Tello vs Mint Mobile, Which is Better?

When it comes to choosing the cheap phone carrier, Mint and Tello are the leading two names that make all sense. Both these carriers offer affordable phone plans that cut the customer’s monthly phone bills right down to size. They both run on T-Mobile network and provide similar phone plans, so Tello and Mint Mobile can be alternatives to each other.

But since they offer equally cheap plans, consumers often get confused between Tello Vs Mint Mobile when making a final choice.

So, if you are sitting on the fence and have no idea which one to choose, then don’t worry as you are not alone in the club.

Therefore, to save you time and effort, we have done a bit of research on your behalf and outlined the major differences you need to know between Tello and Mint before committing to any of them.

By the end of this article, you will surely have a clear idea of which one is best for you. Let’s begin the comparison by understanding each of these carriers individually.

Carrier	Tello	Mint Mobile
Network	T-Mobile	T-Mobile
Minimum term	1 month	3 months
Maximum term	1 month	12 months
Hotspot	Included	Included
International Calling	60+ countries	To Canada and Mexico
Minimum data	None	5GB
Maximum data	Unlimited (35GB)	Unlimited (40GB)
Mininum cost	$5/month	$15/month

Tello Mobile

Tello is a small phone carrier operating on the T-Mobile network. It features a variety of plans and you can choose the one that fits your budget and requirements easily.

In addition to selecting the pre-designed plans, you can also build your own plan so you don’t waste a penny on data you don’t need. The plans are incredibly affordable and you won’t have to mess with contracts of any kind.

Tello`s plan is as low as $5/month, you can pay monthly and no contract, no credit check.

Mint Mobile

Founded in 2016, Mint Mobile is an MVNO operating on T-Mobile’s network. Unlike Tello, Mint mobile tends to focus more on mobile data for its customers. It has a unique model for a wireless carrier, and it all amounts to a good value.

At Mint Mobile, the extreme saving come when you make long contracts for one of Mint’s low-cost data plans.

Compare Tello and Mint phone plans price

When it comes to Tello and Mint Mobile, users first have to learn about the phone plans offered by both carriers to get a clear idea of what they will receive after signing up with them.

Tello Mobile Plans

Tello lets you build your plan starting at just $5 per month, with 100 minutes and unlimited texts. Basically, you can make a plan by adding what you are exactly looking for, be it unlimited calls, unlimited texts, or unlimited data.

Here, we have mentioned the pre-designed plans offered by Tello for readers’ sake of convenience.

Plan	Price	Data	Learn More
Economy	$10/ month	2GB	View Plans »
Value	$14/ month	5GB	View Plans »
Smart	$19/ month	10GB	View Plans »
Data	$25/ month	Unlimited (35GB)	View Plans »

All these plans come with unlimited minutes and texts, and these minutes can be used for calls to more than 60 countries. Plan renews automatically every 30 days.

In addition, you can set up a family plan and easily manage up to four lines with one account. However, no discounts are yet available on these family plans.

Mint Mobile

Unlike Tello, Mint Mobile has a much smaller plan’s menu, as they primarily focus on the data needs of the customer. In addition to 5GB, 15GB, and 20GB, Mint Mobile also offers an unlimited plan for heavier users, with 40GB of high-speed data and 10GB of hotspot data.

Scroll down the page and find all the plans offered by the Mint in the table mentioned below.

Data	3 Months	6 Months	12 Months
5GB	$15/mo.	$20/mo.	$15/mo.	View Plans »
15GB	$20/mo.	$25/mo.	$20/mo.	View Plans »
20GB	$25/mo.	$35/mo.	$25/mo.	View Plans »
Unlimited (40GB)	$30/mo.	$35/mo.	$30/mo.	View Plans »

All of Mint’s prepaid plans offer unlimited talk and text and WiFi calling and texting.

Additionally, you can use your 5G and LTE data for a high-speed hotspot. Keep in mind that once you hit your monthly high-speed data limit, your data speeds will decrease. However, you will still have unlimited data at these reduced speeds, so you won’t be completely disconnected when you reach your data cap.

Mint Mobile offers prepaid plans that make data management easy. Their plans are available in three, six, and 12 month options, each at a low monthly rate. You can adjust your plan at any time, making it convenient to test the service before committing to a full year with minimal financial risk.

In addition, all Mint plans include a free calling feature to Mexico and Canada. Mint also offers Mint Family Plan, which allows you to join up to five lines together.

Tello vs Mint Network Coverage

Since both Mint and Tello Mobile uses T-Mobile’s network, they both are even when it comes to your local coverage. Both these carriers offer better support and 5G coverage to their users so that they can enjoy uninterrupted data speed and incredible voice quality over calling.

However, where these carriers diverse is their phone compatibility. No matter how good the network coverage Tello offers, it still has the least phone compatibility than the Mint mobile due to its full reliance on VoLTE.

While Mint mobile is also using T-Mobile’s network, it has grown quite a bit in the past few years and has become coverage competitive with other major networks. In addition, Mint Mobile also supports uninterrupted 5G services, covering around 305 million people across the county.

So, all in all, when it comes to Tello Vs Mint Mobile in terms of network coverage, Mint Mobile might get a slight edge over Tello owing to its wide 5G support.

Tello vs Mint International Calls

It is mandatory to consider the concept of international calls when choosing between Tello and Mint Mobile, especially if your loved one resides abroad.

Tello features a free international calling feature for over 60 countries, including Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina, China, Denmark, Estonia, France, French Guiana, the Faroe Islands, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Italy, and many more. The free international calls are available for every customer, new or old with every Tello plan that includes minutes.

However, Mint Mobile, on the other hand, offers free calling to Mexico and Canada only. To connect to all other countries, you have to add extra credit. But rest assured as you will enjoy super-low international calling rates with Mint Mobile.

So, all and all, if your loved ones live overseas and the country is already included on the list of Tello Mobile, then it is wise to invest in one of the Tello plans that have minutes to stay connected with your near and dear ones.

This one’s surely a more specific feature overall, but for some users, it’s surely going to be a deciding factor and a major reason to go with Tello.

Tello vs Mint International roaming

So, you are a frequent traveler and confused between Tello and Mint Mobile. Indeed, you should be concerned about roaming services before making a final choice between these two MVNOs.

Tello provides International roaming to all Tello Mobile customers, but it is not included for free in any plan. Instead, customers need to use Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) balance in their Tello accounts to buy international calls, texts, and data. A minimum balance of $5 is required to activate international roaming.

The rates for calls, texts and data vary by country. However, most of the countries charge as follows: 

• Voice: 25¢/minute
• Text: 5¢/SMS
• Data: 5¢/MB ($50/GB)

You can check the rates for your destination here.

Besides, you can avail yourself of one of these two options while visiting abroad – WiFi calling and PAYG credit. WiFi calling and text is a feature available on the majority of Tello GSM-compatible phones.

However, this option will work only if you can find the WiFi around you; hence, it is advised to go for the PAYG credit to stay in touch with your loved ones while visiting abroad.

Mint, on the other side, offers an international roaming facility to ease the customers. This roaming service allows Mint Mobile users to add money to their international roaming balance in $5, $10, and $20 increments.

They offer a 1-Day pass for $5, which includes 1GB of high-speed data, 60 minutes of talk, and 60 text messages, usable within 24 hours in hundreds of countries. If you need more time or data, Mint offers a 3-Day pass for $10, which includes 3GB of data, 200 minutes of talk, and 200 texts. Additionally, there’s a 10-Day pass that provides 10GB of high-speed data, 500 minutes of talk, and 500 texts. For more details, you can check Mint’s official page.

So, Both Tello and Mint Mobile provide international roaming. If you travel a lot, either one is fine to stay in touch with your family and friends.

Tello vs Mint Customer Service

Both Tello and Mint Mobile tend to treat their customers well; hence, if customer support is the deciding factor, then you can opt for any of them without thinking twice.

While these carriers don’t single handedly makeup for the industry’s customer service problems, both of them do have a really good reputation as compared to other companies.

Tello Mobile retains a 4.5/ 5-star rating and Mint mobile has a 3.1/ 5-star rating on Trustpilot in the terms of customer support. So clearly Tello is the winner. Of course, there are certain negative experiences but overall, Tello seem to be among those rare companies that excel at giving people what they want.

Tello vs Mint: Which should you get?

So, that’s all about Tello Vs Mint Mobile. We hope this comparison guide will help you make an informed choice. Both Mint and Tello are absolutely affordable alternatives to the likes of T-Mobile, especially, if you are searching for a simple prepaid plan for the essentials.

However, both carriers appeal to a different base of users altogether. So, if you just looking for the basics, then opt for a cheaper plan at Tello; however, if data is your topmost priority, then pay for Mint Mobile.

Article Updates

July 31, 2024: Update Tello and Mint Mobile plans; Add Tello International Roaming features