Home BudgetingPhone-Mobile

T-Mobile Review

, Editor | Updated November 12, 2018
My3cents Rating: 3.6/5.0

T-Mobile is a cell phone provider that offers voice, messaging, and data services through its network. It is the third largest wireless network in the United State and has more than 65 million customers.

Among consumers, T-Mobile plans are well known for their low costs and high data caps. T-Mobile family plans have also proven popular, letting large families save a lot of money by bundling their cell phone service together.

T-Mobile coverage is strong across the country, making it a good choice for the majority of Americans. If you like bonuses, T-Mobile is a good phone carrier to use. The company regularly gives special benefits to its customers. For example, T-Mobile subscribers can get free access to Netflix on their phones, TVs, and tablets.

If you want to know more about this popular wireless network, read on the see our full T-Mobile review for 2018.

We maintain strict standards of editorial integrity when writing our guides & reviews to help you make decisions with confidence. To help support our site, some of the products we highlight are from our partners and we may receive compensation when you visit their sites.

T-Mobile Plans and Cost

Most cell phone companies have a huge variety of plans and it can be very difficult to wrap your head around the nuances of each one. T-Mobile plans are very easy to understand. In fact, there’s really only one T-Mobile plan to explain with a few add-ons to consider.

T-Mobile Plans

T-Mobile’s flagship plan is its unlimited plan. You get unlimited talk, text, and data. No caps or limits to worry about. The only caveat is that once you use 50GB of data in a month (a huge amount for anyone but the most aggressive users), your internet access may be slowed down.

You can even use your unlimited texting and data when you’re abroad.

T-Mobile plans for seniors have the exact same features as the standard T-Mobile unlimited data plan, just at a lower cost.

T-Mobile One Plus is an add-on service that you can sign up for if you want to get more out of your phone plan.

T-Mobile One Plus offers the same features as the unlimited plan, with the following additions:

  • HD Streaming on your phone
  • 20GB of mobile hotspot data at 4G speeds for your laptop and tablet (unlimited 3G data)
  • Double the speed when you’re abroad
  • Free in-flight WiFi through Gogo WiFi
  • Voicemail to text transcription
  • Name ID for unknown callers

T-Mobile Costs

T-Mobile does its best to keep costs down. You can get the best deal when you bundle your service with other peoples’ service.

Number of lines Cost per line Total cost
1 $70 / month $70 / month
2 $60 / month $120 / month
3 $40 / month $120 / month
4 $35 / month $140 / month

Adding T-Mobile One Plus service costs $15 per line per month for each line unless you’re adding One Plus to every line on your 2+ person plan. In that scenario, the cost is just $10 per month.

Our Review: The Deep Dive

T-Mobile is a great, low-cost phone carrier that nearly everyone should consider.

T-Mobile Features

T-Mobile’s best feature is its unlimited data plan. Your data is truly unlimited. Even if you hit the 50GB prioritization cap, you can continue to use data, albeit at lower speeds. You’ll never be blocked from accessing the internet. T-Mobile add-ons like T-Mobile One Plus just add more benefits and T-Mobile deals like free Netflix just make the deal even sweet.

T-Mobile Coverage

T-Mobile’s coverage has improved significantly in the past few years. You can get great 4G service nearly anywhere in the United States. The company’s website even features a coverage map you can view to see where you’ll be covered.

T-Mobile Customer Service

T-Mobile’s customer service is known for being responsive and easy to work with. You’ll have little trouble getting help with a phone call or a tweet.

Cancelling T-Mobile

If for some reason, you want to cancel T-Mobile, it’s easy enough to do. Simply call T-Mobile’s support phone line or visit your local T-Mobile store. You don’t have to worry about high-pressure tactics to keep you subscribed.

T-Mobile Reviews

T-Mobile’s reviews from other reviewers, such as the Better Business Bureau and Yelp, are good. You’ll be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t like the company’s coverage or customer service.

Benefits: Truly unlimited phone plan that just gets cheaper as you add more people to your contract. Get regular freebies for being a customer.

Drawbacks: Service is expensive for people who don’t bundle service with friends or family.

The Bottom Line: T-Mobile provides great phone service and truly unlimited data. If you use your phone on a regular basis, it’s hard to go wrong with T-Mobile.

Consumer Reviews

Posted on 05/04/2011

We purchased 4 cell phones with 3 internet access. One was a SIDEKICK. The others were various PDAs. We received notice that on May 31 the agreement with Microsoft and T-Mobile has been severed and all Sidekicks will no longer have internet access. You have to again BUY a new PHONE. Last one cost us $159.00 with a 2 year plan.

Now they say PAY US another $159.00 for ANOTHER phone with ANOTHER 2 year plan. Was this my mistake that they severed their agreement with Microsoft? T-Mobile should supply us with a comparable phone and continue the existing agreement.

Their response. "OUR LEGAL DEPARTMENT HAS EXAMINED THIS and we have no responsibility to provide Internet access to our customers." Yet when we bought the phone they told us we HAD TO BUY 24 MONTHS OF INTERNET. Are there any CLASS ACTION LAWYERS out there who want to make a buck and bring T-Moblie down to earth and be fair???

Posted on 01/04/2009

CALIFORNIA -- What can I say... I made a horrible mistake by entering into a 2 year contract with T-Mobile and purchasing a Sidekick!!! Every time I have had a problem with the Sidekick and I call T-Mobile, I get transferred to their "Sidekick" department. Their Sidekick department has never been able to resolve any problems I've had with the Sidekick, but have always come up with some really lame excuses as to why my Sidekick doesn't work. Of course, it's NEVER their fault!!! When I come back with an answer to their lame excuse, they abruptly suggest that I go to a T-Mobile store, to try to resolve my problem.

When I demand to speak to a customer service manager, I'm told that their policy is that a manager has 48 hours to respond to my problem and that I will receive a call back. Hey, I'm still waiting for about a dozen call backs from managers! About once a month, I send T-Mobile's customer service department an e-mail advising them how lame their service and products are and no surprise, I don't get a response via e-mail either! Bottom line, NEVER EVER use T-Mobile as your cell phone service provider and NEVER purchase any of their phones! You'll be sorry!!!

Posted on 12/03/2007

ROCHESTER,NY -- Okay I purchased the Sidekick 3 back in let's say May of '07. I hadn't even had it that long and was having problems with it so I called T-Mobile 1-800-937-8997 number right to tell them what was going on. I told them how it was acting like it had a demon in it. It would call people for no reason, the light would flash all the time saying I had a voicemail and I didn't and it would vibrate and ring for no reason. So they sent me another one.

To make a long story short after going through my 3rd Sidekick 3 I called T-Mobile to see what they could do for me reminding them that I have been a customer with them for 4 yrs now. These people tell me, "Well all we can do is keep sending you a replaceable Sidekick 3, but we can offer you a Razr - maybe the Sidekick 3 isn't for you." I felt like they had just insulted me. There was a reason why I purchased this Sidekick 3 - why would I downgrade myself for a $50 dollar phone when I paid like $300 hundred.

I purchased this Sidekick because of the features and the Razr does not have them. So the rep tells me, "Well we can offer you something else, but you will have to give T-Mobile $300 dollars." I was like I just paid a lot of money for a phone that I haven't even gotten a chance to enjoy yet and now you saying I have to give more money when I have been without a phone. Thank god I had an old phone that I was able to put a sim card in.

I even tried writing T-Mobile and I even ask was there someone higher I could speak with because I feel like for someone who has been with your service for 4 yrs I should be able to say I want my Sidekick 3 replaced with this type of phone and I shouldn't have to pay extra money. When writing T-Mobile no one ever got back with me and now this being 12-03-07 this is my 6th replaced Sidekick 3.

I really feel like leaving this company, but I am on another contract and I told them it's not about the contract because they told me if I wanted the phone they were going to give me I would be starting my contract over which didn't make any sense to me. I just signed a new one in May and because of your phone problems you wanted me to do it over like in October.

Oh! And this was the kicker. Before I go they tell me, "Well we can give you the number to the Sidekick manufacturing place so they can fix it," so I ask them will they pay for it. You know what T-Mobile told me, "No that is all on your part," so I would have to pay for something that you guys can't fix and be without a phone until it comes back. I am so upset with T-Mobile and to think I used to talk so highly of their services. And the other sad thing about the whole thing. This is the 6th one they have sent me and it's not working good either.

Posted on 11/29/2007

Here it goes... I've been a loyal T-Mobile customer for 5 years, every call I have had to them is quick, courteous and resolved... Also I understand that if I went over my minutes I did, contract whatever all carriers do that, my main issue is about sim cards and the quality of phones T-Mobile sells.

I've had 6 Sidekicks replaced by Asurion - each one refurbished, each one with an issue. Screen blank, buttons not working, ball not rolling, the problem with sim cards obviously is that possibility of stealing a phone and slapping a sim in and you're good to go which in turns raises the insurance deductible... To a sick $110. Asurion also provide claims for Sprint and other carriers, which carry a deductible of $50 no matter what phone it is. Also T-Mobile does not have warranty or repair centers if you have any issues with a phone, they have to send a you new one and it has to be under the warranty period. If not you're stuck with a high deductible.

Also when I purchased 2 more lines. I was assured I wouldn't be charged for activation fee... and astounding $39.00 per line, so I called and of course there was no notes. Luckily the rep I spoke with was compassionate and removed those for me to say the least.

Posted on 06/26/2007

CORAL SPRING, FLORIDA -- I have been a T-Mobile customer for a little over 1 year and in that time I was happy with T-Mobile but when I decided that I would get a T-Mobile Sidekick. That was a big mistake because so far the reception has been horrible and I had three Sidekicks. All of them have failed within a week. Then I got to wait another week for a replacement and they had offered me a Dash but that is not comparable to Sidekick as far as price. So I fax customer relations - I will update this post when I hear from them.

Posted on 08/28/2006

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA -- I turned on roaming through T-Mobile in Europe for my daughter's Sidekick II, and was told that Internet use would be charged at $15 per megabyte (France Orange). At that price, she didn't browse the web or use it to send email. The only time she told anyone the email address of the phone was when she registered a few months ago at a website that sends ads with pictures daily.

The Sidekick II downloads all incoming mail, including images, locally storing them in case you decide to open them. My daughter never actually read the emails she received, but only deleted the messages as they arrived. She stayed in Europe for another four weeks, racking up $900 for junk mail she never read. The charges are accurate and according to a manager at T-Mobile's tech support I have absolutely no recourse.

Posted on 06/16/2006

STATEN ISLAND, NEW YORK -- I wanted to try out the T-Mobile service so I got their Smart access plan. I even bought the Sidekick (in full price) hoping for a good service. At first, I was impressed!! I have my Sidekick surfing the web (when there is a decent signal -- that's another story) with my Unlimited Sidekick data plan. But then, I wanted "more" - I wanted to have more minutes because I signed up for only 300 minutes... noted that nobody told me that if I remove my Unlimited Sidekick Data Feature (even for 1 billing cycle), it won't be reactivated again!!!

So I felt free to change my plan to 1000 minutes with unlimited nights/weekends not knowing that on the next month these would happen: 1. All my contacts were purged from my cellphone. 2. I could not retrieve them from the My T-mobile website. 3. Called the CS and what they said was this: "The company changed policies that if you removed your unlimited data you cannot get it back."

So here is my question.. why would they purge my contacts??? And I trusted them for safekeeping??? I would not renew my contract with them... any other company but this... this is sad... no wonder people are switching AWAY from T-Mobile...

Advertiser Disclosure:

The information we provide and the analysis we share is always free. So, how do we survive? We get compensated by our partners, which may sometimes influence the products or services we review and the order in which they appear. Our suggestions and guidance are unbiased and are based only on our thorough research.