You probably know that Mint Mobile offers some of the most affordable plans of any small carrier (as well as some excellent phone deals). But did you also know that Mint offers cheap international service when you’re traveling? For as little as $5/day, Mint makes it easy to stay connected when you’re abroad.
Mint Mobile offers international data roaming through a "Minternational Pass" on T-Mobile's global roaming network. Stay connected with friends and family while you're abroad with high-speed data, talk, and text in over 180 countries. Let's run through your Minternational Pass options and how to activate international roaming with Mint Mobile.
Mint Mobile international roaming coverage
As a mobile virtual network operator, Mint Mobile uses T-Mobile’s network both here in the United States and abroad. But U.S. carriers don't own or operate their own signal towers around the world. So, how can you get T-Mobile service in other countries?
Coverage on your U.S. phone plan in other countries is provided by a process called international roaming. Essentially, all three major U.S. carriers have agreements with other major carriers around the world that allow U.S. phones to hook up to their networks—much like MVNOs piggyback off of the major carriers in the States. This service typically isn’t free, but the exact cost depends on a variety of factors, including your carrier and the licensing agreement between the U.S. and international carriers.
For individuals, the cost also depends on whether your carrier offers roaming baked into your main plan or requires you to purchase add-on services. For Mint Mobile, the model is the latter, in the form of "Minternational Passes."
How does Mint Mobile international roaming work?
Mint's global roaming passes, called Minternational Passes, provide talk, text, and high-speed data in over 180 international destinations using T-Mobile's global roaming agreements. Depending on what's available in your vacation country, you'll get either 4G or 5G coverage.
To use Mint Mobile internationally, you must add roaming credits to your Mint account. These credits cost $5, $10, or $20, last between one day, 3 days, 10 days, or 30 days, and must be purchased before you can use your service abroad. Passes are valid for 365 days after purchase, but it's recommended you add credits to your account close to your intended travel dates.
The 3-day and 7-day passes include unlimited data usage but limited high-speed data. Once your given block of high-speed data has been used up, you can still access roaming, but your speeds will slow for the remainder of your Minternational Pass time period.
Mint Mobile international roaming cost
| 1-day pass | 3-day pass | 10-day pass | 30-day pass | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Talk minutes | 60 minutes | 200 minutes | 500 minutes | 100 minutes |
| Text messages | 60 texts | 200 texts | 500 texts | 100 texts |
| Data | 1GB | Unlimited— 3GB high-speed |
Unlimited— 10GB high-speed |
No data |
| Price | $5 | $10 | $20 | $5 |
You can check whether your destination is eligible for using a Minternational Pass over on Mint Mobile's website using their roaming tool. If it isn't, don't panic yet—as long as your phone has Wi-Fi calling enabled, you can also call and text your friends and family over Wi-Fi for free (see our tip below for specifics).
Can I use my phone abroad without international roaming?
Yes, you can use your phone abroad without international roaming if you use Wi-Fi. You can use Wi-Fi calling to place phone calls and online messaging services like iMessage, Snapchat, or Messenger to send messages. Just make sure to keep your roaming set to off in the settings.
However, be aware that you must have a steady source of Wi-Fi to use this method. If you’re traveling to a nation that doesn’t offer many public Wi-Fi sources, you might run into trouble staying connected.
How to activate Mint Mobile international roaming
Activating Mint Mobile international roaming is easy and can be done from your Mint Mobile account or the Mint app.
To activate Mint Mobile international roaming:
- Purchase a Minternational Pass, either before you travel or upon arrival at your destination. You can do this with the credits in your Mint Mobile wallet.
- In your phone's settings, make sure that data roaming is turned on.
- If you pre-purchased your pass, you'll receive a text message when you arrive with instructions to activate your roaming.
- If you purchase upon arrival, you can activate your roaming in the Mint app or by texting ACTIVATE to 6700.
- In the app, you will find your pass under Account > Minternational Pass > My Current Passes.
During your trip, you can monitor your pass usage in the Mint Mobile app or by texting GOROAM to 6700.
Mint Mobile data plans
Mint Mobile offers four data plans:
All of these options are available in 3, 6, or 12-month plans. Remember that your Minternational Pass is separate from your regular data plan, so any international data you use will not affect your main data allotment.
Mint Mobile international roaming: Pros and cons
As a Mint customer, you'll benefit from access to T-Mobile's large and robust international roaming network. As a former T-Mobile customer, I can personally attest to the great coverage and speedy network access I experienced on a trip through Europe a few years back—we visited five countries without a signal hitch. I have no reason to believe that quality has been downgraded in the years since. So rest assured that when you need to use your data, it'll be right there for you in hundreds of locations around the world.
Not every budget carrier offers international roaming, so it’s also impressive that Mint both offers easy access to international roaming and keeps it somewhat affordable. That said, it’s only affordable if you monitor your data use, and the Minternational Passes are significantly more expensive than Mint's previous iteration of global roaming access, called UpRoam. Those that live on their cell phones while traveling can rapidly run through the allotted amounts within the 1-, 3-, 10-day windows, and to continually top-up at $5-$20 a pop can eat into your souvenir money.
Mint’s international options also don’t work well for extended stays in other countries. Travelers staying for more than a week in other countries might be better served by an international phone plan or purchasing a SIM card at their destination.
Pros:
- Excellent roaming network via T-Mobile
- Easy to purchase and activate
Cons:
- Expensive for heavy data users
- Not great for extended trips
Alternative international roaming plans
If Mint Mobile’s international options don’t work for you, you might want to consider Google Fi’s Unlimited Premium plan. This plan comes with unlimited 4G LTE data and texting in over 200 countries. Plus, Google Fi also uses the T-Mobile network. It’s one of the best plans out there for frequent international travelers. That said, it’s also much more expensive than Mint’s plans, at $65/month.
Google Fi Wireless Unlimited Premium for 1
| Carrier | Google Fi Wireless |
|---|---|
| Data | Unlimited Data |
| Type | No Contract |
| Current Deal | Get 50% off this plan for 12 months when you bring your own Pixel phone and activate a new line on Unlimited Premium plan |
| Total Price |
$32.50 per month
|
| View Plan |
If you simply want to go straight to the big dog, T-Mobile is known for having one of the best international options for larger carriers. If you opt for the Experience More plan you can get 5GB of premium international data (unlimited thereafter) in over 215 countries. Plus, unlimited in-flight texting, Wi-Fi for those long flights to your destination, and 15GB of international roaming data in Canada and Mexico. Finally, it comes with all the other standard T-Mobile perks for when you’re still at home, like a 60GB mobile hotspot and subscriptions to Netflix and Apple TV+.
All this doesn’t come cheap though, as this plan costs a whopping $85/month—that's why we highly recommend trying out an MVNO like Mint or Google Fi before diving into the deep end of your wallet.
T-Mobile Experience More
| Carrier | T-Mobile |
|---|---|
| Data | Unlimited Data |
| Type | No Contract |
| Total Price |
$85 per month
with Auto-Pay + Taxes and fees
|
| View Plan |
Lauren Hannula
Managing Editor
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