Who Owns Visible & What Network Do They Use?

There are a lot of dealmakers and deal breakers when it comes to wireless carriers and if you’ve been in the market for a switch then you know all about that. Trying to find a provider that meets your standards can be tricky, especially if you have questions you want answered. Luckily we’re here to answer those questions about one of the most popular options out there right now: Visible Wireless. Visible is best known for their budget-friendly and easy-to-follow phone plans that are quite lucrative. But who owns Visible and what network do they use for your coverage? Let’s talk about it!

In this article, we plan to discuss the ins and outs of Visible Wireless while also diving into:

• A Quick Summary on Visible Wireless
• Who Owns the Carrier
• What Network Does Visible Use? Is it a MVNO or MNO?
• Plans, Prices, and Features
• A Few FAQs

A Quick Summary on Visible Wireless

In your research to find a new provider you’ve probably seen your fair share of overly-complicated phone plans and services. Sometimes “more” isn’t better, especially when you don’t need something insanely in-depth. Well, that’s where Visible comes in. Visible wanted to take the complicated out of wireless with their phone plans. They wanted everyone to be able to follow along with what their plans provide at a cost that won’t break the bank every month. They are a no contract, unlimited wireless carrier that provides service using America’s biggest network.

Who owns Visible?

Visible Wireless has been owned by Verizon Wireless ever since its introduction back in 2018. It’s had its changes over the years internally but has never changed hands from Verizon itself. In 2022 it was rebranded from “Visible” to Visible by Verizon- but most just know it simply still as Visible. 

What Network does Visible use?

When you’re shopping for a new cell phone plan one of the first things you do is look to see what type of network connection you’ll have. Traditionally there are two major options in the US: MNOs (Mobile Network Operators) like Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T, and MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators). MVNOs purchase service access wholesale from one of the MNOs that own infrastructure across the country, which gives customers service at a much lower price.

It will come as no surprise that Visible is a MVNO of Verizon as that is their parent company.

MVNO - What Should You Know:

A common aspect of MVNOs you should know about is they are more likely to subject users to data deprioritization and throttled speeds. Data deprioritization is “the temporary slowing of data speeds for certain customers in order to give priority to other customers.” Which means that those who are direct customers of the “parent” company will get network priority when you’re in a high traffic area like a concert hall or sports stadium, or when there’s network congestion.

Throttling is also more likely to occur with MVNOs and “the dramatic slowing of your data speeds to the point that it becomes almost unusable.” This will happen when you go over a certain number of gigabytes of data for the month, which is referred to as a “data cap.” You’ll see this number displayed somewhere on your carrier’s website. Your normal speeds will slow down until the start of your next billing cycle.

Verizon has the most nation-wide 4G LTE coverage out of every wireless carrier in the country which is no small feat. Covering over 70% of the country, Verizon has had its footprints all over the map giving reliable coverage to even the most rural of areas when it comes to LTE. 

When it comes to 5G however, Verizon loses a few credibility points as they are lower in volume compared to T-Mobile and AT&T. Both T-Mobile and AT&T have more widespread 5G coverage than Verizon, but Verizon’s 5G speeds are definitely performing at a higher rate. They’ve gotten the highest marks in “5G Games Experience, 5G Voice App Experience, and 5G Video Experience,” which means that when you’re in 5G Verizon covered area you’ll get some pretty amazing performance power.

One feature you’ll find on most provider’s websites is a “Coverage” or “Coverage Map” tab, this shows off the network’s coverage all throughout the country and subsequent regions. This is a look at Visible’s:

To get the most accurate account of what coverage is like in your area you will need to enter your ZIP when you go onto their coverage map page.

You can also get a different view via Ookla’s coverage map which allows you to see where cellular towers are located and which company owns them. This coverage map provides information about coverage from 2G to 5G for several providers.

Visible’s Plans, Prices, and Features

Now that we have some background, let’s take a look at the plan(s), prices, and features of the carrier:

Visible Wireless Plans

Both Visible plans offer unlimited data. 

Visible only offers two plans – Visible Base and Visible+. Visible+ offers more features as well as premium data. Both plans offer a hotspot, with that data coming from your overall plan data. As an MVNO on Verizon’s network, Visible is on QCI tier 9. Visible+ has higher priority for its 50GB of premium data, which will be further explained below. 

It’s also important to note that Visible is a single line carrier – meaning you can only have one phone on an account. If you’re buying a plan for your family or with your significant other, you need to make separate accounts with separate plans for everyone. 

If you purchase your phone from Visible, your device will be locked for the first 60 days after activation. Both plans they offer renew monthly, and taxes and fees are included with the advertised price. 

🎉Right now to ring in the New Year, Visible has a sale for both of their phone plans, 🎉 if you use the code “SWITCH25” you can get $20/mo for 25 months with their Visible Base plan and $30/mo for 25 months with their Visible+ plan.

Visible Base

This plan is always deprioritized.

As we said before, like most plans you’ll see on the market, Visible’s base plan has unlimited talk and text. 

Visible Base also has unlimited data with no cap – meaning you have truly unlimited data that never slows down no matter how much you use. However, the Visible base plan is always deprioritized. Your data and connection will slow down at any point of high traffic in your area, so you have access to Visible’s high-speed data no matter how much you use, but they can’t guarantee that it will stay consistent at all times.

The plan also includes unlimited mobile hotspot data. Again, your data is deprioritized and may slow down in times of high network traffic. 

This plan has two payment options, you can either pay monthly or annually. 

The Visible Base Monthly plan is $25 per month (taxes and fees included) and the Visible Base Annual plan is $275 a year (taxes and fees included, save $25 with this payment option). These are their regular prices, not including the New Year’s deal.

Visible+

This plan gives you 50GB of premium data, then unlimited deprioritized data. 

Visible+ gives you access to Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network, which is their network for premium data. As such, the 50GBs of premium data you get with this plan will not slow down no matter how much network traffic in your area. After you use the 50GB, your data is unlimited – but subjected to the same deprioritization as the Visible Base plan. The mobile hotspot is also premium data for the first 50GB at speeds up to 10Mbps, then is deprioritized after. 

This plan has two payment options, you can either pay monthly or annually. 

The Visible+ Monthly plan is $45 per month (taxes and fees included) and the Visible+ Annual plan is $395 a year (taxes and fees included, save $145 with this payment option). At this rate, you get the 50GB of premium data at $0.90 per GB. These are their regular prices, not including the New Year’s deal.

The Features:

While Visible offers premium data and hefty savings, it’s good to take a look at their features. If you’re someone who considers themselves to be a traveler, talk to your international friends and family a lot, or are looking for a bit more “perk” with your plan then this section will break down all of that juicy info so you can know what you’re potentially gonna get: 

• Domestic Roaming Data

• Visible Wireless offers domestic roaming data with their plans.

• Mexico & Canada Connection

• Visible offers talk and text in Mexico and Canada. However, Visible does not include roaming data for Mexico and Canada with Visible Base. Visible+ includes 2GBs of roaming data per day that slows down to 2G speeds after you use it each day.

• International Connection

• Visible does not give you international roaming data, but you can buy it with their Global Pass. Though, Visible+ gives you international talk and text, Visible Base does not offer this feature. The Global Pass is an add-on with their plans, you can get these benefits:

• Video Streaming Quality

• Visible’s plans stream at 480p Standard Definition.

• Streaming Services and Cloud Storage

• Visible Wireless does not offer these features.

• Device Financing

• Visible has partnered with Affirm which is a financial company and through them you can “Buy Now and Pay Later” with select phones and Smartwatches. You can get APR financing through Visible’s deal with Affirm- (note that you may need to make a down payment, so be aware of that before you look into the program). Then once you’re done paying off said loan, the device(s) are yours. More information you need on Visible and Affirm can be found here.

• WiFi Calling

• Visible Wireless offers WiFi calling, which allows you to send and receive phone calls over a WiFi connection rather than cellular reception.

• Spam Protection and Free Trial

• Visible offers spam protection on both of their plans, which blocks spam calls and protects you from potential fraud. They also offer a free 15 day trial.

A Few FAQs - What You Need to Know about Visible Wireless

You’ve read a lot about the carrier, but you still might have a few questions regarding specific things and this section is all about answering them.

• Does the carrier support dual SIM, allowing you to use more than one plan on the device?

According to Visible itself, “each eSIM device has dual SIM capability, which allows your phone to connect to two networks simultaneously. This means you can have 2 different SIMs from 2 different carriers in your device at once.” They have an entire page dedicated to eSIM questions and “how-to’s” should you be in need of its services.

• Is the network GSM or CDMA?

“GSM” and “CDMA” are two slightly outdated terms and technologies describing wireless networks. Nowadays it’s VoLTE or 5G and everyone, including Visible is moving to LTE+5G(NR) which means as long as you have a voLTE capable phone your phone will work with Visible’s network. 

Now if you have an older phone and it is a GSM device, which are usually registered devices under the T-Mobile and AT&T networks, then you may run into some trouble. As CDMA devices have been under Verizon and Visible is a part of Verizon. We recommend taking a look at your device compatibility before signing up in case you want to keep your phone. 

• What are some MVNOs that leverage the same towers?

Since Visible uses Verizon to provide network coverage to its customers you will be on the same network as these other popular MVNOs:

-US Mobile

-Straight Talk Wireless

-Red Pocket Mobile

-XFinity Mobile

-Total Wireless

-Family Mobile

• What if I have a question and need help? What is the best way to reach them?

Visible Wireless does not have any physical stores leaving their customers to online support. They also do not have a phone number you can call, all of their customer support comes from messages. You can chat with them in a few ways: through their website or the app, through Twitter, or on Facebook Messenger.

Wrapping Up

It’s hard to beat Visible’s prices, even if you’re looking for premium data. As Ericsson Mobility said, the average phone user uses only 20GB of data per month, so you can save hundreds of dollars per year if you’re switching for money reasons. You can always check your data usage before committing to a plan or carrier so you can see if Visible’s high data threshold will be of benefit to you.

Want to compare other carriers?

Really.com helps users compare between features, coverage, price, reviews, and more!

And if you want to compare and contrast Visible Wireless 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.