Is a Mint Mobile family plan worth the switch?

5 months ago 176

Stock photo of Mint Mobile fox on phone with money 2

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

Mint Mobile prides itself on offering cheap phone plans for as little as $15 a month, making it a great deal for someone looking to save money on their phone bill. In 2023 the carrier widened its target to families as well. Is the Mint Mobile family plan worth it? Let’s dive right in and discuss.

What is included in the Mint Mobile family plan?

Like all of Mint’s plans, the Mint Mobile family plan runs on the T-Mobile network and is paid at least three months in advance.

When creating a Mint Mobile family plan, you’ll be asked to pick out specific plans for each line. For example, you could have two users on Unlimited while the third and fourth users are on the 5GB plan. You can see the full list of plans and benefits below:

PlanCostTalk & TextDataExtras

Plan Mint 5GB	Cost $75 for three months $120 for six months $180 for 12 months	Talk & Text Unlimited	Data 4GB LTE/5G access	Extras Hotspot up to data limit
Plan Mint 15GB	Cost $105 for three months $150 for six months $240 for 12 months	Talk & Text Unlimited	Data 10GB LTE/5G access	Extras Hotspot up to data limit
Plan Mint 20GB	Cost $135 for three months $210 for six months $300 for 12 months	Talk & Text Unlimited	Data 15GB LTE/5G access	Extras Hotspot up to data limit
Plan Mint Unlimited	Cost $120 for three months $210 for six months $360 for 12 months	Talk & Text Unlimited	Data 40GB premium data Unlimited 4G/5G	Extras 10GB hotspot access

For most users, we recommend the Unlimited plan, especially right now. For a limited time, Mint is offering all of its plans for the same $ 15-a-month rate if a customer is part of a family plan. That means you can try the unlimited data plan for three months for the same price as the humble 5GB plan.

Okay, but what about savings? Most family plans give you discounts for every line you add. Unfortunately, Mint Mobile doesn’t do this. There is no discount for having a family plan. So why bother? There are some benefits to having a Mint Mobile family plan:

You can manage every line from one account.
You don’t have to pay for 12 months at once to get the lowest rates possible.

The last point is the most significant one. Normally Mint Mobile requires you to pre-pay in either 3, 6, or 12-month increments. Paying annually in one lump sum yields the best discounts. For those with at least two lines on a family plan, you’ll still be required to commit to a year’s service, but you’ll only have to pay quarterly. For families with multiple members, this means they can enjoy Mint’s great pricing without having to pay a ton of cash upfront.

Is the Mint Mobile family plan a good value?

Considering Mint Mobile has aggressive pricing for single accounts, I have to say I feel like Mint Mobile could do more to make its family plans stand out. Even a discount of, say, $1 or 2 a month per line would be something. Or maybe take a page from Verizon Prepaid and give loyalty discounts to family plan members that stick with Mint long-term. Really anything to make family plans slightly more enticing.

As it stands, Mint Mobile family plans don’t really offer any major differences from a standard account, other than you can pay in 3-month increments and still get the biggest discounts. However, that doesn’t mean the pricing isn’t still a good value for some users. It’s also worth noting that T-Mobile now owns Mint, and so its services could get even better in the future.

If you are considering a limited family plan, Mint Mobile has some of the cheapest rates you’re going to find. Families will pay $15 a month every three months for 4GB of data. In comparison, Tello offers a 5GB plan for $19 a month, and Fi Flexible offers four lines for $65, or what works out to $16.25 a line.

Things become slightly less impressive when you look at other unlimited family plans. Waving away any temporary pricing discounts, long-term an unlimited plan is going to cost you $30 a line for four people — or $120 a month.

$30 a line is actually pretty decent and manages to one-up several prepaid families, including the plans offered by Metro from T-Mobile and Cricket Wireless. At the end of the day, Mint Mobile has aggressive pricing for families. It’s just not the absolute cheapest if that’s important to you.

Mint Mobile family plan alternatives

Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority

If you’re looking to save even more money on a family plan, you’ll want to consider Google Fi, Cricket, or US Mobile. The former two run T-Mobile’s network, while the latter works on Verizon or T-Mobile. Although there are other prepaid family plans out there, these are three of our favorite alternatives to Mint.

Here’s a quick TL;DR on what both of these Mint Mobile alternatives have to offer:

Google Fi Wireless at a glance

Google Fi Wireless is a great choice for those looking for the lowest rates possible for unlimited data. As you can see, four lines will set you back just $80. That’s just $20 a month per person! Like Mint Mobile, you’ll get access through T-mobile’s network. Additionally, Fi also roams on US Cellular’s network, which could be helpful for those who live in the Midwest. All in all, Fi offers a similar experience to Mint but with a few extras, despite costing less.

See more plan details below:

FlexibleSimply UnlimitedUnlimited Plus

Cost	Flexible $20/mo + $10/GB per month for 1 line $35/mo + $10/GB per month for 2 lines $50/mo + $10/GB per month for 3 lines $65/mo + $10/GB per month for 4 lines $80/mo + $10/GB per month for 5 lines $95/mo + $10/GB per month for 6 lines	Simply Unlimited $50 per month for 1 line $80 per month for 2 lines ($40 per line) $90 per month for 3 lines ($30 per line) $100 per month for 4 lines ($25 per line) $125 per month for 5 lines ($25 per line) $150 per month for 6 lines ($25 per line)	Unlimited Plus $65 per month for 1 line $110 a month for 2 lines ($55 per line) $135 per month for 3 lines ($45 per line) $160 per month for 4 lines ($40 per line) $200 per month for 5 lines ($40 per line) $240 per month for 6 lines ($40 per line)
Talk & Text	Flexible Unlimited	Simply Unlimited Unlimited	Unlimited Plus Unlimited
Data	Flexible $10 per GB used until you reach limit	Simply Unlimited Up to 35GB of free, unmetered data	Unlimited Plus Up to 50GB of free, unmetered data
Hotspot	Flexible Full-speed at $10 per GB rate	Simply Unlimited 5GB of Wi-Fi hotspot tethering per person	Unlimited Plus Full-speed included
International	Flexible Free calls from US to Canada and Mexico. On an iPhone, when you travel outside of the US, tethering and Wi-Fi hotspot options are not available.	Simply Unlimited Free calls from US to Canada and Mexico No international calls, texts, and data outside the US, Canada, and Mexico	Unlimited Plus Free calls from US to over 50 countries. Unlimited data and texts in over 200 countries or regions.
Extras	Flexible Data free after per-month limit	Simply Unlimited None	Unlimited Plus 100GB of Google One storage for each group plan member. One year of YouTube Premium per user at no additional cost.

Cricket at a glance

Cricket has several family plans available. Its most affordable family plan includes unlimited data at a price of just $100 for four lines or $25 a line. If you want extras like hotspot access and the ad-supported Max service, Cricket Unlimited + 15GB Hotspot adds all this for just $130 for four lines. Although Cricket isn’t the cheapest alternative to Mint Mobile, it’s similarly priced and includes many extras (like streaming) that you won’t find elsewhere.

See more plan details below:

5GB10GBCricket UnlimitedCricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot

Cost	5GB $30 per month	10GB $40 for one line $70 for two lines $90 for three lines $110 for four lines	Cricket Unlimited $55 for one line $80 for two lines $90 for three lines $100 for four lines	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot $60 for one line $90 for two lines $110 for three lines $130 for four lines
Talk and Text	5GB Unlimited HD Voice and Wi-Fi Calling	10GB Unlimited HD Voice and Wi-Fi Calling	Cricket Unlimited Unlimited HD Voice and Wi-Fi Calling	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot Unlimited HD Voice and Wi-Fi Calling
Data	5GB 5GB of 4G LTE or 5G data	10GB 10GB of 4G LTE or 5G data	Cricket Unlimited Unlimited high-speed 4G LTE or 5G data	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot Unlimited 4G LTE or 5G data
Streaming	5GB Standard Definition 480p	10GB Standard Definition 480p	Cricket Unlimited Standard Definition 480p	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot Standard Definition 480p
Hotspot	5GB Not available	10GB Not available	Cricket Unlimited For $10 extra	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot 15GB included
International	5GB Not available	10GB Available	Cricket Unlimited Texts to 37 countries Canada and Mexico usage (must not exceed 50%)	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot Texts to 37 countries Canada and Mexico usage (must not exceed 50%)
Perks	5GB None	10GB None	Cricket Unlimited None	Cricket Unlimited + 15GB hotspot Ad-supported Max subscription 150GB Cloud Storage

US Mobile at a glance

US Mobile costs the same as the base Cricket Unlimited plan, at $100 for four lines. It also offers limited data and a shared data pool plan for those that don’t want or need tons of data. While Fi offers better pricing, US Mobile comes in closely behind it. It also has the advantage of Verizon support, for those areas with weaker T-Mobile signals that want to take advantage of the Big Red network instead.

See more plan details below:

Shared Data2-25GB PlanUnlimited BasicUnlimited Premium

Cost	Shared Data $9 per line + $2 per GB	2-25GB Plan $12 for 2GB $15 for 5GB $20 for 15GB $25 for 25GB	Unlimited Basic $35 for one line $20 per line for 4	Unlimited Premium $45 for one line $30 per line for 4
Talk & Text	Shared Data Unlimited	2-25GB Plan Unlimited	Unlimited Basic Unlimited	Unlimited Premium Unlimited
Data	Shared Data At $2 per GB	2-25GB Plan 2-25GB	Unlimited Basic 40GB of 5G/LTE	Unlimited Premium 100GB of 5G/LTE
Hotspot	Shared Data At $2 per GB	2-25GB Plan Up to plan limit	Unlimited Basic 5GB hotspot data	Unlimited Premium 50GB hotspot data
International	Shared Data For purchase	2-25GB Plan For purchase	Unlimited Basic For purchase	Unlimited Premium Up to 10GB international data

Post-paid options: AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile at a glance

Of course, value isn’t the only factor in a family plan. Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile offer more perks, better customer service, and a few other advantages, despite costing a lot more. Here’s a quick breakdown of the cheapest and best plan from each of the main three carriers:

AT&T Unlimited StarterAT&T Unlimited PremiumVerizon myPlan Unlimited WelcomeVerizon myPlan Unlimited PlusT-Mobile EssentialsT-Mobile Go5G Plus

Cost	AT&T Unlimited Starter $65 for one line $60 for two lines $45 for three lines $35 for four lines	AT&T Unlimited Premium $85 for one line $75 for two lines $60 for three lines $50 for four lines	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome $65 for one line $55 for two lines $40 for three lines $30 for four lines $27 for five lines	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus $80 for one line $70 for two lines $55 for three lines $45 for four lines $42 for five lines	T-Mobile Essentials $50 for one line $40 for two lines $30 for three lines $25 for four lines	T-Mobile Go5G Plus $90 for one line $75 for two lines $50 for three lines $46 for four lines
Talk & Text	AT&T Unlimited Starter Unlimited	AT&T Unlimited Premium Unlimited	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome Unlimited	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus Unlimited	T-Mobile Essentials Unlimited	T-Mobile Go5G Plus Unlimited
Data	AT&T Unlimited Starter Unlimited basic 4G LTE 5G access with compatible device	AT&T Unlimited Premium 100GB premium 4G LTE Unlimited basic 4G LTE 5G access with compatible device	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome Unlimited 4G LTE 5G Nationwide	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus Unlimited 4G LTE 5G Nationwide Wideband 5G	T-Mobile Essentials Yes, but might slow down during congestion after	T-Mobile Go5G Plus Unlimited 5G & 4G LTE with 100GB of Premium Data
Hotspot	AT&T Unlimited Starter Not included	AT&T Unlimited Premium 30GB per line	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome None ($10 add on exists, however)	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus 30GB 4G LTE or 5G	T-Mobile Essentials Unlimited 3G	T-Mobile Go5G Plus 50GB of hotspot data
International Service	AT&T Unlimited Starter Unlimited texting to 120 countries	AT&T Unlimited Premium Unlimited texting to 120 countries	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome Talk & Text in Mexico and Canada Texting in over 200 countries	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus Talk & Text in Mexico and Canada Texting in over 200 countries	T-Mobile Essentials Unlimited text in 215+ countries Unlimited talk/text in Canada/Mexico, just 128Kbps data	T-Mobile Go5G Plus 5GB of data and unlimited talk text in over 215+ countries 15GB of data and unlimited talk/text in Mexico/Canada
Extra Perks	AT&T Unlimited Starter Device security and spam risk alerts Standard definition streaming	AT&T Unlimited Premium Device security and spam risk alerts High definition streaming	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Welcome 480p streaming Can add perks for $10 each, including 100GB hotspot data, Apple Music, Apple One, Disney Plus bundle, and more	Verizon myPlan Unlimited Plus 480p streaming Can add perks for $10 each, including 100GB hotspot data, Apple Music, Apple One, Disney Plus bundle, and more	T-Mobile Essentials 480p streaming	T-Mobile Go5G Plus Netflix Basic, one SD screen Apple TV Plus

As you can see, postpaid offers other perks that might be useful for families too. Ultimately it comes down to if you care more about value or savings. Be sure to check out our guide to the best family plans for even more suggestions and buyer advice.