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AT&T Prepaid deals, rate plans, phones, and info for July 2019

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Many of you are likely familiar with the so-called “Big Four” wireless service providers of Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint. A lot of people might assume that this is pretty much all there is when it comes to carrier choice in the US. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

Most of the top-tier carriers offer their own prepaid services with different rate plans, phone selection, and support. Let’s take a look at one of them in particular: AT&T Prepaid.

About

Once known as GoPhone, AT&T Prepaid operates in the US using the same network as its tier-one brand and, for the most part, provides nearly identical coverage. One key difference is that there is no third party coverage in pockets of states such as Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska.

SEE ALSO: Verizon Prepaid Buyer’s Guide (June 2019)

AT&T Prepaid features include no annual contract, no credit check, and easy activation.

Rate Plans

AT&T Prepaid rate plans let subscribers go month-to-month with no long-term agreement or cancellation fees. Moreover, it does not charge for going over your allotted data; you receive “throttled” 2G  speeds on data for the remainder of the bill cycle.

The prices shown below are with automatic bill payment, or AutoPay. Rate plans may vary based on limited-time promotions.

  • $30/month: Unlimited Talk and Text with 1GB of high-speed data
  • $40/month: Unlimited Talk and Text with 8GB high-speed data*
  • $50/month: Unlimited Talk and Text with unlimited high-speed data
  • $70/month: Unlimited Talk and Text with unlimited high-speed data

Double Data Promotion

A limited-time promotion sees AT&T offering 8GB of extra data on the $40 plan, essentially doubling the data. For many people this amounts to virtually unlimited data.

Mobile hotspot/tethering is available to most of the plans. There are other features available for the various plan, including unlimited calls and text to Mexico and Canada or usage in Mexico and Canada. Those on the 1GB or 8GB plans who do not use the allotted amount will be able to roll it over to the next month.

Two Unlimited Plans?

What’s the difference between the two unlimited plans? For the extra money you’ll pick up 10GB of mobile hotspot and HD video streams can be up to 1080p when turning off Stream Saver.

For a limited time, those who sign up for the $70 ($85 without AutoPay) plan can also receive WatchTV at no additional cost.

Other Features

AT&T Prepaid offers add-ons such as international calling and monthly data plans for tablets and hotspots. Moreover, add-on data can be purchased in the event you hit your plan’s data threshold.

Multiple Lines

Customers interested in family plans or multiple lines can do so with discounted pricing. As of today AT&T Prepaid offers a discount on each line, when adding a line of service. Additionally, there’s also a discount for AutoPay, automatic bill payment. It’s possible to mix and match plans based off of individual data needs.

Handset Selection

Taking a look at the current lineup of phones offered through AT&T Prepaid we find familiar names from brands like LG, Motorola, and Samsung as well as those from Alcatel and ZTE.

As one might expect, the overall selection pales in comparison to the standard AT&T brand and skews toward affordability instead of power. For those looking to save money there are also a handful devices which are certified restored.

A few phones have promotions which might add credit to your account or save money when paired with a particular rate plan.

Bring Your Own Device

You can often use your current phone on AT&T Prepaid, especially if it was previously paired with the standard AT&T service. Contact your current service provider to see if you can unlock your phone for usage on AT&T.

We’re also seeing a growing trend of unlocked phones with support for AT&T and its Prepaid bands sold direct to consumer. Examples include models from Motorola, Blu, Essential, and Samsung.

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