Best Cell Phone Plans for Seniors

Consumer Cellular offers nationwide coverage and a great selection of phones for seniors, starting at just $20 per month for a single line. You can save even more if you’re a member of the AARP and you’re at least 55 years old, but keep an eye on your final bill. If you use a lot of data, don’t enroll in autopay with a checking account, or forget about taxes and fees, it might be higher than you think!

You can use any device you already own, or you can buy a phone directly from Consumer Cellular. The company has a selection of the latest smartphones with all the bells and whistles, or you can choose options designed just for seniors, such as the GrandPad or IRIS Easy Flip.

If you need more data, Consumer Cellular will upgrade you automatically. It’s easy to add extra lines to your plan too. Plus, its U.S.-based customer service team has a great reputation and won’t rush you through troubleshooting if you need to call in.

Lively Wireless offers simplified Jitterbug smartphones that are perfect for seniors who want to stay connected, hassle-free. The first option is a Jitterbug Flip2 phone that comes with large buttons and connects to your Alexa smart speaker. Alternatively, you can choose a Jitterbug Smart4 that lets you call, text, send emails, and browse the internet.

Both phones come with a big, red urgent response button on the home screen so you can easily get help in case of an emergency.

Even better, the Lively customer service team is always on standby. With any plan, you can get answers to simple questions and have the team order a Lyft ride for you. If you pay a little more every month, you can add family alerts, 24-hour urgent response, and nurse on-call services.

If you love accessing the internet on your phone and want to use any cell phone to do it, check out unlimited data plans from Visible. The starting price is low, and spam calls are blocked automatically.

The basic plan gives you unlimited data on Verizon’s robust network, but that data might be deprioritized if the network is busy. The Visible+ plan costs a little more, but you get premium features such as smartwatch service, 50GB of premium data, and faster hotspot data. Either way, video streams in SD quality.

With Visible Wireless, there are no contracts to worry about, but you can save money if you decide to pay annually. Taxes and fees are baked in, so there are no surprises when your bill arrives.

Boost Mobile is our top pick for seniors who want to shop in person, in a real store. We also like Boost’s payment structure. You can pay low rates month to month, and pricing on premium plans includes taxes and fees. Just watch for activation fees if you get set up in a store!

You can bring any cell phone you already own or buy one from Boost Mobile. If you’re on one of the more expensive plans, you can save big on the purchase price of a new phone.

But do low prices mean poor reception or insufficient data? According to customer reviews, it’s a resounding “no.” The Boost signal piggybacks on 5G towers from AT&T and T-Mobile, so you can expect fast speeds when you aren’t on Wi-Fi. Plus, you get 30GB of premium data on even the cheapest plan.

AT&T is a great option for senior couples who like to wander off the beaten path. You get access to first-priority speeds on the nation’s biggest 4G network, and it all comes with unlimited talk, text, and data in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Roaming is allowed, but you may be slowed to 2G speeds in certain areas.

Each line also gets 10GB of hotspot data per month. That’s plenty if you want to take a laptop, tablet, or smart camera along for the ride. However, your video speeds are limited to standard definition. That may not look super crisp on your shiny new iPhone 17.

When you choose two lines with this plan, you can save $120 per year compared to AT&T’s standard budget plan, AT&T Value Plus℠ VL. You can save even more when you bundle with AT&T home internet.