I'm currently on AT&T but I'm planning on moving to T-Mobile very soon. What are the pros and cons of Google Fi version T-Mobile? The only thing that stands out to me immediately is if you're an iPhone user you have to get your phone somewhere else.
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Google Fi
- Thread starter scott craft
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I had an abysmal experience with Google Fi (performance and customer service).
Highly recommend US Mobile's T-mobile (MVNO) service, or T-Mobile itself which may have pre-pay options too that are also reasonable. Not sure what iPhone's either of them offer, if you are looking for a new device.
I get 10 GB of T-Mobile 5g data and unlimited talk/text for $15/month total with US Mobile (and brought my own device). It requires a year of pre-pay service in advance which is fine by me. I tried their Verizon service offering for a few weeks. Throughput and voice quality sucked on both US coasts (unless I was in close proximity to a cell tower) compared to what I've experienced with their T-Mobile offering.
Highly recommend US Mobile's T-mobile (MVNO) service, or T-Mobile itself which may have pre-pay options too that are also reasonable. Not sure what iPhone's either of them offer, if you are looking for a new device.
I get 10 GB of T-Mobile 5g data and unlimited talk/text for $15/month total with US Mobile (and brought my own device). It requires a year of pre-pay service in advance which is fine by me. I tried their Verizon service offering for a few weeks. Throughput and voice quality sucked on both US coasts (unless I was in close proximity to a cell tower) compared to what I've experienced with their T-Mobile offering.
Didn't T-Mobile buy US Mobile? The plan pricing between T-Mobile and Google Fi is the same so I didn't know if there was an advantage for going with Google. I'll check US Mobile and see what they offer.
Nope. US Mobile is an MVNO that offers AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon service. Their AT&T offering is lowest priority, followed by Verizon. T-Mobile is their "best offering" and higher priority service than the other two.
The NoContract subreddit has oodles of information about all sorts of pay-as-you-go offerings from the big carriers and MVNO providers too.
My wife uses their Verizon service.
Wherever we travel in the US I run a speed test on both of our devices (with wifi disabled).
~95% of the time I have better signal strength and throughput on my S25 Ultra (USM T-Mobile service) compared her iPhone 14 Pro (USM Verizon service). The only instances where her phone does better is in rural areas with very little cellular antenna infrastructure (essentially analog calling) and high bandwidth performance when we are in very close proximity to Verizon new infrastructure towers (in major metropolitan areas).
T-Mobile used to be horrible around here but since they merged with Sprint they seem to do well. I went from Verizon to at&t but I'm ready to make a move again.
Google-Fi used to be really good - back in the day. I have not heard a lot of good about it now. They are offering a huge discount on a Pixel 10 if you buy it and activate a new line of service on it ($800 off).
T-Mobile? Give Mint Mobile a try - https://www.mintmobile.com/ - It is deprioritized tho but for $180/year for "unlimited" it's pretty amazing. (Used them for years).
T-Mobile? Give Mint Mobile a try - https://www.mintmobile.com/ - It is deprioritized tho but for $180/year for "unlimited" it's pretty amazing. (Used them for years).
MVNOs are resellers of the big 3 networks - that's why they're so much cheaper ($180/year). The cost is, you have secondary priority behind someone who is on T-Mobile (in Mint Mobile's case). So if you go somewhere with a cell tower that is heavily used, T-Mobile customers get priority whereas MVNO's (Mint in this case) get secondary priority.
I had pretty good luck with Mint - at a few malls I'd notice data throughput wasn't happening now and then, but for the most part, didn't have a problem - was really happy with it, especially for the price.
I think AT&T is the most popular carrier in my area so that might not be a big deal for me with T-Mobile.
FWIW, T Mobile bought US Cellular, not US Mobile.
AT&T US Mobile MVNO service is definitely not as great of a performer compared to their T-Mobile and Verizon offerings. You may want to check with AT&T's own pre-paid mobile service offering as it may have higher priory than below.
QCI (QoS Class Identifier) is a standardized value used in LTE/5G to define packet forwarding behavior (priority, delay tolerance, packet loss rate, etc.).
Lower QCI number = higher priority in the scheduler.
QCI 1–4 → typically reserved for voice (VoLTE), video, and other real-time services.
QCI 6 → often used for signaling or higher-priority data sessions
QCI 7, 8, 9 → generally for best-effort internet traffic
US Mobile's T-Mobile (5g) service is QCI 7 (a deprioritized level compared to postpaid T-Mobile plans)
US Mobile's Verizon 5g is QCI 8 or 9 QCI 8 (same as Verizon postpaid) if using a 5G capable device.
Note for US Mobile's Verizon service: for new users of the Unlimited Starter plan on Warp starting August 18, priority access no longer comes included and defaults to QCI 9, with a QCI-8 add-on available ($4/month or $36/year). But those who joined before August 18 remain grandfathered into QCI 8.
US Mobile's AT&T "Dark Star" is QCI 8 only with Unlimited Premium, while their other DS plans are QCI 9, though you can always get priority add-on (for an additional cost).
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I use US Mobile with their AT&T service and no issues at all. It is unlimited and definitely affordable plus I hotspot my iPad and my Mac all month with no apparent throttling.
I highly recommend them over any of the "Big Three". I will never go back because of pricing and customer service issues.
As an aside, did you know that Verizon actually stalks former customers through the mail? I have gone around with them on this practice recently. I kept getting flyers from them addressed to me no matter where I moved - not "Resident" or "Household"...my actual name - and it made no sense but I finally figured it out. If a piece of mail you receive has "Electronic Service Requested" then when you file a change of address the sender gets notified so they can still forward you mail with your name no matter where you move and Verizon's flyers has that on it. Apparently it is in Verizon's customer agreement - you give them the right to stalk you with junk mail when you sign it even if you are no longer a customer. The only way to stop it is to contact them and tell them to delete your info - it is not covered in the DMA opt-out. I would steer clear of Verizon.
I highly recommend them over any of the "Big Three". I will never go back because of pricing and customer service issues.
As an aside, did you know that Verizon actually stalks former customers through the mail? I have gone around with them on this practice recently. I kept getting flyers from them addressed to me no matter where I moved - not "Resident" or "Household"...my actual name - and it made no sense but I finally figured it out. If a piece of mail you receive has "Electronic Service Requested" then when you file a change of address the sender gets notified so they can still forward you mail with your name no matter where you move and Verizon's flyers has that on it. Apparently it is in Verizon's customer agreement - you give them the right to stalk you with junk mail when you sign it even if you are no longer a customer. The only way to stop it is to contact them and tell them to delete your info - it is not covered in the DMA opt-out. I would steer clear of Verizon.
I didn't know that about Verizon but I haven't been a customer if I recall correctly the Note 8.
US Mobile seems solid based on your comment and others in here. I'll check them out. Thanks.
I liked my Fi subscription when I was overseas it allowed me to keep my US phone number without an extra subscription but while I'm in the US with travel to Europe I'll take my Mint Mobile plan
I used my US Mobile service with AT&T in Europe and had no issues. I will say, however, that I do not make phone calls unless I call back to the States and I did not do that on this trip. I use it for Maps to find sites, food, hotels, etc. as well as taking geotagged photos. It was no extra charge for foreign travel.
But with the BS of the overzealous CBP potentially confiscating phones of even Americans if you do not give them access to search them, I need to rethink that and find a usable burner phone and camera. I don't want to lose my main device.
I just saw this on slick deals and remembered seeing this thread:
slickdeals.net
Google Fi: 50% Off Plans for 15 Months w/ New Line & BYOD: Unlimited Essentials - 2025-09-04
Google Fi offers New Customers: 50% Off Their Unlimited Essentials and Unlimited Standard Plans for 15 Months via Monthly Bill Credits with prices as listed below (more savings with multiple lines) wh
You're probably thinking of US Cellular. Which is a different company from US Mobile.
(Oops - I see this was already noted above!)