Visible Wireless is what we in the industry call a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). That’s just a fancy way of saying that it’s a cell phone carrier that doesn’t own its own network. Instead, Visible Wireless pays a fee to Verizon Wireless to use its 4G/5G network.

This arrangement allows Visible to offer plans at a discount rate—much cheaper than you’d find with Verizon directly—while still giving users great nationwide coverage. But the flipside is that Visible customers will often see slower data speeds and fewer perks.

More than anything, Visible makes the process of getting an unlimited data cell phone plan simple. There are no contracts, no random fees, and no brick-and-mortar stores. Just sign up online, get an eSIM card or have a physical SIM card overnighted to you, and you’re good to go (as long as your phone is compatible).

We think Visible is a great, no-frills cell phone carrier for those who want a cheap unlimited plan. But there are some drawbacks for those who want the best data performance, tons of perks, or free phone upgrades. We’ll go over all of these issues and more in the sections below.

Visible Wireless only has two plans. We’ll go through each one of them with a fine-toothed comb so you can figure out which one is best for you (or if you need to find a different carrier).

Let’s start with the cheaper plan.

Visible’s standard plan is one of the best cheap plans on the market. For just $25 a month, you can get unlimited talk, text, and data on the network with the best nationwide coverage. This includes unlimited hotspot data (hotspot speeds are capped at 5Mbps, though).

With Visible, you won’t have to worry about any contracts or fees. That $25-a-month price is exactly what you’ll see on your bill (the sales tax is already baked in). This type of straightforward pricing is wonderful to see in an industry that often tries to get you with things like activation fees.

All this makes the Visible plan ideal for teenagers, college students, and others who want constant access to the internet but can’t afford to shell out $50 a month for it.

As you might expect, there are some drawbacks to the very cheap Visible Plan. The biggest issue for most people is something called data deprioritization. Although you do get unlimited data with the Visible Plan, that data is not guaranteed to be high speed.

Visible states that its typical 4G LTE and 5G download speeds are between 9 to 56Mbps. That’s a wide-range of speeds, and those who use a lot of data or are in areas with a congested network could frequently experience issues with online gaming and even loading TikTok videos.

Even when you are seeing good data speeds, Visible will always limit users on this plan to SD video quality. And you won’t get access to part of Verizon’s network, called 5G Ultra Wideband. This part of the network is only available in certain metro areas, but it can provide lightning fast speeds well over 100Mbps.

While you do get unlimited calls and texts to Mexico and Canada (as long as you are calling from the U.S.), you will have to worry about international roaming if you leave the country. Plus, you won’t get fancy phone upgrades, free subscription, or other fun perks.

The Visible+ Plan offers some significant upgrades from the standard plan. The most notable benefit of this pricier plan is that you get 50GB of full-speed data. That means no deprioritization. Even when the network is busy, you’ll get good quality data for streaming, Zooming, gaming, posting, doom scrolling, and everything else.

Another major benefit of the Visible+ plan is that you get access to Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network. This network is only available in major cities, but when you’re on it you get unlimited premium data (that doesn’t count towards your 50 GB limit). This makes it an especially good deal for folks who live in cities like New York, Boston, Miami, Los Angeles, Denver, and Atlanta.

You will also score some sweet international perks with the Visible+ plan, including unlimited talk, text, and data when you’re in Mexico and Canada with no international roaming fees. Plus, you’ll get 500 minutes of free calling to 30+ countries and unlimited free texting to over 200 countries.

The biggest drawback to the Visible+ is the price. At $45 a month, it’s almost on par with plans from major carriers like T-Mobile. If you’re willing to shell out that much money each month, then you should consider just going straight to the source.

You used to be able to save a bunch of money on your Visible bill by getting multiple lines and using Party Pay. But the company has done away with family plans altogether. There are a few deals you might be able to score (we’ll go over those in just a moment), but you’ll still be paying more than you would with other MVNO carriers, like Mint Mobile.

Visible Wireless already offers really affordable prices for unlimited data plans. But you might be able to save more when you take advantage of these discounts and promotions.

• Get a free, 15-day trial if you have a compatible iPhone. Just go to Visible’s site to check your phone’s compatibility and then follow the steps to sign up.
• Refer a friend for $20 off your next month of service. When you refer someone, not only do you get $20 off your next bill, but your friend will also score a $20 discount on their first month of service.
• Save $10 a month on Verizon Fios or Verizon 5G home internet plans when you sign up for the Visible+ Plan.

As we mentioned before, Visible Wireless doesn’t actually operate its own network. When Visible customers connect to a cell phone tower, it’s actually one of Verizon’s towers. This is actually good news for Visible customers because Verizon has the best network coverage in the United States.

You can see for yourself just how extensive Visible Wireless coverage is with this interactive map.

While there are a few blank pockets in Visible’s coverage in the rural west and the Appalachian region, there are fewer dead spots than you’d see on the other major networks, AT&T and T-Mobile. When I asked a close friend of mine who has been on Visible for a couple of years about coverage, she told me that it was better than what she used to get with Cricket, which uses AT&T’s network.

You can also get an idea of how big Visible’s 5G coverage area is. All of the dark purple areas in the coverage map are places where you can expect faster data speeds (assuming you’re not being deprioritized).

Signing up for Visible Wireless is very simple. Just go to the company’s website. From there, you can click on “Bring my phone” or “Shop phones,” depending on what you want.

If you do want to bring your phone, you’ll have to make sure it is compatible. Luckily, most modern smartphones that are compatible with Verizon (or unlocked) will work with Visible. This includes all iPhones and many Android devices.

You may be asked to provide the IMEI for your device to make sure it’s compatible. The IMEI is a 15-digit code that is unique to your specific cell phone and can help Visible identify if the phone is compatible. You can find the IMEI by dialing *#06# on your phone or looking in your settings.

If you want to buy a new device from Visible, you’ll be able to choose from many of the latest phones from big companies, like Samsung, Google, and Apple. Here are just a few of the deals you’ll find on new devices from Visible.

Once you’ve chosen your device, you’ll have to choose a plan. If you’ve got a new smartphone that’s compatible with eSIM technology, then you can start using your Visible service immediately. Otherwise, the company will overnight a standard SIM card to you for free.

It would be nice if phone companies could, you know, pick up the phone. The truth is that mobile carriers aren’t known for their good customer service. But some companies do better than others. Unfortunately, Visible isn’t one of those companies.

According to J.D. Power’s 2024 Wireless Customer Care Study, Visible gets a score of 794/1,000, putting it near the bottom of the pack of similar MVNO carriers.

Our own experiences trying to contact Visible customer support haven’t been great. The chat feature on the company’s app is run by AI and doesn’t do much more than redirect you to help pages. You can eventually talk with a real live agent through the chat feature, but it takes a long time.

What if you want to call Visible to talk to an agent directly? Well, you’re fresh out of luck. The company’s contact page says this: “Visible does not offer over the phone assistance, but there are other ways to interact with a Visible Care Team Member.”

So your best bet is to use the chat feature on the website or @ the company on Twitter—um, we mean X.

How does Visible Wireless compare to other cell phone companies?

It’s definitely among the cheapest, but it isn’t the cheapest. That honor goes to Mint Mobile. But there are some devils in the details that we should discuss. First, take a look at this chart comparing Visible’s $25 unlimited plan to cheap unlimited plans from other carriers.

Let’s start by talking about that $15-a-month Mint Mobile plan. It’s comparable to Visible’s plan in that it offers unlimited data that’s subject to deprioritization. But Mint’s pricing is not so straightforward. You have to pay for at least three months upfront to get that $15-a-month deal, and after the first three months, your price will go up to at least $30 a month (and that’s only if you pay for 12 months upfront).

The Boost Mobile $25 a month plan featured here is not a bad deal to be sure. But Boost uses AT&T and T-Mobile’s networks, and we tend to prefer Verizon’s for its nationwide coverage.

You can also see some plans from the Big Three that are comparable in price to Visible’s $45 a month Visible+ Plan. These plans don’t offer much more than Visible does and, in many cases, they offer less than the 50GB of premium data offered by the Visible+ plan. But, getting onto one of the bigger carriers can unlock nice perks, like phone deals or upgrades and free or discounted subscriptions to other services.

If you just want the best deal right now, then Mint Mobile will give you an unbeatable price for the first three months. If you want top-shelf data performance and a bunch of neat perks, then you’ll have to ditch MVNO carriers altogether. But if you just want a decent, no-nonsense unlimited data plan that’s affordable in the long run, then we think Visible is one of the best, if not the best, option on the market.