Twigby: An Honest Review of This Budget-Friendly Cell Provider

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Twigby is a low-cost cell phone provider that claims to offers affordable wireless plans, reliable coverage, and extra services—all without long-term contracts and hidden fees. But if you’ve read any of our other reviews of cell phone providers, you know that these are common promises.

So is Twigby any different?

In this review, we’ll take a look at Twigby’s features, pricing, customer service, and more to help you decide if Twigby is the right choice for you.

Introducing Twigby

It’s hard to keep track of all the cell providers popping up these days, so I’m quickly going to explain Twigby’s position in the market.

Twigby is an MVNO—it doesn’t own any wireless infrastructure (towers, antennas, etc.). Instead, it piggybacks off another major network (in Twigby’s case, Verizon).

Twigby buys wholesale access to the Verizon network. Then Twigby offers its own plans (with Twigby’s customer service and billing) at a slight markup. The result is a budget-friendly Twigby plan that relies on the coverage and reliability of the Verizon network.

Speaking of plans…

1. Plans & Pricing

Twigby’s plans and pricing are super simple to understand. All six are identical except for the amount of data each plan offers. Twigby offers plans ranging from no data up to unlimited data (well, more like “unlimited”—but more on that in a minute).

Each Twigby plan includes unlimited talk and text, as well as international calling and texting to 80+ countries and territories around the world. All plans also come with a three-month introductory discount before the standard pricing kicks in.

Here’s a breakdown of the plans:

	NO DATA	1 GB	4 GB	7 GB	10 GB	UNLIMITED
Data Allowance	0 GB	1 GB	4 GB	7 GB	10 GB	20 GB*
Introductory Offer	$5/month	$5/month	$10/month	$15/month	$20/month	$30/month
Regular Price	$10/month	$10/month	$20/month	$25/month	$30/month	$40/month
Unlimited Talk	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Unlimited Text	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
International	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅

* The Unlimited plan is technically unlimited. However, your speeds are heavily limited after you’ve used 20 GB of data in a month—that’s not truly unlimited in my opinion.

2. Coverage & Speed

As an MVNO, Twigby benefits from Verizon’s solid coverage. Twigby has access to the Verizon 4G LTE network, which covers around 98% of the US population (that’s more than Sprint and T-Mobile). While Sprint is one of the Big Four carriers, it only covers 30% of the US population—not nearly as impressive.

Verizon is reliable, too. According to PC Mag, Verizon is tied with AT&T for most reliable network, with a network availability score of 97% over the course of last year.

There is a downside to the MVNO business model that definitely affects Twigby, though. When the parent networks are congested, Twigby customers feel the strain too. Twigby customers may find that their data speeds can be slower than those of customers on full-priced Verizon and Sprint plans.

Here’s a breakdown of the average speeds you can expect on Twigby, Verizon, and Sprint:

	Twigby	Verizon	Sprint
Avg. Download Speed (Mbps)	29.7	32.2	33.8
Download Differential	-12.1%	-4.7%	0
Upload (Mbps)	4.2	10.1	7.2
Upload Differential	-58.4%	0	-28.7%

As you can see, Twigby is quite a bit slower than its parent networks on average. This won’t be noticeable most of the time, but is worth bearing in mind if you’re a particularly data-hungry user. 

3. Features & Extras

Twigby is pretty bare-bones, but there are still a few features and extras worth mentioning.

International Calling & Texting

Twigby’s international calling and texting is among the best of any low-cost provider. Twigby plans come with free calling and texting to 80+ countries around the world, provided you’re calling from the US.

This makes Twigby a pretty attractive option for people with friends, family, employers, or employees in other countries.

Mobile Hotspot

Twigby also offers a mobile hotspot feature, letting you use your Twigby phone to connect your tablet or laptop to the internet. Twigby’s hotspot feature is free with your plan, but it eats through your data allowance quickly—you’ve been warned!

Mobile App

Twigby’s mobile app is available for iOS and Android devices. It lets Twigby customers check their account balance, view usage history, and manage their Twigby account. Twigby’s app is pretty basic, but it gets the job done.

4. Customer Service & Support

Twigby’s customer service and support has received mixed reviews online. On the positive side, Twigby has an average Trustpilot rating of 4.2/5 with 600+ reviews. On the negative side, Twigby’s Sitejabber and Better Business Bureau ratings are an abysmal 2.4/5 stars.

Customer service and support are the leading cause of both positive and negative reviews. How is that possible? I can’t tell you for certain, but if I had to guess—lack of support staff.

When people are able to reach Twigby’s customer service team, reviews tend to be quite positive. The problem is that Twigby’s customer service team is often overwhelmed, meaning Twigby customers have a hard time getting in touch with Twigby.

How To Reach Twigby Support

• Live Chat: 8am – 9pm CST Monday through Friday and from 10am – 6pm CST Saturday through Sunday
• Email: twigby.support@twigby.com

The Verdict: Is Twigby Right for You?

Twigby is a great option for budget-conscious phone users who live in areas covered by the Verizon and Sprint networks. Twigby plans are inexpensive, coverage and speeds are good, and Twigby has some useful extras—like free international calling and texting.

The biggest drawback with Twigby is customer service—you may find it difficult to get in touch with Twigby if you have a problem. That said, Twigby’s online reviews are mostly positive, so it doesn’t seem to be much of an issue for most Twigby customers.

If you’re looking for a low-cost cell phone plan that offers good coverage and speeds, Twigby is definitely worth a look. But make sure you don’t jump in blindly—there are plenty of competitors that beat Twigby in terms of value for money!

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