Net10 Review: Net10 Being Shut Down by Verizon (2024 Update)

2024 Net10 Update: Verizon is Shutting Down Net10

It appears that Net10’s new owner, Verizon Wireless, will be shutting down Net10 in 2024. At the top of Net10’s homepage, you can now see the ominous message, “Make the Switch to Simple Mobile. Thanks for your interest in Net10, but we want to let you know about a phone plan that offers an even better service: Simple Mobile”, with a link to Simple Mobile’s site.




Here’s the message:

net10 shutting down

Tracfone (the parent company of Net10, among other brands) is now owned by Verizon Wireless, after a purchase from América Móvil in 2021. A Tracfone site says that customers can keep their Tracfone family of brands plans until November of 2024.

You can also stay on a plan that TracFone offered prior to being acquired by Verizon until at least November 23, 2024.

It’s not entirely clear whether Net10 will shut down by that date, but with the messaging on Net10’s home page, it sure seems to be the case. If you are a current Net10 customer, I’d recommend starting to look for an alternative. Take a look at my recommended products and services page for the best Net10 alternatives. I’ll leave the Net10 review below in place for the archives.

Net10 User Review

A while back, I made the decision to drop Verizon Wireless as my mobile carrier in favor of a combination of the no monthly fee Ooma VOIP system and my wireless through Net10. Update: we have since switched our service to Tracfone, (Tracfone review here) and then Xfinity Mobile (Xfinity Mobile Review here). I still think that Net10 is great for many users, but Tracfone came in a bit cheaper for us, given our usage habits. I’ve updated this review based on Net10’s current offerings.




What is Net10?

Net10, Straight Talk, Simple Mobile, Page Plus, SafeLink, and Tracfone in the U.S. were all sold by America Movil to Verizon in 2021. Net10 is an MVNO that operates off of other wireless carriers networks, such as AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, and phones can be either CDMA or GSM, based on the model that you purchase. Many different phone models available.

Net10 Review

What are Net10’s Prices & Plans?

Net10 used to only be a flat 10 cents/minute for airtime and texting, but they’ve had to change with the times. Today, talk and text are virtually free and users mostly pay for data use. Net10 currently has a number of plan options. You can still get basic talk/text plans, if you’d like, but there are affordable data and hotspot plans available as well.

Net10 Basic Phone Plans (for those who primarily talk/text and use WiFi for data, if needed):

  • $20: 200 minutes talk, text, and web (with unused carryover). Adds 30 days of airtime.
  • $25: 1,000 minutes talk, text, and web (no carryover). Adds 30 days of airtime.
  • $30: 300 minutes talk, text, and web (with unused carryover). Adds 60 days of airtime.
  • $45: 600 minutes talk, text, and web (with unused carryover). Adds 60 days of airtime.
  • $60: 900 minutes talk, text, and web (with unused carryover). Adds 90 days of airtime.
  • $100: 1,500 minutes talk, text, and web (with unused carryover). Adds 180 days of airtime.

Net10 Smart Phone Plans (for heavy mobile data use):

  • $20: unlimited international calling, text, & 2 GB of data
  • $35: unlimited international calling, text, & 5 GB of data
  • $40: unlimited international calling, text, & 10 GB of data
  • $50: unlimited international calling, text, & unlimited GB of data (+5GB of high speed hotspot data)
  • $60: unlimited international calling, text, & 40 GB of data
  • $65: unlimited international calling, text, & unlimited GB of data (+10 GB of high speed hotspot data)

Net10 Mobile Hotspot Plans:

  • $10: 1 GB of data for 30 days
  • $20: 2 GB of data for 30 days
  • $30: 2.5 GB of data for 30 days
  • $50: 10 GB of data for 30 days

Net 10 Phone Selection:

Net 10 used to lightly dabble in smartphones, but now they are all in (in addition to a few basic flip phones). You can find various Android models (e.g. Samsung Galaxy) as well as iPhones




What is Net10’s Performance Like?

Net10 runs on the 5G networks of each of the 3 biggest wireless carriers in the U.S. market (AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon). Their performance is the same as those networks, so based on your type of phone and the network you choose, your performance will vary.

Net10 Pros

What I like the most about Net10 is their flexibility:

  1. You choose your phone and the network you want to run on
  2. They have an affordable plan option for just about any type of phone usage level
  3. There are no contracts
  4. Rollover minutes and very low cost talk/text plans (if that is your thing)

This allows you to change things up at any time based on your mobile usage habits.

Net10 Cons

One downside thus far is that their customer service was not always the quickest. This could have changed in recent years, but expect a little waiting time to get a hold of someone.

Final Thoughts on Net10

I think that Net10 has a few key characteristics that give it a lot of flexibility for customers:

  1. You choose your phone and the network you want to run on
  2. They have an affordable plan option for just about any type of phone usage level
  3. There are no contracts

Those 3 characteristics make Net10 very compelling for customers looking for flexibility.

If you’re interested, you can check out discounted Net10’s plans and phones here.

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