Consumer Cellular vs. Mint Mobile: Is Mint Mobile a Scam?

Reader “Mac” recently sent me a message saying that when he talked to a Consumer Cellular rep about Mint Mobile, they made some not-so-flattering claims about Mint, saying:

“They use an inferior network and its customers are prioritized below other customers.
Mint Mobile is full of hidden fees.
Please be cautious by the one-time discount to get you to switch.
They will throttle your data once you use up what is in your plan.
Mint Mobile customers leave Mint Mobile at 5 times the rate Consumer Cellular customers.”

– Consumer Cellular Representative

He asked me if I had heard these claims. He was obviously wondering if there was any truth to them.

Are the Claims True?

Let’s look at the claims made by the Consumer Cellular rep about Mint Mobile, one by one.

“They use an inferior network”
Answer: Maybe?

The answer to this depends on what they mean by “inferior”.

Most cell phones use one of big three networks: Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile. If you’re talking about coverage area, the general consensus is that Verizon has the largest coverage area, followed by AT&T and then T-Mobile.

Consumer Cellular uses the AT&T network and Mint uses the T-Mobile network, so if you’re talking about coverage, you could say Mint’s network is “inferior”.

But, in my experience, I haven’t had a problem with reception on Mint Mobile at home or during most of my travels. I do remember one area in Big Sur that only had AT&T coverage, and no Verizon or T-Mobile. The reality is though, that in a populated urban area, you probably won’t be able to tell the difference between the networks. If you live in a rural area, you’ll probably want to check to see which of the big three providers has the best coverage in your area.

If you’re talking about data download speed, then T-Mobile is generally considered to have the fastest speeds compared to Verizon or AT&T. So in that respect, Mint’s network is “superior”.

But again, I think you would be hard-pressed to notice these differences in most situations.

“Its customers are prioritized below other customers”
Answer: Yes, but so are Consumer Cellular customers

It is true that the big three (Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile) will prioritize their own customers above customers of third party services that use their networks, such as Mint Mobile, and also Consumer Cellular, by the way.

So what the rep said about Mint is also true of Consumer Cellular.

But again, I’ve never had a problem making a call or downloading data from where I live. If Mint customers are prioritized lower than regular T-Mobile customers, I’ve never experienced it.

“Mint Mobile is full of hidden fees”
Answer: There are hidden fees with Mint and Consumer Cellular

Mint Mobile does indeed have hidden fees. Here are the fees on my $20/month Mint Mobile plan:

So, on my monthly $20 plan, the fees total $2.13. You can decide whether it is accurate to say that Mint is “full” of hidden fees though.

Oh, and by the way, Consumer Cellular has hidden fees too. From the Consumer Cellular website:

So both Mint and Consumer Cellular have hidden fees!

“Please be cautious [about] the one-time discount to get you to switch”
Answer: You probably should be more cautious about other carriers

As of March 2025, Mint Mobile’s website prominently claims, “Premium wireless plans starting at $15/month”. Aside from the aforementioned fees, they do have plans at that price if you pre-pay for a year, so the only inaccuracy about that statement is the omission of the fees.

In all cases, the “one-time discount” is a price that you can also get if you prepay for a year, and the prices and terms are clearly laid out on their website in a big chart.

I actually see much more deceptive advertising from other cellular providers. I think Mint’s pricing is pretty clear and not deceptive at all.

“They will throttle your data once you use up what is in your plan”
Answer: Yeah, that’s what limited data means. Consumer Cellular does it too.

If I sign up for 15GB/month and I go over that, my data will be throttled. The amount of data is clearly shown in their pricing chart.

Oh, and by the way, Consumer Cellular will also throttle your data when you run out!

The statement, while true, is really just a scare tactic.

“Mint Mobile customers leave Mint Mobile at 5 times the rate Consumer Cellular customers”
Answer: There are no stats to back this up

I asked Google’s AI to verify this statement, and here’s what it said:

While there’s no official data to confirm that Mint Mobile customers leave at 5 times the rate of Consumer Cellular customers, Mint Mobile does have a reputation for having a higher churn rate than some other providers, particularly due to its reliance on online sales and customer support.

– Google’s AI

While Mint might have a higher churn rate, that statistic might have been pulled from thin air.

So, What’s the Result?

While there is some truth to some of these claims, they are designed to scare you rather than be true disadvantages of Mint’s service. And some of these statements apply equally to Consumer Cellular too!

I don’t have anything against Consumer Cellular. It’s probably a great service. I’m just trying to cut to the truth of the claims made by their rep.

Mint Mobile’s Real Disadvantages (For Some)

It’s strange that Consumer Cellular is using these arguments because they have a real advantage that they didn’t mention: Consumer Cellular has physical locations where you can go for help, whereas Mint Mobile doesn’t. Being able to talk to a human being in person appeals to many elderly folks like my Mom, and that’s the reason that I didn’t recommend Mint Mobile to her.

I personally don’t need physical locations, and don’t want to pay extra for them. So, I prefer the lower cost of Mint Mobile. I’ve recommended it to my brother and my wife, and they love it too (and they love the money they’re saving every month!)

Another potential disadvantage of Mint Mobile is that they require pre-payment. It’s not a problem for me, but could be for some.

Conclusion

Mint Mobile works great for my family and me, but we live in the middle of Los Angeles with tons of cell towers everywhere. Your results may vary. If you live in a small town or rural area, you might get lower data speeds or flaky connections. For best results, check with someone who has the service in your area first before switching.

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