Cape: Plans, Coverage & Deals

Cape is a cell phone carrier known as a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO.

An MVNO is simply any cell phone carrier that does not operate its own cellular network.

Instead of building their own networks, MVNOs make agreements with the four big carriers to use their cellular networks for coverage.

In Cape’s case, it uses the AT&T or T-Mobile networks for coverage. Unlike most MVNOs, Cape runs its own mobile core.

Cape was founded by John Doyle, Nick Espinoza, Stephen Dowhy, and David Dunn, and it's built around privacy. It doesn't collect your name, Social Security number, or street address, and it never sells your data.

Your phone's network identifier (IMSI) rotates every 24 hours on iPhone 11 and newer and on Pixel phones, including GrapheneOS. Call and text metadata is deleted after one day, a practice audited by Trail of Bits.

A 24-word recovery phrase stored on your device protects your number from SIM swaps, and Network Lock guards against signaling attacks. Voicemail is encrypted, iPhone users can turn on encrypted texting, and you get two free secondary numbers (text-only for now).

Cape's Privacy Unlimited plan is $99 a month with taxes included, or $70 a month for life for early adopters who join by December 31, 2026. It's eSIM-only, needs an unlocked eSIM phone, and doesn't support iPads or smartwatches.

There's no contract, and you can get a full refund within 3 days. Each referral takes $20 a month off your bill and theirs while you're both subscribed, up to the cost of your bill.

If you are curious to learn more about how the agreements work between the big carriers and the small carriers, check out my article on how some cell phone plans can cost so much less than others.