Verizon Wireless Prepaid

Bottom Line

Verizon Wireless provides excellent call quality, 4G data speed and nationwide coverage. However, its selection of prepaid cell phone plans and handsets is limited compared to its extensive selections for contract cell phone customers. Verizon Wireless receives a ranking just below the industry average overall, rated in seventh place out of the nine carriers reviewed, by consumers.

Breaking It Down

Plans and Flexibility

Limited selection of plans. Verizon's Pay As You Go Daily Plans charges prepaid subscribers a 99 cent access fee on days when calls are made, plus 10 cents per minute including nights and weekends (another version drops the 10-cent charge but charges $2 per day for unlimited calls). Verizon's Prepaid Per Minute plan omits the daily access fee, but calls cost 25 cents per minute and texts cost 20 cents.

Verizon also offers pay-by-the-month plans. $50 per month gives you unlimited talk, text and web on basic devices, while unlimited talk, text and 1 GB of data on a smartphone costs $80 per month.

Performance

Nationwide and great call quality. Verizon Wireless Prepaid features a network that blankets most of the United States, and reviewers say that Verizon has the best prepaid wireless call quality. Both experts and customers report the best coverage and the fewest dropped calls with this carrier. PCMag.com readers rank Verizon Wireless best among national cellular service providers -- just behind U.S. Cellular -- due to its best-in-class coverage and good call quality. Verizon Wireless's reliability is also well above average.

Customer service

Above-average customer support. Reviewers at TopTenReviews.com say that Verizon Wireless's customer support is consistently among the best in the wireless industry, though some users have called it iffy. Numerous options are available to contact the support staff, including very responsive online chat support. Telephone and email support are also provided, and the website features an extensive FAQ.  PrepaidReviews.com's editors like the variety of payment methods available.

Phone Selection

Small selection and only one smartphone. Verizon Wireless offers six phones for its pay-as-you-go customers, starting at about $50. Those with the $50 monthly basic plan can choose from two Samsung and one LG phones. The prepaid monthly smartphone plan offers just one phone, the Samsung Illusion (*Est. $100).