The Apple Watch is the perfect sidekick for your iPhone. With it, you can read messages, answer calls, and play music without picking up your phone. However, if you have a GPS + Cellular Apple Watch, you’ll need a cell plan to get the most out of your device.
While lots of plans exist for the Apple Watch, it can be hard to find the most affordable. If you’re wondering what a cellular plan costs for an Apple Watch, we’re here to help. Here are the best and cheapest data plans on the market.
1. Verizon Wireless
If you’re already a Verizon Wireless customer, you’re in luck. With the Verizon Connected Device option, you can add your Apple Watch to your existing data plan. It doesn’t matter if you have an unlimited data plan or a shared data plan; you can add your Apple Watch for a fee of $10 per month.
For $10 per month, you get unlimited 5G nationwide data on your Apple Watch. Your first 15GB is premium data, which is more than enough for 90 percent of Apple Watch users. After 15GB is used, your speeds are reduced to 600 KBPS. This is also plenty for an Apple Watch.
The great thing about the Verizon plan is that it adds on to any plan, whether it be an unlimited plan or a prepaid plan. So, you can get this Apple Watch plan as long as you’re a Verizon customer. The only downside is that some users report a $20-$40 activation fee.
2. T-Mobile
If you’re looking for a cheap smartwatch plan, consider T-Mobile. T-Mobile offers two plans for smartwatches. These plans are also the most affordable data plans for iPads. The cheapest plan is only $5 per month and offers 500MB of data. It’s not much, but for some, this might be enough—especially if you don’t use your Apple Watch much.
The $5 per month plan also offers the ability to buy data packs, and it gives you the ability to upgrade at any time. For $10 per month, T-Mobile offers an unlimited data plan for smartwatches and wearable devices only.
The only downside here is that you must be a T-Mobile Magenta user to get the $5 plan. You must also be a T-Mobile user in general for the $10 plan.
Not everyone is a T-Mobile customer, but if you’re serious about getting an affordable Apple Watch plan, switching could save you $60 a year or more. T-Mobile also gives subscribers a free year of Paramount+, which could be another incentive to switch.
3. AT&T
If you’re an existing AT&T customer, you can add an Apple Watch plan to your existing unlimited plan for only $10 per month. This add-on plan will allow you to use your existing data. There is a setup fee if you decide to go this route, but this is just a one-time fee.
The setup fee seems to vary, but most users claim it’s around $25. This may depend on your geographical area or how long you’ve been an AT&T customer, although we aren’t sure. Be sure to check with AT&T before signing up to confirm.
If you don’t have an unlimited AT&T plan, the price will be greater than $10. Also, some users have reported their bills being much higher after adding an Apple Watch to a non-unlimited plan. So, until the prices become more transparent, it’s best to avoid adding an Apple Watch to anything except an unlimited plan.
If you’re shopping for a new network and don’t have an Apple Watch yet, AT&T offers great deals on Apple Watches. Some users have reported getting $200 off an Apple Watch when they bought two at once. AT&T also offers the option to finance an Apple Watch.
The $10 Per Month Club
Aside from the other Apple Watch plans mentioned, many other carriers offer the same $10 per month option when you add an Apple Watch to an existing plan. However, these carriers might not have the same coverage or deals as the big three carriers. If you aren’t looking to switch to a new carrier, consider talking to your existing one; it might likely offer an Apple Watch plan.
Carriers like US Cellular, Xfinity Mobile, and Spectrum Mobile offer a $10 per month plan. However, these plans have activation fees, which vary, so be sure to check with your carrier first.
If you’re on a prepaid plan like Cricket, you won’t be able to get your Apple Watch connected. Other prepaid plans, like Tracfone, Net10, and Mint Mobile also don’t offer smartwatch connections. It seems that at the moment unless you get a plan only for your Apple Watch, you won’t be able to use a prepaid carrier.
What Is the Best Apple Watch Cellular Plan?
With so many plans available, it can be hard to pick which plan is best. For now, it seems like every plan is $10 per month (with T-Mobile as an exception), and you must be an existing customer to get a plan.
The T-Mobile plan is the cheapest plan overall at just $5 per month. T-Mobile also has excellent coverage and affordable data plans for your iPhone as well. And T-Mobile has frequent deals for new customers, giving you the most bang for your buck, which means T-Mobile is probably the best Apple Watch for now.
However, Verizon and AT&T are the top two contenders in the $10 per month category. While these plans are the same price as almost every other plan, they have features others don’t. For example, Verizon is the only plan that doesn’t charge extra for adding an Apple Watch to a non-unlimited plan. While you need an unlimited plan with AT&T, you can get a great discount on an Apple Watch from the AT&T store.
What to Watch When Getting a Plan for Your Watch
Before getting a cellular plan for your Apple Watch, be sure to watch out for activation fees, which seem to change frequently. Almost all carriers offer a $10 per month option, but this doesn’t include the activation fee. For example, AT&T has around a $25 activation fee, and Verizon reportedly has a $20-$40 activation fee, though some users can get an in-store discount.
Overall, getting a cellular plan for your Apple Watch will be fairly cheap if you add it to your existing carrier. This is a much better option than looking for a standalone plan. But if your carrier doesn’t offer a smartwatch plan, switching carriers is a viable option that could save you money.