Why 87% of Americans Are Paying for Mobile Data They Never Use

Though "unlimited" data might be the gold standard of mobile marketing, according to the State of Consumer Media Spending 2025 report, Americans use an average of just 15GB of mobile data per month, which is far less than the 40GB+ thresholds typically offered in premium and unlimited plans.

In addition, 11% of customers use no data (Wi-Fi only), and 87% are using less than 40GB.

Average household spending is nearing $280 a month, and lifetime spending on mobile contracts works out to $41,732. Should customers pay for the convenience of unlimited data when it’s possible to reduce bills without changing daily habits?

We'll go over why the majority of consumers are overpaying for this digital safety net, and why switching to an MVNO service provider can save you hundreds, if not thousands.

Sure, going with a Big Three carrier (AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon) gives you perks and perhaps the benefits of bundling, but is that just a matter of marketing? With an average monthly cost of $57.96, paying for one of the big providers adds up quickly.

Customers may find plans that fit their actual data needs with an MVNO, saving them a few months of bills over the course of a year without enforcing a "convenience tax" in the form of unused features, unlimited data, or other benefits.

Plus, based on our testing process for various phones, mobile plans, and MVNO services, we feel like the service trade-off is minimal, if even noticeable.

Finding a right-size plan with a smaller carrier (that still uses a major network) based on how much data you actually need leads to smaller costs: At an average of $41 per month, switching to an MVNO can save upwards of $17 a month or about $200 a year.

And if you figure the lifetime cost of your services, you'd be surprised at how much you can save.

Over the average lifetime, mobile spending accounts for $41,732 of the average $200K lifetime connectivity costs — That's an average of 5.4% of median income spent on media. So it's less about saving yourself enough for a nice dinner every month and more about being able to save serious cash by investing in a better contract for yourself.

In the same way you wouldn't buy five gallons of milk every week when you only need two, it doesn't make much sense for the average person to pay for over 40GB ("unlimited") plans when in reality they're only using an average of 15GB.

Sure, any overage charges may be a surprise, but in the long run, you're unlikely to hit your data maximum frequently, if ever. Our report found that only 13% of users ever exceed these limits.

Over the course of a lifetime, especially when you consider the rising costs of things like streaming services, TV, and internet, it's a much better deal to find a plan that actually fits your data needs and gives your budget some relief.