Mint Mobile launches home internet 5G mobile bundle for just $45 a month — here's how it stacks up

Recently, Mint Mobile announced a new 5G home internet and unlimited wireless plan that promises both for a pretty fair, wallet-friendly price. Powered by T-Mobile's 5G network, the Mint Mobile bundle offers home internet service and mobile service for an upfront cost of $540 per year, which breaks down to $45 per month.

Unlike a traditional ISP, which requires a router, Mint Mobile's version requires a wireless gateway that connects to the closest T-Mobile cell tower and broadcasts Wi-Fi to your domicile. The plan promises download speeds of 133-415 Mbps and upload speeds of 12-55 Mbps.

You can pair it with the best cable TV alternatives to save some money as you cut the cord.

With that in mind, how does Mint Mobile compare to other home internet and mobile bundles?

We've chosen 5 internet providers that have a larger national presence for comparison.

Mint Mobile offers only one MINTernet plan, while the other companies offer at least three plans with varying speeds and prices.

For this comparison, we've chosen plans with similar pricing and mobile offerings to Mint Mobile's plan. If you want faster speeds, you'll need to pony up more per month. As an example, 1 gig internet at Spectrum is $70 a month.

These are also for plans with 1 line. T-Mobile has a plan that includes internet and 3 phone lines for $175, but no one else seems to offer a similar plan. Also, the phone bill for some companies is still separate, so you may be able to find separate deals that could save you some money temporarily.

Additionally, many of the larger companies offer deals on your first 12 months at a discount that then returns to the normal rate. We've included the normal rate so you can see the standard non-deal price.

In some cases, there are also additional offerings. T-Mobile's highest-tier internet plan, for example, comes with a Wi-Fi Mesh extender to expand the network throughout your home and gets you Wi-Fi 7.

Both Xfinity and Mint Mobile do promise a 5-year lock, excluding taxes and fees.

Some drawbacks

Additionally, there are some drawbacks, because you're using a 5G cellular network, speed can vary due to network traffic. Mint's plan also doesn't include HD video streaming.

Fiber internet service tends to be more stable and offers higher speeds, though it's more expensive across the board.

And to be clear, these companies don't offer service everywhere. You'll need to enter your address to see if your neighborhood can get service.

As an example, Verizon recently purchased Frontier, but that hasn't led to an immediate expansion of service availability. I live near a Frontier building, and yet my neighborhood isn't available for Frontier or Verizon home internet.

Mint is the winner

Overall, it appears Mint Mobile's offerings are the cheapest compared to comparable plans from other major providers.

As always with Mint, the upfront cost can be jarring if you're used to monthly payments, but it remains the cheapest option available if you want home internet and mobile bundled.

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