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Verizon is known for having robust coverage across the United States. In fact, they arguably have the best network when it comes to coverage. They provide service in more areas than AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, or Dish.
Many people sign up for Verizon because of their reputation for excellent coverage. However, because of this, the Verizon network has a lot of users which can cause congestion. In locations where the network infrastructure isn’t built up enough, Verizon customers may notice slow speeds because the tower cannot handle the number of devices connected to it.
Verizon continues to improve and build out their network, and their new 5G network aims to solve some of the limitations of their 4G LTE network. In heavily congested areas, such as football stadiums, baseball stadiums, and in some cities, Verizon’s new 5G network can handle the huge number of users connected to it and still provide fast data speeds. In fact, Verizon's mmWave 5G network has had some of the fastest speed tests ever recorded on a smartphone.
Verizon currently offers 4 postpaid plans to choose from:
*Verizon’s Just Kids plan requires a second line active on the account on one of the other unlimited plans.
The prices listed here for Verizon’s unlimited data plans include Verizon’s $10/month auto-pay discount. You can get the auto-pay discount on your second month of service. Verizon also charges a $40 activation fee per line when you first sign up. However, there are often online promotions that waive the activation charge.
The main differences between Verizon’s plans are the included amount of priority data, the available hotspot data, video streaming quality, and in the included perks and benefits. See our article on the differences between Verizon’s unlimited plans to get a better understanding of which plan is best for your needs.
Verizon is also known for offering great family discounts. A family with 5 lines can reduce the cost of the unlimited plans to $25 for Just Kids, $30 for Start Unlimited, $40 for Play More and Do More unlimited, and $50 for Get More unlimited.
Play More, Do More, and Get More currently include 5G access for free. Verizon lists 5G access as a $10/month additional charge, though it’s unclear when they will actually start charging customers for this feature. Using 5G on Verizon requires a 5G compatible phone.
Verizon offers a wide variety of smartphones to choose from on their website and in-stores. Many people may prefer to purchase a smartphone from Verizon so you can take advantage of their leasing agreements, where you finance the phone over a period of 24 months.
However, for the best experience we often recommend you consider purchasing an unlocked smartphone to use with the Verizon network. Unlocked phones aren’t tied to any carrier or contract. Having an unlocked phone gives you the freedom to switch plans or carriers at any time you wish, without having to worry about early termination fees or being charged a large amount of money when you switch.
You can find great deals on unlocked smartphones on a site like Swappa, with whom we have an affiliate partnership. We feel Swappa can help you save money on your new smartphone, offering discounts between 20% and 50% off.
With Verizon’s robust coverage and reliable performance, they tend to be a great option for a lot of people. However, even with Verizon’s family plans, the prices still are expensive. Visible offers unlimited data on the Verizon network for as low as $25 per month with their Party Pay group discount. US Mobile similarly offers much more affordable plans that use Verizon for coverage, starting at just $30/month for 5GB of LTE data (which is plenty for the average user). If you need more data on US Mobile, their 50GB plan starts at just $40/month.
Verizon offers a $10 auto-pay discount available on all of their plans. They also offer great family discounts, reducing the cost per line by almost 50% in some cases.
However, Verizon’s plans are still expensive. If you’d like, you can browse the best Verizon family plans to explore more great options on the Verizon network. Plans such as Visible’s unlimited data plan start as low as $25 per month per line.
Verizon builds and operates their own network for coverage. For the best coverage and performance on the Verizon network, you want to make sure your phone has the following 4G LTE and 5G antenna bands:
Verizon’s premium plans include the following features:
International calling is available on any of Verizon’s postpaid plans with their $5/month Global Calling add-on. Make calls to Canada and Mexico for free. Make calls to over 230+ other countries at affordable rates starting at $0.05 per minute.
You can also get Verizon’s Global Calling Plus add-on, which includes calling to landlines in 60 countries, mobile phones in over 30 countries, and discounted calls to 160+ countries for $15/month.
Verizon offers a variety of options for enabling international data roaming on your plan. The cheapest options are their TravelPasses, which are $5/day for Canada and Mexico and $10/day for over 185 additional countries.
You can also choose one of Verizon’s Monthly International Travel Plans, which are $70/month for 100 minutes, 100 texts, and 0.5GB LTE data, or $130/month for 250 minutes, 1,000 messages, and 2GB LTE data. Verizon’s Monthly International Travel Plans are unfortunately extremely expensive, and in our opinion not worth it at all. You’re much better off signing up for a plan local to the country you’re visiting. You’ll get significantly more minutes, texts, and data at a fraction of the cost.
Verizon adds the following fees to the cost of their cell phone plans:
Here is Verizon’s customer service phone number for questions and support:
To talk to a real person at Verizon, call their support number and then press zero when the automated system begins talking.
Verizon customer support is also available through their MyVerizon application and through online chat.
Verizon offers a wide selection of add-ons for their plans:
