Getting postpaid phone service in the US has never been particularly affordable, but the situation has worsened dramatically since the pandemic. Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T have not only increased the listed prices of their plans, but the amount of extra fees has also seemingly risen. We’ve also seen changes like the removal of perks or extra charges for them, and older grandfathered plans have seen price changes. While T-Mobile initially avoided price hikes, even the uncarrier has changed its tune by raising prices on its legacy plans.
All of this leads me to a conclusion: most of us shouldn’t stay with the Big Three anymore. It just isn’t worth it except for a small minority. Prepaid is a better route for most. While prepaid carriers have also seen some price rises, the increases have been at a much slower rate. We’ve even seen a few carriers like Mint Mobile lower their pricing in response to recent carrier hikes.