There are plenty of subscriptions I can’t believe people pay for; one of the top categories of these is expensive phone plans. I regularly hear friends and acquaintances mention that they pay close to $100/month per person for their phone service. I’ve never paid even half that in a given month, thanks to using lower-cost phone providers.
In April 2020, I switched to Mint Mobile to save as much as possible. Almost six years later, I’m still happy with it and would recommend it to most people.
How I arrived at Mint Mobile
Flexible data wasn’t working
With my first few “dumb” phones and smartphones, I was on my family’s Sprint plan. When I moved to my own plan in 2015, I decided to join the recently-launched Project Fi (now Google Fi Wireless) to save money. The plan was the same as the Flexible one offers now: $20/month for unlimited calling and texting, plus data at $10/GB (not including taxes and fees).
Because I don’t use much data working from home, I liked Fi’s setup. I wasn’t paying for features I didn’t need, especially since you got a refund if you used under 1GB of data in a month. However, I wasn’t as happy when I took a trip. Using 2+ GB of data pushed the cost up, leaving me to wonder if I could find something more consistent.
I was also considering switching to an iPhone around this time, since I had become unsatisfied with the Pixel line of devices. At the time, Google Fi didn’t work well with the iPhone. After reviewing the options, I decided to join Mint Mobile to save money while also being able to use an iPhone at full capacity.
The experience of joining Mint
Easy to join and set up
Signing up with Mint was easy. I ordered a starter kit, which lets you test the service to make sure calling, texting, and data works well in your area.
You can still order a Mint Mobile trial kit at Target, though if your phone supports eSIM, it’s easier to download the Mint Mobile app for Android or iPhone. Using it, you can install an eSIM and get a 7-day trial without waiting for shipping.
If you’re bringing a phone to Mint, your device needs to be unlocked. You can instead purchase a new phone from the company, where deals are sometimes available. Porting your number is easy.
Mint’s pricing breaks down into four tiers of data, each with three payment frequency options. Choose from 5GB, 15GB, 20GB, or “unlimited” data (slowed after 50GB) each month. Then, decide if you want to pay every 3, 6, or 12 months for your plan.
All Mint plans are prepaid, and you save more when you buy more at once. My current plan is 5GB/month paid every 12 months, which has been great for my needs. It’s enough data to use Google Maps and stream Spotify while driving, and to cover me when I’m not around Wi-Fi. But I’m not paying for tons of data I never use.
Taxes and fees are not included in Mint’s quoted prices. These will depend on where you live; my last payment included an extra 18.6% in charges.
Mint Mobile uses T-Mobile’s network (the company is now owned by T-Mobile). It claims that almost everyone in the US can enjoy 5G or 4G coverage; the free trial or Mint’s coverage map can help you confirm this in your area.
Keep your money for more important charges
To reduce costs, Mint Mobile strips out a lot of the bloat from the big carriers. You don’t get a lot of fancy extras here, but if you’re like me, you’ll appreciate the lack of gimmicks and shenanigans.
There’s no attempt to bundle “perks” (like streaming services). You aren’t required to trade in a phone to get the best deals, and the company doesn’t try to lock you into service using the “on us” buzzword (providing a “free” phone via bill credits for years).
Mint keeps it simple by offering the same features across all plans. No matter how much data you get or how often you pay, you can use the mobile hotspot on your phone (though hotspot data is capped on the “Unlimited” plan). Calling and texting are unlimited. I appreciate having Wi-Fi calling, which makes calls more stable when you’re on Wi-Fi but have a poor mobile signal.
If you use your monthly data before it resets, you aren’t cut off and won’t be charged extra. You’ll be dropped to ultra-slow 2G speeds, which is OK in an emergency but won’t work for modern phone usage. You can purchase extra data if needed, but it’s more expensive and expires at the end of the billing period.
Mint doesn’t have physical stores, so all support is done through calling or online. I’ve seen people online complain about poor support, though I’ve never had to reach out, so I can’t comment on this.
Mint’s international coverage
For world travelers
For those with international phone concerns, Mint is solid but not the best. All plans include free calls to Mexico, Canada, and the UK. If you need to call other regions, Mint offers per-country rates. Texting is free to over 190 countries.
Don’t forget that using messaging apps like WhatsApp lets you message and video call friends in other countries for free.
When you’re in another country yourself, you can purchase a “Minternational” pass to call, text, and use data in many countries around the world. It’s available in 1, 3, 10, and 30-day plans, with scaling usage per plan. Of particular note is Canada, where Mint offers free roaming. Calling and texting are free there, and you get 3GB of Canadian data monthly.
In the past, Mint allowed you to add credit to your wallet and use it when outside the US. The “Minternational” pass is less flexible than this; I’m not a huge fan of it. While it’s fine for short trips, I highly recommend getting an eSIM for your destination country from a service like Airalo instead. These are much cheaper and include more data.
Mint is awesome for the price
Mint gives me what I want from mobile service at a price I’m happy with. I work from home and have a lot downloaded on my phone, so I don’t need tons of data. I want my phone to work when I need it, and that’s what I get.
Occasionally, I’ll be in a situation with poor reception, but most of these dead zones were a problem with my prior carriers too. And it’s not something that causes me frequent problems.
I also appreciate the simplicity of Mint’s family plan. It’s not like other carriers, where adding more people lowers the price per line. Instead, it’s a basic grouping of multiple lines into one place.
Mint sometimes offers deals, one of which I was able to take advantage of when I got married. I got the “Unlimited” plan locked in for two years at half the usual rate, which is great.
Finally, Mint Mobile is one of the very few services I use that hasn’t gone up in price over the years. What’s more, the free data allotment has actually increased since I joined. In 2020, the cheapest plan offered 3GB/month. That increased to 4GB/month in 2021, then 5GB/month in 2023. When everything else regularly gets worse and more expensive, I appreciate having one service that isn’t doing this.
Mint isn’t for everyone, but it’s excellent for me. I can’t imagine paying four or five times the price for the same core phone service. If you’re looking to save money and don’t use much data, I think you’ll be happy with Mint.
Separately, Mint now offers home 5G home internet. I’d like to try this, but I’m still not convinced that a 5G connection will work for me at home.
