I’m staying with T-Mobile even though it’s gotten worse.

It’s been just over four years since John Legere stepped down as CEO of the company. T-Mobile. Under Legere, the nation’s fourth-largest wireless carrier grew exponentially. It absorbed Sprint and became the second largest carrier in the United States by both revenue and subscribers. It also significantly reduced the gap between him and the number one player. Verizon. In short, these are good times for Team Magenta.

Despite this success, after Legere left, T-Mobile went south from a consumer perspective. Most of the significant moves to phase out air travel taken during his tenure have been either watered down or, in some cases, simply reversed. Prices have also gone up, and there have been a few controversial changes that subscribers like me didn’t like. It’s all a bit like bait: T-Mobile lures customers in with consumer-friendly features and promises, and then gradually abandons them.

However, despite this, I remain a loyal T-Mobile customer – and will probably never switch.

Where do I even begin to discuss all the problems T-Mobile is facing today? Prices have gone up and this is probably the most frustrating problem. Five years ago you could get one line on T-Mobile’s ONE plan for $70 with autopay included, but now you’ll have to pay $75 for Go5Gwhich is the development of this plan. Five dollars may not seem like a lot, but it’s still an increase that adds up to an extra $60 per year. The situation gets worse when you add more lines as it also doesn’t give you the same level of discounts. For example, a family of four paying autopay on T-Mobile ONE would pay $160 per month or $40 per line, assuming no limited promotions. Today, a family of four under the same circumstances would pay $180 for Go5G, which adds up to a comparative cost of $240 per year.

To make matters worse, the benefits offered through T-Mobile plans have been watered down significantly. For example, you are used to receiving advertising without advertising Netflix paid for by T-Mobile on the standard ONE plan. However, with one Go5G line, you will no longer get Netflix for free. You’ll need to get two Go5G lines or upgrade one line to a higher-tier plan to get the Netflix on Us promotion—and even then, you’ll get an ad-supported version of the service. Of course, this probably has a lot to do with Netflix raises prices and changes plansbut that still doesn’t change the fact that you’re now paying more for T-Mobile service and getting less in return.

Another softened benefit is onboard Internet access. With T-Mobile ONE, you get unlimited texting and one hour of Wi-Fi on all supported flights. Now you have no access to Wi-Fi at all on Go5G. Instead, you get unlimited text messages, one hour of streaming on all flights (via select supported apps), and then four credits each year that can be used for full streaming. This means that something as simple as checking your email during a flight will cost you extra.

However, one of T-Mobile’s most controversial changes happened just recently. Until October 2024, all premium plan users received the same discounts on new devices. In other words, if T-Mobile offered $800 off a new Google Pixel 9 everyone with a Go5G plan, everyone with that plan received this discount, regardless of whether the price of your Go5G plan was reduced because you are over 55, an active military member or a veteran, or a member of the military emergency response. Today, however, this is not the case. If you have the “regular” Go5G plan, you get the full $800 discount, but the 55+/military/first responder versions of the Go5G plan get a reduced discount. Many people, especially RedditConsider this a slap in the face to our nation’s seniors, military personnel, and first responders.

T-Mobile Tuesdays, once filled with awesome weekly giveaways and discounts that added value to your subscription, have also waned over the years. I even wrote an entire article about recent problems with T-Mobile Tuesdayswhich include limited offers that only apply to certain areas of the country, an over-reliance on T-Mobile, and too much emphasis on offers that require you to hand over your email address or credit card information.

Finally, moves without an aircraft carrier began less frequent and less effective for clients. If you go to the official T-Mobile page and view history of events without an aircraft carrieryou will see that each of them happened under John Legere. In other words, since 2020 there has not been a single event without a carrier at which the company at least feels the need to stand out.

I realize I’ve spent a lot of time analyzing all the problems I’ve encountered at T-Mobile over the last five years or so. However, despite these challenges, T-Mobile still has plenty of opportunity. It’s important not to let a few bad things overshadow all the good things.

For example, although T-Mobile has raised prices, it still underperforms postpaid plans as AT&T and Verizon. One line on Go5G will cost you $75 per month, including all taxes and fees. Meanwhile, AT&T’s most comparable plan, Unlimited Extra EL, costs $1 more. AT&T plans also don’t include taxes and other fees in the list price, so you could end up paying a lot more than $76, depending on your location. Likewise, the Verizon plan that’s most similar to Go5G is myPlan Unlimited Plus, and it costs $80 per month—again, before taxes and fees. So yes, T-Mobile has raised prices, but you’re still paying less than you would for Ma Bell or Big Red.

Not only do you pay less for T-Mobile, but you get more. Verizon makes you pay extra to connect to streaming services like Apple Music. Disney Plusand others, while AT&T doesn’t offer any streaming services—not even MAX (formerly HBO Max), which is confusing considering it owns the property. Although T-Mobile has toned down the Netflix on Us promotion, it still exists along with other similar free offers such as Apple TV Plus and Hulu subscriptions for certain plans.

Additionally, while T-Mobile Tuesdays as a whole has weakened from its early glory days, there are still some real gems. I recently used a promo code to get a free Shack Burger from Shake Shack ($7.99 value) and just a few days ago I received a free chocolate chip cookie from Crumbl. These deals aren’t life-changing, but who doesn’t love a free burger and free cookies?

Another benefit is T-Mobile’s customer service. I understand that not everyone has the same experience with customer service representatives, but my interactions in this area over the years have been consistently excellent. It’s easy to get a person on the phone quickly, and once I do, my problems are usually resolved in one call. I don’t have experience with AT&T and Verizon customer service so I can’t fully compare the two, but from what I’ve seen online, both companies have a lot of work to do in this regard.

Finally, T-Mobile Company Values match mine. T-Mobile celebrates Pride Month annually to support the LGBTQ+ community, invests significant amounts of money and resources to reduce the digital divide, and makes smart efforts to improve sustainability and reduce its environmental impact. Of course, the company has a lot of room to get even better in these areas – and it’s still a for-profit organization that puts making money above everything else – but at least it’s trying to do the right thing most of the time. The same can’t be said for Verizon or AT&T. Both companies have an “F” rating across all indicators based on their results. American Democracy Scorecardfor example, putting them on par with Comcast and Boeing.

I’ll readily admit that T-Mobile has lost some of its luster over the past few years. Mike Siefert, who took over as CEO after John Legere left, was not as popular or effective as his predecessor. The company’s prices have crept up and it is gradually cutting back on promotions and incentives. However, I am still a loyal customer and will continue to encourage friends and family to switch to T-Mobile if they haven’t already. In my opinion, this is the best carrier in the US, offering good value for money at relatively low prices.

Besides, even if I wasn’t happy with T-Mobile, where would I go? I certainly don’t want to pay more and get less from AT&T or Verizon. My only option is to upgrade to a prepaid plan, but that doesn’t really suit my lifestyle. I fly a lot, so T-Mobile’s free in-flight Wi-Fi on the Go5G Next plan is a perk I don’t know if I could live without, and 50GB of high-speed hotspot data every month allows me to do just that. my work is from almost anywhere in the world. To my knowledge, there is no prepaid plan with both of these benefits—not even a postpaid plan from AT&T or Verizon with both of these benefits!

T-Mobile would have to get a lot worse for me to jump ship. On the other hand, I would switch to a company that offers more than T-Mobile at the same or better price. However, the likelihood of this happening is incredibly low given the logistical hurdles a new carrier would have to overcome to even remotely compete with the Big Three US airlines. And if anyone reading this thinks Verizon or AT&T can change and become better than T-Mobile, I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I can sell you.

I’m not a T-Mobile fan – I would happily leave if there were good reasons to do so – but I’ve been with Team Magenta for over a decade because they are objectively the best team for my needs. Until that changes, every phone I own will have a T-Mobile SIM card.