The 6 Best Cell Phone Plans in Arkansas: Coverage, Price, and More

Key Points

• T-Mobile is one of the best cell phone plans in Arkansas, offering 5G coverage across 93.74% of the state and affordable options like the Magenta and Magenta Max plans.
• AT&T covers 94.94% of Arkansas with 4G and offers discounted family plans, making it a great choice for residents who need multiple lines.
• Verizon has 99.11% coverage in Arkansas but lags behind in 5G service. However, it offers postpaid plans like the Unlimited Welcome plan with a Disney Plus subscription.

Arkansas is a state filled with natural beauty. But, depending on where you live, you may have access to many different cell phone plans or just a couple of choices. Whether you live in bustling cities or in the more rural woods, here are the best cell phone plans in Arkansas to look into.

Arkansas has many rural towns and areas, so it may seem difficult to choose the right phone plan. However, according to our research, the following options can be a great fit for many residents of Arkansas!

#1: T-Mobile

T-Mobile is one of the best cell phone plans in Arkansas for people who want immediate and easy access to 5G, with coverage across 93.74% of the state. And, luckily, T-Mobile often offers different plans that are affordable and change based on their consumers’ needs.

First, the two most popular plans with T-Mobile are Magenta and Magenta Max. While T-Mobile has talked about phasing these plans out in the future, as of right now, they are the top two options if you choose to go with this carrier.

The first plan, Magenta, starts at $70 a month for a single line. This plan offers unlimited everything — including texts, calls, and 5G data. Also, you aren’t locked into a contract, so you can downgrade or upgrade your plan at any time.

The Magenta Max plan is only more per month but includes all of the above plus a free Netflix subscription, Paramount+ subscription (for one year), and Apple TV+ subscription for six months. You’ll also get 40GB of hotspot on the Max plan versus just 5GB on the Magenta plan.

#2: AT&T

While AT&T is also building out its 5G connections, it’s not as robust as T-Mobile. However, it still manages to cover 94.94% of Arkansas when it comes to 4G.

AT&T has many different plans — over ten different options, in fact — when it comes to prepaid and postpaid options. However, we’re mainly going to focus on the unlimited options in this article.

While there is a “Starter Unlimited” plan, it’s not robust and costs around $65 a month for a single line. The better plans are the Extra and Elite plans, which include unlimited text, talk, and data.

The Extra plan also has 15 GB of hotspot data each month, and the Elite plan offers 40 GB. The best part about AT&T is that the company offers extensive discounts on family plans.

For example, instead of spending $75 for a single line on the Extra plan, you can have four phones on the plan and only spend $40 per line. That’s a savings of $35 per month, per line. So, this is a great option for residents who need more lines on a phone plan.

#3: Verizon

Technically, Verizon covers most Arkansas residents with a 99.11% coverage area. However, the company is severely lacking behind T-Mobile and AT&T when it comes to 5G service.

So, if that’s important to you, the other two options are a better choice. However, Verizon is great for those who live in more rural areas or who don’t get great service with T-Mobile or AT&T.

The main plans offered on Verizon, if you want a postpaid plan, are the Unlimited Welcome plan and the Unlimited Plus plan. The Unlimited Welcome plan includes unlimited texts, data, and calls, plus a Disney Plus subscription. This plan is $65 a month for a single line but gets cheaper the more lines you add.

The Unlimited Plus plan includes everything in the welcome plan, plus 30 GB of hotspot data. However, you’ll pay significantly more because this plan is $80 a month for a single line.

Unless you need the hotspot data, you’re better off choosing the Welcome plan. Luckily, Verizon offers many different discount options, including savings for military personnel, nurses, and teachers.

#4: Mint Mobile

If you prefer having a prepaid phone plan, Mint Mobile is a great option to start with. And, luckily, this MVNO works with T-Mobile towers, so you’ll still get 5G access, but for a much lower price.

Before we go further, it’s important to note that with Mint Mobile, you must pay three, six, or twelve months in advance, no matter which plan you choose. So unless you have the money to pay upfront, this may not be the best option for you.

Mint Mobile has four separate plan options — 5GB, 15GB, 20GB, and Unlimited. The 5GB is the cheapest plan at $15 per month, but only gives you 5GB of 5G data. We prefer the 20GB and Unlimited plans, which offer unlimited texts and calls, and then 20GB of data and unlimited data, respectively.

The 20GB of data plan starts at $40 a month but gets cheaper the longer you pay for. For example, if you pay upfront for a full year, the plan is only $25 a month. The unlimited plan is also $40 a month but becomes $30 a month if you pay for a full year.

While these plans are fairly cheap, Mint Mobile doesn’t offer any family plans. So, you won’t save any money if you add more lines. However, you can add up to four lines per plan.

#5: Pine Cellular

Pine Cellular is a small carrier local to Arkansas and Oklahoma. While it’s not the best option for many users, it works well for those who live in rural areas without a lot of phone plan options. The company claims that they cover 90% of Arkansas.

Pine Cellular is similar to Mint Mobile because they utilize T-Mobile’s towers to offer cell service to their customers. However, unlike some other phone carriers, they don’t offer many popular phones, like iPhones or Pixel phones.

So, you’ll need to have an unlocked phone before switching over to Pine Cellular if that’s important to you. Pine Cellular only has one plan — the Freedom Plan.

It costs $25 a month, offers unlimited text, talk, and data, and lets you have an unlimited number of phones on each plan. You also don’t need a contract to start using the service and can pay month-to-month if that’s what you prefer to do.

#6: Tello

Tello is yet another MVNO that works with T-Mobile’s phone lines, but it’s slightly different from Mint Mobile and Pine Cellular. First, it offers the cheapest plan on this list, which starts at just $10 a month. Second, it doesn’t require you to pay for months up front, as Mint Mobile does.

However, Tello isn’t very flexible when it comes to what it offers via plans. The cheapest plan is $10 a month but only offers 1GB of data (along with unlimited talk and text). That’s not a lot if you plan on streaming anything besides emails on your phone.

Once you get to the Unlimited Everything plan, you’ll be spending $40 a month, which is $10 more than Mint Mobile. So, it really depends on what your needs are when it comes to data.

If you want unlimited data, go with Mint Mobile. If you only need 1GB or 2GB a month, Tello is better because it’s significantly cheaper, and you can pay month-to-month.

Cell Phone Plan Recommendations

Picking the Best Cell Phone Provider in Arkansas

Overall, all of the cell phone providers in Arkansas offer great deals and options. However, here’s what to keep in mind before you choose a specific phone plan for you.

Price

As we’ve noted, some phone plans can be expensive, especially for a single person. This is because you won’t get the “family” or “multi-line” discounts that others can get. However, prepaid plans or getting discounts for being in a specific sector can help lower costs if that’s important to you.

Data Requirements

You’ll need to know if you utilize a lot of data each month or not to see if you need an unlimited plan or if a few GB is enough for you month to month. These days, it’s easy to get unlimited data, plus hotspot data, for a fairly affordable price. So, don’t settle if you don’t have to.

Coverage Area

Because Arkansas can be fairly rural, it’s important to make sure that your area has coverage from whatever phone carrier you choose. Nothing’s worse than getting home and realizing you can’t even use your phone.

The 6 Best Cell Phone Plans in Arkansas: Wrap Up

No matter which phone plan you choose, there are many that offer great service and coverage for those living in Arkansas. And many offer a flexible and easy way to work with the company, which is always nice for a consumer.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Sean Pavone/Shutterstock.com.