Verizon Wireless at a Glance
Verizon Communications Inc. (normally abbreviated as Verizon) is the second-largest telecommunication provider in the United States with around 120 million subscribers in the third quarter of 2020. As one of the leading wireless service carriers, Verizon is committed to delivering the promise of the digital world by providing innovative communications and groundbreaking technologies. This company was formed on June 30, 2020, when Atlantic Corp. completed the acquisition of GTE Corp., which was the largest merger in the corporate history of America. After the takeover, Verizon moved its headquarter to Midtown Manhattan, New York City, and now it operates more than 6,900 stores in 51 states & territories including California, Texas, New York, Illinois, Nevada, Arizona, Indiana, etc.
Verizon is recognized for its cutting-edge technologies and corporate responsibilities. RootMetrics ranked Verizon the best network in America, and it was Verizon’s fourteenth win in a row. International Data Corporation (IDC) declared Verizon to be the leader in managed Software Defined-Wide Area Network (SD WAN) services, and J.D. Power named Verizon as the most awarded wireless company for network quality in 2020. Moreover, Verizon is dedicated to children’s education and gender equity. In 2020, Verizon was awarded Best Commitment to Education by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and honored Best Company of the Year from the Global Women in Telco & Tech (GWTT) Awards.
Features of Verizon Wireless
When speaking of the commercial 5G network, the first company that came into mind is always Verizon. It is the first carrier that introduced commercial 5G mobile networks with commercially-available 5G-compatible cell phones. For years, Verizon keeps expanding its 5G network. Until 2020, there are already 230 million customers in more than 2,700 cities covered by 5G Nationwide at no extra cost.
Verizon’s 5G network employs Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS for short), which is a new technology that enables parallel use of 4G LTE and 5G NR on multiple spectrum bands. The jargon “dynamic” in DSS means the ability of deployment between the two spectrum resources. With the advanced technology, Verizon delivers incredibly fast speeds and gives customers a great experience surfing the internet. According to the Root Metrics, Verizon has a remarkable 5G download speed in Los Angeles at 676.4 Mbps, which was one of the fastest 5G maximum download speeds ever recorded in the United States.
In addition to Verizon’s outstanding millimeter-wave 5G, the carrier also leads the market by its high-performing 4G LTE network covered over 300 million users in all 50 states. Its median download speeds could reach at least 30 Mbps in 45 of 55 markets. What’s more, Verizon has a strong signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that ensures a reliable network and low interference.
Find the Right Plan
Many people might get overwhelmed when it comes to picking a phone plan since there are a number of options available in the market. It is worth nothing that you should first review your past mobile bill statements before making a choice. Having an understanding of your wireless needs such as data use, phone call minutes, and travel & entertainment demands could help you determine which plan suits you most.
This article mainly compares Verizon’s different unlimited plans. Keep reading the following plan introductions and hope you could find the right plan that meets your particular needs.
Start Unlimited
Start Unlimited from Verizon is the basic plan featuring unlimited talk, text, 4G LTE data, but without a mobile hotspot. Begin with $70 for a single line per month, this entry-level plan is good for people with limited budgets and basic needs. Apart from its affordable price, Start Unlimited also includes some entertainment perks such as six-month trials to Disney Plus, Discovery Plus, and Apple Music. However, Start Unlimited has some downsides as well. Though there is a 5G nationwide coverage, one thing to point out is that customers who subscribe to Start Unlimited must pay an additional $10/month/line for 5G ultra-wideband network access. It is not worth it compared to Play More Unlimited, which includes more benefits with the same $10 supplement. In addition, Start Unlimited has a strict throttling policy. There is no premium data in this plan, which means subscribers would face a temporary slowdown during internet congestion.
Let’s take a closer look at the price breakdown for Start Unlimited. See the chart below:
| Start Unlimited | |
| Number of Lines | Prices per Line |
| 1 Line | $70/line with AutoPay |
| 2 Lines | $60/line with AutoPay ($120/mo.) |
| 3 Lines | $45/line with AutoPay ($135/mo.) |
| 4 Lines | $35/line with AutoPay ($140/mo.) |
| 5 Lines+ | $30/line with AutoPay ($150/mo.) |
We have done the legwork, and see the pros and cons list of Start Unlimited Plan below:
| Start Unlimited | |
| Pros | Cons |
| 1. Cheapest unlimited option.
2. Unlimited talk, unlimited text, and 4G LTE data. 3. Unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico & Canada. 4. Unlimited international texting to 200+ countries and territories. 5. 5G Nationwide coverage with a 5G Nationwide-capable device. 6. Six-month trials of Disney+, Discovery+, and Apple Music. |
1. Taxes and fees are extra.
2. No premium data. Internet speed would be slowed down during congestion. 3. No hotspot data 4. Video streams on smartphone/tablet at DVD quality (480p). 5. 5G Ultra Wideband access not included. ($10/month) |
Play More Unlimited
Play More Unlimited is designed for those who are addicted to music and video streaming. Starting from $80 per line per month, this plan comes with unlimited talk, text, 50GB of 5G nationwide /4G LTE premium data, and unlimited mobile hotspots with a maximum of 10 lines for each account. Customers could enjoy a one-year Discovery+ and a six-month trial to Apple Music for free. Besides, the Disney bundle including Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN Plus is offered as part of the subscription. The video streaming of Play More Unlimited Plan is limited to 720p HD-quality, and users could upgrade it to 1080p high-definition for an additional $10/month.
Compared with Start Unlimited, Play More Unlimited Plan has more entertainment features. If you are a media junky and watching a lot of videos a day, this is the plan for you. Let’s take a closer look at the price breakdown for Play More Unlimited. See the chart below:
| Play More Unlimited | |
| Number of Lines | Prices per Line |
| 1 Line | $80/line with AutoPay |
| 2 Lines | $70/line with AutoPay ($140/mo.) |
| 3 Lines | $55/line with AutoPay ($165/mo.) |
| 4 Lines | $45/line with AutoPay ($180/mo.) |
| 5 Lines+ | $40/line with AutoPay ($200/mo.) |
We have done the legwork, and see the pros and cons list of Play More Unlimited below:
| Play More Unlimited | |
| Pros | Cons |
| 1. Unlimited talk, unlimited text, and 50GB of 5G nationwide /4G LTE premium data.
2. Unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico & Canada. 3. Mobile hotspot. 4. 5G Nationwide coverage with a 5G Nationwide-capable device. 5. Unlimited international texting to 200+ countries and territories. 6. Six-month free trial of Apple Music; 1-year free trial of Discovery+. 7. The Disney bundle included. 8. 720p HD–quality streaming on capable devices. |
1. Taxes and fees are extra.
2. Fairly expensive plans. 3. Mobile hotspot high-speed data is capped at 15GB, then drops to 600 kbps. |
Do More Unlimited
Do More Unlimited and Play More Unlimited are pretty much alike in many aspects, but Do More Unlimited Plans is more geared toward productivity. With the equally priced rate, Verizon offers exactly the same unlimited talk, text, 50GB of 5G nationwide /4G LTE data, and 15GB hotspot premium data allowance. The differences between the two plans appeared in entertainment perks. Excluding free subscriptions to Hulu and ESPN plus, Do More Unlimited adds 600GB of storage on Verizon cloud ($5/month value) and a 50% off discount on connected device unlimited plans. However, for most people, there is little chance to use Verizon cloud since both Android and IOS devices have wireless backups to store photos, videos, contacts, and documents.
Let’s take a closer look at the price breakdown for Do More Unlimited. See the chart below:
| Do More Unlimited | |
| Number of Lines | Prices per Line |
| 1 Line | $80/line with AutoPay |
| 2 Lines | $70/line with AutoPay ($140/mo.) |
| 3 Lines | $55/line with AutoPay ($165/mo.) |
| 4 Lines | $45/line with AutoPay ($180/mo.) |
| 5 Lines+ | $40/line with AutoPay ($200/mo.) |
We have done the legwork, and see the pros and cons list of Play More Unlimited below:
| Do More Unlimited | |
| Pros | Cons |
| 1. Unlimited talk, unlimited text, and 50GB of 5G nationwide /4G LTE premium data.
2. Unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico & Canada. 3. Mobile hotspot. 4. 5G Nationwide coverage with a 5G Nationwide-capable device. 5. Unlimited international texting to 200+ countries and territories. 6. Six-month free trial to Apple Music + Discovery Plus; 7. 600GB of Verizon Cloud storage. 8. 50% off unlimited connected device plans. 9. 720p HD–quality streaming on capable devices. |
1. Taxes and fees are extra.
2. Fairly expensive plans. 3. Mobile hotspot high-speed data is capped at 15GB, then drops to 600 kbps. 4. Hulu and ESPN Plus are excluded. |
Get More Unlimited
Get More Unlimited is Verizon’s most expensive plan that combines the features of Do More Unlimited and Play More Unlimited. It characterizes by unlimited talk, text, premium network access, Apple Music, Verizon cloud storage, the Disney bundle, and a year free subscription to Discover Plus. In addition, there is a 50% discount for customers to add one unlimited plan for a connected device such as tablets, jetpacks, HumX, or smartwatches. The 5G nationwide or 4G LTE premium data is capped at 50GB per month, which is hard to reach for most people. Mobile Wi-Fi hotspot data would be deprioritized during congestion only if you exceed the threshold of 30GB per month. However, it is hard to recommend this mobile plan with the skyrocket pricing of $90 per month for one line.
Let’s take a closer look at the price breakdown for Get More Unlimited. See the chart below:
| Get More Unlimited | |
| Number of Lines | Prices per Line |
| 1 Line | $90/line with AutoPay |
| 2 Lines | $80/line with AutoPay ($160/mo.) |
| 3 Lines | $65/line with AutoPay ($195/mo.) |
| 4 Lines | $55/line with AutoPay ($220/mo.) |
| 5 Lines+ | $50/line with AutoPay ($250/mo.) |
We have done the legwork, and see the pros and cons list of Get More Unlimited below:
| Get More Unlimited | |
| Pros | Cons |
| 1. Unlimited talk, unlimited text, and 50GB of 5G nationwide /4G LTE premium data.
2. Unlimited talk, text, and data in Mexico & Canada. 3. 30GB premium Wi-Fi hotspot. 4. 5G Nationwide coverage with a 5G Nationwide-capable device. 5. Unlimited international texting to 200+ countries and territories. 6. 12-month free trial to Discovery Plus; 7. The Disney bundle included. 8. Apple Music included. 9. 600GB of Verizon Cloud storage. 10. 50% off unlimited connected device plans. 11. 720p HD–quality streaming on capable devices. |
1. Taxes and fees are extra.
2. Expensive rate. Not good value for money |
Just Kids
Just Kids Plan is the first child-specific plan designed for teenagers with parental controls on apps & content filters, contact list supervisions, screen time management, data limit setup, and child location tracking. Requiring a minimum of 2 lines, this plan ranges from $25 to $50 a month with the features of 5G Nationwide coverage, 4G LTE data, unlimited talk, and unlimited text to 20 parent-approved contacts. One thing to point out is that Just Kids is not available on its own. It must be combined with one of Verizon’s unlimited postpaid plans such as Start Unlimited, Do More Unlimited, Play More Unlimited, and Get More Unlimited.
Let’s take a closer look at the price breakdown for Just Kids. See the chart below:
| Just Kids | |
| Number of Lines | Prices per Line |
| 1 Line | N/A |
| 2 Lines | $50/line with AutoPay ($100/mo.) |
| 3 Lines | $40/line with AutoPay ($120/mo.) |
| 4 Lines | $35/line with AutoPay ($140/mo.) |
| 5 Lines+ | $25/line with AutoPay ($125/mo.) |
We have done the legwork, and see the pros and cons list of Just Kids below:
| Just Kids | |
| Pros | Cons |
| 1. 4G LTE Data.
2. Unlimited talk & text to 20 approved-contacts. 3. 5G Nationwide coverage with a 5G Nationwide-capable device. 4. Parental controls for safe phone usage. |
1. Minimum of 2 lines
2. Must be added with one of Verizon’s postpaid unlimited plans. |
