T-Mobile Adds an Even Cheaper Wireless Plan

About a month ago, T-Mobile doubled the data on its basic $50 per month plan, from 500 MB to 1 GB. Now, the 500 MB plan is back, and it’s $10 cheaper.

There’s just one thing missing: All other T-Mobile plans offer “unlimited” data at reduced speeds when you exceed your monthly allowance. The new $40 per month “Simple Starter” plan has a hard limit of 500 MB. You won’t get hit with overage charges automatically, but if you want to keep using data that month, you’ll have to pay extra.

Also, Simple Starter is for individual users only. For families, T-Mobile still requires a Simple Choice plan, which starts at $80 per month for two lines and $10 per month for each additional line.

As with other T-Mobile plans, Simple Starter includes unlimited talk and text, and you can still use your phone as a mobile hotspot as part of the 500 MB allotment.

The new plan is just the latest volley in what seems like an escalating price war between T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon Wireless. Last month, AT&T also tweaked its plans, eliminating its 1 GB offering and cutting the price of its 2 GB plan by $15 per month. And last week, Verizon cut the price of its 10 GB and higher plans by $5 per month for users on its Edge early upgrade program. Both carriers had already overhauled their pricing structures in February, likely in response to T-Mobile.

All of these changes are tough to keep track of, but worry not; we’ve updated our pricing charts for AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile, so you can find the cheapest wireless plan for your needs.