Most people want to save on their monthly bills and it’s understandable, which is why budget carriers such as Straight Talk and MetroPCS (currently Metro by T-Mobile) are attractive options.
They both offer a variety of plans ranging from $20 to $80 per month making them quite affordable options among the carrier providers.
The best part of it all, the subscribers don’t have to trade coverage and reliable service for savings. Metro and Straight Talk operate on the major networks and as such, you’ll receive well enough network coverage and data speeds.
Now that you have two inexpensive carrier services in your hands, it may be hard to choose. There are definitely advantages and disadvantages of choosing one prepaid carrier over the other.
But you won’t know anything until you have the facts and information. Without wasting any more time, let’s discuss some of the differences and comparisons between MetroPCS and Straight Talk to help you make a better decision.
Table of Contents
Straight Talk overview
Straight Talk is a contract-free prepaid cellphone service and one of the most affordable prepaid carriers on the market. The low prices are hard to beat making it appealing alternatives to budgeters and people seeking savings on their monthly phone bills.
For so long Straight Talk has managed to keep its prices on the lower end by using cell towers from other companies. Simply put, Straight Talk is an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator).
Since the company has made agreements with multiple carriers to use their existing cell towers, their network coverage is much better.
Straight Talk operates on all of the four big networks. As a user, you pick the network that has the best coverage in your particular area.
Most of the time people receive comparable service to those directly subscribed to the big four networks. The affordable prices for the Straight Talk data plans are of huge help but there’s also a catch.
You will have to do without a couple of the bells and whistles available on carrier providers like AT&T and Verizon. That being said, some of the luxuries are easy to live without if it means saving some money.
Straight Talk Pros and Cons
Straight Talk Pros
- Excellent coverage on all of the major cellphone networks
- A wide selection of Android and iPhone phones
- International options are available
- Competitive speeds
- No contracts
Straight Talk Cons
- There are no family plans
- The customer service is below average
- Hotspots come with only the high-end plan
MetroPCS overview
After rebranding, MetroPCS was named Metro by T-Mobile. It’s still one of the most affordable carrier services with plans to suit everyone’s needs.
Not only does Metro offer incredible unlimited plans but also extras and perks to entice their new customers. Metro operates on T-Mobile’s LTE network and that means close to similar performance as T-Mobile.
T-Mobile has a reputation of providing a reliable and strong network nearly surpassing industry giants like Verizon and AT&T. Therefore, Metro users can rest assured they will not be dealing with an unreliable network.
MetroPCS: Pros and Cons
MetroPCS Pros
- Affordable plans most of which cost less than T-Mobile’s plans
- Data saving features to help prevent going over data allotments
- Great coverage thanks to the T-Mobile network
- Plenty of budget phones
- A simple selection of plans
MetroPCS Cons
- The rural coverage isn’t great
- Data deprioritization and data caps
MetroPCS vs. Straight Talk: Coverage
T-Mobile has made tremendous improvements in its coverage and performance in a bid to increase the number of subscribers.
Well, this move has worked so far and now it generally ranks high in categories like data speed and 4G LTE accessibility.
In fact, there are areas where you’ll find T-Mobile has better network reliability and speeds than the likes of AT&T and Verizon.
Metro operates on the T-Mobile network and as such, its coverage and performance in most places is similar or comes close to T-Mobile.
What mainly differentiates Straight Talk and MetroPCS is the carriers they use. Metro exclusively piggybacks on T-Mobile’s network.
If your area has reliable T-Mobile coverage, then you’ll have basically nothing to worry about. Most of the time the download and upload speed will match up to that of T-Mobile’s customers.
With that said, T-Mobile has good coverage in mostly the urban areas. This means the more rural areas suffer poor coverage. It’s definitely something important to consider especially if you live in a remote area.
Straight Talk runs on all the four major networks and all you have to do is select any of them. Unfortunately, users can only pick one network over the other.
There is no privilege of moving from one network to another depending on the best one. It all depends on the type of phone you bring.
If you bring a T-Mobile phone, then that’s the network you’ll use and so on. As for the users that bring an unlocked phone or buy the device from Straight Talk, they’ll use a GSM network. This can be T-Mobile or AT&T.
Before subscribing to any of the Straight Talk cellphone data plans, try to check and see the provider with the best coverage in your area. All the providers do well in terms of network availability and performance.
MetroPCS vs. Straight Talk: Plans
All of the Metro plans are prepaid with prices ranging from $30 to $60. Aside from the competitive prices, the prepaid plans are like bread and butter, simply smooth.
You won’t easily find a better deal elsewhere. Think of the 4G LTE coverage and 5 GB LTE mobile hotspot. This is all people look for in a prepaid service and to top it off, the speeds are quite good.
If you think that’s all you get, you are really wrong. All of your fees and taxes are included in the advertised prices making it an even better deal than the competition.
The unlimited plans consist of an LTE data allotment. But the perks seem to soften the blow. The 2GB plan costs just $30. Then there is the 10GB plan that comes with unlimited music streaming and costs $40.
If you want to enjoy some juicy perks, you’ll have to get one of the two unlimited plans. The $50 unlimited plan comes with 5GB of hotspot data, Google one capabilities, and 100 GB data allotment.
This is more than enough data to occasionally stream Stranger Things on Netflix. The $60 unlimited plan throws in Google One capabilities, Amazon Prime subscription, 15GB hotspot, and 100GB data.
Straight Talk on the other hand is like a buffet. A variety of things are laid out on the table for you to pick whatever you want. There is an option for everyone and similar to Metro, the prices are actually affordable.
The simplicity in the plans is what’s strikes us the most. The 3GB plan would do the trick for the users looking for unlimited talk and text at a cheap price.
The unlimited plans provide 10GB hotspot data, unlimited calls and texts, and a high data cap. Furthermore, you have the chance to add on other features such as additional data, international calling, and auto-refill savings.
Each of the carrier services has its merits and demerits. To cut the long story short, if you live in an area with good T-Mobile coverage, Metro certainly offers great prepaid wireless plans.
The solid speeds, decent coverage, and cheap prices are too good to ignore. In addition, some of its plans have additional features like unlimited music streaming from over 40 apps, Amazon Prime, and Google One subscriptions. Straight Talk doesn’t offer any of these juicy perks and as such, it’s fair to say Metro has the best plans.
Family plans
Unfortunately, Straight Talk doesn’t offer family plans to the customers. While they try to cover this with the two-line, unlimited plan, it doesn’t help much and the price for this is too steep.
It costs $90 per month and this might not be a good bargain for some people.
That aside, Metro has some of the best family plans around. Its two-line unlimited plan starts at only $80 a month which is $10 cheaper than Straight Talk.
It only gets better and better when you add more lines. It goes from cheap to cheaper. For instance, a 4-line plan can go for as little as $120 per month. If you search hard enough, you’ll always find great deals and promotions on Metro.
The difference in the Metro family plans is based on how much hotspot data you need to use. If you travel regularly, the more expensive family plans would be suitable because you get more hotspot data.
MetroPCS vs. Straight Talk: Selection of phones
Cellphone services don’t always offer a wide selection of the latest phones. Surprisingly, Metro does offer a long list of the popular phones on the market.
You’ll find brands like Motorola, LG, Apple iPhone, and Samsung Galaxy series among other brands. There is also the bring your own phone option. If you decide to bring an unlocked device to any of the networks, you’ll need to purchase a SIM kit.
Straight Talk is cheaper because its SIM kit only costs $0.99. Purchasing the same from Metro costs $10 but they also offer a credit to the people who buy it online.
Are you tired of your old phone that’s running out of storage and has a cracked screen? Both MetroPCS and Straight Talk have a great selection of budget phones most of which are priced under $300.
Their frequent promotions and offers ensure you strike an even better deal and greater savings. The best part of all, the customers are allowed to lease phones and pay for them via installments from both Straight Talk and Metro.
With Straight Talk, you can do it online in the comfort of your home. Metro requires you to do this in-store.
Paying for a phone in installments might seem good until you hear about the high-interest rates going up to 10%. This means you’re better off paying for the phone upfront and saving yourself the headaches.
MetroPCS vs. Straight Talk: Performance
Metro hops onto the T-Mobile network and as a result, you should expect high speeds. T-Mobile has some of the fastest data speeds amongst the major three carriers.
Unfortunately, the Metro customers are likely to experience reduced speeds during periods of network congestion. The T-Mobile customers get the priority so don’t be surprised when you see buffering in the middle of a movie.
Straight Talk too is vulnerable to deprioritization. But the average LTE speeds are at 31.0 Mbps. While this is a bit slower than what the major leaguers have to offer, it’s still good enough for most budget customers.
Customer service
From the industry studies, Straight Talk lags way behind the other telecommunication companies in the customer service category.
If you need assistance, you can quickly call 1-877-430-2355 but the response won’t be as fast you’d expect. Most of the time, you’ll be solving issues by yourself with Straight Talk missing in action.
Metro isn’t any better. Their online support has shown a little improvement but it’s still a work in progress. The phone reps are not that helpful either and more often than not, your questions won’t be answered properly.
When you reach out to them on social media, it can take hours before you receive a response. If you will be needing customer service regularly, budget carriers like Straight Talk and Metro are not your best bet. Move along.
Bottom Line
Both carriers are perfect options for budgeters. They allow you to save significantly on your monthly bill without compromising coverage and performance.
But if big savings are your main agenda, Metro by T-Mobile reigns supreme. It has great coverage, it’s pretty simple to bring your own device, and comes with some of the juiciest perks like Google One and Amazon Prime.
The service goes from cheap to cheaper when you bring multiple lines over to your account. With Metro, it’s all about real savings.
