Verizon Tablet Plans

Smartphones are no longer the only data hog in your purse, briefcase or backpack — or even on your person, for that matter. Now, people have tablets, smartwatches and mobile hot spots, and those devices need high-speed data, too.

Verizon’s data-only plans give you 4G data access, but have no voice service. They allow you to connect multiple devices to one data plan — as long as those devices don’t include your smartphone.

Verizon tablet plans

Verizon has traditional, postpaid data-only plans, as well as prepaid data-only plans. These plans can be used for tablets, mobile hot spots and other connected devices, such as a smartwatch. You can bring your own device if it’s compatible, or buy one from Verizon.

postpaid:

Postpaid plans are billed monthly and typically require a credit check. Verizon charges a monthly account-access fee for the data package, plus a line fee for your device. That fee is $10 for a tablet, $20 for a mobile hot spot and $5 for a connected device. Multiple devices can share one data package. You can also add data-only devices to a Verizon family plan and just pay the line fee.

Below are the prices for Verizon’s Data Only plans; these prices do not include monthly line fees:

• 2GB: $20.
• 4GB: $30.
• 6GB: $40.
• 8GB: $50.
• 10GB: $60.

• 12GB: $70.
• 14GB: $80.
• 16GB: $90.
• 18GB: $100.
• 20GB: $110.

In addition to the plans listed above, Verizon offers larger data-only plans, ranging from 30GB for $185 per month to 100GB for $710 per month. The carrier also offers plans billed as “mobile broadband” plans, which come in 2GB ($30), 5GB ($50) and 10GB ($80) packages and don’t charge an additional line fee. These plans support tablets and mobile hot spots, but don’t allow you to share data among multiple devices.

prepaid:

Prepaid plans last for a period from one week to two months, depending on the plan, and don’t require a credit check or contract.

• 500MB (one week): $15.
• 1GB (30 days): $20.
• 2GB (60 days): $35.
• 5GB (60 days): $60.
• 10GB (60 days): $100.

How Verizon’s tablet plans compare on price

Verizon cell phone plans are more expensive than those of its competitors. Its data plans aren’t much different, either.

While some plans match in price with those of the other major carriers, Verizon’s tablet plans are still pricier than the likes of T-Mobile or smaller, prepaid carriers. Consider this: $50 buys you 10GB of data with T-Mobile or Boost Mobile, but just 6GB with Verizon, after you add in the $10 line fee for a tablet. And 2GB of data with MetroPCS is just $15, compared with $30 charged by Verizon.

Verizon’s network may justify the price, though: It is rated the best nationwide by RootMetrics, which releases quarterly reports on mobile network performance.

The table below compares data-only tablet plans, including postpaid and prepaid plans for some of the major carriers, such as AT&T and Verizon. For some carriers, a data-only plan for a mobile Wi-Fi hot spot will be more expensive.

For Verizon and U.S. Cellular, we’ve added their “plan fee” with their “device connection” fee to attain a monthly price comparable to the other carriers.

Some prepaid carriers, such as Straight Talk and Virgin Mobile, allow data access for more or less time than the usual monthlong period, which we’ve indicated in the footnotes.

	1GB or less	1.5-3GB	4-5GB	6-7GB	8-9GB	10GB+
* Data usable for less than one month † Data usable for more than one month
AT&T	$14.99 (250MB)	$30 (3GB)	$50 (5GB)
AT&T GoPhone		$25 (2GB)	$50 (5GB)		$75 (8GB)
Boost Mobile		$25 (1.5GB)				$50 (10GB)
MetroPCS		$15 (2GB)	$25 (4GB)	$35 (6GB)
Net10	$10 (500MB)* $20 (1GB)	$30 (2.5GB)	$50 (5GB)†
Straight Talk	$15 (1GB)	$25 (2GB)	$40 (4GB)† $50 (5GB)†	$75 (7GB)†
Sprint (with overage charges)	$15 (1GB)	$35 (3GB)		$50 (6GB)
Sprint (with unlimited 2G)	$30 (1GB)	$40 (3GB)		$55 (6GB)
T-Mobile		$20 (2GB)		$35 (6GB)		$50 (10GB)
U.S. Cellular	$15 (300MB) $20 (1GB)	$30 (2GB)	$40 (4GB)	$50 (6GB)	$60 (8GB)	$70 (10GB)
Verizon		$30 (2GB)	$40 (4GB)	$50 (6GB)	$60 (8GB)	$70 (10GB)
Verizon Prepaid	$15 (500MB)* $20 (1GB)	$35 (2GB)†	$60 (5GB)†			$100 (10GB)†
Virgin Mobile	$5 (250MB)*	$25 (1.5GB)		$55 (6GB)

Are Verizon’s tablet plans right for you?

If you already have cell phone service through Verizon, adding your tablet to your plan is a no-brainer. The fee is just $10 per month, and you only have to manage one bill and one provider. But if you’re with another carrier, or want your tablet on its own plan, you can save money by looking elsewhere.

Kelsey Sheehy is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: ksheehy@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @KelseyLSheehy.