Metro by T-Mobile has brought back its $40 switcher unlimited data plan. As observed by Wave7 Research and @tracfoneguy, the plan has been quietly hiding in Walmart stores for the last several weeks. However, Metro has just moved the offer into its dealer stores.
Metro's $40 Switcher Unlimited Plan Offer Details
The $40 switcher unlimited plan of course includes unlimited talk, text, and data. However, using your phone for a mobile hotspot is not allowed. Videos stream at a resolution of 480p. Data is deprioritzied. That means during times that the network is congested you may notice slower data speeds compared to other customers on the T-Mobile network. Data speeds may slow further during network congestion if you consume more than 35GB of data during a billing cycle. Expect to pay a $20 line activation fee through dealers. The $40 plan price includes taxes and fees.
At Walmart, Metro is also pitching the offer as a $10/month plan to those who qualify for the government's ACP benefit. Metro launched at over 2,300 Walmart stores last fall.
On its website, Metro by T-Mobile is advertising this plan as being "the most affordable unlimited plan in prepaid, versus major national prepaid brands." And the claim is mostly true. It is tied for being the most affordable unlimited high-speed data plan versus national prepaid brands that are sold in stores and/or through dealers.
Since January of 2021, BestMVNO has tracked a $40 unlimited high-speed data plan offer from Simple Mobile. The plan is only available through Simple Mobile's nationwide network of dealers. Taxes and fees do cost extra with this plan giving Metro a slight edge on price. However, Simple Mobile's plan has the added benefits of free international calling to 69 countries plus international roaming in 16 Latin American countries. It also includes 40GB of high-speed data vs 35GB for Metro before data speeds slow further when the network is congested due to network data prioritization policies.
And then there's Verizon's Visible prepaid brand. Visible offers a $25 unlimited plan, the cheapest unlimited plan on the market. However, it isn't a major national prepaid brand as it is not sold in stores. BestMVNO has speculated that it could end up launching in Walmart stores.
Jeff Moore, Principal of Wave7 Research added, "Metro by T-Mobile has a $40/month offer of unlimited data at the 2,300 Walmarts where Metro is sold, with taxes and fees included. This is a solid offer, assuming the customer does not need hotspot, which is not included."
This Isn't The First Time Metro Has Offered $40 For Unlimited
Metro has several times before offered a $40 unlimited plan. Back in February of 2020, BestMVNO reported on a $40 unlimited plan from Metro that also offered two unlimited lines for $65. In October of 2020, Metro offered an online only $40 unlimited plan for switchers. That offer lasted a long time. And guess what happened in September of 2021? Metro offered another $40 unlimited data switcher plan, but this time with a twist. The plan had the added benefits of unlimited calling and texting to 20 Latin American countries. It ran alongside the offer from October of 2020 that was still running at that time.