How the Major Unlimited Data Plans Stack Up

Telecom & Wireless

Published: February 17, 2017 12:40 pm

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 2:43 pm

It did not take long, but all the major players in the telecom industry have been whipped into a frenzy following a cascade of new unlimited data deals. Although there is a big fight in the space to grab as many customers as possible, the question remains which company is actually offering the best plan.

24/7 Wall St. took a peek at plans from Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), T-Mobile US Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) and Sprint Corp. (NYSE: S). We have also provided some of the key highlights from each plan. In a separate post we looked at which companies offer the best service.

Although there is no cap to the unlimited data plan, there is a speed limit for the first 22 gigabytes (GB) across the board. Sprint waits until 23 GB and T-Mobile waits until 28 GB before the companies start throttling the data.

Also each company also does not charge for HD streaming.

For a plan with four lines the total cost (cost including taxes and other expenses) was:

Verizon had total costs of $180, ($200).
AT&T had total costs of $180, ($200).
T-Mobile had total costs of $160, ($160).
Sprint had total costs of $160, ($175).

It’s worth pointing out that T-Mobile’s plan encompasses all taxes and fees, while the other three companies do not.

Sprint includes 10 GB per month of mobile hotspot data per line, with Verizon and T-Mobile granting 10 GB in total. AT&T is the black sheep here, as mobile hotspot data is only available through the unlimited data plan when connected to an in-car system.

Shares of Verizon were trading at $48.25 on Friday, with a consensus analyst price target of $52.23 and a 52-week trading range of $46.01 to $56.95.

AT&T shares were trading at $40.86, in a 52-week range of $36.10 to $43.89. The consensus price target is $42.24.

Shares of T-Mobil were last seen at $60.07, with a 52-week range of $34.87 to $63.68 and a consensus price target of $63.88.

Sprint was trading at $8.92. The consensus price target is $7.28, and the 52-week range is $2.87 to $9.65.

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