Mint Mobile vs. TextNow: Which Budget-Friendly Wireless Service Is Right for You?

While basics like groceries, gas, and rent keep going up, it’s more important than ever to tighten up the budget where possible, including your phone service. Luckily, there are plenty of budget-friendly prepaid options nowadays, including Mint Mobile and TextNow. 

Mint Mobile vs. TextNow summary

Both carriers offer nationwide phone service with unlimited data plan options and widespread coverage. For a true value-driven choice, however, TextNow is the better option because it offers more affordable prices in the long run and is more flexible to fit different budgetary needs as they arise.  

In short:  

• TextNow is the better option for customers looking for a free phone plan that won’t hold them to any commitments.  

• Mint Mobile is the better option for customers looking for broader data options or family plans. 

Mint Mobile vs. TextNow at a glance

If you want to know more about Mint Mobile’s service in detail, check out our most recent Mint Mobile review. Otherwise, you can follow these basic feature and pricing guidelines:  

Short answer: Should you choose Mint Mobile or TextNow?

When it comes down to which service provider is the true budget-conscious choice, TextNow wins hands down. While the free ($0/month) service comes with limited data service, the flexible options to pay for unlimited data at a daily, weekly, or the traditional monthly rate is a great way to save money in the longer run. TextNow also offers more perks, although it lacks mobile hotspot data.  

Mint Mobile looks promising on paper, but to get the advertised “low price,” you have to commit to a 3-, 6-, or 12-month term and pay a lump sum in advance. Once the promotional period is over, that advertised low price is no longer applicable, so Mint can end up being more expensive than other prepaid carriers or MVNOs. It does offer flexible family plans that allow for different data allotments on each line, so if you’re looking for an affordable family or multi-line plan, it is the better option as TextNow does not currently offer multi-line discounts.  

Mint Mobile vs. TextNow: Detailed review

What is Mint Mobile?

Mint Mobile is a prepaid phone service provider (an MVNO) that operates on T-Mobile's network.  

It offers a range of prepaid phone plans that offer unlimited talk & text, plus data options: 6GB, 17GB, 23GB, or Unlimited. Plans can only be purchased in bundles at 3-, 6- or 12-month increments.  

What is TextNow?

TextNow is a prepaid phone service provider (an MVNO) that operates on a nationwide 5G network.  

It offers a range of prepaid phone plans that offer unlimited talk & text, plus data options. Its main benefit is the free base plan that allows customers to keep their phone line active for $0/month with unlimited talk & text, plus up to 1GB of data for select apps like email, finance, maps, rideshare, and iHeartRadio. Its unlimited data plans are provided with flexibility in mind, giving customers the option to purchase data for a day, a week, or for a more traditional month.  

Mint Mobile vs. TextNow: Plan prices and features

Both TextNow and Mint Mobile offer prepaid unlimited data plans at similar pricing (once you take out the promotional introductory price that Mint Mobile offers new customers for the first purchase of a plan). Their similarities end there, though, as both carriers approach the affordability and flexibility (no commitments) of their data plans quite differently.  

Contracts, commitments, and billing structures

Mint Mobile praises its plans as no-contract phone plans, and while that's technically true in comparison to postpaid plans, we wouldn’t call them no-commitment-at-all plans. Mint Mobile does not offer monthly phone plan rates, only 3-month, 6-month, or 12-month plans that have to be paid upfront. So, you are forced to commit to a certain amount of time to use their service – or benefit from deeper discounts.  

TextNow, on the other hand, starts with a base plan that’s free — actually $0/month — and provides unlimited calling & texting, plus up to 1GB of data for select apps like email, finance, maps, rideshare, and iHeartRadio on a nationwide 5G network. For more data, you can buy by the day, week, or month. You have a choice of the Plus level, which does not include streaming media or gaming, or the Unlimited level which includes it. These are all prepaid, with no commitments, and at any point in time, whether you choose to cancel or can’t pay, you will always default back to the free base plan that keeps your phone number and other essential services on.  

Promotions

TextNow’s promotions revolve around its physical SIM card: Free when you purchase a Day Pass or data plan. If you’re signing up for its base Free Plan, a physical SIM card is $3.99 to purchase. However, users with a compatible iOS or Android device can get an eSIM for free.

Mint Mobile, on the other hand, does consistently offer promotions for its plans — the most used one being a flat $15 per month for new customers for their first bundle purchase.  

Tradeoffs

With Mint Mobile, you’re restricted to paying for service up front in multi-month increments rather than month-by-month, and unlike postpaid plans (or even some prepaid plans), there are no additional perks or extras.  

With TextNow, the tradeoff to its free service specifically is the ad-supported app. The ads (which only show up within the TextNow app) may be intrusive to some, although it’s important to note they do not show up in the weekly or monthly unlimited data plans.  

Catches or hidden fees

As with most other phone service providers, Mint Mobile does not include all its extra fees in its sticker price. If you look at the Broadband Facts sheet for each plan, you'll see that government fees, recovery fees, and taxes will be added to your monthly cost. Those shouldn’t add up to more than $10 overall but are worth noting when working on your budget. Otherwise, the most obvious catch to Mint Mobile’s low prices is the “new customer only” price that increases as soon as your bundled plan is up for renewal.  

TextNow does not have any hidden fees. Whether you choose the $0 Free plan, or any of the paid unlimited data options, there are no other fees or taxes included. The only catch, again, is the presence of ads in the app if you’re on the Free plan.  

Compare Mint Mobile and TextNow data plans

Choosing either TextNow or Mint Mobile can help you lower your cell phone bill overall, but their offerings are significantly different enough that you should determine whether it’s overall affordability you’re looking for (TextNow) or convenience with added features, like mobile hotspot availability (Mint Mobile).  

Mint Mobile vs. TextNow: Family phone plans

Mint Mobile has an edge over TextNow when it comes to family phone plans, as TextNow does not offer multi-line plans. Instead, you simply create and manage individual accounts for each family member on TextNow. 

While Mint Mobile’s family phone plans are flexible in that they allow you to pick different data plans for each line (not forcing everyone on Unlimited), but what they lack is a multi-line discount. Each line pays the regular price (both introductory and non-), same as a single line would, with the “family plan” benefit of managing all the billing under one account.  

Without the introductory pricing, you may find that other carriers’ family phone plans are cheaper and come with more perks.  

Senior phone plans

Mint Mobile offers two of its plans — the 6GB and the Unlimited — for customers age 55+ with the added benefit of specialized customer support to help with activation, transferring service, etc. The pricing of the plans appears to reflect the same “new customer” discount as a regular single line, so there isn’t a special discount for senior plans like many other supporting carriers offer.  

While TextNow does not offer a senior phone plan directly, its affordable pricing and intuitive app-based service does lend itself well to seniors who just want basic phone service that works without paying for all the extras and perks.  

Note that neither of these services have physical locations, so if hands-on customer support is crucial, these phone plans may not be for you.  

Coverage & network performance

Both Mint Mobile and TextNow are MVNOs operating on two of the leading networks in the U.S. As MVNOs, they do not receive network priority over those networks’ postpaid services, meaning that during times of peak or busy usage (say, at a sports event in a major city), both Mint Mobile and TextNow customers could experience slower speeds.  

That being said, Mint Mobile operates on T-Mobile's network, which has great 4G LTE and 5G coverage, and most recently jointly won for best overall network experience on OpenSignal’s 2026 awards.  To see how the coverage will hold up in your area, check out Mint Mobile’s coverage map.  

TextNow operates on a leading 5G network, which has similar (or slightly broader) 4G LTE and 5G coverage. To see how the coverage will hold up in your area, check out TextNow’s coverage map.  

Data speed performance

In terms of mobile data speeds, Mint Mobile’s broadband facts sheets show faster download speeds (79-357 Mbps) compared to TextNow’s (5-75 Mbps) as well as faster upload speeds (6-30 Mbps) compared to TextNow’s (1-15 Mbps). However, both carriers’ speeds are sufficient for data-heavy actions, including video streaming and video calling. If you’re planning on using your phone heavily for online gaming (multiplayer, specifically), then you might want to opt for Mint Mobile’s plans over TextNow’s.  

Customer service & user experience

Neither Mint Mobile nor TextNow have physical locations, so there is no in-person support available. Instead, Mint Mobile offers chat bot support 24/7, or you can call 1-800-683-7392 seven days a week, 5 a.m.-7 p.m. Pacific time. While that is a comprehensive support system, the reviews from real customers are hit-and-miss. Mint Mobile has a 3.1/5 rating on Trustpilot, and other online reviews complain of poor customer service or service issues.  

TextNow also offers live chat support, with an AI-help bot that’s available 24/7, and live support from human representatives that is available from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Eastern daily. TextNow’s Trustpilot score is more favorable, at 4.3/5, and real reviews tend to be positive when it comes to real troubleshooting support, with most complaints centring around a lack of resolution for TextNow accounts that have been disabled, or other similar terms & conditions-related issues. 

Phone compatibility & deals

Both Mint Mobile and TextNow have BYOP (Bring Your Own Phone) support, where you can activate your own unlocked phone with one of their SIM cards. You can order a physical SIM card to activate TextNow service, or get a free eSIM for compatible iOS or Android devices for instant activation.  

TextNow also does not offer its own lineup of phones for purchase, while Mint Mobile does — both Android and iPhone, although their phone deals to be middling. In both cases, you’re better off finding the best unlocked phone deal and bringing it to the service you choose for the best economical choice. To bring your own phone to Mint Mobile, first check its compatibility on its online phone compatibility checker before purchasing a plan or SIM. To bring your own phone to TextNow, follow the same process: Check your device's compatibility on its online phone compatibility checker.  

Safety and security

Both TextNow and Mint Mobile collect the standard personal data related to signing up for phone service: name, phone, email, billing and shipping addresses, logs and device details. They secure their customer passwords, and the credit card data isn’t stored on their servers for an extra measure of protection.   

As with any service, you should take specific precautions to keep your account/phone safe: create a strong password for your account that is either changed every 6 months or backed up by a 2-factor authenticator, know how to spot and avoid phishing scams, and know how to spot and avoid SIM swap scams.