Sprint and T-Mobile were two major competitors in the mobile market. They have now merged to become one of the biggest mobile operators in the United States. They are still operating their services as separate entities at the moment to some degree.
What customers will find with the merger is some advantages for both, and some things will stay exactly the same. For example, plans don’t need to change, but your coverage can be expanded either while roaming in T-Mobile regions or by switching to a T-Mobile SIM card.
Detailed below is a full review of Sprint and T-Mobile so you can make a decision on who you’ll go with or even who you should be staying with.
| Sprint | T-Mobile | |
| Best 4G Coverage | ✅ | |
| Best 5G Coverage | ✅ | |
| Best Overall Coverage | ✅ | |
| Lowest Prices | ✅ | |
| Perks | Hulu, Tidal, Amazon Prime, Lookout | Netflix |
| Unlimited Premium Data | 50-100 GB before speeds are lowered. | 50 GB Guaranteed |
| Hotspot Data | 500 MB – 50 GB hotspot data. | Unlimited but limited speeds. Up to 20 GB of 4G speeds. |
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Prices and Plans
With the merger, it’s no longer possible to get new Sprint plans. Anybody currently with the Sprint plans can keep what they have or even switch to a newer and potentially better T-Mobile plan.
| Sprint | T-Mobile | |
| Plan Name | Unlimited Basic | Essentials |
| Price | $60 | $60 |
| Data Included | Unlimited, but lower speeds after 50 GB | Unlimited, but lower speeds after 50 GB |
| Premium Data | 50 GB | 50 GB |
| SMS / Voice | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Hotspot | 500 MB | Unlimited 3G speeds |
As you start moving up to the more expensive plans for both companies, you do find Sprint can be cheaper and offers some added benefits such as higher hotspot usage before getting slower speeds.
Sprint and T-Mobile have very similar plans, but T-Mobile edges Sprint out by offering better hotspot access, though if you don’t use hotspots, then the plans are basically the same.
Sprint Pros and Cons
Sprint Pros
- Good entertainment package perks, with many free services.
- Increased coverage thanks to T-Mobile purchase.
- Excellent amount of premium data before you are limited in speed, more expensive plans have even more when compared with other carriers.
Sprint Cons
- Purchased by T-Mobile, so your choice for new plans and features will be what T-Mobile brings out.
- Coverage is extremely poor, at around 40% of the US.
- Poor customer service based on online reviews.
- Can no longer change plans except to T-Mobile plans, so lose perks.
T-Mobile Pros and Cons
T-Mobile Pros
- Clear cost on plans. There are no hidden fees or taxes after you select the plan you want.
- Good coverage and ranked in the top 5 providers for coverage.
- Reasonable perks, Netflix is provided for free with many plans
- Have excellent rates for international roaming for frequent travelers.
T-Mobile Cons
- Plans are expensive, often within $10 of the most expensive providers.
- For the price, the coverage is not as good as some of the bigger providers.
- Unlimited plans will still limit your download speeds during peak times.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Coverage
Sprint consistently comes in with the lowest coverage between the big carriers; it’s generally sitting around 40% of the US being coverage, so many people just don’t have the option of using them.
On the other hand, T-Mobile is generally ranked in the top 5, if not top 3 for mobile coverage in the US. It falls behind AT&T and Verizon by a small margin. T-Mobile will start incorporating all of Sprint’s infrastructure into their network, which will increase their coverage to compete with the other carriers.
None of that matters though, if either company doesn’t have coverage in your area or where you plan to travel to, So check the coverage maps before picking Sprint or T-Mobile. If you find either has poor coverage in your area, you can wait for the merger to complete to see how that changes for you.
With the merger of Sprint and T-Mobile, there are some advantages to both customers. You now have extended roaming coverage across both their networks. You also have the option of switching out your Sprint SIM card for a T-Mobile SIM.
If you stay with Sprint but use a T-Mobile SIM, you will get access to the much better T-Mobile network. Ultimately all Sprint customers will be moved onto the combined network once that work has been done.
T-Mobile wins the coverage comparison easily.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Speed
Even though Sprint and T-Mobile will be merging unless you switch to a T-Mobile sim card, you will be using different networks. T-Mobile is consistently 50% faster than Sprint, so there is no real comparison between the two.
The only benefit of the Sprint speeds would be if T-Mobile has poor coverage in your area, so checking the coverage maps above would be worthwhile.
Sprint customers do have roaming access to T-Mobile, so they will switch to T-Mobile if their coverage is poor. They can even get a T-Mobile SIM to exclusively use T-Mobile coverage which is a significant benefit to them.
T-Mobile wins the speed comparison with Sprint. But Sprint now has the option of using both T-Mobile and Sprint networks, so it’s tough to really say Sprint loses now that they’re merging.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Perks
Sprint and T-Mobile both offer an entertainment package with most of their plans. For T-Mobile, this is only Netflix, while Sprint customers get access to a number of streaming services for free, including Hulu, Prime, and Tidal.
Hulu and Prime are great options, and Tidal is a music streaming tv service. You’ll also get access to a security feature called Lookout, which helps protect you from ID theft and malware, which may or may not be a good perk for you.
T-Mobile also offers a membership site that offers perks and discounts on Tuesday. So you can sign up, and every Tuesday, you’ll have options for discounts and deals for a variety of different places.
For the same plans, I find Sprint offers a better perk package. You’re guaranteed to get the entertainment packages, whereas T-Mobile Tuesday perks may not provide anything you actually want.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Reputation
T-Mobile has a fantastic reputation, offering excellent service, great customer support, and overall putting customers at the front of what they do. T-Mobile is ranked highly in online reviews and hasn’t had any significant upsets to tarnish its reputation.
On the other hand, Sprint is well known for having poor service, with slower speeds and weaker coverage. They do offer low prices on some of their plans which can’t be beaten, and they’re not known for having a poor customer service reputation, just purely poor service.
All of that won’t mean anything soon as T-Mobile is slowly rebranding everything that was Sprint to become T-Mobile. This includes the website, the stores, and employees, and service will gradually move over as well.
So everything you like about T-Mobile is going to be put into Sprint as it slowly gets absorbed. So for that reason, T-Mobile wins the reputation comparison.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile Verdict
T-Mobile has won all comparisons with Sprint, aside from the perks. T-Mobile offers faster service, better coverage, and a better future. The plans between both companies are pretty similar, though T-Mobile beats Sprint in hotspot allowance.
The only thing Sprint really wins is having a few cheaper plans, and their perks are better for me.
There is a reason that T-Mobile is absorbing Sprint and not the other way around. T-Mobile has been providing a better service to customers, and with the addition of Sprints coverage and infrastructure, they’ll start being a lot more competitive with AT&T and Verizon.
Sprint vs. T-Mobile: Which is Better?
If you are trying to decide between getting a Sprint phone vs. a T-Mobile phone, then the choice has been made for you. Unfortunately, you can no longer get Sprint or its plans unless you are an existing Sprint customer.
Even if you could still get Sprint plans, I would personally pick T-Mobile; the coverage and speed are better. The plans are almost identical with similar features and prices, so there’s not much to gain from Sprint.
The only big selling point of Sprint over T-Mobile is the slightly better price at the higher-end plans, and the entertainment bundle gives you more, which is a cost-saving if you get those channels anyway.
As an existing Sprint customer, you may want to stay with them, as you’re getting the same plan for a potentially better price than new T-Mobile plans. You’ll keep your perks which are better. You’ll also now get access to T-Mobile’s network, which is a significant benefit without having to change much.
Ultimately Sprint customers will all be moved over to T-Mobile, so if you do stick out with the older plans, you may get some additional perks when T-Mobile wants to push you onto one of their newer plans so they can decommission everything Sprint-related.
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