Just as when you’re choosing a phone company for your iPhone, there are a lot of choices when researching the best monthly iPad data plan. Luckily, these plans are a little simpler than phone plans: Just figure out how much data you need, and you’re basically done. Which company offers the best iPad data plan for you depends on your needs. To make the best choice, here’s a comparison of data plans offered by the four major phone companies.
iPad Data Plans From AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon
Another option is if your employer has a corporate or group discount with one of the carriers. You can get a deal on the iPad itself, though. That’s because phone companies discount the tablet’s price if you sign a contract, just like when you buy an iPhone. Signing that contract does lock you into years payments, but it can save you a bunch. For instance, Verizon charges $779 for an iPad Pro with no contract but cuts that price to $679 with a contract. If you’re sure you’ll keep years of data service on your iPad, a contract can save you big money. Just be sure to keep an eye out for Early Termination Fees (ETFs) that penalize you for canceling before your contract is up.
Ways to Save: Shared Data Plans
The prices listed above are for iPad-only data plans, but if you’ve already got at least one smartphone (it doesn’t have to be an iPhone) with a phone company, check out their shared data plans. Those plans often offer a better deal for multiple devices. For instance, AT&T’s Mobile Share Plan offers between 300 MB and 50 GB of data to split between all devices on your plan each month. If you’ve already got a smartphone data plan, you can probably add your tablet for just the per-device fee (with AT&T, that’s $10/month). The monthly charge for the device will almost always be less than the tablet data plan. As long as you don’t go over your monthly data limit, you’ll save money.
