Visible Wireless review: Unlimited high-speed data on Verizon's network for lower fees

With our comprehensive Visible Wireless review, you'll have a well-rounded idea about this Mobile Virtual Network Operator. If you’ve been looking to save some cash on your phone bill, you must've come across an ad for Visible and the unlimited data plans that it offers. Moreover, if you like everything unlimited and have been a customer of one of the mainstream carriers (e.g., T-Mobile, Verizon, or AT&T), Visible's prices can seem a bit too good to be true. However, before you make the jump, be sure to know what you’re getting and not getting with Visible.

With three simple yet feature-laden plans to pick from, Visible takes away all the effort and confusion from the picture. Fully owned and operated by Verizon, Visible uses the former's incredible LTE and 5G network infrastructure for coverage. Although it's true that the speeds you get with Visible might not match up to what you'll get with one of Verizon's premium plans, but the difference won't be a big issue. With Visible, you'll be getting unlimited data, access to Verizon's 'Ultra-Wideband' 5G network, unlimited hotspot connectivity, international usage, and much more.

Visible Wireless Review: Price and availability

Visible has three plans called Visible, Visible+, and the recently introduced Visible+ Pro. Of these, Visible is the starter plan and costs $25 per month for one line, with all taxes and fees included. It comes with unlimited talk, text, and data on Verizon's LTE and nationwide 5G networks, but you might experience slower speeds when the network traffic is high. The plan also has unlimited hotspot data functionality at a fairly modest speed of 5Mbps, but it's still better than nothing. You also get video streaming at up to 480p (SD) resolution.

Then there's Visible+ (or Visible Plus), which costs $35 per month for one line, again with all taxes and fees included. This plan enables access to Verizon's 'Ultra-Wideband' 5G network for blazing-fast speeds, while also giving you unlimited premium data. You get unlimited hotspot data functionality at an increased speed of 10Mbps, and among other notable additions are unlimited talk, text, and data while roaming in Mexico and Canada, as well as video streaming at up to 1080p (FullHD) resolution. There's also one day (per month) of 'Global Pass' roaming add-on thrown into the mix.

Lastly, there's Visible+ Pro (or Visible Plus Pro), which is the MVNO's newest offering. It costs $45 per month for one line, including all taxes and fees. In addition to having all the perks of Visible+ (Visible Plus), this plan packs unlimited hotspot data at a speed of 15Mbps. Other noteworthy goodies are calls to over 85 countries and unlimited texts to more than 200 countries, two days (per month) of 'Global Pass' roaming add-on, video streaming at up to 2160p (4K) resolution, and bunded smartwatch service.

As affordable as all three plans are, what's even better is that you get the choice to pay upfront for a full year of service. If you choose to do that, you can save even more cash, no matter which plan you choose.

If you need international features, Visible Plus or Visible Plus Pro make more sense but if you stay in touch with your overseas friends or family primarily via chat apps such as Telegram, you could save some money with the base Visible plan.

Visible does not have physical stores and is not available at Verizon stores either, so if you’re looking to get signed up, you’ll need to do it online through Visible’s website, or via the Visible app. Luckily, support for eSIM activation means you can get signed up in just a few minutes. If you have a phone with eSIM support, you can even try Visible and its network for free for 15 days.

Visible Wireless Review: What works well

If you’ve been following Visible for a while, you might be familiar with the carrier’s old plan which started at $40 per month with Party Pay bringing the monthly price down to $25. That plan is now gone, having been replaced with the base Visible plan, which itself has undergone quite a few changes over the past few months that now make it a fabulous value.

With the old plan, your phone needed to connect through one of Visible’s servers, and that often led to underwhelming speeds and higher ping times. Visible has changed that with these newer plans, which means that your smartphone can now access the network the same way any Verizon phone would. This also means your experience will be much closer to someone using a Verizon prepaid plan, and if the network isn’t that much congested, you can get some really fast LTE/5G speeds even on the starter plan.

Visible’s new plans came with a bump in speeds that was immediately noticeable. I put Visible through its paces by taking a drive through the countryside to a small town in the middle of some large hills. Visible’s coverage remained strong and never missed a beat as I used Google Maps for navigation, along with music streaming on my stereo system.

The speeds weren’t as fast or consistent as my AT&T connection in that area, but I only experienced a single dead zone tucked in between some buildings. For the most part, I was happy with the performance and would have been perfectly happy using it as my main line. I had multiple tests come in over 50Mbps and even some topping 100Mbps on LTE. After finding a spot on Verizon's nationwide 5G, speeds were solid at around 50Mbps.

Keep in mind that we really don’t need a ton of speeds on our phones, and the most important thing is that they remain consistent. Whether you’re downloading an app, making a video call, or just browsing online, Visible’s speeds are going to be more than fast enough for you to have a solid experience.

When Visible launched, it was harder to recommend as its network demands VoLTE support for calling. At that time, VoLTE was also inconsistent across versions of phones, but things are a lot better these days making it easier to bring your phone to Visible's network. You can check your IMEI on Visible’s site to be sure, but majority of the best Android phones like Samsung's Galaxy devices, Google's Pixels, and iPhones should work perfectly fine. I tested Visible via my Samsung Galaxy S20+, a phone that's quite old at this point, and it took less than a minute for the phone to get connected after I put the SIM in. With the much newer devices, your experience is likely going to be a lot better.

The phone I used doesn’t support Verizon’s C-band 5G network, so I was only able to test the so-called nationwide 5G network but overall, performance was quite good. I was also able to use Visible’s hotspot feature with no issue. Visible includes unlimited hotspot data at 5Mbps on the base plan, so you can effortlessly share your data with another device like a laptop or a tablet, as much as you want. Just keep in mind that the speeds won’t be enough to replace fixed home internet, but it’s great to have in a pinch. Visible’s hotspot even worked well as a backup connection with eero Internet Backup. As noted before, if you go for one of the two higher plans, your mobile hotspot speeds are to 10Mbps (Visible Plus) or 15Mbps (Visible Plus Pro), thus ensuring an even better experience.

I can’t praise Visible’s unlimited hotspot enough. While some carriers stick to chunks of high-speed data with severely limited speeds after, Visible’s consistency can make it a lot more useful in a pinch. One of my good friends switched to Visible on my recommendation a little over a year ago. Since then, he has had some medical issues that have seen him in and out of numerous hospitals and recovery centers.

His Visible hotspot was an invaluable ally throughout the whole thing allowing him to download the latest Nintendo Switch games (with some patience), keep his PC up to date, and even play some online games. Sure, the connection wasn’t perfect, but I’m extremely grateful he was able to fire up Sea of Thieves with some Discord with his friends who live hundreds or thousands of miles away when his other Wi-Fi option was overloaded to the point of being unusable.

As far as the basics of a phone plan go, calls and texts also worked as expected with no trouble receiving mass texts or completing calls. Calls were reasonably clear, and I had no trouble hearing the person on the other line.

Visible Wireless Review: What falls short

One of the ways Visible keeps people from wasting data on its service, at least on the base plan, is by limiting video streaming to 480p (SD) resolution. That’s good enough for YouTube and while it might be sufficient for many users, it's probably not sufficient today. If you're someone who can't compromise on video quality, it's recommended to go for either Visible Plus or Visible Plus Pro, which offer video streaming at up to 1080p (FullHD) or 2160p (4K) resolutions, respectively.

Visible's unlimited hotspot data is one of its key highlights, especially if you also have a number of other devices in your daily carry, such as a tablet, laptop, or gaming handheld. The 5Mbps speed restriction on the hotspot connection on the starter plan is noticeable in everything from browsing the web to downloading apps. And while it's great to see that the new Visible Plus Pro plan has a hotspot speed of 15Mbps, it would have been nice to also see the base plan get a little boost in this department.

Finally, the base Visible plan has access to Verizon’s UWB 5G signal. This makes a lot of sense because that network has more capacity than the low-band nationwide network, but Visible limits the speed to be more in line with nationwide 5G and LTE. While that's reasonable for the price of the plan, it seems odd after the way carriers like Verizon hyped the capacity and speeds of 'Ultra-Wideband' 5G. No wonder they don't show the 5G UW logo on the base plan.

It’s also worth noting that despite its low-cost focus, Visible does not offer a plan with ACP. ACP stands for Affordable Connectivity Program, and it gives cheap or free data access to those in need. This government assistance is available with a number of carriers such as Metro by T-Mobile, but not with Visible.

Visible Wireless Review: The competition

If you’re looking for unlimited data on Verizon's network, one of your next best bets after Visible is US Mobile. US Mobile has both a custom plan for light users, as well as two unlimited plans for heavier users. US Mobile's 'Unlimited Starter' plan is most similar to the base Visible plan, but it has a few differences that may make the carrier a better pick for some. Unlimited Starter starts at $25 per month and offers unlimited talk, text, and data with at least 35GB of high-speed data on Verizon’s network. Then there's the 'Unlimited Premium' plan, which is similar to Visible Plus and costs $35 per month, offering at least 100GB of premium data, as well as a few subscription perks if you bring three lines. US Mobile offers both multi-line and multi-month discounts as well for further savings, and its prices are inclusive of all taxes and fees.

If you’d rather go for the T-Mobile network, Mint Mobile should easily be one of your top considerations. As I noted in my Mint Mobile review, this prepaid carrier offers four data plans, all of which are fantastic. The highest unlimited plan has now removed its data cap, which makes it comparable to Visible's higher plans. Mint Mobile saves its consumers money by offering discounts to those who buy the service upfront in bulk. For example, Mint Mobile’s unlimited plan is only $30 per month (before limited-time promotions) if you pay for the entire year upfront.

Google Fi is a favorite for Android enthusiasts but hasn’t always been the best in terms of value. Luckily, Google Fi’s current plans are more competitive than ever with its 'Simply Unlimited' plan sticking out for domestic users. This plan trims all the fat and leaves you with 35GB of high-speed data and 5GB of hotspot data. It’s pricey at $50 per month for a single line but has multi-line discounts available so you can pay as little as $25 per month with four lines. Google Fi also makes it easy to upgrade to its premium plan if you end up needing to travel internationally.

Visible Wireless Review: Should you sign up?

You should buy this if...

• You need a high-speed data plan with no restrictions.
• You require unlimited hotspot data usage.
• You only have one line to get connected.
• You want to save on Verizon Home Internet.

You should not buy this if...

• You require high-speed hotspot connectivity.
• You are bringing over the whole family.
• You want HD quality streaming on the starter plan.
• You qualify for the ACP government assistance.

Signing up for Visible is really a rather easy choice when you get down to it. If you need unlimited high-speed data on your phone line and don’t want to deal with the nickel-and-dime tactics of postpaid carriers, Visible is arguably one of the best choices, with transparency on exactly what you’re paying upfront with all taxes and fees included.

Astute readers may have also noticed that quite a few carriers are offering service that seems to be modeled after Visible’s success such as US Mobile’s unlimited plans, and Google Fi Simply Unlimited. Visible has more competition than ever but it still offers one of the best values in wireless service. All this with a single line also makes it one of the best plans for one user; even with the lack of any multi-month discounts, you are never trapped with Visible. If you need unlimited wireless service and live in an area with strong Verizon coverage, preferably C-band 5G, Visible should be at the top of your list.

Review Changelog

This review has been updated with the latest information about Visible, including the recent introduction of the Visible Plus Pro plan, international features like Global Pass, and the option to pay upfront for an entire year of service. I tested Visible in months of November and December of 2022.