Why are so many customers leaving Verizon?
Have you opened your Verizon bill recently and felt a jolt of surprise? A new fee you don’t recognize, or a price that has quietly crept up. This experience is becoming common, with industry data revealing hundreds of thousands of customers are leaving the carrier.
This trend of Verizon customer churn isn’t random. It’s driven by a perfect storm of rising costs, a network that sometimes struggles to live up to its premium reputation, and aggressive competition from rivals. For a growing number of people, the answer to the question Is Verizon worth the high price? is a firm no.
This guide breaks down the top reasons to switch from Verizon, helps you determine if you’re getting a fair deal, and explores the best alternatives available.
Summary
Many customers are leaving Verizon due to rising fees and plan price hikes, inconsistent network performance with deprioritization on “unlimited” plans, and limited real-world benefits from 5G. Stronger competition—especially T-Mobile’s faster, broader 5G—has undermined Verizon’s premium value, while MVNOs like Visible, Mint Mobile, and Google Fi offer similar coverage for less. Frustrating customer service often becomes the final push to switch. This guide explains the hidden fees, network trade-offs, best alternatives, and a simple five-step process to change carriers without losing your number.
The Hidden Costs: Why Your Verizon Bill Keeps Going Up
A key reason for “bill creep” is the rise of administrative surcharges often buried in the fine print. Unlike government taxes, these are fees Verizon adds to cover their own business costs. The problem of Verizon hidden fees on bill has become more noticeable with charges that sound official but are not. To see them, grab your latest statement and look for line items like:
- Administrative and Telco Recovery Charge
- Economic Adjustment Charge
- Fed./State Universal Service fees (separate from taxes)
On top of these fees, Verizon has also increased the price of many older, “grandfathered” unlimited plans. If you haven’t switched plans in a few years, you could be paying more for the exact same service. This leaves many people wondering if Verizon is still worth the premium when so many cheaper phone plans than Verizon are available.
“Best Network” No More? Why Verizon’s Performance is Being Questioned
For years, Verizon’s biggest selling point was its reliability. But lately, many customers experience a frustrating paradox: full signal bars but data speeds that feel painfully slow. The network is like a congested highway; with more devices using more data than ever, slowdowns occur, especially during peak times. This highlights one of the biggest disadvantages of Verizon wireless today: your connection isn’t always as dependable as it used to be.
This slowdown is often a result of data deprioritization, which can cause what feels like Verizon data throttling issues. Even on some “unlimited” plans, your data can be moved to a slower lane when the network is busy, like at a concert or airport. While you technically have a connection, streaming a video or loading a webpage can become impossible.
Verizon’s super-fast 5G Ultra Wideband network also has very limited coverage, mostly available on specific streets in major cities or in large venues. For most people, their phone connects to Verizon’s nationwide 5G, which often isn’t dramatically faster than 4G LTE. These widespread Verizon 5G network issues leave many customers wondering what they’re actually paying extra for.
The T-Mobile Effect: How Strong Competition Changed the Game
While Verizon’s network faced challenges, T-Mobile invested billions into its 5G infrastructure. In a major industry shake-up, its 5G network is now often faster and more widely available than what Verizon offers. This dramatic improvement is a key reason for its high T-Mobile customer acquisition rate and has fundamentally changed the conversation around network leadership and Verizon vs T-Mobile customer satisfaction.
Independent testing companies, acting as unbiased referees, consistently show T-Mobile leading in 5G speed and availability in many parts of the country. This challenges long-held assumptions about AT&T vs Verizon network performance.
For consumers, this fierce competition is fantastic news. A powerful, high-quality alternative exists that often doesn’t feel like a performance downgrade. This puts power back in your hands, forcing carriers to fight harder on price and service to win your business.
The Budget Alternative: Are Cheaper “MVNO” Carriers Worth It?
Renewed competition has supercharged a category of cheaper phone plans than Verizon from brands like Mint Mobile, Visible, and Google Fi. These are known as MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators), and they operate on a simple premise. They are like a generic brand that uses the same core ingredients as the name brand but sells for less.
Instead of building their own networks, MVNOs rent access from Verizon, T-Mobile, or AT&T. They buy service in bulk and pass those savings on to you. This is one of the best cell phone carrier alternatives to Verizon : you can often get service on the exact same network you use now for a lower price. Many of these carriers offer unlimited plans for a fraction of the cost, making switching from Verizon to an MVNO a popular money-saving move.
- Visible (uses Verizon’s network)
- Mint Mobile (uses T-Mobile’s network)
- Google Fi (uses T-Mobile’s and UScellular’s networks)
The primary trade-off is minor. During times of heavy network congestion, an MVNO customer’s data might be temporarily slowed down before a Verizon-direct customer’s. For many, that’s a small price to pay for huge savings.
The Final Straw: When Bad Customer Service Makes the High Price Unbearable
For many customers, the sticker shock of a Verizon bill comes with an unspoken promise of premium support. When a simple billing question turns into a long wait on hold, the frustration is about feeling overvalued. These Verizon customer service complaints are a huge factor in Verizon customer retention problems, often becoming the final push for someone already on the fence.
This feeling of being undervalued is one of the biggest disadvantages of Verizon wireless. To bypass some of this frustration, use Verizon’s “schedule a callback” feature in their support app or phone system. This lets you set a time for them to call you, saving you from listening to hold music.
Ultimately, it’s rarely one thing that causes a customer to leave. It’s the combination of a rising bill, the knowledge that competitors offer more for less, and the final straw of an unhelpful support experience.
Ready to Switch? A 5-Step Checklist to Painlessly Leave Verizon
If you’ve decided to explore your options, switching carriers is easier than you think. The key is to follow a few steps in the right order to ensure you can take your phone and your number with you.
- Confirm your phone is “unlocked” and paid off. An unlocked phone is free to be used on another network.
- Choose your new carrier and purchase the plan you want.
- Get your Verizon Account Number and Number Transfer PIN. The PIN is a special, temporary password you get from Verizon to prove the number is yours. You can request it from your Verizon account app or by dialing #PORT.
- Give this info to your new carrier. They will start the “porting” process, which is the official term for moving your number over.
- Wait for confirmation that your number is active on the new network.
This last step is the most important. Do not cancel your Verizon account yourself. Let your new carrier handle it. Once they successfully port your number, your Verizon account will be cancelled automatically. If you cancel it first, you will lose your phone number for good.
So, Is It Time for You to Leave Verizon?
The question, “Is Verizon worth the high price?” has a personal answer that you can find in the next 15 minutes. Start by pulling up your latest bill. In a new browser tab, check the latest offers from T-Mobile and a budget carrier like Visible or Mint Mobile.
In a final tab, check their coverage maps for your zip code. By comparing your actual cost against the best alternatives for your specific location, the right move for your wallet and your signal will become clear.