AT&T vs. Verizon Pre-Paid: Which Carrier is Better?

AT&T and Verizon are two major carriers in the United States. They provide expensive plans with unlimited high-speed data, high data priority, and a variety of extras and add-ons. These plans are for high-data users who use their phones a lot every day and are able to make the most of their 4G LTE and 5G networks. These expensive plans offer stable data in all but areas of the highest congestion, like sporting events and concerts. 

In this article, we plan to discuss the ins and outs of both carriers and what they offer. We’ll also cover:

• What the coverage of both carriers looks like
• How do the prices of their plans compare to how much data you get
• The features each carrier offers for their plans 

Coverage & Reception

Verizon and AT&T are both major wireless carriers, meaning they own and operate their own networks around the country. At this point, all three major wireless networks in the United States have fantastic 5G networks backed by 4G LTE networks in more areas around the country, generally further from major metropolitan areas. AT&T provides comparable coverage with Verizon. Both networks have excellent nationwide coverage with 4G LTE and 5G networks. AT&T has better coverage in certain areas, while Verizon takes the cake in other regions. Make sure to check local coverage maps for more information about your area.  

Since they are both major wireless networks, AT&T and Verizon have similar data priorities.  When there is more traffic on a network than it can handle, the owning company (AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon) will throttle the data of specific customers. To evade slowing everyone’s data speed at once, carriers have users divided into tiers with different data priorities. In the United States, that priority data is roughly divided into three tiers.

Tier 1 data always has the maximum data speeds. This doesn’t mean that Tier 1 data is never slowed down, just that every other tier is slowed down first. There are big congregations of people that use so much bandwidth that no one has high-speed data. Concerts and sporting events are common times when no one can access their data, regardless of how “premium” their data is. There’s a maximum bandwidth available, and in places like that, there are enough premium users that they alone consume the entire bandwidth. 

Tier 2 data is in the middle, and Tier 1 is in the bottom. Anyone with Tier 1 data (MVNOs) gets slowed down before the other tiers. It is very difficult to discern where and how bad congestion gets in certain areas. For MVNOs, some areas in cities like New York and Chicago get really bad, where other areas see little to no congestion. 

So, AT&T offers plans that have either tier 1 or tier 2 data, just like Verizon. If you live in a major metropolitan area, you will notice far more slowdowns due to data deprioritization than if you live in a suburban or rural area. 

Plan Options

AT&T offers various plans that provide unlimited data, very similar to Verizon Pre-Paid’s options. Along with high-speed data, both carriers offer unlimited talk and text along with various features and add-ons. First up, let’s talk about AT&T’s cell phone plans. 

AT&T Cell Phone Plans

AT&T offers three unlimited plans at various price points, with each one offering various add-ons, high-speed data, and more. All plans have immense multi-line savings between two and five lines. If you open an account with friends and family, everyone will save big on their cell phone service. Let’s outline AT&T’s cell phone plans. 

• AT&T Unlimited Starter Plan
• AT&T Unlimited Extra Plan
• AT&T Unlimited Premium Plan

Each of AT&T’s cell phone plans is a great option for people who want unlimited high-speed data, with their starter plan offering unlimited high-speed data and the two premium plans offering premium data, extra hotspot data, and more. Let’s break it down. 

AT&T Unlimited Starter Plan 

AT&T’s Unlimited Starter plan offers unlimited high-speed data, 5 GB of hotspot data, and AT&T’s Active Armor cell phone security. Along with this, AT&T limits phone streaming on mobile data to standard definition. A single-line account here costs $65 per month, lowering down to $30 a month for a five-line account. One thing you will notice among major wireless providers is that they all have incredible multi-line savings. This makes these high-cost plans most valuable for customers who plan on adding multiple lines to their accounts. 

AT&T Unlimited Extra

AT&T’s Unlimited Extra offers 75 GB of premium data, which will never get slowed down unless the network is maximally congested (think NFL game), as well as 30 GB of high-speed hotspot data, which is a great addition to the plan for those who use their laptops on the go. AT&T still only offers standard definition streaming on their Unlimited Extra plan. 

AT&T Unlimited Premium

AT&T’s most expensive plan, Unlimited Premium, comes with 60 GB high-speed hotspot data, unlimited premium data, and 4K UHD streaming. This plan is very expensive, and we only recommend it for people who will get the most out of it. This high-powered plan is excellent for those who use their phones and other devices routinely while on the move. 

Verizon Pre-Paid Cell Phone Plans

Verizon offers four pre-paid cell phone plans, which vary in data allocation. The price of these cell phone plans varies tremendously based on how many lines are on your account. We recommend at least three lines on this major provider, as it saves $30 on each line each month. These are Verizon’s pre-paid cell phone plans: 

• $35 — Talk and text only
• $45 — 15 GB of high-speed data 
• $60 — Unlimited high-speed data 
• $70 — Unlimited high-speed data with 20 GB hotspot data

For starters, don’t get Verizon’s talk and text-only cell phone plan. It is far too expensive and doesn’t give you the main benefit of using a major wireless network, which is, well, the network. If you truly don’t need high-speed mobile data, then an MVNO cell phone plan is perfect for you. Carriers like Tello Mobile, Ting, and Mint Mobile all have super-affordable low-data cell phone plans that let you save big on your mobile bill. 

Verizon’s other three prepaid cell phone plans all have benefits, including fantastic multi-line savings, which we will get into later! Their 15 GB data plan is good for low-data users, which gets you some high-speed data to use in emergencies while saving you money compared to their unlimited data plans. Their premium unlimited plan, on top of the 20 GB hotspot data, also has 50 GB of premium wireless data, which means you will almost never receive data slowdowns. If you find yourself regularly using hotspot data, then the extra $10 is very worthwhile! 

These cell phone plans are similarly priced to Verizon’s postpaid cell phone plans. All things being equal, we recommend AT&T’s postpaid plans because they offer greater benefits for the price. Major wireless networks offer lots of add-ons, features, and more, with the caveat that they are very expensive. Verizon pre-paid toes the line between a postpaid major wireless network and an MVNO, which offers much more affordable cell phone plans without the bells, whistles, and data priority you receive from major networks. 

We recommend Verizon pre-paid for people who are interested in trying out a major wireless network without committing to a contract on their service. It is hard to find concrete differences between the three major wireless networks. They all have impressive nationwide coverage, offer great high-speed data, and a robust cell phone store. Trying out a major wireless provider's pre-paid plan is a great way to see how their reported coverage map holds up in your area. You may find holes in their network that make it very frustrating to use their service or find that their coverage is exceptional in your area. 

Multi-Line Savings

Verizon’s multi-line savings are the same for every plan, which decreases the cost of each line as you add more to the account. This is the biggest way to save money on Verizon Wireless. Let’s break down how much you save with Verizon's pre-paid multi-line savings. 

In brief, the prices of single-line Verizon pre-paid plans are $35, $50, and $60 per line, respectively. The prices of the same lines with a five-line account are $35, $30, and $44, respectively. There are no multi-line savings on Verizon’s 15 GB plan, but you receive significant savings from both of their unlimited plans. Verizon’s Unlimited plan multiple-line savings rack up to 40% off each month! 

Major Wireless Network vs. MVNO

Both AT&T and Verizon are major wireless networks. Their cell phone plans, coverage, and overall experience are much more similar than they would be for an MVNO like Cricket Wireless or Visible Wireless. Let’s break down some of the key differences between Major Wireless Networks and MVNOs, just in case an MVNO sounds like a better fit. 

Two key differences between major wireless networks and MVNOs are data throttling and deprioritization. 

Data deprioritization and data throttling are two techniques used by wireless providers and Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) to manage network traffic and optimize resource allocation, especially during times of network congestion.

Data Deprioritization:

Data deprioritization occurs when a user exceeds a certain threshold of data usage within a billing cycle or during periods of network congestion. When a network is congested, providers prioritize data traffic to ensure that users who have not exceeded their data limit or prioritization threshold receive a better quality of service. Users who have surpassed this threshold may experience slower data speeds temporarily until network congestion reduces or their billing cycle resets.

How major wireless providers handle data deprioritization:

Major wireless providers often have high thresholds (such as 50GB or more) before deprioritization kicks in. Once deprioritized, users may experience reduced speeds but typically continue to have access to data services.

How MVNOs handle data deprioritization:

MVNOs usually lease network capacity from major carriers at wholesale rates. As a result, they may have lower prioritization thresholds compared to the major carriers. This means MVNO customers might experience deprioritization sooner during times of network congestion compared to direct customers of the major carriers.

Data Throttling:

Data throttling is a more deliberate and severe form of speed reduction that occurs after a user has consumed a certain amount of data. Unlike deprioritization, which is influenced by network congestion, throttling is often applied regardless of network conditions once the data cap is reached. Throttling reduces the speed at which data is transferred over the network, typically resulting in significantly slower download and upload speeds until the next billing cycle begins or the user purchases additional high-speed data.

How major wireless providers handle data throttling:

Major carriers often have specific data caps beyond which throttling occurs. The throttled speeds are usually specified in the service agreement and are considerably slower than normal network speeds.

How MVNOs handle data throttling:

MVNOs may apply throttling differently depending on their agreement with the host network provider. Some MVNOs might throttle at lower data usage thresholds compared to major carriers, while others may not throttle at all but instead rely on deprioritization.

Deprioritization and Throttling

Data Deprioritization is a temporary slowing of data speeds during times of network congestion and typically affects users who have exceeded a data usage threshold.

Data Throttling is a deliberate reduction in data speed that occurs once a user has consumed a certain amount of data, regardless of network congestion.

Differences between major carriers and MVNOs lie primarily in the thresholds at which these measures are applied and the severity of speed reductions. Major carriers tend to have higher thresholds and more lenient policies compared to MVNOs, which may prioritize their own direct customers over MVNO subscribers when network resources are strained.

Customer Service 

AT&T has physical locations and robust online customer service offerings, similar to Verizon. You can call AT&T’s customer service line at 844-931-0552. You can also reach AT&T’s help pages following this link, which has answers to frequently asked questions, the option to chat, and more. 

Verizon’s contact information is 800-922-0204, or you can access its help page here. 

Major Wireless Prepaid vs Postpaid

In terms of value, postpaid plans offer more. Prepaid plans, however, are great in a pinch. They require no credit check or binding contract, meaning you have more flexibility when you sign up. If you want to try out a major wireless network service, then a prepaid plan can be a great way to do that. 

Be warned, however, about cell phone contracts when using a prepaid plan. A cell phone contract will lock you into their service just like a carrier contract will. Many carriers sell their phones on two or three-year contracts, effectively locking you into their service for that whole time unless you can pay off your phone in full and get it unlocked. Well, you can leave, but your phone won’t work on any other provider’s network unless it is unlocked. If you do want to buy a new cell phone when you switch to a new provider, we recommend double-checking the cell phone contract to ensure you do not get stuck with a carrier you don’t want. A lot of new carrier deals look great on the surface, but hide contracts within. 

The Verdict

AT&T’s cell phone plans offer more robust data allocations and add-ons but are a bit more expensive. Overall, we recommend AT&T’s cell phone plans or regular Verizon cell phone plans. If you are interested in prepaid offerings, there are lots of amazing MVNOs with much more affordable plans than Verizon Pre-Paid. If you do want a major wireless network cell phone plan, we recommend using their normal cell phone plans. Though a bit more expensive, they come with a lot of benefits that make it worthwhile. 

Verizon's Pre-Paid offerings are just too expensive to be a viable option, especially with postpaid cell phone plans and MVNO pre-paid plans available. They are just about the same cost as Verizon’s regular cell phone plans, and Verizon’s limited-data plan, with 15 GB, is much more expensive than MVNOs in the United States. 

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