For those who value freedom and value, the best Verizon prepaid plans could just be a great way to cover both bases at one of the nation's favorite carriers. On the whole, these plans do away with that lengthy postpaid contract while still offering access to that speedy 5G network with some of the best coverage in the country. They are, in general, also much cheaper than the traditional postpaid options at Verizon. That said, how do the Verizon prepaid plans stack up against the competition? Right here you'll find a full breakdown of this service as well as our advice on bagging the lowest cell phone bills possible.
1. Verizon prepaid plans at a glance
2. Current Verizon prepaid plans
3. What Verizon prepaid plans include
4. Verizon prepaid pricing explained
5. What other carriers are there?
As a rule of thumb, going prepaid means you'll know exactly what you're paying upfront each month while also forgoing those lengthy annual contracts. Unlike the other Verizon wireless plans, Verizon prepaid plans are generally pretty affordable, but of course you don't get quite as many benefits and perks and they tend to be pretty stripped-down overall.
Just below you'll see a full roundup of this month's Verizon prepaid plan prices, features, as well as a few other good options from our main best prepaid phone plans guide to check out. We'll also cover the lowest rates possible with this service with a detailed explanation, although fair warning - like AT&T prepaid plans, Verizon's plans tend to be a little pricier than those offered by the smaller independent companies.
So, before we get into the current Verizon prepaid plan lineup, here's a quick overview of the service as a whole, and why you should consider (or potentially avoid) going for a prepaid cell phone plan with this carrier.
Verizon prepaid plans at a glance
Why go Verizon Prepaid?
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Flexibility
Unlike the traditional 'postpaid' unlimited data plans, Verizon prepaid plans don't require you to commit to a three-year service period. You can sign up and pay for one month at a time if you require - and you also don't need any of the annoying credit checks that are common with the long-term unlimited plans.
Affordability
Verizon prepaid plans aren't the cheapest on the market, but they do have a lower barrier to entry than the carrier's equivalent postpaid options. For example, you can pay just $35 per month for Verizon's entry-level 15GB prepaid plan, which is around half the price of the cheapest 36-month postpaid unlimited plan right now.
Why avoid Verizon Prepaid?
Fewer perks
Verizon prepaid plans are by design a lot more stripped-down than the carrier's higher-end plans. Even the unlimited prepaid plans don't feature quite the same level of options in regards to things like free streaming service subscriptions and prioritized data speeds as the postpaid options. That said, if you're someone who likes to keep it simple, then this isn't likely to be a big deal.
No handset deals
Quite possibly the biggest selling point for Verizon's high-end plans is that they automatically get you access to the best Verizon deals all-year-round. These include things like free devices, trade-in discounts, and buy-one-get-one promotions on the best Verizon phones. If you're looking for one of the latest devices, then it can sometimes actually work out cheaper to go with one of the higher-end unlimited plans versus the prepaid plans since you're saving $1,000+ on a flagship phone.
In recent years, Verizon has been getting better at offering its prepaid users better deals on handsets but these are generally always on the more basic phones like the iPhone SE or similar budget Android options.
Current Verizon prepaid plans
Cheap Verizon prepaid plans
Verizon's most affordable prepaid plans can come in at around half the price of the traditional post-paid unlimited plans at the carrier but feature strict caps on data usage. Subsequently, if you're data hungry they might not be the best option, although prices are indeed very competitive after you've been signed up for a while thanks to Verizon's loyalty-based discount scheme.
Verizon unlimited data plans
If you want all the data, all the time, then you'll want to go for an unlimited data plan. These plans give you full use of those 5G data speeds and include unlimited calls and texts to and from Mexico and Canada.
What Verizon prepaid plans include
Verizon prepaid plans make the data allowance the main metrics for you to look at when deciding on the option to pick. That said, there are plenty more features included with these plans that are worth bearing in mind as you make your decisions. For clarity, here's a quick rundown of what you can expect to get from each prepaid plan, starting with the limited-data options:
- Unlimited talk and text
- Roaming in Mexico and Canada (except 5GB plan)
- Mobile hotspot support
- 5G LTE connectivity
- Autopay discounts
And, here's what the Verizon prepaid unlimited plans have to offer:
- Autopay discounts
- Unlimited talk, text and data
- Roaming in Mexico and Canada
- Slowed speeds during network congestion (DVD quality streaming)
- Unlimited texting to over 200 other countries
- 5G LTE connectivity
- 5G Ultra-Wideband access (on the more expensive plan)
Total by Verizon plans
Verizon has recently launched a subsidiary prepaid brand that runs alongside it's own offerings called Total by Verizon. It's another option to consider, especially if you're looking to sign up multiple lines at once as Total has some really fantastic discounts for two or more lines at once.
Generally speaking, some of Total's basic unlimited plans overlap with the ones that you can get at on the Verizon site but Total does have two slightly more premium prepaid plans that are worth a look.
What Total prepaid plans include
- Unlimited talk and text
- 5GB to unlimited hotspot allowance
- Roaming in Mexico and Canada
- Calling to 85+ international destinations
- Texting to 200+ destinations
Verizon Prepaid plans: FAQ
What are the alternatives to Verizon prepaid plans?
Verizon might be the best for US coverage and offer impressive 5G speeds, but that doesn't necessarily make it the ideal choice for you. Let's take a look at some competing options.
Visible Wireless is a subsidiary of Verizon that specializes in incredibly competitively priced unlimited data plans. For just $25 per month, you can get the basic Visible Wireless plan including completely unlimited data, talk, and text. The only downside with Visible is the lack of extra perks and deprioritization, although the premium Visible Plus plan for $40 per month can help with the latter. If you're looking for outright bang for the buck, we'd recommend checking out Visible (see our Visible Wireless plans guide for more information).
Mint Mobile is great for multi-month prepaid plans. For just $15/month you can get a basic 5GB data plan at Mint that includes unlimited talk and text. For $30 a month you can bump that plan up to an unlimited data plan that will only cap-out of 5G speeds after 35GB of usage. It is, however, worth noting that you need to pay for a full year of service at Mint upfront to bag the cheapest overall rates.
Data fans could look to the likes of Metro by T-Mobile where you can get an unlimited data plan with 5G connectivity and 5GB of hotspot data for just $50 a month without being forced to pay upfront for multi-month. That $50 is also inclusive of taxes and fees, so you know exactly what you'll be paying. Yes, Verizon's basic unlimited plan does drop to $50 but not until month ten, and that doesn't include the mobile hotspot access.
Still undecided? Check out our best prepaid plans guide for more.
