Mint Mobile and Tello Mobile are two of the most popular options for cheap service on the T-Mobile network.
We recently spent a month testing the unlimited plans from both carriers to see which one is best. I reviewed Tello while our senior content writer Angelo Ilumba tried out Mint Mobile.
Based on our experiences, we recommend Mint Mobile for family plans and customers who need more mobile hotspot data. Tello is better for customers on a budget who want customization or need a no-frills plan with limited data.
Let's dive into Mint Mobile and Tello Mobile to see which carrier is best for you.
Get to the point: Mint vs. Tello overview
If you want to take a deep dive into these carriers, check out our Mint Mobile review and Tello review. That said, here are the most important things you need to know to make a decision right now:
| Mint Mobile | Tello Mobile | |
|---|---|---|
| Plan prices | $15-30/month (intro pricing) | $5-25/month |
| Mobile hotspot data | Included with all plans | Included with data plans |
| Network | T-Mobile | T-Mobile |
| Plan length options | 3, 6, or 12 months | 1 month |
| 5G access | Yes | Yes |
| Family plans | Yes (lowest available pricing) | Yes (no multi-line discount) |
| Plan customization | No | Yes |
| WhistleOut rating | ||
| Shop plans | Shop plans |
How we tested Mint Mobile and Tello
We spent 30 days using unlimited plans from Mint Mobile and Tello Mobile.
We completed tasks such as:
- Purchasing and activating plans to test the ease of signing up
- Testing data speeds and coverage
- Streaming music and videos to see if data speeds are consistent
- Using the mobile hotspot feature in different locations
- Contacting customer service to gauge helpfulness and wait times
- Managing our plan through the carrier apps
This approach allowed us to experience Tello Mobile's services as a regular customer, ensuring our findings and recommendations are grounded in actual usage and not just in what the carrier claims to provide.
Reviews and ratings: How WhistleOut scores carriers
Here at WhistleOut, we review all carriers using the same five criteria: price, value, speed, coverage, and customer service. Each is assigned a one-point star value to calculate the carrier's overall rating. You can learn more about WhistleOut and our reviewers here.
- Price
- Value
- Data speeds
- Coverage and network reliability
- Customer service
- Price
- Value
- Data speeds
- Coverage and network reliability
- Customer service
Mint Mobile's rating
Mint Mobile offers excellent prices and value with its plans. Its prices are competitive with similar carriers and get excellent value for your money. That said, remember that Mint’s plans are sold in multi-month blocks, so it is initially more expensive.
Angelo found Mint’s data speeds ranged as high as 600Mbps on its 5G network, which is incredibly fast. Mint uses T-Mobile’s network for coverage, which offers great 5G speeds but also has dead zones in rural areas.
Mint’s customer service is helpful, just remember that it’s an online-only carrier with no physical stores. Your service options are limited to online chats and phone support.
Check out our Mint Mobile review for the full details of our tests and rating.
Tello Mobile's rating
Tello Mobile also includes excellent value for its price and offers some of the cheapest data plans on the market. It also doesn’t use introductory pricing, so you won’t get hit with price increases later.
My speed tests of Tello showed data speeds as fast as 300Mbps, which is extremely fast. Like Mint, it uses the T-Mobile network and faces similar issues with low speeds and coverage in rural areas.
Tello’s customer service was also helpful and is highly rated by independent sites like Trustpilot. You can connect with customer service through an online chat, email, or phone call.
Visit our Tello Mobile review for the full rundown of our tests and ratings.
Compare plans and pricing
Mint Mobile and Tello Mobile have some similar offerings and competitive pricing. Mint Mobile offers just four simple plans and includes a pricing model that's unique from most other carriers. Instead of paying a month at a time, Mint requires you to pay upfront for blocks of service in 3, 6, or 12-month increments. The longer your plan, the cheaper your service.
Tello’s plans are monthly and offer a higher level of customization, so you can build a plan to meet your needs. You can start as small as a no-data phone plan or grab an unlimited plan with 35GB of priority data.
You can compare both carrier's plan options in our interactive table below:
Compare Mint Mobile and Tello plans
Check out all of the plans offered by Mint Mobile and Tello below:
| Mint Mobile | Tello | |
|---|---|---|
| Select plan | ||
| Data limit | ||
| Coverage | ||
| Hotspot | ||
| Speeds | ||
| Price | ||
| Shop plans | Shop plans |
*For first three months
Unlimited plans
Angelo and I purchased the unlimited plans from Mint Mobile and Tello for a month. Neither of us managed to use the full high-speed data allotment for our plan. We also couldn't manage to exceed either plan's mobile hotspot allotment. Since we're both average data users, we concluded that both plans would meet the needs of most customers.
You can see how these plans compare below:
Mint Mobile vs. Tello Mobile unlimited plans
| Mint Mobile Unlimited Plan |
Tello Mobile Unlimited Plan |
|
|---|---|---|
| Unlimited plan price | $30/month (intro price) | $25/month |
| High-speed data | 50GB | 50GB |
| Mobile hotspot | 20GB | 10GB |
| Network | T-Mobile | T-Mobile |
| Shop plan | Shop plan |
Angelo found Mint Mobile’s unlimited plan is more expensive, while getting less premium data. It includes 50GB of high-speed data and twice the amount of mobile hotspot of Tello’s plan.
Tello Mobile’s unlimited plan is cheaper overall, while getting more premium data. Still, you should ask yourself if you need the larger data amounts offered by Mint Mobile. The average customer only uses 10-15GB of data per month. Overall, 50GB of data is plenty for most customers—myself included—and a 20GB hotspot is fine for basic use.
How much data do I need?
Average customers use between 10-15GB of data per month. That said, everyone is different and you may need more or less.
Check out our handy mobile data usage guide to figure out your personal needs.
Limited data plans
Both Mint Mobile and Tello Mobile offer limited options too. Mint offers three limited-data plan options: 5GB, 15GB, and 20GB. Tello offers a lot more options since every plan can be customized. In general, if you’re looking for a shorter plan length with a smaller upfront cost, Tello is the better option.
Family plans
Mint Mobile technically has better family plan options than Tello because it offers multi-line discounts. You must pay full price for each line on a Tello family plan. Just remember that despite having a family plan discount, Mint isn’t always the cheapest option.
Mint offers the Modern Family Plan that includes each line at the cheapest available price no matter the plan length. You can see how that works for each plan below:
Mint Mobile family plan monthly pricing
| Plan | Single-line price | Multi-line (2-5) price | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5GB | $15 (12 months) $20 (6 months) $25 (3 months) |
$15 | View plan |
| 15GB | $20 (12 months) $25 (6 months) $25 (3 months) |
$20 | View plan |
| 20GB | $25 (12 months) $35 (6 months) $45 (3 months) |
$25 | View plan |
| Unlimited | $30 (12 months) $35 (6 months) $40 (3 months) |
$30 | View plan |
Both carriers let you customize each line in your family plan. This is where pricing can get complicated and where you’ll need to build your own plan to see which carrier is actually cheaper.
Plan extras and perks
Tello and Mint Mobile are budget carriers. You won’t find major perks like streaming options or free international roaming with their plans. Both offer free international minutes to a limited number of nations, but that’s about it.
Coverage, reliability, and speed
There’s not much coverage competition because Mint and Tello both use the T-Mobile network. It offers the largest 5G network in the nation with some incredibly fast data speeds.
Coverage
Our network testing showed Mint and Tello offer the best coverage in urban areas. Rural locations tended to have dead zones and less reliable service.
If you live in a city or suburb, you can count on having excellent coverage. Rural customers might want to look for an MVNO on another network, like Visible on Verizon’s network. Customers generally get better rural coverage from Verizon since it has the nation's largest 4G LTE network.
Reliability
Both Tello and Mint Mobile have excellent reliability in areas where T-Mobile has a strong signal. We experienced coverage issues in rural areas with both carriers, but we had to seek out areas with a poor signal. In most locations the service was fine.
These plans also did well with tasks like mobile gaming, streaming, and remote work. I had no issues playing Fortnite or watching Netflix on the Tello Unlimited plan. I was also able to complete some of my work remotely for over an hour at a time.
Angelo reported that Mint's mobile hotspot easily supported him when he left his home Wi-Fi. He was also able to stream YouTube videos and even some 4K videos with no loading or buffering.
Data speeds
Both Mint Mobile and Tello have access to T-Mobile’s fastest 5G speeds. Angelo saw data speeds as fast as 600Mbps on Mint Mobile. Tello’s speeds were a bit slower for my testing and topped out around 300Mbps (which is still extremely fast).
Like everything else, your top speeds will depend on the local T-Mobile network infrastructure in your area.
Customer service
Mint Mobile and Tello are online-only carriers, meaning there is no physical store you can visit for help. Instead, both offer customer service through online chats and phone service.
We had no problems with either carrier when connecting with a representative for customer service. Both chatting online and calling yielded a quick connection with a customer service representative who was able to answer our questions.
Mint Mobile app vs. Tello app
Image: Max McCaskill
Both carriers also offer apps that are designed for managing your plan. That said, Mint Mobile clearly had the better app. Angelo found the carrier made it easy to track your data usage and set up your plan.
Tello Mobile’s app had many of the same features as the Mint app, but it was more difficult to monitor your data usage. I discovered the Tello app showed infinite data when first opening the app. While technically true, remember Tello's unlimited plan only offers 35GB of priority data. My actual usage was hidden on a dashboard deeper within the app.
Switching to Mint and Tello
Switching carriers might seem daunting, but we discovered that Mint and Tello make it easy to sign up. You can even bring your own device and keep your old number.
My experience signing up with Tello was simple. I selected the unlimited plan, tested my device for compatibility, and then installed the Tello SIM card after it was delivered. Tello does offer eSIM capability, but I wanted to see how long the SIM card delivery would take. Tello mailed the card through USPS and it was at my front door in three days.
Angelo's signup for Mint Mobile was also easy. He opted for the eSIM option from their store and activated his service in minutes.
Both carriers offer compatibility checkers that allow you to see if your current phone will work on their networks. They also offer a limited selection of smartphones if you need a new device.
The switching process is the same for both. You’ll need to unlock your device from your current carrier, select your new plan, decide between a physical SIM card or eSIM, and then activate your service. Don’t forget to cancel your old plan after you’ve switched. If you're interested in Mint, you can check out our Mint Mobile switching guide for step-by-step instructions.
Recap: Which carrier is right for you?
Tello and Mint Mobile are both excellent carriers; there's not much difference in coverage, reliability, and speed, but each better serves the needs of specific customers.
Mint Mobile is best for customers who are looking for a family plan. While Tello might have some cheaper options, Mint’s value is generally a little better. You’re getting the lowest possible pricing on each line and potentially more data.
We recommend Mint Mobile's Unlimited plan as a great option for most customers:
Mint Mobile Unlimited Data Plan
| Carrier | Mint Mobile |
|---|---|
| Data | Unlimited Data |
| Type | No Contract |
| Current Deal | Get this plan for just $25/mo. when you switch to Mint Mobile using promo code 15OFF at checkout. Upfront payment required |
| Total Price |
$25 per month
$75.00 upfront payment for 3 months (equals to $25.00/month). Intro pricing for new customers only.
|
| View Plan |
Tello Mobile is the best choice for budget-minded customers and people wanting customization. At the end of the day, most of Tello’s plans are cheaper than Mint’s options. Plus, Tello allows you to pay by the month while Mint requires a much higher upfront cost. As for customization, you can alter the data allotment and number of minutes to create a plan that meets your needs.
The Unlimted plan is our favorite option from Tello. You can learn more about it or purchase it below:
Tello Unlimited Text, Talk, and Data Plan
| Carrier | Tello |
|---|---|
| Data | Unlimited Data |
| Type | No Contract |
| Total Price |
$25 per month
|
| View Plan |
Why should you trust us?
Here at WhistleOut, we want to help you unleash the power of the phone in your pocket. Other websites might tell you to get the newest phone or try to upsell you to a more expensive data plan. We don't do that. Our job is to help you make the most of your current phone, data plan, and apps.
Our industry experts constantly monitor carriers and the newest mobile technology. We cut through the lingo and tech talk to explain in simple terms what customers need and what they can do without. We also conduct hands-on testing of some of the most popular phone plans and mobile apps on the market. These experiences offer us unparalleled insights that we pass on to you.
Meet our reviewers:
Max McCaskill
Max started his career as a newspaper reporter covering public policy. Today, he uses his skills to help readers navigate the complicated world of wireless technology. When he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him sharpening his photography skills, fly fishing, or complaining about SEC football.
Angelo Ilumba
Angelo is a highly experienced writer specializing in unraveling the complexities of the mobile and tech worlds, helping readers easily understand what is relevant to them. Angelo has been featured in several publications including NPR, Yahoo Finance, and MoneyTalksNews. He is never too humble to brag about being a UC Berkeley graduate and is an avid hockey fan.
Max McCaskill
Sr. Staff Writer
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