5 carriers you should sign up for instead of Trump Mobile

Earlier this month, the world of cheap cell phone plans got an interesting new competitor. Trump Mobile debuted on June 16, and while most of the attention has been focused on its controversial $499 Android phone, the other component of the Trump-run mobile brand is a new unlimited cell plan, marketed as “The 47 Plan.”

For $47.45 per month, Trump Mobile gives you unlimited talk, text, and data, plus international calling to 100 other countries and hotspot support. On its own, that’s fine, but it doesn’t take long for the warning lights to start flashing.

First, you only get 20GB of high-speed data, with no information provided about what happens after you reach that limit. There’s also no mention of HD video streaming or international data. Furthermore, there’s conflicting information as to whether Trump Mobile uses AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile towers for its cell service, or if it exclusively uses T-Mobile. Simply put, Trump Mobile does not make a good first impression.

While you could try your luck with Trump Mobile’s 47 Plan, I’d really recommend you don’t. Consider these five alternatives you should sign up for instead.

If a US-themed cell carrier is what you’re after, stop looking at Trump Mobile and turn your attention toward US Mobile. Not only does it have a cooler eagle/American flag logo, but it’s also just an infinitely better carrier in every conceivable way.

US Mobile has a few plans to choose from, though the most comparable to The 47 Plan is its Unlimited Premium plan. You get unlimited talk, text, and priority data with coverage powered by your choice of AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon towers. By default, you use one of these at a time and can switch to a different network a handful of times per month. Alternatively, you can get the Multi-Network add-on, which puts two of the networks on your phone simultaneously, with unlimited, automatic switching depending on which has better coverage at any given time. It’s a seriously cool feature.

Beyond that, US Mobile’s Unlimited Premium Plan also has unlimited hotspot data, a free smartwatch plan, international calling and texting, and up to 20GB of international data. Additionally, if you have three or more Unlimited Premium plans on a family account, you can get free subscriptions to services like Spotify, Apple Music, Disney Plus, and more.

The wild part? Despite being so much better than Trump Mobile, US Mobile is cheaper, too. The Unlimited Premium plan normally costs $44/month, though right now you can get it for just $35/month. Alternatively, you can pay $348 upfront for a year of service, which works out to the equivalent of $29/month. And taxes and fees are included in those prices — another thing you don’t get with Trump Mobile.

While US Mobile is the only carrier on this list that utilizes AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon towers, that doesn’t make it the only Trump Mobile alternative you should consider. If you’re OK relying just on T-Mobile service, Google Fi is one of the best options out there.

Although some of the other carriers on this list also use T-Mobile service, Google Fi is the only one that’s prioritized on the same level as T-Mobile’s own postpaid plans. In other words, during times of network congestion when a lot of people are using T-Mobile towers, Google Fi customers should see much better data speeds than people using something like Tello. It’s a really nice perk to have.

Of the available Google Fi plans, Unlimited Standard is my favorite alternative to Trump Mobile’s 47 Plan. It’s roughly the same price at $50/month (currently on sale for just $25/month) and includes unlimited talk, text, and data with 50GB of high-speed data. You also get 25GB of high-speed hotspot use, free smartwatch connectivity, international calling and texting, and free data in Canada and Mexico.

Alternatively, if you’re OK with just 30GB of high-speed data (still more than Trump Mobile) and no hotspot support or international coverage, the Unlimited Essentials plan is a great, cheaper option at $35/month (currently discounted to just $17.50/month). No matter which plan you choose, either one is a better choice than Trump Mobile.

There’s a lot to like about Google Fi, especially with the 50% off sale going on right now. But what if you want an unlimited cell phone plan that normally costs $25/month without any special limited-time discounts? If so, you’ll want to think about signing up for Tello.

Tello allows you to customize your cell plan with your preferred amount of monthly data and call minutes, but if we’re comparing it to the unlimited nature of Trump Mobile’s 47 Plan, we might as well go all out with unlimited talk, text, and data. That includes 35GB of high-speed data, 5GB of hotspot usage, and free international calling to 60+ countries. It’s not the most exhaustive mobile plan out there, but the fact that you get all of this (on T-Mobile’s network) for just $25/month is an unbelievably good deal.

There’s really not much more to say about Tello. Its unlimited plan gives you more high-speed data than Trump Mobile at a much lower price. So long as you don’t need to use your phone internationally (which Trump Mobile also doesn’t allow), Tello’s unlimited plan is a no-brainer choice.

Google Fi and Tello are good options if you live in an area with reliable T-Mobile service, but what if you want something with Verizon’s network? In that case, I’d strongly recommend checking out Visible. It’s the carrier I recently switched to after a decade with T-Mobile, and I couldn’t be happier with it.

Visible’s most expensive plan, and the closest to Trump Mobile’s offering, is Visible Plus Pro. It retails for $45/month (currently discounted to $40/month) and – tell me if you’ve heard this story before — is so much better than The 47 Plan. As expected, it includes unlimited talk, text, and “premium data,” which isn’t throttled unless you use more than 450GB in a single month. It also has unlimited hotspot data, a free smartwatch plan, and excellent international calling/roaming features. If you’re OK with slower hotspot speeds and less international support, Visible’s other two plans let you make a few sacrifices for a lower monthly bill.

There are a couple of other nice perks about Visible. All of the plans include taxes/fees in the listed price, which is always convenient. Plus, if you subscribe to Verizon’s Fios Home Internet, every Visible plan comes with a $15/month discount on your internet bill. I’ve had Visible for just about two months now, and given the choice between it and Trump Mobile, I’d choose Visible every single time.

Last but not least, if none of the above carriers seem like the right fit for you, perhaps Boost Mobile would be a good choice. Boost Mobile has a couple of plans that compare really well to Trump Mobile, and depending on what your cell plan needs are, either one could be a fantastic choice.

We’ll start with the base Unlimited plan. It’s a pretty standard offering, featuring unlimited talk, text, and data with a high-speed data cap of 30GB per month. And … that’s basically it! It’s about as simple as unlimited plans come, but the magic lies in its price. Your first three months are $15/month, and from then on, you’ll pay just $25/month with a guarantee that your price will never increase. If you just want the basics, it’s a killer option.

If you need a bit more out of your phone plan, Unlimited Plus is likely a better fit for you. Once again, you’ve got unlimited talk, text, and data, with an increased high-speed data allotment of 40GB per month. You also get mobile hotspot support, as well as global texting and calling to over 200 countries. Having this plan also unlocks phone deals from Boost, with savings up to $300. You get all of that for $50/month, which isn’t the absolute best deal ever, but it’s still far and away more competitive than Trump Mobile.

It’s worth noting that, unlike the other carriers mentioned here, Boost Mobile has its own cell towers. Boost Mobile’s coverage is surprisingly extensive, and should you find yourself in an area without Boost towers, you’ll get roaming coverage from AT&T or T-Mobile.

From a pure features/value perspective, Trump Mobile is pretty easily beaten by numerous other phone plans. It’s too expensive, the data cap is low, and mixed messaging around which cell towers power Trump Mobile is far from ideal. And that’s to say nothing of the Liberty Mobile company that Trump Mobile is apparently “powered” by, whose website FAQ page is hilariously unfinished and filled with “What is Lorem Ipsum?” questions.

Does that make Trump Mobile the absolute worst cell phone plan you can sign up for? I’m sure you could find something worse if you look hard enough, but that doesn’t mean Trump Mobile is good, either. The price isn’t right, the features aren’t there, and you can find so many better plans from so many other carriers.

More competition is always a good thing, but given the choice between Trump Mobile and the carriers on this list, I don’t see any scenario in which Trump Mobile beats any of them.