Best Verizon phone plans for 2024: Unlimited, prepaid and more

The best Verizon phone plan is the carrier's unlimited data plan. But which unlimited data plan? The carrier lists three different unlimited options on its main phone plan page, and if you wander over to prepaid phone plans, you'll see two more unlimited data plans.

But don't get frustrated — I can help you pick out the right plan for your needs. Because I research cell plans from every carrier, big an small, I know that Verizon has some of the best unlimited data plans out there, and I can explain the differences between each one. Even better, I can tell you how Verizon's offerings compare to the best cell phone plans available right now.

Because I've been tracking cell phone plans for Tom's Guide for nearly a decade, I've come to learn what separates Verizon's Unlimited Welcome package (basic coverage with 5G service) from more costly options like Unlimited Plus and Unlimited Ultimate. I can even steer you toward smaller carriers that use Verizon's network for their coverage but charge less than monthly service.

If you're looking for just one line of data, I'd suggest you try Unlimited Plus, thanks to its faster 5G coverage and hotspot allowance. Families may want to try the Unlimited Welcome plan because of the lower monthly rate. If you don't need unlimited data, I would recommend taking a close look at Verizon's 15GB prepaid plan, which gives you a lot of data for a reasonable monthly rate.

Looking for more ways to save at Verizon? We routinely check for the best Verizon phone deals. (A lot of those offers require you to commit to an unlimited data plan, so that's another reason to familiarize yourself with Verizon's different options.) You also can find some decent discounts with our Verizon promo codes, so it's worth taking a look at them before you proceed through the checkout.

The quick list

Philip Michaels

My name is Philip Michaels, and I'm the managing editor for mobile devices at Tom's Guide. I focus on our smartphone coverage, which includes keeping track of what U.S. phone carriers are doing. in the past decade, I've spent a lot of time tracking Verizon — following what they charge for various data plans and watching them build out their 5G network. In fact, I traveled to Chicago in 2019 to test Verizon 5G when the carrier first launched its 5G service. And I also keep tabs on the smaller carriers that use Verizon's network to offer wireless service of their own.

The best Verizon cell phone plan overall

If you need just one line of unlimited data for your phone, we'd recommend Verizon's Unlimited Plus plan. It gives you access to Verizon's speedy Ultra Wideband 5G coverage, which is faster than the nationwide 5G available to Unlimited Welcome customers. You can consume as much data as you like with Unlimited Plus, and you even get 30GB of hotspot data.

Even with discounts as you add lines, Unlimited Plus can be pricey for families, with four lines of data costing $180 before you add any perks. (More on those in a moment.) Keep in mind that Verizon lets you mix-and-match lines so some members of the family can opt for Unlimited Plus while others get the less expensive Unlimited Welcome service.

We mentioned add-ons. Verizon offers things like Disney's streaming bundle, a family subscription to Apple Music, Travel Passes for international travel and cloud storage as $10/month add-ons. The good news is you can mix and match the add-ons you like and even drop them in months you don't need them. The bad news is that a lot of add-ons can supersize your monthly phone bill if you're not judicious about what you add and dropping that service in months where you don't plan to use it.

Your other unlimited data option is Unlimited Ultimate. It costs $90 for one line of data after an autopay discount, but you get 60GB of hotspot data and unlimited calls and texting when you travel overseas. Unlimited Ultimate also includes 10GB of international premium data each month to use overseas, making it one of the best international phone plans if you do a lot of traveling.

The best prepaid Verizon phone plan

Verizon’s prepaid plans don’t feature a lot in the way of perks, as is often the case when comparing prepaid vs. postpaid phone service. But Verizon's prepaid options do pack in data, especially the carrier’s 15GB plan. Even better, it's easy to lower the cost of your plan right away, making this 15GB one of the best cheap cell phone plans we've found.

Verizon’s 15GB plan costs $45 a month, but enrolling in autopay now takes $10 off the monthly rate. A month after starting your service, your autopay discount kicks in, immediately dropping the cost of your Verizon prepaid plan.

Verizon continues to offer loyalty discounts for sticking with the carrier for coverage — $5 off after three months and and another $5 after nine months — but you can't apply both the autopay and loyalty discounts. It's either one or the other, so the lowest your bill can go is $35.

The only other prepaid options at Verizon are a pair of unlimited plans. They cost $50/month and $60/month after $10 autopay discounts. While all prepaid plans have access to Verizon's nationwide 5G service, only the $60 Unlimited Data Plus gives prepaid customers access to super-fast Ultra Wideband 5G.

The best Verizon phone plan for families

Verizon phone plans used to be extremely pricey, but the Unlimited Welcome plan lets you access the network's coverage for just $65/month for a single line of data. There are caveats to that plan, of course — there's no hotspot data as there is with the Unlimited Plus plan and Verizon can slow your speeds if its network gets congested.

Still, if you need multiple lines, Unlimited Welcome is the best family cell phone plan at Verizon. Thanks to multiline discounts, four lines of data cost just $120/month. A current discount when you bring your own phone lets you drop the cost of each line by $5 per month, lowering the monthly total to $100. The ability to mix-and-match plans means that some lines in a family plan can have Unlimited Plus while others get Unlimited Welcome.

The same add-ons available for Unlimited Plus customers also work for Unlimited Welcome. So you could tack on the Disney bundle with Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Plus and pay $75 for a single line of data plus all three of those streaming services.

Verizon unlimited phone plan add-ons

Unlimited Plus, Unlimited Welcome and Unlimited Ultimate plans have access to 10 different add-ons, each of which cost $10/month. Through these add-ons, you can tack on extra benefits to your wireless plan. The end result is a benefit-packed offering that compares well to best cell phone plans out there, though the risk is that adding too many benefits can drive up the cost of your Verizon plan.

Verizon would counter that the advantage to making these extra benefits into separate add-ons is that you only need to add the things that appeal to you. If you don't do any international traveling, for example, you can safely ignore the Travel Pass benefit. What's more, Verizon's $10 pricing reflects a savings from what you would pay for the benefit on its own — anywhere from $5 to $25 in savings each month depending on the add-on.

Disney's bundle of Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Plus would normally cost you $19/month, so you're saving $12 by getting it through Verizon after Disney raised prices on its streaming services. (Note that the Hulu and ESPN versions in this bundle feature ads; Disney Plus does not.)

Similarly, a bundle that features the ad-supported tiers of Netflix and Max saves you a little less than $7 when you buy Verizon's monthly bundle.

Here's the list of benefits available to customers with unlimited data plans at Verizon:

• 100GB Mobile hotspot
• Disney Bundle (Hulu, Disney Plus, ESPN Plus)
• Netflix + Max (with ads)
• YouTube Premium
• Walmart+ Membership
• Apple One
• Apple Music Family
• Unlimited cloud storage
• 3 TravelPass Days
• +play monthly credit

5G coverage at Verizon

Verizon launched its 5G network in 2019, but the real boost came with the 2022 launch of C-Band spectrum. That extended Verizon's fast Ultra Wideband network to more areas, with 200 million people now covered by C-Band speeds as of this writing. We tested Verizon's C-Band when it launched and came away impressed by Verizon's improved network.

As of this writing, Verizon says its high-speed 5G reaches 250 million people; it no longer shares figures on its slower nationwide 5G, though you'd image the service has a more extensive reach. RootMetrics named Verizon the best 5G network in its most recent report covering the first half of 2024. Verizon's 5G reach in rural areas pushes it head of T-Mobile, according to RootMetrics, which also lauded the speed and reliability of Verizon's service.

If you live in an area that's covered by Verizon's 5G network and want to experience faster coverage, unlimited data is the best Verizon plan to get. In particular, you'll want to opt for the Unlimited Plus or Unlimited Ultimate plans, as they include access to Ultra Wideband 5G. Prepaid plans get the nationwide 5G coverage as well, with the Unlimited Plus prepaid service enjoying Ultra Wideband speeds where available.

Many of the best 5G phones are available through Verizon including the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the latest iPhone 16 models.. The recently launched Pixel 9 phones are at Verizon, too. Verizon also has some 5G exclusives like devices from TCL, though some phones like the new Motorola Razr Plus (2024) foldable aren't sold through the carrier.

The best Verizon phone deals can help you find the best prices on all sorts of handsets, 5G-capable models included.

How to choose the best Verizon plan

Finding the best Verizon phone plan for your wireless needs involves choosing between unlimited data or turning to the tiered data options from Verizon's prepaid service.

If your smartphone usage involves a lot of streaming — be it movies or music — you're going to want to look at Verizon's two unlimited options. Should your data needs begin and end with browsing the internet, checking email and the occasional social media post, you can probably get away with a tiered prepaid data plan.

If possible, look at your monthly data usage on your current plan to see how much you're consuming on average — if it's 15GB or less, you can save money each month by going prepaid. Just be aware that you won’t get as many perks with a prepaid as you would with one of Verizon’s postpaid options. Our guide on figuring out how much cell phone data you need each month can help you determine what kind of plan is best for your phone usage.

Other phone carriers on the Verizon network

While getting service directly from Verizon ensures you get Verizon's top speeds and best plans, there are other carrier options if you want to use Verizon's network without paying so much for your service. MVNOs — short for mobile virtual network operators — piggy-back on other carriers' networks to provide lower-cost service. The trade-off is that the parent carrier prioritizes its own customers so you might see slower speeds.

In the case of Verizon MVNOs, several use Verizon's superior network for their own 5G coverage. The best isn't technically an MVNO, as Visible is owned and operated by Verizon. Notably, Visible's unlimited data plans start at $25 a month — more than half of what you'd pay for service at Verizon, while using the same network. Visible now lets you pay for a year of service in advance, which lowers your monthly rate.

Another Verizon-owned service, Total Wireless, has revamped its data plans, with unlimited data starting at $40/month. Total's appeal lies in the fact that its plans come with a five-year price guarantee to add some cost certainty to your monthly budget.

Xfinity Mobile also uses Verizon's network to offer phone service for Comcast customers who also get their internet service through the provider. Adding multiple lines lowers the cost of unlimited data plans to $30 per line with Xfinity Mobile, making it an attractive option for families. If you find Xfinity's pricing too high, Comcast also offers the Now Mobile service, where a line of unlimited data costs $25/month. Like Xfinity, Now uses Verizon's network for coverage.