Which Verizon plan is best for you? We check out the family, individual, and prepaid plans

Verizon often brags about having the most reliable network, and if tests are correct, the company isn’t wrong. The carrier offers the best service in rural areas where T-Mobile and Sprint users just can’t get a signal. Verizon even recently revamped its plan to make it more simple and understandable.

But the biggest news recently though might be Verizon’s acquiescence to customer demands for unlimited data. The nation’s largest carrier was the last to bring back unlimited data, but it’s nice to see. Don’t fret though: Unlike the other three, the capped Small, Medium, and Large plans remain, just in case you don’t want to pay for data that you won’t use.

More: Who has the best family plan? Shake-ups from T-Mobile and Sprint tilt the balance

Not everybody needs unlimited data — so for these folks Verizon is going to be your best bet. If you’re just a light mobile web user and don’t need to stream, Small’s 2GB limit should be fine. If you want a little more flexibility, step up to Medium’s 4GB. If you’re a once-in-a-while video or audio streamer, and use the mobile web quite a bit, you’re likely going to need the 8GB that Large allows. Any heavier users really should consider the new unlimited plan.

Verizon Plan

People
Line cost
4G LTE data
Total
1
$20

$35 w/2GB

$50 w/4GB

$70 w/8GB

$60 w/Unlimited

$55

$70

$90

$80

2
$20 x 2
$35 w/2GB

$50 w/4GB

$70 w/8GB

$100 w/Unlimited

$75

$90

$110

$140

3
$20 x 3

$35 w/2GB

$50 w/4GB

$70 w/8GB

$100 w/Unlimited

$95

$110

$130

$160

4
$20 x 4

$35 w/2GB

$50 w/4GB

$70 w/8GB

$100 w/Unlimited

$115

$130

$150

$180

5
$20 x 5

$35 w/2GB

$50 w/4GB

$70 w/8GB

$100 w/Unlimited

$135

$150

$170

$200

A quick note on the unlimited pricing shown: the prices listed include a $5 discount for single-line plans and $10 on multi-line plans as long as you sign up for autopay and paperless billing. If you don’t, you’ll need to add these amounts back in to get your price before taxes and fees.

You’ll pay $20 per person plus the amount of your data package and the cost of any phones you buy on Verizon’s installment plans. Only the cost of talk, text, and data are listed in the chart above. We get into phone payments in a later section. Tablet and hotspot lines cost $10 to connect, and wearables cost $5 to connect.

With everyone going to unlimited data, Verizon’s plans, while attractive, are on the expensive side. They’re not the most expensive though: That distinction currently belongs to AT&T. The bottom line with Verizon is that if you need reliable service just about anywhere, Verizon’s premium to Sprint and T-Mobile might be worth it. In some areas, Verizon is one of the only carriers with decent service (if any), so in some cases you might not have much of a choice.

Recommendations:

• Stay away from the 2GB plan unless you’re sure you won’t use much data. App-heavy users will exceed this allotment quite easily.
• Families should really consider the 8GB or Unlimited plans, with our preference being the unlimited plan.

The perks of the Verizon Plan:

• Strong service in rural areas
• A big phone selection
• Decent prices for individuals

The downsides of the Verizon Plan:

• Verizon charges overages when you exceed your data limit, unless you have data limit or overage protection, which costs $5 a month.
• Pricier plans than T-Mobile or Sprint.
• International service costs more.
• Its network is CDMA, which makes buying unlocked phones that work on the network difficult.