US Mobile (Light / Unlimited) review 2027

What problem does US Mobile solve for a long US stay?

Travel eSIMs are built for a week or two. US Mobile is built for the stay that lasts. It is a real US carrier plan delivered as an eSIM, which means a US phone number with real calls and texts, not just a data bucket. For a long US stay this beats every travel eSIM: a real number, Verizon coverage if you want it, and a lower monthly cost. It stops working at the border.

The plan is monthly and cancellable rather than a fixed bundle, so you are not locked into a 30-day window that expires mid-trip. The Starter plan runs $17.50 a month for unlimited. If you need a US number — for a bank, a landlord, a doctor's office, a delivery — this is the one in this test that gives you one.

How did we score US Mobile at 8.6?

We scored it across five criteria, each with a fixed maximum.

• Coverage & network quality — 27 out of 30. This measures which carriers each eSIM roams onto in the US and abroad, and measured speed on the same handset in the same three locations. US Mobile lets you choose Verizon, T-Mobile or AT&T, and no travel eSIM here offers Verizon.
• Price per gigabyte — 21 out of 25. This measures cost per GB on a typical 10 GB, 30-day plan, and what a top-up costs. US Mobile came in at 1.75 USD per GB.
• Setup & activation — 12 out of 15. This measures time from purchase to working data, QR or in-app install, and whether a US number comes with it. US Mobile includes a US number, but activation took nine minutes because of the identity check.
• Flexibility — 14 out of 15. This measures plan lengths, regional and global bundles, hotspot allowance, and whether unused data rolls over. US Mobile is monthly and cancellable, supports hotspot, and rolls over data on some plans.
• Support — 12 out of 15. This measures reachability when activation fails abroad, refund policy, and the quality of the app.

Where does US Mobile stand out?

Three measured results separate it from the travel eSIMs in this test. First, network choice: you pick Verizon, T-Mobile or AT&T, and Verizon is not available on any travel eSIM here. Second, cost per GB: 1.75 USD on a 10 GB plan, the lowest figure in this comparison. Third, the US number: it comes with real calls and texts, which none of the five tested rivals include.

Setup is the trade-off. Time to working data was nine minutes because of the identity check, against three minutes or less for most rivals. That is a one-time cost on a plan you may keep for months.

What is inside the plan?

The eight spec rows describe the components. Cost per GB on a 10 GB plan is 1.75 USD. US networks are Verizon, T-Mobile or AT&T — you choose. Countries covered: United States only. Hotspot: yes. US number included: yes. Plan lengths: monthly, cancel any time. Time to working data in our test: 9 min (identity check). Data rollover: yes on some plans.

That is a carrier plan rather than a travel bundle. The monthly structure and the rollover on some plans are what make it work for a stay measured in months rather than days.

How does it compare with the tested rivals?

Against Saily (8.8, $22.99), US Mobile is behind on overall score but ahead on the US number and on network choice — Saily roams onto multiple US carriers but includes no number. Saily's cost per GB is 2.3 USD and its time to working data was 3 min 10 s.

Against Airalo (8.5, $26), US Mobile is ahead on score, price and the US number. Airalo uses T-Mobile and AT&T, costs 2.6 USD per GB, and reached working data in 2 min 40 s.

Against Nomad (8.4, $18), US Mobile is ahead on score and on the US number, but Nomad is cheaper per GB at 1.8 USD and reached working data in 3 min. Nomad uses T-Mobile and AT&T.

Feature comparison across the field

On cost per GB, US Mobile's 1.75 USD sits below Saily (2.3 USD), Airalo (2.6 USD), Ubigi (2.2 USD) and Nomad (1.8 USD). On US networks, US Mobile is the only one offering Verizon; Saily uses multiple US carriers, Airalo and Nomad use T-Mobile and AT&T, and Ubigi uses AT&T. On hotspot, all five rivals say yes, with Holafly capped daily on some plans. On the US number, US Mobile is the only yes in the group. On plan lengths, US Mobile is monthly and cancellable, while the rivals run 7 to 30 days, 1 to 30 days, or 1 to 90 days. On time to working data, US Mobile's 9 min is the slowest here, against 2 min 40 s for Airalo, 3 min for Nomad, 3 min 10 s for Saily, 3 min 20 s for Holafly and 4 min for Ubigi. On data rollover, US Mobile rolls over on some plans; the rivals do not, though Airalo top-ups extend validity.

Where does US Mobile fall short?

US only. It is useless the moment you cross a border, which rules it out for anyone splitting a trip between the US and Canada or Mexico. Activation took nine minutes because of the identity check, the slowest in this test. And the cheapest rates need multi-month prepayment, so the headline monthly figure is not the whole story if you want the lowest price.

Is US Mobile good value at $17.50?

The price summary is $17.50. On a 10 GB plan the cost per GB is 1.75 USD, the lowest in this comparison. Two caveats sit alongside that. The cheapest rates need multi-month prepayment, and the plan is monthly and cancellable, so you are trading a longer commitment for a lower rate. For a stay of several months, the monthly structure avoids the fixed-bundle problem that travel eSIMs have.

Who should buy US Mobile?

Long stays and anyone who needs a US number. If you are in the United States for months rather than weeks, and you need a number for calls and texts, this is the plan the test points to. If you are crossing borders during the trip, it is the wrong choice — it stops working at the border.