Frontier vs. T-Mobile: Which Is Best for You?

Compare Frontier and T-Mobile head-to-head

The choice between Frontier and T-Mobile 5G Home Internet boils down to how much internet speed you need. Frontier’s speeds are top-notch, and its fiber internet connections come with increased performance compared to the competition, but its policies can be a bit tricky to navigate.

On the other hand, just about everything is easier with T-Mobile. Its one-size-fits-all approach takes a lot of the headache out of purchasing, installing, and using a new internet service. The downside is T-Mobile only offers one plan, so you have to make sure that plan is fast enough for your needs. If it is, we recommend going with T-Mobile for the added convenience.

Pros and cons: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

Jump to: Plans and pricing | Extra fees | Customer ratings | Bundles | Internet connection types | Data caps | Contracts | Installation | Availability

Jump to:

• Plans and pricing
• Extra fees
• Customer ratings
• Bundles
• Internet connection types
• Data caps
• Contracts
• Installation
• Availability

Plans and pricing: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

Frontier plans and pricing

Frontier has some incredibly fast plans. We think the Fiber 500 plan is best overall. You get 500Mbps of symmetrical internet speed for less than $50 per month. That’s enough speed to run five simultaneous 4K video streams and still have half of your bandwidth to support other tasks. Most Frontier internet plans also come with symmetrical internet speed (which means your upload speeds are equally as fast as your download speeds) and the increased reliability of fiber internet’s more elegant infrastructure.

On a lower note, Frontier’s price hikes are a major downside. For example, the Fiber 200 plan seems like a great pick for the budget-conscious, but its price doubles after only six months. Some Frontier rates are only guaranteed for a set amount of time, often for 12 months. This makes things even more difficult, as you don’t know how much the price will increase; hopefully not as drastically as the Fiber 200 plan!

T-Mobile plans and pricing

T-Mobile’s single internet plan is the shortest path to simple but great internet service. T-Mobile 5G Home Internet uses a fully wireless 5G signal from cell towers, so it can be installed by the customer in about 15 minutes: no cables, no appointments, and no hassle.

While T-Mobile isn’t as fast as Frontier, its speeds are nothing to scoff at. With bandwidth up to 250Mbps, T-Mobile is more than capable of handling average internet needs; However, it’s worth noting you can only expect T-Mobile’s max speeds in areas with decent 5G reception.

When it comes to internet speed, you only need enough to cover your online activities and a little extra headroom for bandwidth-heavy days. Any more than that is a waste; you don’t receive any benefit for purchasing more internet speed than you need.

T-Mobile’s no-nonsense approach to internet service means very few unexpected fees, with the only ones being a one-time activation fee and state-dependent late fees.

Frontier offers free internet equipment, but that’s where the good news ends. While the fiber installation is free, you get charged for it retroactively if you cancel your plan in the first 12 months. Frontier also employs a restocking fee, a very rare practice for internet service providers (ISPs); you’re charged $50 for simply canceling your plan any time after the first 30 days. There’s also the more common no AutoPay, paper bill, and late fees.

Customer ratings: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

T-Mobile customers gave much higher ratings than Frontier customers in our annual customer satisfaction survey. In fact, T-Mobile scored some of the highest ratings we’ve ever seen from a national internet provider, with exceptional feedback for price and overall satisfaction.

Frontier received consistently fair-to-low ratings, but we think this may be primarily due to its DSL service. When we separated Frontier’s DSL customer feedback from its fiber customer feedback, its overall average ratings improved. With that in mind, our Frontier recommendations come with the caveat that your home falls uses its fiber connection anyway.

Internet types: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

Frontier’s fiber internet is the best type of internet connection you can get. Aside from more bandwidth, lower latency, and increased reliability compared to all other internet types, fiber internet is the only internet type with symmetrical speeds, which means exponentially faster upload speeds.

T-Mobile offers fixed-wireless internet, which runs on the same technology that delivers internet signal to your cell phone. This is how T-Mobile can offer internet service without installing any cables in customers’ homes.

In general, we think both of these internet types will work well for most customers. That being said, if you have particularly heavy bandwidth needs, or are looking for the lowest possible latency for online gaming or video calls, we recommend you choose Frontier’s fiber internet over 5G fixed-wireless. On the other hand, if you just want the breeziest experience possible, T-Mobile should be your pick.

Data caps: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

Neither T-Mobile nor Frontier imposes data caps. Feel free to stream, game, download, and surf away without a second wasted worrying about how much data you’re using.

Contracts: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

T-Mobile doesn’t impose a term contract. You can cancel anytime without any penalties, plain and simple. Even better, your rate is guaranteed indefinitely.

Frontier’s policies are a little more tricky. Sure, there’s technically no term contract, but Frontier will charge you a prorated portion of the hefty $100 installation fee if you cancel before 12 months is up. Additionally, you’ll pay a $50 restocking fee regardless of when you cancel.

Installation: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

T-Mobile has the easiest internet installation process in the business. All you need is your T-Mobile gateway and smartphone with the T-Mobile Internet app. The app will even help you find the best spot in your home to place the gateway. The whole process takes about 15 minutes, with no cables or inconvenient installation appointments.

Frontier’s fiber internet installation is free (unless you cancel your contract after the first 30 days and before the first 12 months of service). The installation itself may or may not require a technician.

Availability: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

According to the FCC, Frontier coverage is available to roughly 5% of U.S. households, and about 3% of that coverage represents fiber internet connections. Frontier’s coverage is scattered throughout the continental U.S. with dense pockets in southern California, Connecticut, New York, the Midwest, and Texas.

T-Mobile’s 5G home internet uses its massive nationwide cellular network. You can get it in most heavily populated areas.

Use our zip search below to see if either service is available in your area.

Final call: Frontier vs. T-Mobile

If you need more than 250Mbps speeds, Frontier is the obvious choice, provided you have access to its fiber plans. You also may appreciate Frontier’s fiber more if you’re a remote worker, content creator, or anyone that relies heavily on stable internet service. You’ll get your fast speeds, a fancy fiber connection, and a great introductory rate. But as we covered, you’ll also encounter a few uncommon fees, and, eventually, your rates will go up.

If you have average internet needs, such as streaming and surfing the web, and a household with four or fewer people, we say give T-Mobile a shot. The speeds are perfectly adequate, and you bypass a lot of the usual ISP annoyances like expensive installations and term contracts. Additionally, you’ll be up and running a lot faster with T-Mobile’s seamless onboarding experience.

Methodology

Our HighSpeedInternet.com editorial team bases our analyses on customer input from our annual customer satisfaction survey, results from our speed test tool, and proprietary internet provider data on speeds and pricing. To strengthen our research, we look closely at provider contracts to get hard-to-find information on price hikes, data caps, and extra fees, and we keep tabs on the latest news reports and online reviews. When applicable, we also rely on our personal experiences testing these services.