Best Phone Coverage in Huntington Beach, CA: Cell Service in Surf City

Huntington Beach, CA, is a populated coastal town that is a great place for residents and tourists alike. This popularity means networks are stressed, especially during the summer, when California sees the most tourism. Whether you are a resident or plan on moving to Huntington Beach soon, the best cell phone coverage is essential to making the most of your time in the area. Huntington Beach is a spectacular place to be and is well covered by every major wireless network. 

This article will cover the best cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA, and why each of these carriers makes it into our top three. 

Our research found that Verizon, AT&T, and Tello Mobile are the top three for best phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA. This article features detailed information on the following: 

• Map of the fastest cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA
• Local and national carriers that cover Huntington Beach, CA
• Frequently asked questions about phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA

Phone Coverage in Huntington Beach, CA, at a Glance

Lightning-Fast Data Speeds on Major Networks

Huntington Beach is right on the coast, fit with all the trappings of a beach town. Their boardwalk has a lot of places to eat and shop, the town has fun restaurants and exciting touristy activities. 

Huntington Beach area extends inland enough, however, that they also have many amenities for residents. Excellent dining options, solid infrastructure, and more are there for residents. The West Coast is a popular place, and wireless carriers spend a lot of resources upgrading their networks in that area. 

The city coverage is quite excellent among the three major networks. There is almost complete 5G coverage in city limits, making every one of the three major carriers an excellent choice for coverage in the city. However, the best cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA, goes to Verizon. They win the crown due to the reliability of their 5G network, which they have over the other two major providers. 

Local and National Cell Phone Carriers in Huntington Beach, CA

The top three carriers in Huntington Beach, CA, are Verizon, AT&T, and Tello Mobile.

Verizon separates itself from the pack with its high coverage in Huntington Beach, CA. With its 5G Ultra Wideband network, Verizon keeps many simultaneous users at maximum speeds with its high bandwidth. AT&T is a strong second vying for the best phone coverage in Huntington Beach, but it has a hole in its 5G coverage near the coast. Along with T-Mobile, these three companies are the major wireless networks in the United States. This means they own and maintain their mobile network. For customers, it means they offer bigger plans with faster, priority data at a high cost each month. 

Our third pick is Tello Mobile, an MVNO, which provides the best cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA. MVNOs, like Tello Mobile, rent their bandwidth from the big three networks to give their customers cheaper access to data. These lower prices are possible because their plans often offer limited high-speed data and less data priority, meaning there is a greater chance of data throttling in times of high usage. There are many MVNOs on each network. Tello Mobile uses T-Mobile’s coverage, and they made it onto our list because of their excellently priced low-data plans. 

Let’s take a look at which of these carriers use the network that gives people in Huntington Beach, CA, the best phone coverage.

#1 in Huntington Beach, CA: Verizon Wireless

Best Cell Phone Plan Range in Huntington Beach, CA

Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network is exceptional in Huntington Beach, CA. Verizon’s lightning-fast 5G network (download speeds upwards of 100 Mbps) is incredible, but it is only available in select locations in the country. Huntington Beach happens to be one of those areas. You can hop on a cruise through the harbor, tan on the beach, and walk the pier with fantastic Verizon coverage. Be wary, however, as Verizon has less overall 5G coverage than the other major networks. If you travel throughout California, especially in more rural areas, you will likely see Verizon’s 4G LTE network. The 4G LTE network is still very strong. 

Residents report excellent Verizon coverage in Huntington Beach. Let’s look at their cell phone plans. 

Price: Varies

Plan: Verizon offers a pair of unlimited plans. One has unlimited high-speed data, and the other has unlimited premium high-speed data.  

Verizon offers two unlimited plans. 

• Welcome Unlimited, priced at $65/55/40/30 a month per line
• Unlimited Plus, priced at $80/70/55/45 a month per line

While expensive, multi-line savings make these two plans much more affordable. On top of unlimited premium data, the Unlimited Plus comes with the following: 

• 30 GB mobile hotspot
• Device savings
• Price Guarantee
• Premium data

Regardless of the number of lines, the Unlimited Plus plan is $15 more per line on your account. This is a lot, but the premium data is handy in spaces with high data usage. Huntington Beach is one such area. The combination of tourists and residents makes congestion much more common, as even the strongest 5G networks become congested when lots of people congregate in an area. Tourism makes it much harder to gauge congestion in a given area. We recommend starting on Verizon’s Welcome Unlimited plan and checking out data speeds for yourself. 

If you notice slow data speeds in your area, you can consider the more expensive plan from Verizon to increase data priority. 

Alongside the base plans, Verizon offers a package of optional add-ons that each add $10 to your cell phone bill. The best part is that you can skip them entirely and stick to the base plan price, but if you find any Verizon add-ons you like, adding them to your plan always saves a few dollars on the service. 

👍 What We Liked

• 5G Ultra Wideband Coverage. When you have 5G data, it is incredible. There are some troubles with phone network priority, but Verizon’s general coverage is fantastic.  
• Family Plan Savings. Verizon single-line costs are crazy. We recommend finding friends and family to create a multi-line account and enjoy serious savings. 

👎 What We Didn’t Like

• Price. Even though they have a strong network and provide services to make the price worthwhile, Verizon is very expensive. If you are planning to open a single-line plan, the best way to utilize Verizon’s amazing network is through an MVNO like Visible Wireless. 
• Customer Service. This appears to be a common trend among cell phone companies, but there are many negative experiences with Verizon’s customer service.

#2 in Huntington Beach, CA: AT&T 

Fastest 5G and 4G LTE in Huntington Beach, CA

AT&T is a close second for cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach. Service throughout the area is very impressive. You should enjoy fast data during your daily activities, whether it's wandering the boardwalk, examining the Surfing Museum (a fun activity for residents and tourists alike), or shopping in the city’s downtown. 

Their 5G network is very strong and will give you high-speed data everywhere in the city. AT&T’s 5G and 4G LTE networks are fantastic if you like to travel around California. You can move throughout this big state assured that AT&T’s got your back. 

Price: Varies

Plan: AT&T offers three unlimited plans at various price points. Their price is comparable to the plans at Verizon. 

AT&T offers three unlimited plans. 

• AT&T Unlimited Starter Plan
• AT&T Unlimited Extra Plan
• AT&T Unlimited Premium Plan

There are few surprises in AT&T’s unlimited plan pricing. Like Verizon and T-Mobile, these plans start at a very high price point before any multi-line savings. Opening a single-line account with a major wireless company is always expensive, and while there are some great new customer deals out there, we caution you to look at the contracts and ties that come with the deal. Many lock you into paying more over a few years than you initially saved. With three cell phone plans, AT&T has a basic plan with few bells and whistles, a medium plan, and a premium plan with many extras. 

• AT&T’s starter plan has unlimited high-speed data with 3 GBs of high-speed hotspot data.  
• AT&T’s extra plan comes with 50 GB of premium data and 15 GB of high-speed hotspot data. 
• AT&T’s premium plan comes with unlimited premium data and 50 GB of high-speed hotspot data.

You may notice slowdowns on the piers and beach accesses, especially if you utilize AT&T’s basic data. These spots are often filled with tourists on their phones for all bandwidth-consuming activities. We recommend starting with the starter plan. If you notice data slowdowns with some regularity during your travels in Huntington Beach and wish to avoid them, switching to one of their higher-tier plans is more than worthwhile. 

👍 What We Liked

• Area Coverage. All three major networks put a lot of money into their networks annually, and AT&T has the very best coverage in Huntington Beach, CA. That extra coverage means fewer slowdowns and dead spots within the city.  
• Family Plan Savings. The savings with multi-line plans are incredible at AT&T. This is true for all major wireless networks, but it bears mentioning here as well. Family plan savings are amazing. 

👎 What We Didn’t Like

• SD Streaming. AT&T’s first two tiers of the unlimited plan only offer SD streaming, a big downside for anyone who likes to watch video on mobile networks. 
• Premium Data. While it is an unlikely occurrence, a surprise slow-down of your mobile service is quite vexing. Their basic unlimited plan provides no premium data, and while the second tier comes with 50 GB, that goes quickly if you use your phone a decent amount.  

#3 in Huntington Beach, CA: Tello Mobile

Most Affordable Cell Phone Plans in Huntington Beach, CA

Our favorite MVNO in Huntington Beach, CA, is Tello Mobile. They are known for their incredibly affordable cell phone plans that let you save big on your phone bill. Tello Mobile plans, and plans on other MVNOs, open up users to a high risk of slowed-down cellular data, especially in higher-congestion areas throughout the city like the beaches, downtown, and Old Town. 

Tello Mobile is best for users who are okay with slow data every now and again. In times of high congestion, your phone will struggle to load websites, boot up maps, or keep up with general use. MVNOs are especially good for people who spend a lot of time on a WiFi network rather than a mobile one.  

Price: Varies

Plan: Tello Mobile offers a variety of plans between 0 GBs of high-speed data and 25 GBs of high-speed data. 

Tello Mobile is an excellent choice for people interested in low-data plans. They offer the following plans: 

• 500 MB for $9 a month
• 1 GB for $10 a month
• 2 GBs for $14 a month
• 5 GBs for $19 a month
• 10 GBs for $24 a month
• 25 GBs for $29 a month

Tello Mobile uses T-Mobile’s network for coverage, giving its users fantastic nationwide 4G LTE and 5G data. Since none of these plans offer unlimited high-speed data, you need to watch your consumption. If you quickly chew through the 25 GB of allocated high-speed data each month, these plans are not for you. However, if you can ration your data, you will save a ton on your cell phone bill. 

👍 What We Liked

• Excellent customer service. Online reviews rave about Tello Mobile, a feat for any cellular provider. Tello Mobile has one of the highest-rated customer service branches in the country, and we are confident that whenever issues arise, its customer service will do all in its power to fix them.  
• Competitive prices among MVNOs. Tello Mobile’s prices are fantastic. The reason you would switch to a carrier like Tello Mobile is to save money. Tello’s plans cater to low-data users. If you spend most of the day in WiFi zones and are able to limit usage when out and about, you will save big on your cell phone bill. 

👎 What We Didn’t Like

• No multi-line savings. Tello Mobile’s plans are priced amazingly, but they do not offer any savings for multi-line plans. This makes them great for single-line accounts, but if you are part of a family plan, the affordability of Tello Mobile diminishes in relation to multi-line savings from MVNOs like Mint and Cricket. 
• Data deprioritization. It is not a surprise, but your data will slow whenever there is a high strain on the bandwidth in your area. There is a high possibility that you will lose data speeds in Huntington Beach, CA.

Get to Know Your Local Carrier Options in Huntington Beach, CA

While not included on this list, T-Mobile has an excellent presence in Huntington Beach, CA. Their data is notoriously unreliable in the wider area of California, but you can expect solid coverage most of the time on T-Mobile. 

Alongside the big three, many MVNOs like Tello Mobile provide affordable and reliable coverage in the area. In this section, we want to highlight two of our favorite MVNOs, Mint Mobile and Visible Wireless. You’ve already seen Tello Mobile, which is our favorite for low-data single-line accounts. Mint Mobile is our favorite for medium-data multi-line accounts, and Visible Wireless is our favorite for high-data single-line accounts. 

Mint Mobile operates on T-Mobile's network and is known for affordable cell phone plans. It is best for medium-data users because their unlimited plan does not have unlimited high-speed data. Mint’s unlimited plan comes with 35 GB of high-speed data before your data is throttled to 3G speeds.

Visible Wireless is our favorite MVNO for high-data users. They only have two plans, both of which provide unlimited high-speed data. Visible’s plans start at $30, and they don’t have any multi-line savings. Their inexpensive single-line plans make it our top choice for anyone interested in opening a single-line account with unlimited high-speed data. 

FAQ: Your Questions About Cell Phone Coverage in Huntington Beach, CA, Answered

Does Verizon have coverage on Huntington Beach, CA?

Yes! Verizon has spectacular coverage throughout all of Huntington Beach, CA.

How do I determine which cell phone provider has the best coverage in my area?

You should look up coverage maps for your area to determine which cell provider has the best cell phone coverage. Alongside that, check message boards for discussion surrounding cell phone coverage. 

What is the best cell service in Orange County, CA?

In the larger Bay Area, AT&T came out ahead among serious competition. 

TLDR: Verizon is your best bet for fast phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA

Use really.com to compare! 

Verizon provides the best cell phone coverage in Huntington Beach, CA, due to its hyper-reliable network coverage extending throughout the city. If you want more info about plans available in Huntington Beach, CA, compare carriers at Really.com to decide which phone carrier is best for you.