Mother's Day deal at Verizon — score a free iPhone 13 or iPhone SE

iPhone 13 shown in front of violet flowers

(Image credit: Future)

When it comes to gifts, Mom deserves the very best. However, budgets are tighter than usual this year. So Verizon is making it somewhat more affordable to treat mom with a Mother's Day gift she's bound to love.

Currently at Verizon, you can get an iPhone 13 for free when you trade-in your old device and open a new line with unlimited data. That's one of the best iPhone 13 deals we've seen. If you don't have an old phone to trade in, Verizon is also offering a free iPhone SE 2022 when you open a new line with select unlimited data plan. Remember, you can opt to buy these online and pickup in-store.

The iPhone 13 is one of the best phones you can buy. Naturally, it comes with a high price tag. The base iPhone 13 costs $799, whereas the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max cost $999 and $1,099, respectively. Meanwhile, the iPhone 13 mini is the smallest and least-expensive model in the lineup coming in at $699.

In our iPhone 13 review, we called the Editor's Choice phone the best iPhone for most people. We like that Apple has finally bumped the base model's storage to 128GB, so you don't have to jump to the next storage tier just to fit everything on your phone. The A15 processor — the same one found in the iPhone 13 Pro models — continues to set the pace for mobile processors, allowing the iPhone 13 to outperform any Android device.

However, the real story is the cameras. The iPhone 13 still features two rear lenses, but they have bigger sensors which translates to improved low-light photography. What’s more, Apple includes a number of computational-powered features like Cinematic mode to automatically shift focus when you’re shooting video.

Alternatively, the iPhone SE 2022 is the perfect phone for any mom. In our iPhone SE 2022 review, we called the new phone the fastest phone you can buy for under $500. It's very similar to its predecessor. The main difference is the addition of a new A15 Bionic CPU, which is the same chip found in the iPhone 13 lineup. The new CPU brings better battery life (up to 15 hours vs. up to 13 hours) and advanced camera features like Photographic Styles and Deep Fusion.

See more Phones Deals

TOPICS

As deals editor-in-chief at Tom’s Guide, Louis is constantly looking for ways to avoid paying full price for the latest gadgets, appliances, and apparel. With over 10 years of deals-hunting experience, Louis price checks against multiple retailers and searches high and low for the best deals to bring readers. He's also always on the look out for the best coupon codes to use when shopping. A born-and-bred New Yorker, Louis is also an avid swimmer and marathoner. His work has appeared on Gizmodo, CNET, and Time Out New York.

1 Comment Comment from the forums

Gilmour

So misleading. It's bad enough that Verizon uses these marketing gimmicks, but for a "news site" to perpetuate their garbage is even worse.

You only get a "free phone" if you finance the purchase of the phone over 36 months, assuming you even qualify. What you actually get is up to $800 in credit if the phone is new enough and expensive enough (iPhone 12 or Galaxy S21 for example). In addition, whatever credit you do get is deducted from your monthly bill in 36 equal installments, not immediately.

So you either finance the phone to pay off over 36 months (if you qualify) and then get a deduction from your bill each month for the credit, or if you don't qualify for financing (or by choice) you pay full price for the phone at the time of purchase (not free) and have a lower monthly bill because of the credit. Also if you leave Verizon before the 36 months are up, you have to pay off the remaining balance owed for the phone, but no longer get the monthly credit to offset the cost (not free).

So I guess, technically, after 36 months, assuming you meet multiple requirements for financing and trade in value, you can get the phone for a net zero cost. Cool cool cool.
Reply

Sign up to get the BEST of Tom's Guide direct to your inbox.