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Below bronze: AT&T is reaching for copper instead of learning from T-Mobile and Verizon's mistakes

Carriers often take customer loyalty for granted, eventually forcing themselves to backpedal on unpopular decisions or compensate for them. Verizon and T-Mobile have spent the better part of the last few months adding value for customers after learning that hiking rates have consequences. Rather than learning from its rivals' mistakes, AT&T has chosen to tread the same dangerous path.

Testing loyalty

AT&T is having an eventful March. So far, the company has refreshed its plans, raised prices on legacy options, and launched a new app. Starting next month, customers on retired plans will pay up to $20 more each month. To soften the blow, the company granted these users 20GB of extra hotspot data.

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While AT&T argues that increasing rates will fund quality service, the company is actually following the unwritten carrier rule of making older plans unattractive. After the hike, the plans no longer offer the same value, serving as an impetus for customers to switch.While legacy plans often lack the features of newer offerings, customers hold onto them for their lower costs. By instituting a price increase, AT&T is essentially forcing customers off these plans.

Are the new plans any better?

Carriers usually like customers to be on their latest plans, as these are typically priced higher and generate more revenue.

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With its new plans, AT&T reduced prices for the middle-tier but raised them at the lower and higher ends. Also, the plans become more affordable as more lines are added.
AT&T's goal is to incentivize customers on their lowest tier to upgrade to the middle tier as the gap between the lowest tier and the middle tier is less now. There are some risks of cannibalization among customers on the highest tier that may downgrade to the middle tier.
Dave Barden, New Street Research analyst, March 2026
In short, AT&T is making its postpaid plans less attractive to budget-conscious customers. This essentially means that if customers on legacy plans take the plunge, the mid-tier Extra 2.0 will likely make the most sense, even if it throws their monthly budget out of whack.
What's AT&T trying to do?
77 Votes

Settling for bronze

Verizon remains the leader with 146.9 million customers, followed by T-Mobile at 142.4 million. AT&T sits in a distant third with 120.1 million. While AT&T's customers tend to be the most loyal, the carrier risks alienating them with this hike. T-Mobile's Un-carrier branding and Verizon's premium image helped them weather backlash from their own price increases. AT&T may not fare as well. This gamble could cause the gap between AT&T and its larger rivals to widen even further.

Themobiletechus

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