Prepaid Wireless Service Reviews, Best Prepaid Cell Phone Plans

Best prepaid wireless for frequent users

*Est. $50 per month Compare Prices

While cell phone contracts can charge $100 a month or more for unlimited service, Boost Mobile's Monthly Unlimited prepaid plan charges just $50 a month -- with no contract and no commitment. Unlimited talk, messaging,… data and push-to-talk (walkie-talkie functionality) are included, with no hidden fees. Reviewers say Boost Mobile offers sleeker, more fully featured handsets than the basic models you'll get from TracFone (*Est. $10 for 30 min. and up). However, Boost Mobile belongs to Sprint, and reviews caution that the Sprint network can be patchy.

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Expert & User Review Sources:

J.D. Power and Associates: Boost Mobile earns a perfect rating of five for overall customer satisfaction in this survey of more than 4,000 prepaid wireless ...

PrepaidReviews.com: Boost Mobile earns a four-star rating (out of five) from editors at PrepaidReviews.com, thanks to its feature-rich plans and ...

The New York Times: Several prepaid wireless providers now offer unlimited minutes and advanced handsets -- but Boost Mobile's $50-per-month plan is ...

CNET: CNET analyzes nine popular prepaid wireless carriers, including Boost Mobile. Although reviewer Marguerite Reardon doesn't pick a ...

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Best prepaid wireless for occasional use

T-Mobile Prepaid

*Est. $10 for 30 min. and up Compare Prices

Reviews say T-Mobile's pay-as-you-go wireless service has an excellent combination of voice quality, phone options and flexible rate plans. Its cheapest option is 30 minutes for $10, and minutes don't expire for 90 days… -- a good deal if you don't use your phone very often. If you replenish your account before your minutes expire, unused minutes roll over. T-Mobile doesn't offer a $50 monthly unlimited plan like Boost Mobile Monthly Unlimited. However, T-Mobile does offer handsets that are even more advanced than Boost Mobile's, including a prepaid BlackBerry.

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Expert & User Review Sources:

ConsumerReports.org: T-Mobile is one of five prepaid wireless providers included in ConsumerReports.org's latest rankings. Editors poll more than ...

J.D. Power and Associates: T-Mobile rates "about average" for overall customer satisfaction in this annual survey of more than 4,000 prepaid wireless cell ...

PCMag.com: PCMag.com's annual survey polls readers about their prepaid wireless cell plans. T-Mobile rates about average in most categories, ...

PrepaidReviews.com: Editors list T-Mobile Prepaid as the top-ranked prepaid wireless supplier out of 29 companies rated on this site. Like all ...

Amazon.com: Amazon.com features 20 subscriber ratings of T-Mobile's prepaid wireless service, but all of the reviews are several years old.

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Best basic prepaid wireless

TracFone

*Est. $10 for 30 min. and up Compare Prices

TracFone offers some unusual perks for a prepaid service -- like free international long-distance to 82 countries and a network that blankets nearly the entire U.S. -- and customers praise the call quality. TracFone… offers a variety of inexpensive annual, monthly and pay-as-you-go plans to suit occasional callers and heavy users alike. However, unlike Boost Mobile Monthly Unlimited (*Est. $50 per month) and T-Mobile Prepaid (*Est. $10 for 30 min. and up), TracFone offers only basic handsets and no unlimited monthly plan.

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Expert & User Review Sources:

ConsumerReports.org: TracFone is one of five prepaid wireless service providers ranked in this latest report at ConsumerReports.org, based on feedback ...

J.D. Power and Associates: TracFone places second -- right behind its own subsidiary, Net10 -- in this survey of more than 4,000 prepaid wireless cell phone ...

PCMag.com: In this reader survey, TracFone ranks first among five wireless service providers, earning especially good scores for fees, plan ...

PrepaidReviews.com: Editors at PrepaidReviews.com give TracFone a four-star rating (out of five), praising its simple, low-cost phones and carry-over ...

Amazon.com: TracFone receives more than 50 user reviews, more than any prepaid wireless service on Amazon.com, including Net10, Virgin ...

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Best as an emergency phone

T-Mobile Prepaid (annual plan)

*Est. $100 for 1,000 min. Compare Prices

Most prepaid wireless minutes expire in 30, 60 or 90 days, depending on the carrier and the plan. If you want to keep a phone on hand or in the car for emergencies, however, you don't want to have to worry about… expiration dates. T-Mobile has the best prepaid annual plan, where $100 gets you 1,000 minutes that are good for a full year. TracFone and AT&T have similar plans, but TracFone gives you fewer minutes (400), and AT&T adds a $1 access charge on days you use the phone.

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Expert & User Review Sources:

ConsumerReports.org: ConsumerReports.org polls more than 50,000 magazine subscribers, asking them to rate their cell service for call quality, ...

J.D. Power and Associates: For overall customer satisfaction, T-Mobile ranks "about average" among 10 prepaid wireless providers in this annual survey of ...

PCMag.com: T-Mobile rates about average in this annual survey of prepaid wireless cell plan users, although it earns above-average scores ...

PrepaidReviews.com: Editors list T-Mobile Prepaid as the top-ranked prepaid wireless provider out of more than 29 companies. Users posting comments ...

Amazon.com: Amazon.com features subscriber ratings of T-Mobile's prepaid wireless service, but all 20 of the reviews are several years old.

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Prepaid Wireless: Reviews

Best prepaid wireless for frequent users

Best prepaid wireless for occasional use

Best basic prepaid wireless

Best as an emergency phone