Independent since 2019 · No paid placement, ever Prices re-checked weekly · Last verified July 30, 2026
Carrier Guides 2 min read

Metro Starter Plus Review: $40 Unlimited, One Catch

Unlimited 5G for $40/month with a five-year price guarantee — the catch is you must port a number in and sign up in a store. Here's how it stacks against Visible, Mint, and Cricket.

Jean Gilles
Founder & Lead Analyst, ShopCellPlans
Published January 26, 2026
Updated January 26, 2026
The five-year price guarantee is the rare differentiator — almost nobody else locks a rate that long.

Metro by T-Mobile refreshed its prepaid lineup with a lower price point and a five-year price guarantee. The centerpiece is the Starter Plus plan: unlimited talk, text, and 5G data from $40/month for new customers who bring their number from another carrier.

Key takeaways
Unlimited 5G for $40/mo — but only with a number ported in, activated in-store.
The five-year price guarantee is nearly unique in prepaid.
The 10GB Starter at $45 is worse value than unlimited Plus at $40.
Metro gets higher prepaid priority than most T-Mobile MVNOs.

What the Starter Plus includes

  • Unlimited talk, text, and high-speed data on T-Mobile's full 5G network.
  • A five-year price guarantee — rare in an industry where rates drift up.
  • T-Mobile Tuesdays weekly perks and freebies.
  • Multi-line discounts for families.

Starter vs Starter Plus

The Starter plan is 10GB of 5G data for $45/month with no port-in requirement. Starter Plus is unlimited 5G for $40/month — cheaper AND bigger — but only if you bring your number from another carrier. Both carry the 5-year guarantee and T-Mobile Tuesdays. For heavy data users switching in, Plus is the clear pick.

In-store only
Starter Plus activation is exclusively in-store — you'll need to visit a physical Metro location to sign up and port. Sweetener: new customers can pair it with device deals like the iPhone 16e at $399 (down from $599).

How it compares

  • vs Visible ($25–35, Verizon): cheaper and all-digital — but no price guarantee or Tuesdays perks.
  • vs Mint (~$30, same T-Mobile towers): cheaper but paid annually upfront; Metro is month-to-month with the 5-year lock.
  • vs Cricket ($55+, AT&T): Metro undercuts it for unlimited with a guarantee Cricket doesn't match.
  • vs AT&T/Verizon Prepaid ($25–70): nobody else locks an unlimited rate for five years.

Verdict

A strong pick if you're porting in: unlimited 5G at $40 with a five-year lock is a genuine long-term win. The in-store requirement and port-in condition are the only friction. If a predictable, low bill matters most, Starter Plus deserves a close look.

See every plan we rank on T-Mobile's network

Metro against Mint, Ultra, Google Fi, and TextNow — priced and scored side by side.

Best T-Mobile MVNOs →
#Metro #T-Mobile #Prepaid #Price guarantee
Jean Gilles
About the author

Jean Gilles has researched personal finance, consumer technology, and wireless pricing for over a decade. He founded ShopCellPlans in 2019 and writes every review on the site.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to switch from another carrier to get Starter Plus? +
Yes — the $40 unlimited price requires porting a number in from another carrier, and activation is in-store only.
Is the price really locked for five years? +
Metro guarantees the plan rate for five years. Taxes and fees can still vary, but the base rate holds — a rarity in prepaid.
Metro or Mint? +
Same T-Mobile towers. Mint is cheaper (~$30) if you can prepay a year upfront; Metro is month-to-month with the price lock, in-store support, and typically higher network priority.
Price-change alerts
Get told when your plan’s price changes

One email when a carrier raises rates, drops a plan, or launches a deal worth switching for. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.