The 5 Best 5G Hotspot Plans: Starting at $5/mo - MoneySavingPro (2023)

FAQs

Is a 5G hotspot worth it? ›

5G hotspots cost more than 4G hotspots, but the price is worth it because they're faster, more efficient, and connect a lot more devices. Most 4G hotspots can connect only 15 to 20 devices, and they don't always have Wi-Fi 6—so if you're investing in a new hotspot, you may as well spring for 5G.

The "5G Get More" plan that costs $90 per month plus taxes and fees for a single line includes 50GB of "premium mobile hotspot data," which is followed by unlimited lower-speed hotspot data. The hotspot speeds after you use 50GB are 3Mbps on Ultra Wideband and 600kbps on other parts of the network.

5G Network (Via Smartphone Mobile HotSpot/Tethering, for Plans Including 5G Tethering and for our Mobile Internet plans offered after December 12, 2020 with 30GB or more per month): Download Speeds: Typically between 72 – 327 Mbps. Upload Speeds: Typically between 8 – 35 Mbps. Latency: Typically between 21 – 35 ms.

Is 5G faster than cable internet? 5G internet is capable of reaching higher wireless speeds than the wireless speed generations before it, but you're not guaranteed the highest speeds and certainly not the higher speeds than you'd get with a reliable cable connection.

Here's what you get with 5G Start: 5 GB premium Mobile Hotspot data , then unlimited lower-speed data. Unlimited data. 5G Nationwide , 4G LTE.

5GB of data is a difficult one to place - for the average user (defined by Ofcom's 2021 report), it's not too much and it's not too little. Yet, based on the number of plans out there, 5GB is still considered to be a smaller plan with less gigabytes to offer.

How long will 5 GB of hotspot last? A 5GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 60 hours, to stream 1,000 songs or to watch 10 hours of standard-definition video.

Verizon has the best network coverage for mobile hotspots

Currently, Verizon offers 4G coverage to a whopping 70% of the country. To put that number in context, AT&T offers 68% coverage, while T-Mobile only offers 62% 4G coverage (though that might change in the future now that they've acquired Sprint).

Is a hotspot better than a phone hotspot? ›

Mobile hotspots are dedicated devices that give you a hotspot connection. They're more expensive than phone hotspots, but they work a lot better for intensive hotspot use, connecting more devices and supporting faster speeds.

Wifi provides high speed as compared to a hotspot in the case of multiple users. The hotspot offers a lower speed than wifi in the case of many users. Wifi services are provided by the local area Internet service provider. Whereas the hotspot services are largely provided by cellular or phone corporations.

Hotspot Data: Unlimited

Visible's basic plan includes unlimited talk, text and 5G mobile data for $30 per month. Visible includes unlimited hotspot data with max speeds of 5Mbps. While it isn't high-speed hotspot data, it is truly unlimited. You may also be able to bring your own phone to Visible and save even more.

Time duration with 100GB*

Your data should normally refresh every month or 30 days, so theoretically you have an average of 720 hours to fill a month. 100GB can last almost non-stop for the entire month, so you'd never have to connect to Wi-Fi if you didn't want to.

Manage Links

Smartphone Mobile HotSpot (SMHS) - also referred to as Wi-Fi Sharing or tethering - lets you securely share your device's Internet connection with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices on T-Mobile's high-speed nationwide network. If you want a plan with SMHS - check our Magenta or Magenta MAX plans​.

T-Mobile introduced a new T-Mobile-branded 5G hotspot made by Quanta on June 16, 2022.

In its W-Fi vs. 5G testing Opensignal found 5G mmWave is fastest over all Wi-Fi and in both directions, though home/office Wi-Fi is faster than sub 6 GHz 5G in both directions. Even 4G LTE is faster than public Wi-Fi for downloads, while public and home/office Wi-Fi uploads are faster than those for LTE.

5G home internet commonly gives you speeds around 100–300 Mbps. But 5G internet speeds can reach up to 1,000 Mbps, depending on the plan and quality of cell service in your area.

Is 5G WIFI better than LTE? ›

5G has lower latency than LTE. The 5G standard is intended to substantially reduce downloading latency down to 4 milliseconds for phone devices and one millisecond for devices such as self-driving vehicles that depend on ultra-reliable low latency connectivity (about ten times quicker than LTE's ten milliseconds).

A mobile hotspot can replace home internet service if you're a light data user. Light data users use the internet at home just to check email, shop occasionally, and browse websites, a mobile hotspot can work for you.

A 10GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 120 hours, to stream 2,000 songs or to watch 20 hours of standard-definition video.

Will I be charged to use my Mobile Hotspot feature or app? Many of our monthly phone plans and certain prepaid plans let you use 5G Ultra Wideband, 5G Nationwide and 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot on capable devices for no additional monthly charge.

How much mobile data does the average person use? The average person used 5.6GB of data per month in 2021, according to Ofcom's Communications Market Report 2022. That's a 24% increase on the 4.5GB used per month in 2020, which in turns is a 27% increase on the 3.6GB used per month in 2019.

You can connect a smart TV to a hotspot device or a phone being used as a mobile hotspot. To connect the two, from your TV join the Wi-Fi network attached to your hotspot . Be careful of hotspot data limits. High-resolution streaming can quickly eat up data.

A 20GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 240 hours, to stream 4,000 songs or to watch 40 hours of standard-definition video.

High definition (HD) streaming uses 2.5GB per hour. 15GB gives you just 6 hours of HD streaming. 4K Ultra HD streaming uses about 6GB per hour. 15GB gives you less than 3 hours of 4K streaming.

Verizon has the best 4G LTE coverage that spans across 70% of the United States. That's 2% more than AT&T and 8% more than T-Mobile. It covers 327 million people over 2.68 million square miles. Depending on your location, you may be covered by Verizon's 5G.

Which 5G network is best? ›

5G Coverage Analysis: 5G vs 4G LTE. When comparing carrier 5G coverage maps, T-Mobile comes in first with the best 5G network overall at 53.79% nationwide coverage, AT&T slides in at second at 29%, Verizon is in third at 12.77%, and U.S. Cellular clocks in at just 1.8%.

Enable Wi-Fi on your laptop and select the SSID or Wi-Fi Network name attwifi. Open a Web browser and select from the following options: For free Wi-Fi access, select I have an AT&T Account or Sign in with your AT&T Wi-Fi username and password.

While improved, portable Wi-Fi hotspots aren't entirely safe, largely due to network spaces that are open access by default. According to the Jakarta Post, when creating a hotspot on an Android smartphone, Android doesn't create a password to the hotspot, allowing anyone to connect to the network at will.

More robust than your smartphone's mobile hotspot, a Jetpack can connect multiple devices to the network. And it's just as powerful (and much more portable) than a home network system, so you can be productive, play games and watch movies where coverage is available.

Mobile hotspot devices are also commonly known as Jetpacks and MiFis. However, these just are trademarked branded names. Jetpack - Owned by Verizon to refer to any mobile hotspot they sell for their network. MiFi - Owned by Inseego (formerly Novatel) referring to any mobile hotspot device they make.

If you're familiar with the “personal hotspot” feature on iOS (or “portable Wi-Fi hotspot” feature on Android), then you know what a jetpack does: It is a dedicated personal-hotspot device.

AT&T Prepaid $55 Mobile Hotspot 100GB Direct Top Up - Walmart.com.

A 40GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 480 hours, to stream 8,000 songs or to watch 80 hours of standard-definition video.

How many hours is 50GB of hotspot? ›

A 50GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 600 hours, to stream 10,000 songs or to watch 100 hours of standard-definition video.

5G and 4G LTE take on the form of mobile hotspots too. For rural folks who travel or live in an RV, a mobile hotspot is the best way to secure an internet connection on the go. You can either connect with your smartphone or a standalone device, but remember to check if the provider offers service in rural areas.

As a general rule, a 5G mobile hotspot is faster and better than a 4G hotspot because a 5G hotspot can deliver higher average download and upload speeds compared to a 4G LTE hotspot. 5G can offer average download speeds of around 150 Mbps compared to 4G LTE, which can enable between 50 to 80 Mbps.

How long will 5 GB of hotspot last? A 5GB data plan will allow you to browse the internet for around 60 hours, to stream 1,000 songs or to watch 10 hours of standard-definition video.

A Capable (But Not Future-Proof) 5G Hotspot

If your area recently got Verizon C-band, the Orbic Speed 5G UW is Mr. Right Now. This hotspot unlocks significantly better performance than older models at a relatively reasonable price. That's enough for it to earn our Editors' Choice award.

5G Ultra Wideband is fast enough to power your mobile gaming experience, even when you're on the move. So, next time you find yourself asking “how do I connect my PS4 to the hotel Wi-Fi?”, consider connecting to your Verizon 5G hotspot instead.

Even on cell phone plans with unlimited data, there will be a cap for how much data you can use as a mobile hotspot. Once you reach that limit, the data will be deprioritized, which basically means your data speed will slow way down until your limit starts over the following month.

The fact that 5G has a spotty worldwide reach and is currently only available in a few locations is its major drawback. The 5G network will primarily benefit cities; remote areas may not receive coverage for several years. The costs for installing tower stations are very high compared to other networks.

5G has lower latency than LTE. The 5G standard is intended to substantially reduce downloading latency down to 4 milliseconds for phone devices and one millisecond for devices such as self-driving vehicles that depend on ultra-reliable low latency connectivity (about ten times quicker than LTE's ten milliseconds).

Time duration with 100GB*

Your data should normally refresh every month or 30 days, so theoretically you have an average of 720 hours to fill a month. 100GB can last almost non-stop for the entire month, so you'd never have to connect to Wi-Fi if you didn't want to.

Does Verizon give unlimited hotspot? ›

Our current Unlimited plans give more Mobile Hotspot: 5G Get More – 50 GB/month premium Mobile Hotspot data , then unlimited lower-speed data. One Unlimited for iPhone, 5G Do More and 5G Play More – 25 GB/month premium Mobile Hotspot data , then unlimited lower-speed data.

Verizon provides anywhere from 10GB to 20GB more mobile hotspot data on all but its starter tier compared to T-Mobile. However, T-Mobile's Essentials scores you unlimited mobile hotspot data at 3G speeds.

5G has a reach of up to 100 meters. On the other hand, signals over the fiber can ideally travel over 70 kilometers without losing any signal in between. That makes 5G faster when compared to Fiber.

As such, you can still expect to use between 40MB and 300MB per hour for most games. This means you could expect 10GB to last between 250 and 33 hours, depending on the title you're playing.

100GB of hotspot is enough for gaming if you are only playing offline or single player games. However, if you are playing online multiplayer games, you will quickly use up your data allowance. In conclusion, 100GB of hotspot is enough for gaming if you are mindful of your data usage.