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Where T-Mobile leads, AT&T follows… again

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 9:03PM EST
T-Mobile Vs. AT&T Data Plans

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If you haven’t noticed, T-Mobile has been something of a trendsetter in the wireless industry. Shortly after announcing bold initiatives such as paying off rivals’ early termination fees and giving customers rollover data plans, AT&T quickly followed suit with similar initiatives of its own. This trend is now continuing in the realm of pricing, as Engadget points out that AT&T has now tweaked its mobile data plans to better match T-Mobile’s.

 RELATED: T-Mobile wins again: Verizon offers ‘Un-carrier’-like simpler data plans

Here are the basic changes:

  • AT&T has eliminated its 1GB amd 3GB data tiers and has consolidated them into a 2GB tier that costs $30 a month ($55 with access charge).
  • The 6GB tier gets bumped down to 5GB but it now costs just $50 per month ($75 with access charge) instead of $70 before.
  • Where things really get good is the 10GB tier, which gets bumped up to 15GB and still costs just $100 a month ($115 with access charge).
  • The 20GB tier remains in place but now it costs $140 a month ($165 with access charge), or $10 less than what it was before.

For comparison, here are T-Mobile’s four major individual data plans:

“Unsurprisingly, the benefits get juicier if you spend more — there’s 5GB more data if you spend $100 for 15GB, but the 5GB plan is just a dollar per gigabyte less than the previous $70/6GB one,” Engadget comments. “In total you’ll now spend $75 per month for 5GB including the access charge, compared to $70 with T-Mobile. That might stop some folks from straying to Legere’s flashy network, especially given AT&T’s overall superior coverage.”

In all, it’s great to see real competition in the wireless industry, which is something we never would have imagined happening just three years ago.

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.