AT&T Prepaid Review

AT&T’s prepaid lineup is pretty robust, with seven separate plans ranging in price from $30 to a whopping $300. Yes, that’s three hundred dollars (the plan lasts a whole year)! These plans offer something for almost every kind of user. Let’s dive into the details.

AT&T’s pricing tends to be in the middle of the pack when compared to other major providers. It’s not as pricey as Verizon, but it’s not as cheap as T-Mobile (or discount/MVNO providers, like Visible). While we found eight handy ways to lower your AT&T cell phone bill, it's a good time to consider the carrier’s prepaid plans (because they're a whole other story).

You can get some great deals if you’re willing to forego a few perks and pay your bill upfront.

For example, compare the AT&T Unlimited Starter^® SL plan with the AT&T Prepaid Unlimited plan.

The Unlimited Starter^® SL plan costs $66 a month, and your data can be slowed down (deprioritized) at any time. That’s a lot of money to pay for data that could slow to a trickle while you’re trying to stream or game.  

But if you’re willing to go prepaid, you can actually get a robust plan for $50.99 a month. This prepaid plan comes with the same unlimited data as the Unlimited Start Plan but with an additional 30GB of premium data; however, it doesn't offer any hotspot data.

That’s a wildly good deal. But there are other deals from AT&T prepaid, too. You can get an unlimited talk and text plan with 8GB of data for just $33 a month when you pay for three months upfront. Not bad AT&T. Not bad at all.

It can be tough to estimate how much mobile data you need, but with most plans, you likely won’t need to worry about hitting your limit. Most of AT&T’s prepaid plans come with a decent amount of data. Of course, there are unlimited data plans. But there’s also an 8GB plan for $33 per month, which will give you plenty of data for scrolling through Instagram, checking your email, and even streaming a few shows.

Even AT&T’s lowest-priced prepaid plan gives you 5GB of data for $30 per month. It’s a great plan for a kid who is (or isn’t supposed to be) online all day.

Verizon takes the gold medal for the best cellular network. But AT&T is right on its heels. It has the second-best nationwide 4G LTE coverage and the fastest data speeds.

AT&T’s fast download speeds make it an ideal carrier for those who use their cellular network for gaming, working, or rigorous social-media posting. Check out our section on coverage below to learn more about AT&T’s network.

AT&T prepaid offers some awesome deals. But it’s our job to point out the not-so-great features of each carrier, too. So here are the cons you should take into consideration.

Everyone loves some perks, freebies, extras, bells and whistles, whatever you want to call the free stuff your mobile carrier throws in with your plan. Unfortunately, you’ll miss out on a lot of that with AT&T prepaid.

Some of the things that many normal AT&T plans come with won’t be available on any prepaid plans, like the following:

• No AT&T Thanks program (which gives you discounts on tickets to concerts and other events)
• No Max subscription
• No AT&T Next Up phone upgrade program

Let’s not lose sight of the central difference between “normal” plans and prepaid plans: when you actually pay your bill. With prepaid plans you have to pay at the beginning of each month. If you forget to make a payment, you lose service.

You can enroll in autopay or pay up front for several months. This is a convenient way to keep your service on, and you can score some great discounts.

You’re not here to find any deal. You’re here to find the best deal for you. We thought that this comparison chart showing how AT&T’s prepaid unlimited plan compares to similar phone plans from the competition might help with that.

What’s better than saving money? Saving even more money, obviously. And you can do it by signing up for multiple prepaid lines with AT&T. Here’s everything you need to know about AT&T prepaid family plans.

You can have up to five lines on your AT&T prepaid account. If you’ve got a Brady Bunch–sized family, then you might need to get a second family account.

When you add two or three lines, you’ll get $10 off your overall bill every month. When you add four lines to max out at five lines, you’ll get $20 off your bill.

That might not seem like that much of a discount, but when you add it to the already cheap price tag on these prepaid plans, it looks pretty good. Take this three-line unlimited plan, for example.

In this case you get three lines, each with unlimited talk, text, and data (speeds can be reduced after 22 GB), plus 35GB of hotspot data. 

As we mentioned above, AT&T’s network has great coverage and the fastest data speeds in the industry. This is as true for family plans as it is for individual plans. That means you, your partner, and the kids will all enjoy an awesome connection while you stream, browse, post, and game.

We’re not here to sugarcoat things. AT&T’s prepaid family plans have a few issues.

As with AT&T’s individual prepaid plans, you have to pay for your family plan bill at the beginning of every month. And you won’t get the same perks that “normal” AT&T unlimited data plans offer.

It’s hard to judge cell phone plans in isolation. So let’s take a look at how AT&T’s unlimited data prepaid family plan looks when it’s up against similar plans from other carriers.

With Boost Mobile, mobile users can enjoy AT&T's network at a discounted rate. Even when compared with AT&T's own prepaid plans, Boost's plans are cheaper. Plus, Boost Mobile offers a few more perks than most MVNOs. 

Boost Mobile's $25 Unlimited Plan with uncapped talk, text, and data plan is its best offer by far. For just $25 a month, you get unlimited talk, text, and data with 30GB of high-speed data.

Sadly, Boost Mobile's entry-level Unlimited plan doesn't offer hotspot data. Still, it has a pretty unique perk: Boost Mobile's Unlimited plan is $25 a month forever. (No hotspot data might be worth never rebudgeting due to a price hike.)

If you're looking for more high-speed data and hotspot access, Boost offers two more unlimited mobile plans: Unlimited+ and Unlimited Premium. Both plans offer unlimited talk, text, and data with hotspot access, but you'll get 40GB of high-speed data with Unlimited+ and 50GB with Unlimited Premium.

Sometimes, discounts come with a catch. For Boost Mobile, you'll have to pay months at a time to get the most discounts. And watch out for two common tenets of MVNO carriers: soft data caps and deprioritization.

With almost all "unlimited data" phone plans, there's a cap on high-speed data. This is especially true for MVNO carriers, as they don't actually operate their own cell phone towers. With Boost's Unlimited plan, you get 30GB of priority data, after which your speeds will slow big time.

While piggybacking on AT&T's towers is to thank for Boost's discounted prices, it's also the reason customers will experience deprioritization. After 30GB, your speeds are slowed in order to prioritize AT&T customers, and you might even experience a bit of deprioritization even before you run out.

Of all carriers on AT&T's network, Boost Mobile offers the cheapest unlimited plan.

We already sang the praises of AT&T’s network, but let’s dive a bit deeper. First of all, take a look at this coverage map.

AT&T averages a 45.24 Mbps download speed, which places it right between Verizon and T-Mobile, but you can still expect speedy downloads.

45Mbps is actually faster than many people’s home internet. That means AT&T customers will get better video quality when Facetiming with friends during a pandemic. It means you won’t lag during your game of Call of Duty Mobile. It means totally seamless viewing and posting content on Instagram and TikTok.

If you really want to take advantage of AT&T’s powerful network—including its 5G technology—then you might need to upgrade your phone.

Luckily, you can nab a great deal on a brand new iPhone 16e, Galaxy S25, or other device when you’re signing up for a new AT&T plan. Here’s a look at some of the most popular devices that the carrier sells.

Telecommunications companies like AT&T aren’t really known for their awesome customer service. But some are better than others. Here’s a look at how the American Customer Satisfaction Index rates AT&T.

AT&T ranks higher than the two other major carriers—T-Mobile and Verizon. You can find multiple ways to get in touch with AT&T about your prepaid service on the company’s website.