone or bringing your own. 

• For Promotional Unlimited customers, UScellular recommends “bringing your own device or planning on purchasing your phone at full price.”
• For Unlimited Evolved customers, UScellular says “the more lines you add, the more you save.” Great for those looking for family deals.

UScellular does have prepaid plans which you can view in full here, for today we are only comparing their unlimited with AT&T’s unlimited postpaid plans.

Let’s first look at their Promotional Unlimited plans:

As we did for AT&T, UScellular does note that “pricing is per line/month after $10 Auto Pay/Paperless Billing discount.” So make sure to keep that in mind as well when you’re planning out your budget for these plans. 

Already you can see the major price difference between AT&T and UScellular. A huge amount of potential savings, and when you look at the price comparison of AT&T’s “never slows down” data plan and UScellular’s UNLIMITED EVEN BETTER plan it’s a hefty difference as AT&T’s is $85.99/mo barring any extra fees and UScellular’s is $49.99/mo. Although you don’t get all the bells and whistles AT&T has- you aren’t missing too much in comparison. 

UScellular does have their own “Flexible Add-Ons” which you can add-on to your plans:

• HD Streaming $5/mo.
• 25GB Hotspot Access $7/mo.
• 50GB Priority Data $7/mo.

There’s a lot of flexibility for UScellular’s phone plans which is nice for those wanting to essentially customize their phone plan to their specific needs.

The Verdict

We’ve compared the coverage maps and have taken a look at the prices, features, and phone plans of each provider, now we have to come to a verdict. Overall we think AT&T is the better option purely for its widespread coverage. They exceed UScellular’s coverage map 10x over and in this day and age having reliable coverage wherever you go- not just the midwest, is important. Now obviously if you live in one of UScellular’s prime coverage locations then trying them out isn’t a bad idea, we just think for cost/benefit ratio of the two makes AT&T our clear winner. 

And if you want to compare and contrast AT&T and UScellular to over 1,200 other phone plans so you know you’re getting the service that’s right for you, then make sure to check out the REALLY compare page which allows you to look at pricing, coverage, what phone plans are available, current deals and steals, and how you can make the most of your potential phone bill.