Customers of some of Verizon and AT&T’s older unlimited wireless plans will soon see a slightly higher bill starting in August. These plans, which are no longer available, are locked into a lower price. While the carriers aren’t technically raising those rates, the new fees effectively mean a price hike.
Verizon said Go Unlimited 2.0, Beyond Unlimited 2.0, Above Unlimited, and 5G Start customers will see a $3 Plan Rate Adjustment fee per line added to their bills starting August 29th. Single Basic Phone plan customers will see a $5 fee per line.
Although Verizon offers an unlimited plan starting at $60 a month, you’ll have to pay $10 to include a mobile hotspot already included with Start Unlimited. With hotspot coverage, that’s only $3 less than if you didn’t switch plans if you go for Verizon’s Unlimited Welcome plan for $60 a month.
Last Wednesday, AT&T announced a new $2.50 fee for the Unlimited Elite plan which was discontinued last year. The plan offered 40GB of hotspot data. Switching to the Unlimited Premium plan will grant you an extra 10GB of hotspot data, but cost you the HBO Max perk and high speed data in 19 Latin American countries. The plans are otherwise identical. AT&T’s Unlimited Starter tier offers only 3GB of hotspot data and unlimited talk, text, and data throughout the U.S., Mexico, and Canada.To see if switching to a newer plan is cost effective for you, log into your Verizon or AT&T accounts to compare each plan. You’ll also find any current offers and limited time deals available. For instance, first responders, military personnel, veterans, nurses, teachers, and students are eligible for additional discounts with Verizon.