Ting is a prepaid MVNO that was started in 2012. They offered postpaid plans where customers only paid for the minutes, texts, and megabytes of data they actually used.
Ting’s rates were affordable when they first launched. However, as time went on their plans became more expensive.
Carriers such as Mint Mobile and Red Pocket started offering plans in bulk 3-, 6-, or 12-month packages, which allowed customers to get 3GB of data for just $15 per month.
Ting’s $15 plan only included 100 minutes, 100 texts, and 100MB of data.
Thankfully, on August 3rd, 2020, Ting was bought by Dish.
On November 17th, 2020 Dish was able to update Ting’s plans with unlimited talk and text, more data, and lower prices.
Today Ting’s plans are reasonably priced and more competitive in the industry.
What also makes Ting appealing is their great customer service.
Ting is known for providing excellent customer service and support, and good support is a big reason why many customers choose to go with Ting.
Ting offers a good selection of plans to choose from.
The $10 Ting Flex plan is a great option for low-data users. You pay $10 per month for unlimited talk and text, and then just $5 per GB used.
What’s great is you can share the data usage across multiple lines. So a family of four that only uses a total of 2GB per month would end up paying just $12.50 per line.
The rest of Ting’s plans are classic data-bucket plans. You get a set amount of high-speed data each month.
After you use up your high speed data, your data speeds slowed to 2G speeds, or about 128Kbps. There are no data overages for Ting’s data-bucket plans.
Check out Ting’s current plan offerings below:
Yes, Ting offers family plans. However, all lines need to have the same plan.
So if you sign up for the Ting Flex plan, all lines will need to be on the Ting Flex plan. You’ll pay $10 per line for unlimited talk and text, and then you’ll pay $5 per GB of data usage for all lines on your account.
If you get one of Ting’s data-bucket plans, then each line will get its own separate high-speed data allotment.
Ting’s family plans do not offer any multi-line discounts at this time. I
Instead, the family plans are really designed just to make it easier for parents to manage lines for their kids under one account.
See Ting’s current family plans below:
Ting does not support tablets, smartwatches, or hotspot devices at this time.
Ting currently uses the T-Mobile and Verizon networks to provide coverage. You choose to use either the T-Mobile or the Verizon network when you first sign up for service. It is possible to have multiple lines that use different networks under one Ting account.
Ting’s parent company, Dish, also recently signed an agreement with AT&T. So it may be possible to see Ting plans operating on the AT&T network before the end of the year.
T-Mobile’s LTE bands are 2, 4, 12, 25, 26, 41, 66, and 71. T-Mobile’s 5G bands are n41, n71, n260, and n261.
Verizon’s LTE bands are 2, 4, 5, 13, 46, 48, and 66. Verizon’s 5G bands are n260 and n261.
AT&T’s LTE bands are 2, 4, 5, 12, 14, 17, 29, 30, and 66. AT&T’s 5G bands are n5 and n260.
LTE and 5G bands marked in bold are the primary bands that the networks use to provide coverage.
Other non-bolded LTE and 5G bands are typically used to provide supplemental coverage.
The more LTE and 5G bands your phone has for a particular network, the better coverage and faster speeds you will get on that network.
Ting was first launched in 2012 as an affordable MVNO that used Sprint for coverage. Instead of offering set data-buckets for their plans, Ting had a different approach. They only charged customers for what amount of minutes, texts, and megabytes of data they actually used.
Ting also became known for providing some of the best customer service in the industry. You could pick up the phone to speak with a real human, and Ting support agents were always friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable.
When Ting launched, their rates for minutes, texts, and megabytes of data were affordable. However, as time went on, Ting’s rates became more expensive as prices across the industry started to drop. Carriers such as Mint Mobile and Red Pocket started offering plans in bulk 3-, 6-, or 12-month packages, which allowed customers to get 3GB of data for just $15 per month . Ting’s $15 plan only included 100 minutes, 100 texts, and 100MB of data.
Thankfully, on August 3rd, 2020, Ting was bought by Dish , and on November 17th, 2020 Dish was able to update Ting’s plans with unlimited talk and text, more data, and lower prices. Ting currently offers the following four plans to choose from with coverage on either the Verizon or T-Mobile networks:
Ting’s Flex plan starts at just $10 per month for unlimited talk and text, and you pay for however much data you use at a rate of $5 per GB.
What’s cool about Ting Flex is the data can be shared between multiple lines. For example, if you had 5 lines that each used 200MB of data per month, you would pay $10/monthline for unlimited talk and text, and then just $5 for 1GB of shared data. The total cost per line would only be around $11month.
Ting Flex is a great option for lighter data users. It’s important to note that there is no way to set a maximum data allowance, spending limit, or to get alerts if your data usage reaches a certain point. As a result, Ting’s Flex plan may become expensive for heavier data users.
Heavier data users may consider Ting’s other plans, which come with set amounts of high-speed data per line on the account.
Ting’s Set 5GB plan may be one of the best plans in the industry at its price point. For $25 per month, you’re getting unlimited talk and text with 5GB of high-speed data. The mobile hotspot feature is also fully supported, though its usage will count against your high-speed allotment. Your data speeds will be reduced to 2G speeds (up to 128Kbps) for the rest of your billing cycle after you’ve used up your 5GB allotment of high-speed data.
There are no overage charges with Ting’s Set 5GB plan. If you choose, you can purchase additional high-speed data for $5 per GB.
Ting’s Set 5GB plan is one of the best options for average users. You’re getting great feature support, a very reasonable 5GB of high-speed data, and access to Ting’s superb customer service.
Ting’s Unlimited plan is not a true unlimited plan. Instead, it includes 22GB of high-speed data before unlimited data at 2G speeds (128Kbps). You can use up to 12GB of data as hotspot data, but your hotspot usage will count against your 22GB of high-speed data usage.
Considering US Mobile offers 50GB of data on the Verizon network for just $45/month , and Visible offers unlimited data on the Verizon network for just $40 per month , it’s challenging to recommend Ting’s $45 Unlimited plan. You can get a better value plan from other carriers.
That said, Ting’s $45 unlimited plan may be worth it to some who want access to Ting’s excellent customer service and support.
Ting’s Unlimited Pro plan includes 35GB of dedicated high-speed data before unlimited data at 2G (128Kbps) speeds. Up to 30GB of data can be used as hotspot data, and hotspot usage will count against your 35GB allotment of high-speed data.
Unfortunately, similar to Ting’s Unlimited plan, the Unlimited Pro plan just isn’t worth it. Not only can you get a better deal from US Mobile and Visible, but even Verizon Prepaid offers a true unlimited data plan for the same $60 per month , and T-Mobile Prepaid offers unlimited data starting at just $50/month .
Ting supports visual voicemail, group and picture messaging, Wi-Fi calling, and VoLTE on all of their plans. 5G access is also available if you choose to use the T-Mobile network for coverage. Using the T-Mobile network also gives you access to domestic roaming, which is where your phone will roam on the AT&T network in areas where T-Mobile doesn’t have coverage. When you are roaming on AT&T you get unlimited minutes and texts and up to 100MB of data usage.
Ting supports having multiple lines on one account. However, the caveat to Ting’s multi-line plans is that each line on the account needs to be on the same plan. There is no mixing and matching of plans at this time.
Sign up for Ting using our link to get $25 of Ting credit for your first month of service.
Ting currently uses the T-Mobile and Verizon networks to provide coverage. You choose to use either the T-Mobile or the Verizon network when you first sign up for service. It is possible to have multiple lines that use different networks under one Ting account.
Ting supports international calling and data roaming with their plans. However, these international features are not currently available with their new plans. These features will become available around February, 2020 with new prices.
It is important to note that you must be a Ting customer for 90 days before you can enable international calling or data roaming features on your account.
Ting supports visual voicemail, group and picture messaging, Wi-Fi calling, VoLTE, hotspot, and HD video streaming on all of their plans.
5G access is also available if you choose to use Ting on the T-Mobile network.
Using the T-Mobile network also gives you access to domestic roaming, which is where your phone will roam on the AT&T network in areas where T-Mobile doesn’t have coverage.
When you are roaming on AT&T, you get unlimited minutes and texts and up to 100MB of data usage.
Roaming is not available if you use Ting on the Verizon network.
Ting currently does not support eSIM or offer any multi-line discounts.
5G is also not available on the Verizon network.
Yes, Ting supports both international calling and international data roaming.
International calling and data roaming are available at pay-per-use rates that you can find on Ting’s website.
You can get $25 of Ting credit applied to your first month of service when you sign up through our link.
Ting is a great option for:
Ting may not be the best option for:
Ting offers international calling and data roaming at pay-per-use rates. You can see Ting’s rates for specific countries on their website.
Most unlocked phones will work with Ting.
An unlocked phone means it isn’t tied to any carrier, contract, or financing agreement.
Contact your current carrier to ask if your phone is unlocked, or if there are certain steps you need to follow to request to have it unlocked.
You can check if your phone works with Ting by using their compatibility checker tool.
You can also consider purchasing a compatible unlocked phone from the selection below:
