Straight Talk Review: Unlimited Talk, Text, Data, and More

Struggling to find an MVNO that has a lot of different perks that work to your advantage can be tough. With so many to choose from, it can be hard to narrow down exactly which one is best, especially with all the deals offered by each company. . 

Straight Talk is a great MVNO that offers a ton of perks on their phone plans, including unlimited talk, text, and data. We know that this probably sounds perfect to you already, so let’s talk more about Straight Talk and get to know them!

Straight Talk At a Glance

Straight Talk is one of the most highly rated MVNOs that are currently out there right now who have a lot to offer its customers. Let’s get a quick glance at what they’re best known for, what price their plans are offered at, and more. 

Here is more information about Straight Talk that is useful to know before getting a plan!

What is Straight Talk Best Known For?

Straight Talk is mainly known for all of the perks that are offered on their plans, including unlimited talk, text, and data, international calling, and even HD video streaming. Not a lot of MVNOs offer all of these great perks, especially when it comes to HD video streaming, which can be a major benefit for many people. 

How Much is Straight Talk Per Month?

Compared to a lot of MVNOs, which can be a lot cheaper, Straight Talk is a little bit more expensive. The starting price of a Straight Talk plan can start off at $45 per month for unlimited talk, text, and data and can get as high as $65 per month. Each plan offers some different features that are important to look into before solidifying your decision. 

What Kinds of Plans Are Offered?

The biggest decision that you can make with getting a new cell phone plan is picking the one that best suits your needs. Straight Talk offers a ton of different plans that range in unlimited nationwide, and unlimited international if you need calling for all around the world, and they also offer plans with data caps. The data cap that they offer is 10GB.

What Network is Offered at Straight Talk?

If you love AT&T or T-Mobile and want to switch from their more expensive plans to Straight Talk, then you’ll be happy to know that you can still take advantage of their service and coverage. AT&T and T-Mobile cell phone plans can be more expensive, so Straight Talk is the perfect alternative if you want the same service and coverage that the big carriers offer. 

Can You Bring Your Own Cell Phone?

Stop worrying about having to get a brand new cell phone when switching to a new carrier because with Straight Talk, you can bring your own phone to their plan. If your phone is a AT&T or T-Mobile compatible, you will be able to bring your phone and save some money instead of getting a new phone. 

Cell phone plans offered through Straight Talk can give you access to tons of features at an affordable price. Image courtesy of Instagram.

Straight Talk: Pros & Cons

Straight Talk is a great MVNO to go through to get a new cell phone plan because of their unlimited plans, international calling, and HD video streaming. But there are always pros and cons to every carrier. 

Let’s take a moment to talk about the pros and cons of Straight Talk!

👍 What We Liked

• Great Deals on Plans. Get some affordable deals for a ton of perks that other MVNOs don’t offer their customers. 
• Discounted Straight Talk Phones at Walmart. If you are looking to save some money on a new cell phone plan, Walmart offers Straight Talk compatible phones at a great cost. 
• Flexibility With Plans and Service. The great thing about Straight Talk is that if you have an AT&T or T-Mobile phone and are switching from those carriers, you can still get the same service and coverage you’ve always loved.
• Contract-Free. Prepaid plans tend to be what a lot of people are leaning towards, especially when trying out a new carrier, and Straight Talk offers no contracts whatsoever.
• International Plan Options. If you know relatives or friends that live outside of the United States, Straight Talk has international plans.

👎 What We Didn’t Like

• Slow Data Speeds at Times. While Straight Talk shares AT&T and T-Mobile’s networks, there are times where the downloading and uploading speeds can be slow. 
• No Family or Multi-Plan Discounts. A big deal breaker for many people looking for a new phone plan is finding one that offers family plans, but at Straight Talk, they are all individual plans.
• Financing on Their Cell Phone Can Be Expensive. Bringing a cell phone to one of their plans can help you save more money since their 24-month financing on cell phones can be pricey.
• No Entertainment Perks. Other cell phone carriers offer subscriptions to Netflix, HBO Max, or other streaming services, but Straight Talk doesn’t offer these. 
• Bad Customer Service to Some. While customer service always varies from person to person, some people have no issues and others struggle with it.

Straight Talk Services & Features

One of the major perks to any MVNO is if they have different services and features that are different and unique compared to other carriers. Straight Talk offers a bunch of services and features ranging from nationwide calls across the country, calls to Canada and Mexico, hotspot data, cloud storage, and even unlimited talk, text, and data.

Straight Talk Plans & Pricing

Straight Talk has a ton of incredible cell phone plans and prices that are also important to look over before choosing the one that best fits what you need and your budget.

Here are some of the following Straight Talk Cell Phone plans to help you decide:

• $35 per month for 10GB of data, nationwide calling, and calling to Canada and Mexico, and 5GBs of hotspot data
• $45 per month for unlimited data, and talk and text nationwide, and to Canada and Mexico, and 15GBs of hotspot data
• $55 pro month for unlimited data, and talk and text nationwide, and to Canada and Mexico, and 5GBs of hotspot data
• $65 per month for nationwide and international calling with 20GB of hotspot data
• $90 Two-lines unlimited data, and talk and text nationwide, and to Canada and Mexico, and 15GBs of hotspot data
• $130 for a three-month plan with unlimited talk, text, and data
• $255 for a six-month plan with unlimited talk, text, and data
• $495 for a one-year plan with unlimited talk, text, and data

Straight Talk Phone Selection 

If you want to upgrade your cell phone then Straight Talk may have the next phone that you’ll love. There are different options from many reputable brands.

Some of the cell phone offered with a Straight Talk plan include:

• Apple iPhone 14
• Apple iPhone SE
• Apple iPhone 12 Mini
• Apple iPhone 11
• Moto G 5G
• Moto G Stylus 5G
• Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G
• Samsung Galaxy A13 5G
• Samsung Galaxy A03s
• Nokia G100
• Nokia G300 5G
• And so much more!

How Well Does Straight Talk Actually Work?

Call & Text Performance

One of the most important factors to consider with any cell phone carrier is how good the call and text performance is and if users have any issues. With Straight Talk, you’ll be able to take advantage of the service and coverage through AT&T or T-Mobile, which are known to both be very good in terms of sending and receiving phone calls and texts.

Data Speeds

Another important thing to think about is how fast or slow the potential data speeds can be for a phone carrier. For Straight Talk, the 4G LTE data that they offer has download speeds up to 31.1MBPS and upload speeds of 15.6 MBPS. Both of these are good speeds that you can use whenever you’re doing just about anything on your cell phone. 

Straight Talk vs. Competitors

Every cell phone carrier has its competitors that offer similar services and features, but there is always that one thing that you can find that will allow one to outshine them all. Knowing the competitions of Straight Talk is essential to see what they’re offering, but also what they’re not.

Here are some of the competitors of Straight Talk and what they’re missing in their cell phone plans!

Straight Talk vs. Tracfone

While Tracfone is a huge MVNO and one of Straight Talk’s biggest competitors, one thing that they lack with their plans is that they don’t offer a lot of large data plans. If you’re someone who needs more data on their plan, then Straight Talk may be the better option.

Straight Talk vs. Mint Mobile 

Thinking of how long you want your cell phone plan to last is another consideration that you should have. While many carriers have two-year contracts, MVNOs offer monthly prepaid plans, which Straight Talk also offers. One downfall of a Mint Mobile plan is that their smallest plan is for three-months,  and they do not offer monthly plans.

Straight Talk vs. Cricket Wireless

Straight Talk and Cricket Wireless have been two of the most popular MVNOs for many years that both feature a range of plans at set budgets. Compared to Straight Talk, Cricket Wireless’ unlimited 4G LTE is more expensive, and you can’t have a mobile hotspot unless you select the highest priced plan.

Straight Talk’s Customer Service

Getting a hold of customer service when you are in dire need of some help is very important. Good customer service is something to make sure that you have with any company, especially when you’re having technical difficulties with your cell phone.

Overall, Straight Talk’s customer service does everything that they can to solve any issues you may be having and there are a few ways to get in contact with them.

If you’re experiencing any technical difficulties with your Straight Talk plan, you can call 1-877-430-2366 24/7 no matter what you need help with. 

What Customers Have to Say About Straight Talk

“I have a business that requires a lot of communication. Straight talk is amazing. I am a previous Verizon customer. I’m much happier with straight talk. The service is great. Any data issues can usually be fixed. I would highly recommend straight talk to others!! Also Daniel from corporate billing is amazing, very knowledgeable, understanding, professional and kind. A joy to talk to. Thank you straight talk” - Josh McLaughlin. (via Trustpilot)

“I talked to one of the lady's that works here and she did a great job helping me with my changing my service to my other phone and helping me keep my old phone number and I just want to say thank you to her and keep up the good work there should be more people like her that work there she really helped me out with my number so I can keep it for my job” -Brandon Johnson. (via Trustpilot)

“Straight Talk is a life saver for me. I live in the sticks where service never existed until I got Straight Talk. I run ofc of Verizon towers and I don’t recall my Verizon being as fast. I’m 4G in the middle of nowhere it’s great. Satellite internet is ridiculous in price so to pay $55 a month for unlimited everything is perfect. I recommend them absolutely.” -Lee. (via Trustpilot)

Straight Talk FAQ

Does Straight Talk Offer 5G Data?

Straight Talk offers 4G LTE to all of its customers, but it’s also important to know if they offer 5G. All of Straight Talk’s plans come with nationwide 5G coverage at no extra cost, no matter what plan that you choose.

Does Straight Talk’s Phones Offer Wi-Fi Calling?

Wi-Fi calling is a method of staying in touch with loved ones that lots of people enjoy using.  For any Straight Talk plan, as long as you have access to Wi-Fi, you can use Wi-Fi calling, it’s just important to make sure that your connection is stable.

Are Straight Talk Phones Unlocked?

Purchasing a cell phone through Straight Talk can be exciting, but like big carriers, can Straight Talk phones be unlocked? Their cell phones are locked for the first twelve months that you have it, but after that, you can request to unlock it. 

Straight Talk has Reliable Service and Coverage With Great Choices of Plans

Trying to pick the best cell phone carrier can be a big decision for anyone, so choosing one that is within your budget and offers everything you need helps out. Straight Talk offers incredible unlimited talk, text, and data plans with international calling and HD video streaming, and tons of choices on cell phones too.