While I personally don’t consider buying a brand new iPhone 6 model just after its release to be a particularly frugal buying decision, I do feel some obligation to at least point people in the right direction for the cheapest iphone 6 plans that are currently being offered by both the big wireless carriers and the newer MVNO carriers. Below you’ll find a chart which compares the main aspects of a cheap mobile phone plan between different carriers that offer the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
| Carrier | Price/Month | Network | Talk & Text | Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ting | $15 | Sprint CDMA | 100 min/100 txts | 100MB |
| Boost Mobile | $35 | Sprint CDMA | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Sprint | $50 | Sprint 4G LTE | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| T-Mobile | $50 | T-Mobile GSM | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Verizon | $50 | Verizon 4G LTE | Unlimited | 2 GB |
| AT&T | $65 | AT&T 4G LTE | Unlimited | 2 GB |
| T-Mobile | $80 | T-Mobile 4G LTE | Unlimited | Unlimited |
It should be noted that the table above is only providing the cheapest plan option for each carrier network. There are other varying plan levels one could choose with these wireless providers but the point of this post is to help you find a cheap cell phone plan for the latest iPhone device.
In addition, I will be updating this comparison chart periodically in order to add any new wireless carriers that add iPhone 6 integration.
Ting Wireless iPhone Plans
While the innovative Ting MVNO wireless service is typically six months behind on offering the latest Apple wireless products, it is sometimes worth the wait if you want to use the latest iPhone with a very frugal cell phone plan.
On February 11th, 2015, it was mentioned that Ting iPhone 6 and 6 plus support would be available for use with the service. This does not however mean that you can buy an iPhone 6 through Ting, but would instead need to buy an unlocked iPhone 6 from Apple and then buy a SIM card from Ting to activate it on their network.
One important thing to note in my table above is that while I list $15 as the monthly price, this is only based on the lowest tiered price levels based on Ting’s rate structure which would offer 100 minutes, 100 texts, and 100 MB of data. Of course, one can certainly end up with a higher monthly cost if usage in any of the three rate categories goes beyond the cheapest tiers.
One area where Ting can get quite expensive compared to the traditional carriers is if your data usage is really high, which could bump you up to the top rate tiers and you end up paying more than you would for an unlimited plan on a big carrier for instance. Thus it would be pertinent for one to consider data usage before going with Ting, especially on a high-end smartphone like the iPhone 6.
Boost Mobile and Sprint iPhone 6 Plans
As you can see from the charts, the better deals so far for an iPhone 6 plan seem to both be on the Sprint networks with unlimited talk, text, and data. However, there is a bit of difference between the two offered in that they are running on different types of data.
Boost Mobile which is Sprint’s low cost wireless brand offers a cheap unlimited everything plan on its CDMA network for $35 per month. However, if you want to be on the faster Sprint 4G LTE network you’d have to go with the Sprint Simply Unlimited plan for $50 per month instead. Both plans seem to be pretty decent deals for their respective unlimited data type offered.
Boost Mobile Plan Details
The cheapest Boost rate plans would be the $35 per month level that can be used with the iPhone 6.
The boost plan is unlimited everything but the unlimited data is on the slower CDMA network. However, they do offer up to 1 GB of “High Speed” data on the 4G network, so it is not completely without faster speeds of the Sprint plan, just limited.
One issue that might be a problem for people thinking of Boost Mobile is that it doesn’t really include international calling. They offer extra add-on packages for calling different countries but of course this will up the monthly price depending on your International calling habits.
Sprint Plan Details
Sprint has been the most aggressive of all the carriers with their marketing of its special iPhone 6 Sprint Simply Unlimited plan. At $50 with unlimited everything, including unlimited 4G LTE speeds, it blows away everyone else in terms of its data offering.
This is likely the most optimal plan for iPhone 6 users since I imagine they use a lot of data intensive apps, due to being the technophiles they are. Not to mention that many iPhone users seem to spend a lot more time in front of their phones thus the likely necessity of needing a better data plan.
Not only does Sprint offer the best data package but they are giving a bunch of extra incentives for switching. The first incentive is that they will give you up to $350 per line to pay for termination fees if you cancel your contract with AT&T, Verizon, or T-Mobile and move to Sprint. The other incentive is that they’ll give you a minimum of $200 to trade in your old iPhone for a new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus through its Sprint Buyback program.
All that said, its the perfect iPhone 6 plan but only if you live in an area with good Sprint network coverage, otherwise it’s a bit pointless. It should be noted though that Sprint is indeed expanding its LTE network quite a bit lately with plans for continued expansion, so what didn’t work a few years ago now might get blazing fast speeds, so it is worth doing a little homework to find out.
T-Mobile
Now on to T-Mobile which is also a fairly decent plan with its own pros and cons. They have a number of plan offerings ranging from the cheapest at $50 per month which includes unlimited talk, text, and GSM data, but has a 1GB limit on high speed 4G data. Its highest price plan at $80 is also unlimited everything but the data plan is for unlimited 4G LTE, which is why I included it in the comparison chart above.
While not as cheap as Sprint with its 4G data plan, T-Mobile does offer some interesting perks that aren’t offered with other carriers and worth considering:
- T-Mobile has fantastic International plan options which includes unlimited data and text for up to 120 different countries and locations, at no extra cost. I’ve even mentioned this in another article pointing out that it’s one of the best International phone plans.
- There is No service contract that locks you in.
- They have unlimited music streaming for apps like Pandora, Spotify, iTunes radio and iHeart Radio that won’t count towards your 4G data limit. This is a nice feature but there has been some commotion in the tech community that it is a slippery slope in terms of net neutrality; not that it’s particularly relevant here but some people who care about the politics of net neutrality might be swayed by this in their decision making.
- T-Mobile also has Wi-Fi enabled calling on its new phones, including iPhone 6, which is nice if you are not in a good network coverage area but are in the range of a WiFi internet connection.
AT&T and Verizon Plans
I’m not going to get into too much detail on these two lumbering behemoths of the wireless industry. They still seem to stick to the status quo of 2 year contracts and generally screwing over its customers by nickel and diming them to death. Perhaps I’m a bit jaded towards them but I don’t recommend them for any plan, let alone an iPhone 6 plan, unless you don’t have good Sprint or T-Mobile coverage.
That said, both AT&T and Verizon offer their standard plans with Verizon being $15 cheaper at $50 per month and AT&T at $65 per month. They have different variations in how you can setup your plans but these seem to be the cheapest monthly prices I could find. Of course, they also lock you into a contract as well which sucks if you want to switch down the road; fortunately the other carriers are putting up big offers for covering contract cancellations.
AT&T and Verizon also have very good 4G LTE networks but their cheapest plans give you a measly 2GB data limit… lame. You could get an unlimited data package with them but it’ll cost you an arm and a leg.
As mentioned, I will be continue to update this list as new carriers and MVNOs begin to offer the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus so keep an eye out. Also if you notice that I missed a company that should be included please let me know in the comments below.
I’ve been over-paying Verizon for *years*. I found out about the above-mentioned plan a month or 2 ago & called in about it. I’d been paying over $125/mo for the same plan prior, so this was a drastic drop.
Originally, the Verizon rep told me the exact plan details that you have listed above, but after reviewing my bill, they in fact charged $60. I thought this might be an error, so I called them up. An apathetic, unconcerned rep told me that there was no error on their end; it’s a $60 plan. The $50 plan only includes 1GB of data.
I was already looking into companies that advertise ‘plan buy-outs’ — the horrible customer service I received today has cemented the decision to make the switch.
Hi AJ,
Thanks for sharing your experience with Verizon. It is really unfortunate how these big telecom companies treat their existing customers like that.
I believe that the info in my chart above about Verizon was based on rates for new customers, but you would think that Verizon would treat their existing customers better by allowing them similar deals. Given today’s competitive environment in the mobile phone Industry, along with all the frugally minded upcoming MVNOs, $125 per month for ANY phone plan is a complete rip-off in my opinion.
Glad to hear you’re making the switch to a cheaper cell phone provider, definitely check out Sprint if you’re going the iPhone 6 route, as they seem to have one of the best deals at the moment. If you need any help with researching other plans let me know, I’d be glad to lend a hand. Hope everything works out for you.
I used Sprint for about a decade. Every time re-up came, I thought back over the last few months, and I decided they were fine, and it wasn’t worth all the hubbub of switching. Then I’d get annoyed with them for doing a terrible job, and over a long period of time get back to ‘sort of okay’, and repeat. I’m not very smart, sometimes.
When they started their ‘upgrades’ about 16? months ago, things went to hell in a hand basket. Which is ironic, because with new leadership and upgrades coming, I really thought things would finally get decent.
After six months of a totally unusable phone, substantial revenue loss, and time wasted due to consistent communications problems in sales and such, and a myriad other issues, I called them. I nagged them ’till they agreed to cancel the ETF if I returned the phone.
I packaged the phone promptly and shipped it back. The day after I sent it, the tracking showed it was in transit, and they charged me the ETF plus a huge amount of ‘Sprint Fees’ and taxes on top of it. They charged me over $400. The day the tracking showed it was on its way. Which was very promptly after receiving the return kit for the phone they shipped me.
It took hours upon hours — likely between 60 and 80 hours on the phone, over six months — to get them to finally cancel the ETF. I was told 6 or 7 times that it would be done, give it a few days, only to find myself back at square one. It was the worst customer service experience I’ve had in my lifetime.
While I can’t blame them for all of my stress (I have some serious health issues that have been compounded with serious financial strain), spending months fighting them to admit their service was doing nothing for me, and then getting them to honor their word, was… dehumanizing. It was incredible. I try very hard to separate my other challenges from them, and even with a sincere effort on that front, I find how they behaved completely intolerable.
I can’t suggest strongly enough that people avoid Sprint. I know I’m just one of millions of users, but I can’t accurately express in words how much they cost me, how poor of a job they did on every front, and how dangerous I think they are as a company.
Hi John,
Yikes, that all sounds like a nightmare and quite the hassle in regards to both time and money. Thanks for sharing your experience with us in regards to Sprint’s customer service, it is definitely something people should keep in mind when choosing a carrier.
That said, I do think that the heated competition amongst the major carriers and the many new MVNO entrants such as Ting and Republic Wireless are helping to improve costs, service, and customer support across the whole industry. From what I’ve been reading in the wireless industry news it does appear that Sprint is attempting to step up its game for whatever that’s worth.
Would you include Cricket in you iPhone plan comparisons. Though Cricket uses the AT&T network, the pricing looks good. Can you also comment on the whether or not they use GSM rather than LTE transport in their data calculations and any resulting impact?
Update it for Cricket and other new plans
Hi Matthew,
Thanks for the helpful blog. My family and I will be leaving AT&T after a fruitless attempt to lower our monthly bill. Our bill has been $230/month for 3 iPhones and a basic non-smart phone (no data). Our no-contract plan included 15 gigs of shared data per month, which we never came close to using. So a few months ago we called AT&T and asked if we lowered our data to 5 gigs/month, what our bill would be? We were told it would reduce our monthly costs by $50. Hoorah! So that’s what we did and then we received the first bill in the mail and…it was still $230. We called and inquired and were told that, sorry, there was a one time fee of $50 to change data plans. Next month’s bill should reflect the reduced cost. So then another month goes by and, viola, bill arrives and it is the same $230. We call again (another 45 minutes on the phone) and then we’re told that while reducing our data plan to 5 gigs reduced our bill, apparently when you go below 10 gigs a month, the line fee per phone actually increases, and so, our bill will continue to be $230/month. We are understandably frustrated by AT&T’s clear deception and inconsistent billing practices, and so now we are on the hunt for a new cell service. The two that seem most promising to us are Airvoice and Cricket. But Cricket’s customer service reviews sound dismal. So, I’ve requested an unlock key for my phone, and bought a $6 Airvoice SIM card to try it out. Thank you for your insight and advice. We’ll see how it goes. Best, g
First I want to say thanks for all the information provided here. I was a sprint customer for years but there customer service got so bad I had to switch. Verizon now for a long time. I have always had basic flip phones and used no data. In all fairness I have to say Verizon has excellent customer service. What few problems I have had have always been resolved with a phone call with very little wait time, speaking to people who had a good grasp of the english language. I am currently looking to get a smart phone and after reading a lot of the info here it is still a scary switch for someone who isn’t very tech savvy and hates it when electronic gadgets don’t work right. Price wasn’t such a big deal with a flip phone but with data it starts adding up to a lot more. After reading all here I think I will try Cricket and will try to make sure whatever phone I get from them I would be able to use with another carrier if they don’t work out. Cricket would save me 30 a month over verizon. If I get a cheaper smart phone I will come out far ahead in the 2 yrs I would have been tied to Verizon. Sprint prices are kind of in the middle reading reviews on Sprint customer service I don’t think I would want to take the risk of being tied into a 2 yr. contract that could end up being a nightmare. Again, thanks for this forum and all the info provided. PO
I love my Samsung Note 3 (Verizon) but after 17 years, I have come to hate Verizon. $120/month after an 18% discount is way too much.
I live in the Washington state and often visit Canada so I need to be able to call there and make calls from there. What would be my best options?
Can I unlock my Verizon Note 3 and have it work with Cricket or Consumer Cellular?
Hello, I am not sure but I may be the most frugal one around.I have used a flip phone ,ATT pay as you go for years as my wife and I are light users.Recently,I purchased a “smart ‘ phone for my wife and she still is with “Big blue” . I recently purchased a “smarty phone” and with the help of your website,as well as many others decided to hook up with Ting.All in all they(Ting) folks are very nice to deal with, and it was very easy to get started with a GSM cell (TMO) plan. I keep watch my account with the dashboard they maintain, I will complete my first month about 10 days from now.I just want to thank you for this web site for pointing me in the “Right” direction.
The only unknown factor here is the fact that I live in a somewhat rural area and reception is spotty,especially in my house which is off the beaten path and is clad in aluminum siding. I have noticed that TMO is about 10 to 12 dbm lower signal than “Big blue” and I think it is because “Big Blue” uses the lower frequency band whereas TMO does not for my phone. It is not a major factor, but I cannot use it as a emergency backup phone if I were to lose power here.
All in all Ting is a plus and I will stay with them,unless of course,I find a lower cost alternative with the same benefits or better.Did I mention I was frugal?
Thanks again,
joseph
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