TextNow Plans

TextNow: What Are the Pros and Cons?

PROS

Free plan available that includes unlimited talk & text, with some data
Good for low usage customers
Good for travel in Canada and Mexico

CONS

No plans available for high data users
Online only brand, no stores for in person support

Since 2013, I’ve been researching, reviewing, and writing about the wireless industry through BestMVNO with a focus on MVNOs.

In this guide, I will explain everything you need to know about TextNow before you subscribe. I’ll review each of their phone plans with you, and go over any gotchas that they might have. I want you to learn the ins and outs of TextNow so that you can make an informed decision on if this is the best place for you to spend your money.

Prepaid Phone Plans – No Credit Check

1-Line

350 MB

$0.00/Mo

$0/Annually

Unlimited Minutes
Unlimited Texts

Plan Details

T-Mobile

10 GB

$39.99/Mo

$480/Annually

Unlimited Minutes
Unlimited Texts

Plan Details

T-Mobile

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TextNow Deals

TextNow Is One Of Several Prepaid Brands That Have Recently Launched TV Advertising Campaigns

TextNow Free Plan

Get an unlimited talk and text plan for free! $0/month on the T-Mobile network. VoIP plan.

Find Out More!

How TextNow Plans Work

TextNOW is an MVNO that previously operated on the Sprint network. The company was founded in 2009 in Ontario, Canada and originally operated as a text messaging app. In 2013 the company expanded into the USA where it began to offer phone service as a Sprint MVNO ((Gigaom)). In 2016 TextNOW added T-Mobile as a network partner, however, service on T-Mobile was discontinued in the middle of 2019. In 2021, due to T-Mobile’s acquisition of Sprint, TextNow once again became a T-Mobile MVNO. In June of 2021, TextNow announced the availability of a free plan on the T-Mobile network.

TextNOW does not offer MVNO service in Canada due to the company’s inability to find a willing partner to sell it network access ((Techvibes)). Instead, it offers an app available on both iOS and Android that allows free calling and texting over Wi-Fi and data networks.

Unlike a majority of MVNO’s, TextNOW uses what it calls “Elastic Calling Technology” to monitor and select the best network to use for service. With Elastic Calling, phone calls and text messages are automatically routed over Wi-Fi or the parent network’s data pipeline. Phone calls can even be routed through the parent network’s cellular voice network. TextNOW automatically transitions to use whichever type of network is providing the best service, and it can even change from Wi-Fi to a cellular voice network mid-call without the end user having to do anything on their end.

TextNow offers a free basic phone plan that comes with what it calls “Free Essential Data.” Free Essential data is free data that can be used with select email, calendar, maps, and rideshare apps over a cellular data network. The free plan comes with 350MB of high-speed data that can be used with those apps, and 650MB of data at reduced speeds before data is shut off until the next billing cycle. Subscribers have the option to add hourly, daily, and monthly data top-ups to their Essential plan if they’d like. Data top-ups are priced like this:

Hourly Pass – 300MB of high-speed data then unlimited 2G, $0.99
Day Pass – 2GB of high-speed data then unlimited 2G, $4.99
Monthly Pass – 10GB of high-speed data then unlimited 2G, no ads, includes roaming in Canada and Mexico, $39.99

To use TextNow you must use the TextNow app.

Supported Phones And BYOD Devices

TextNOW does support BYOD. Phones that are compatible with T-Mobile will work as long as there are no contractual obligations on the phone. Most universally unlocked phones from manufacturers such as Motorola and Samsung are compatible with the network.