Boost Mobile Review: Prepaid Plans Perfect For the Family No Matter How Many Lines

It can be a difficult challenge to find a cell phone plan that checks off all of the boxes and includes all of the features that you need, while also being at an affordable price that is perfect for you and your family. Searching for a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, is tough since there are so many out there that provide top notch service.

Boost Mobile is a reputable MVNO that has been around for many years, and also provides some of the best service and prices around. Getting an MVNO, like Boost Mobile, is a great option because not only can you save money, but you can also see what years of great customer service and reliable coverage has done for many people.

Let’s do a deeper dive into Boost Mobile and all of the options that they offer when it comes to cell phone plans, prices, and more!

If you want to switch cell phone carriers, then consider looking into Really to help you with all of your phone services needs! At Really, you can compare phone plans to get more bang for your buck, and you can see what carriers and plans are in your area, sort by price, best value and more, and even click on the plan you wish to learn more about in an instant. 

Boost Mobile At a Glance

With so many MVNOs to choose from, Boost Mobile is one of the best to sign up for. It is crucial to look further into mobile carriers before signing up, so getting a first hand look at Boost Mobile and what they have to offer is a priority.

Boost Mobile is a great MVNO, so let’s take a closer look and see what they’re all about!

Best for: While it may be a simple reason, Boost Mobile is known for being incredibly suited for both individuals and families. They offer some of the best prepaid plans that you can pay per month or per year, and they are some of the most affordable plans around.

Price: Boost Mobile offers some extremely affordable cell phone plans that can cost as little as $5 up to $40 for the most expensive plan. Depending on how long you want your prepaid plan to last will determine the cost. For example, long-term year long plans tend to be less expensive compared to monthly plans.

Plan: Many MVNOs offer prepaid cell phone plans with no contracts that can be upgraded or downgraded no matter when. For Boost Mobile, you can get prepaid plans that last from a month, three months, or even for a full twelve months. They also offer two featured plans that have some of the best prices out of any of the other ones that you can choose from. 

Network: There are three main cell phone carriers to choose from whenever you’re deciding on getting an MVNO. If you want to get a plan through Boost Mobile, it’s important to know that AT&T is the network provider that they share.

Can you use your own phone? If you want to save a little bit more money per month, consider bringing your current cell phone over to Boost Mobile, as they allow you to bring your own phone as long as it’s unlocked. Deciding to use your own cell phone with a Boost Mobile plan is super cheap and more affordable than buying a new phone, both SIM cards and shipping are included for free.

Boost Mobile always has deals - now they even have half-price your first month of unlimited data, talk, and text for only $12.50. Before signing up, check out their offers! With deals all around and NO contracts or commitments, you have nothing to lose by giving Boost Mobile a try.

Boost Mobile: Pros & Cons

The pros and cons of any MVNO are crucial to learn about before signing up. There are a ton of MVNOs out there that offer affordable prices, the best features, and more, but not every company is perfect. 

Figuring out what the pros and cons are of Boost Mobile is essential, so let’s take a look at what they are!

👍 What We Liked

• Tons of Unlimited Data Options. If you want to choose between set data allotment plans or unlimited ones, Boost Mobile has both. Unlimited plans are great for family plans, or even if you’re someone that uses a ton of data, and they’re at a great price too.
• Great Selection on Cell Phone Plans. Boost Mobile offers a ton of great plans that include different lengths of time, the amount of data you want on it, and how much you are willing to pay.
• Amazing 5G Coverage. Since Boost Mobile shares AT&T’s network coverage, you can take advantage of their incredibly fast 5G data coverage on all of their plans.
• No Contract Plans. Being locked into a long-term contract can be stressful, especially if it’s under a plan that you absolutely despise. Boost Mobile offers prepaid plans under no  contract at all and you can choose how long you want your plan to last. 
• Risk Free plans with great customer service.

👎 What We Didn’t Like

• Deprioritization. Many MVNOs deal with deprioritzation, which means the parent network (in this case, AT&T) will show priority to other plans on their specific network over the MVNOs that share it. This means data will be slower in times of congestion and high traffic. However, one of Boost Mobile’s parent networks is Dish Wireless, which is working on building their own towers to give their Boost Mobile users better connection. 
• Slows Down Data Speeds With Allotment Plans. While all of their plans are advertised as unlimited, they have a data limit on it, which means you will have high-speed data until your allotment is up. Once it is up, you will have 3G data speeds instead. However, this is an industry standard across carriers. With Boost Mobile’s $25 monthly unlimited plan, you’ll have to use 30GB of data to experience these slow-downs. This equates to about 60 hours of SD video streaming.
• Some Plans Don’t Have the Best Value. While many of Boost Mobile’s cell phone plans have some of the best values out there, others don’t. For example, you will pay more for a monthly prepaid plan than you will for one that lasts for a year. However, you’ll still pay less than other carriers. 
• Customer Service is not 24/7, as their live agents are online from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. PST Mon. through Fri. and 4 a.m. to 7 p.m. PST Sat. and Sun. However, their app allows you to service your needs at any time.

Boost Mobile Services & Features

One of the most important things to get to know before signing up for any cell phone plan through Boost Mobile are the services and features it offers. From knowing what is included in your plan, such as a mobile hotspot, international service, and other features that are offered, let’s take a look at some of the best features:

• Unlimited talk and text
• Set data allotment plans or unlimited data plans
• Mobile hotspot available
• New customer only deals
• T-Mobile’s 4G LTE or 5G nationwide coverage
• No contract plans
• Data pack available
• Phone insurance available to add onto plans
• International calling to Mexico, Canada, and more
• Boost call screener to protect against spam calls
• Free SIM kit ($9.99 value)
• Free Shipping ($4.99 value)

Boost Mobile Plans & Pricing

The next  important thing to get to learn about are the plans and prices of all of Boost Mobile’s cell phone plans. They offer a few different plans ranging depending on how long you want your prepaid plan to last:

• Monthly plans:

• $15 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of data
• $25 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and data
• $40 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and 12GB of a mobile hotspot
• $60 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and 60GB of a mobile hotspot

• Three-month plans:

• $15 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of data
• $30 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, data, and 12GB of a mobile hotspot

• Twelve-month plans:

• $8.33 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 1GB of data
• $14 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of data
• $20 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and 15GB of data
• $25 per line per month for unlimited talk, text, and data

Boost Mobile Phone Selection 

One of the best parts about choosing a cell phone plan through Boost Mobile are all of the cell phones that they have to offer. If you want to upgrade your cell phone and get a newer smartphone, you have the option with Boost Mobile.

Some of the best cell phones that are offered through Boost Mobile range from:

• Samsung Galaxy A23
• Samsung Galaxy A03s
• Samsung Galaxy S21 FE
• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3
• Apple iPhone 13
• Apple iPhone 13 Mini
• Apple iPhone 12 Pro
• Apple iPhone 12 Mini
• Apple iPhone 12
• Apple iPhone SE
• Apple iPhone 8 (renewed)
• Motorola Moto G
• TCL 30 XE
• TCL Flip
• Schok Flip
• And many more!

How Well Does Boost Mobile Actually Work?

Call & Text Performance

When it comes to any cell phone carrier, it’s important to discuss your options and make sure that you find one with the best cell and text performance. Since Boost Mobile shares AT&T's network, no one has reported any issues with the call and text performance. Many people have successfully been able to make phone calls and send text messages no matter where you are. 

Data Speeds

With T-Mobile's reliable service and coverage, Boost Mobile customers can take advantage of either 4G or 5G data, or both depending on the cell phone you have or the area that you are located in. This usually caps around 250 MBPS download speeds and 150 MBPS upload speeds, but once you run out of your set data allotment, your speeds will go down to  3G. 

Boost Mobile vs. Competitors

There are a ton of MVNOs out there and each one of them has a list of competitors that they are up against 24/7. While each carrier is out to make sure that their customers are 100% pleased with what they get, it’s important to notice the pros and cons of each company.

Boost Mobile vs. Mint Mobile

One of Boost Mobile’s biggest competitors is Mint Mobile, and while both of these carriers are rated some of the top best out of all of the MVNOs, there are still some reasons many people prefer one over the other. Mint Mobile’s main cons consist of high international service fees, device financing that is expensive, and that there are no truly unlimited data plans. 

Boost Mobile vs. Tracfone

Boost Mobile’s other competitor is Tracfone, mainly due to their more affordable prices out of all of the MVNOs that are offered. While Tracfone offers very affordable cell phone plans, there are many cons too such as no unlimited data plans, reduced network speeds during heavy congestion, and limited mobile hotspot capabilities. 

Boost Mobile vs. Pure Talk USA

Pure Talk USA is another MVNO that has been sweeping the nation with a ton of incredible prices on cell phone plans. There are so many pros of the company, but there are also cons such as deprioritization due to heavy congestion from the network. 

Boost Mobile Customer Service

One of the most important things when it comes to any cell phone carrier is their customer service. Boost Mobile has a customer service phone number that you can call to talk to a representative no matter what type of issue you may have.

If you wish to get in contact with Boost Mobile’s customer service, you can call them at Call 833-50-BOOST or (833-502-6678).

The following are the times during the day that you can call a Boost Mobile representative to get any answer that you need:

‍

• Mon-Fri: 4am - 8pm PST
• Sat-Sun: 4am - 7pm PST

What Customers Have to Say About Boost Mobile

“Wireless companies phones and services have become very pricey over the past years. However, when it comes to Boost Mobile vs AT&T, Boost mobile gets the top vote. AT&T had contracts with stipulations and high prices. Boost phones and services are very reasonable compared to other wireless carriers. Android phones win over iPhones anyday. Besides, you don't need an expensive phone to take a selfie :-) !!” - Miss G. (via Trustpilot)

“We have been with Boost Mobile for over 3 years now, and have never been happier with a mobile company. The savings are incredible! We have traveled quite a bit and never lost a signal or went roaming. When we buy new phones I just go to our account and set them up myself. It's so easy! I know the price makes people wary of the value, but the value is really there!” - Mami. (via Trustpilot)

“I brought my own cell phone and personally visited a Boost Mobile store. I had to get a better phone, which I bought online through an independent retailer, because my seven-year-old-phone (Tracfone) was obsolete. The Boost customer service was excellent, most especially because switching from Tracfone is incredibly difficult -- they definitely DO NOT want to let their customers move on to another carrier; I couldn't have had better customer service! He was knowledgeable and professional. However, since switching to Boost Mobile, I now receive 2 or 3 scam calls daily and other than once or twice a month, I just about NEVER had scam calls with Tracfone. I don't know why I now receive so many scam calls as I've only given my cell number to family and a few friends. When a company, hospital, bank, organization, etc., asks for my cell number I've always said and continue to say, "I don't own a cell phone", and I have never given out my number. So my only question is, 'How did all these scammers get my phone # since I switched & all of a sudden?' Because I really barely use my cell (mostly for text messaging -- no internet, games, social media, etc.), I have a very limited minutes plan, and these scam callers are using up too many minutes!” -Judith. (via Trustpilot)

Boost Mobile FAQ

Boost Mobile sounds like it’s right up your alley when it comes to choosing the best cell phone plan for either yourself or your family. There may be some last second questions that you may have and it’s important to answer all of them before choosing Boost Mobile and committing to one of their mobile plans.

Consider some of the most frequently asked questions about Boost Mobile!

Can Boost Mobile Be Used Internationally?

Boost Mobile does allow for international use, but the fees for it aren’t included in your initial plan. You have to make sure that your phone is enabled to make these phone calls, and have enough money in your account to cover international rates and the standard airtime rate as well. 

Can Boost Mobile Use eSIM?

If you are interested in using eSIM instead of normal SIM cards, you are able to do this, but only with certain cell phones. The cell phones that eSIM can be used in are with the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and the iPhone XR. If you have any of these phones, or if you purchase one through Boost Mobile, you’ll be able to use an eSIM with no issues. 

Are Boost Mobile Cell Phones Unlocked?

Just like with any large cell phone carrier, Boost Mobile locks their cell phones until they are fully paid off, but this is only if you purchase one through them. If you bring your own cell phone, you don’t have to worry about your phone being potentially locked, and there is a policy to follow if you want it unlocked. 

Boost Mobile Offers Affordable and High-Quality Cell Phone Plans to its Customers

Finding the best MVNO to satisfy all of your wants and needs with a cell phone plan is crucial. With Boost Mobile you can enjoy AT&T’s incredible 5G nationwide coverage, and the affordability of their plans.

Consider a Boost Mobile plan for you and your family as soon as you can!