In recent years, the major cellular carriers have introduced cellular-based broadband plans designed to compete with traditional wired internet service providers by offering internet services to residences and businesses.
The major stipulation with all these options is that they are intended for fixed locations only and are only available in limited service areas where there is excess capacity. This means that these options are not viable for the majority of people who are looking for a mobile internet solution, though they might work for RVers and cruisers who are stationary or in a single location for a lengthy period (months).
T-Mobile's option is the most prevalent and it also is mobile-friendly unlike the options listed in GC. For full details of T-Mobile's home and small business internet service, see our dedicated gear center entry.
Verizon, and AT&T offer fixed-location Home Internet Plans, as do T-Mobile MVNO and partner brand Ultra Mobile.
These services utilize a cellular gateway router along with a dedicated fixed-location home internet data plan. The devices are only available to subscribers of the home internet plans and the plans reportedly can only be used in the included gateway device.
Service for these options is tied to the sign-up location and is not intended to be used as a mobile internet option. Mobile use is against the plans' terms of service, but these terms may or may not be enforced.
We are covering this in our Gear Center as it's an option for RVers and Cruisers who are often in one spot for an extended period of time.
Verizon Home Internet
Verizon Home Internet
Verizon offers two devices - one with 5G capability and one for 4G/LTE. Both devices are $240.
Verizon's 5G plans 5G Home plan costs $50/month and their 5G Home Plus plan costs $70/month with autopay discounts. If paired with a Get/Play/Do More phone line, these are 50% cheaper at $25 and $35/month respectively.
Their 4G/LTE plans are $25/month if paired with a Get/Play/Do More phone line, or $50/month as a standalone plan with autopay ($60/month without autopay).
AT&T Home Internet
AT&T Home Internet
AT&T's Fixed Wireless service can be purchased standalone for $69.99/month, bundled with a wireless line for $59.99/month, or bundled with DirecTV for $134.98.
Their plans only come with 350GB of data. Additional data can be purchased for $10/50GB.
The plans come with a "Wi-Fi Gateway Router" but there is no detailed information about the device on the plan page.
Ultra Mobile Home Internet
Ultra Mobile Home Internet
Ultra Mobile, an MVNO that both utilizes T-Mobile service and partners with T-Mobile to provide Tourist Plans, has added a slew of Home Internet plans to their cellular plan line-up.
These new Home Internet plans are specifically prohibited from use away from the address utilized at sign-up:
Your Data Plan is intended for Web browsing, streaming, messaging and similar activities while connected to the wireless network on your Device at the Device location (physical address) you provided to us when signing up for your Data Plan.
The plans, which are tied to a Netgear Orbi device that must be purchased through Ultra Mobile, do not provide unlimited data, and are also expensive in comparison to tiered data plans with comparable sums of data on T-Mobile (or AT&T or Verizon).
News, Videos & Status
We have tested the T-Mobile home internet service which is more mobile-friendly. Our review can be found here.
We have not tested any of the other residential cellular options.
Alternatives to Consider
For other popular mobile routers on the market we are tracking - here are our featured options:
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Routers can serve as a central conductor of your local area network in your RV and boat. Mobile routers are different from residential routers in that they typically support multiple internet sources like cellular and Wi-Fi, can be powered off of 12v or AC and support external antenna for better receiving signal.
But you might not need a router in your setup. Here's a quick video overview the variety that routers come in:
For more on learning about mobile routers and how they might fit in your setup, follow up with our educational resources:
Mobile Internet Resource Center is founded by Chris & Cherie of