Smart Phone Family Plan Comparison

Trying to decide which wireless carrier is best can be a pain. Many things can attract customers to a carrier. Lowest price, most attractive phone and best coverage are probably at the top of the list. Phones can be researched online and can be seen in stores and kiosks everywhere you go. Coverage maps give a general idea of what to expect and during the trial period it will be obvious if coverage is adequate. However, with regard to price, it isn't real easy to compare until they are all laid out side by side.

I happen to be interested in Family Plans using smart phones with unlimited data and text so I put a spreadsheet together comparing different number of lines and varying levels of minutes.

Family Plan Comparison Matrix
(Keep in mind many employers have agreements with carriers allowing 12-20% off for their employees for personal cell plans)

I've read the average person uses 700 minutes per month and have assumed this for general comparison. For Verizon and T-mobile, I will assume 450 as they both allow customers to pick several of their favorite out-of-network numbers to call free, unlimited. Your mileage may vary. I have also included fees and taxes in the per-line pricing; these are out-the-door prices based on 7% average.

What the spreadsheet shows is that AT&T is the highest priced across the board, thanks to the iPhone. Anyone using a smartphone other than the iPhone on AT&T should look elsewhere. Something else that jumps out is the big drop in cost from 2-person plans to 3-person plans, much more so than from 3 to 4, or 4 to 5. For couples on Verizon or AT&T, finding another couple to share a plan with can save each couple $480 to $624 per year.

For a 2-person plan, Sprint has the best deal: $74.42 per line. T-Mobile is a close second if you choose to limit texting to 400 msgs per line and equal if you also can get by on only 700 minutes between both users. Verizon is also a close second if you can get by with 700 minutes, which can be done using Google Voice with either T-Mobile or Verizon, by the way. More about this later. AT&T is a gouging $96 per line, but it's worth mentioning that by limiting text messages to 200 each per month, AT&T users can save $8 per line on a 2-person plan and for two people who don't talk much, a 700 minute plan will only cost $77 per line. Having rollover minutes helps too.

For a 3-person plan, they are all about $70 per line and AT&T at $75. For light talkers who can get by on 1500 minutes, Sprint is only $57.

For a 4-person plan, Sprint and T-Mobile have the best pricing at $60 per line, Verizon close behind at $65 and AT&T at $77 (or $67 by using only 2100 minutes).

For a 5-person plan, Sprint has by far the best deal at $52 per line, but for 5 chatterboxes, it may not work as they only offer up to 3000 minutes. Otherwise, for unlimited minutes they charge $107 per line. Verizon ($58) and T-Mobile ($60)are close behind Sprint for 2100 and 2500 minutes respectively.

I mentioned Google Voice can be used to great advantage with T-Mobile and Verizon. There are several caveats, but using an Android phone is currently the most practical option. T-Mobile has two Android phones (G1, MyTouch), but Verizon won't have one until the end of October (Motorola Sholes). So using Google Voice can make Verizon competitive with the rest and bring T-Mobile more in line with Sprint, but if you're not a geek, it may seem complicated.

Clearly, Sprint has the best pricing for the criteria I have laid out, but haven't used their service since the late 90s. AT&T and Verizon like to claim superior coverage in their marketing and at one time it may have been very obvious, but in my opinion this doesn't apply as much as it used to. I've had T-Mobile for 5 years and have never had an issue even when traveling. Carriers can make all the claims they want, but as long as it works where you live, work and play, nothing else matters.

Where smart phone selection is concerned, there are all kinds of options and lots of exciting devices on the way. My only advice here is to stick with a device running an operating system for which there is 3rd party application development. This includes Android, Windows Mobile, WebOS (Palm Pre), iPhone, Symbian (Nokia) and Blackberry. Personally, I'm leaning toward new Android devices on the way; Motorola Sholes on Verizon and HTC Hero on Sprint both due in October.