Mint Mobile Cellular [An Honest Review]

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There are several cellular companies out there that offer multiple benefits when it comes to providing data plans. But not all services are created equal.

Let’s talk about Mint Mobile.

What is Mint Mobile?

Mint Mobile is a cellular service company founded in August 2016 in Costa Mesa, CA.

It has become quite a popular cell phone service provider offering affordable and unlimited plans based on your monthly budget – and it also comes with tons of unique advantages and disadvantages.

Mint Mobile is like most prepaid carriers. It is considered a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). MVNOs operate on the infrastructure of existing networks – and for Mint Mobile, that existing network is the T-Mobile network.

You heard that right. T-mobile. A lot of you probably already have an idea of Mint Mobile quality just by being a T-Mobile customer.

T-Mobile’s network itself claims to be the fastest in terms of average upload speeds, especially when it comes to 5G download speeds. Mint Mobile customers benefit from that.

There are multiple notable achievements already made by this up-and-coming cellular company. They’ve been rated by USNews as:

• #1 in Best Unlimited Cell Phone Plans of 2022
• #2 in Best Cell Phone Plans of 2022
• #4 in Best Prepaid Cell Phone Plans of 2022

Looking good so far.

Who Owns Mint Mobile?

Maybe you’ve heard, or maybe you haven’t.

Mint Mobile’s owner is none other than Ryan Reynolds himself!

But that’s not what makes a company great, right? Sure, he’s an awesome Deadpool, and he’s got great hair. Did I mention he’s married to Blake Lively and owns Aviation Gin too?

But like I said, totally not important.

What is important is that Mint Mobile is extremely affordable.

How Much Does Mint Mobile Cost?

The killer advantage of using Mint Mobile is that you can decide what data plans you want to have based on your budget, and these plans are extremely affordable.

You can go as little as a 3-month commitment all the way to a 12-month commitment.

Cost of 3-month Mint Mobile plan for new customers (good for first 3 months only)

• 4GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $15 per month
• 10GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $20 per month
• 15GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $25 per month
• Unlimited* 5G/4G LTE data costs $30 per month

Cost of 3-month Mint Mobile plan

• 4GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $25 per month
• 10GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $35 per month
• 15GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $45 per month
• Unlimited* 5G/4G LTE data costs $40 per month

Cost of 6-month Mint Mobile plan

• 4GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $20 per month
• 10GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $25 per month
• 15GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $35 per month
• Unlimited* 5G/4G LTE data costs $35 per month

Cost of 12-month Mint Mobile plan

• 4GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $15 per month
• 10GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $20 per month
• 15GB per month of 5G/4G LTE data costs $25 per month
• Unlimited* 5G/4G LTE data costs $30 per month

*Keep reading below to see what ‘Unlimited’ actually means in Mint Mobile speak.

How Much I Personally Save With Mint Mobile

I’ve personally been grandfathered into a T-Mobile plan from long ago that allows me to pay a total of $160 for a family of five. That’s for unlimited calls, text, and data, which is as good a deal as I’ve ever found.

I’ve always wanted to take my parents off everything unlimited, because they simply don’t use it much, but I haven’t found a reason to do so… until now.

Mint Mobile allows me to give my dad, mom, and grandma 4GB of data per month for $15 each (trust me, that’s an overkill amount of data for them), while my wife and I can splurge on unlimited data at $30 apiece.

Total cost? $105 for a family of five.

That saves me a total of $55 per month or $660 per year.

I’ve successfully reduced my monthly bills significantly without reducing mine or anyone else’s quality of life. Mint Mobile alone has finally given me a reason to jump ship and for that, I’m super grateful.

Mint Mobile Call and Text Features

Every plan of Mint Mobile includes unlimited nationwide call and text, international calls to Mexico and Canada, and also WI-FI calling and SMS. These are for free.

Some cellular companies charge you to get those benefits. If these are important to you, it’s not a bad deal.

How Is Mint Mobile’s Coverage?

Mint Mobile provides a map on its website that will help you determine if its service will work for you. You only need to check your ZIP code. If you are inside the green area of the map, then you can use its service.

You absolutely must check this before you decide to spend your money on the data plan you are going to use. Every company has its own optimal areas of coverage.

Admittedly, I think Verizon has the most complete coverage in the US, but for the price, I’ve passed on it.

Is Mint Mobile GSM or CDMA?

Mint Mobile is for GSM-based networks only.

Since Mint Mobile operates on T-Mobile’s GSM-based network, you can only use it with a GSM-based device.

Can I Bring My Own Phone To Mint Mobile?

Mint Mobile makes it pretty easy for you to bring your existing device. If you already have a compatible GSM-based device, you can plug your IMEI code into the Mint Mobile checker for confirmation.

There are some things to do even if you already have the right device to get everything up and running. For example, you have to unlock your phone so that Mint Mobile’s SIM card can work on your phone.

You can unlock your phone by contacting your previous service provider, or you can visit the store if it is required.

The unlocking process is very simple and painless, and can be done usually within minutes.

Are there any deals for new phones with Mint Mobile?

If you do not have a compatible phone, or simply want to get a new phone with a good deal, Mint Mobile offers 6 months of free service with the purchase of new cellphones.

And we aren’t talking about some no name phone that no one wants to buy, you can purchase the latest and greatest like the iPhone 14 Pro Max and get 6 months of free service!

Mint Mobile’s Unlimited Data Usage Isn’t Really Unlimited

Mint Mobile indeed offers you super cheap unlimited deals, but here’s the thing. The unlimited data plan Mint offers is not entirely unlimited. And this has to do with the fact that it doesn’t use 5G technology in the truest sense.

Currently, Verizon is the only company that truly sports 5G the way it’s supposed to be. So how does this affect Mint Mobile?

Well, you can use the data as much as you want with high-speed access if you don’t exceed 35 GB of usage of 5G/4G LTE on a monthly basis.

What Happens When I Run Out Of Data On Mint Mobile?

If you do exceed 35 GB of data usage, your data speed will slow down. This issue is present for both Mint Mobile and T-Mobile users.

For some users, this may be a dealbreaker. After getting used to high-speed access for 35 GB worth of data, you now need to get used to waiting around longer until the monthly cycle rolls over.

What Time Does Mint Mobile Data Reset Every Month?

Mint Mobile’s data reset unfortunately doesn’t occur at any single time across all users. When Mint Mobile gives you the date that your data will reset, it can be at any time throughout that day, unfortunately. You’d think that it would just reset at midnight every month for everybody, but that isn’t the case at all.

Some users have noted that their data renewal occurs near or around the time that they activated their service with Mint Mobile. For example, if you activated your service around 12pm on the day of, there’s a possibility that your data will be set to renew at 12pm each month. However, this isn’t guaranteed.

How Can I Get 3 Months Of Mint Mobile Data For Free?

Mint Mobile offers multiple phones that you can bundle with a service. You can choose these bundles to be at various prices and specifications.

If you decide to go this route with one of Mint Mobile’s phone and service bundles, you’ll receive a free 6- month plan. In order to get the 6 months free though, you’ll have to sign up for a year’s worth, so it’s essentially 50% off your first year.

You still can use other phones outside of Mint Mobile, as long as your device is compatible with the service provided. However, you won’t get 6 months’ worth of data for free with it.

Pros and Cons of Mint Mobile: The Pros

Mint Mobile Pros

Mint Mobile has no hidden costs. That’s right, there are absolutely no hidden costs when you choose your plan. What you get is what you have paid for in advance. You won’t get any surprise bills in the end. They lay out their prices in a very straightforward manner, and that’s a huge plus.

Mint Mobile has a great app to manage your account with ease. It’s available on both iOS and Android. On the Apple App Store, it’s got over 7000 reviews with an average rating of 4.6/5 stars. On the Google Play store, it’s got over 6000 reviews with an average rating of 3.8/5 stars.

On the app itself, you can quickly renew, change, or add more data to your current plan. If you’ve got multiple family members with multiple accounts, you can manage them all in one place from the app as well.

Pros and Cons of Mint Mobile: The Cons

Mint Mobile Cons

New customer pricing is only good for 3 months. You might notice that the prices for new customers are great, and you’ll be happy to get those prices for 3 months as per the new customer deal. However, if you want to keep those prices after the initial 3-month deal, you’ll have to sign on for a full year at a time. If you decide instead to go with the 6-month contract, you’ll be spending $5 to $10 more per plan. Take a look down below.

If it makes you feel better, just think of the 3-month new customer deal as a reasonable trial to commit to, and if you like it, you’ll probably know after 3 months whether you’d have any issues sticking with them for a year. I don’t think I’ve ever stayed with a mobile company for less than a year at a time so it’s pretty much a non-issue for me. Your mileage may vary.

Network coverage may be limited. The availability of Mint Mobile doesn’t completely cover the entire US, so not everyone can use Mint Mobile’s service. To address that issue, as mentioned prior, Mint Mobile provides a map on its website that allows you to determine whether or not the service will work for you.

If you aren’t sure about its network coverage, you can visit Amazon.com and buy yourself a starter kit to check coverage and availability in your area. It’s currently $0.99 for the starter kit instead of the previous $5.00. It includes 100 MB LTE data, 100 text messages, and 60 minutes of talk time.

Mint Mobile customer support isn’t the greatest. Some Mint Mobile customers find this company’s customer support to be one of its more lacking features. Since the customer support staff can often be unhelpful, some customers prefer to go to online communities to find solutions for the issues they face. More often than not, YouTube serves as a really useful resource depending on how much of a DIY’er you are.

The unlimited data plan isn’t truly unlimited. As mentioned above, if you happen to exceed 35 GB of data usage in a month, your data speed slows down. You’ll no longer be getting 5G/4G LTE speeds, unfortunately.

Mint Mobile Alternatives

Mint Mobile Referral Program

If you refer a friend to Mint Mobile, you can get some credit toward your next renewal, and the more friends you refer, the more you can earn.

If you’re able to get five of your friends to join Mint Mobile under your referral account, you’ll get a whole free year of Mint Mobile!

Conclusion

Mint Mobile comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.

Let’s summarize the good and the bad of Mint Mobile:

• Plans are extremely affordable
• No hidden costs; costs are laid out in a very straightforward manner
• All plans include unlimited nationwide call & text, plus free international calls to Mexico & Canada
• However, the new customer pricing is only good for 3 months
• You’ll need to subscribe to one-year commitments thereafter to get lower prices
• If you exceed 35 GB of data usage in a month, even with unlimited data, your data speed slows down
• Network coverage may be limited
• Mint Mobile customer support isn’t the greatest

Overall, Mint Mobile is a great cell phone provider with tons of value inside, and I’m more than happy to recommend them.

Have you tried them out? If so, let us know your thoughts on them! We’d love to hear from you.

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