Mobile providers across the U.S. offer exclusive discounts and special plans for active-duty military members and veterans, as well as their families—a gesture of appreciation for their service. With so many options, comparing prices, perks, and coverage can quickly become overwhelming.
To support your decision-making, we’ve analyzed various options and selected the top four veteran cell phone plans. In this guide, we’ll provide detailed overviews of their prices, features, and eligibility requirements to help you find an option that suits you and your family.
Best Cell Phone Plans for Veterans: 4 Options Reviewed
After thoroughly researching offers of various mobile carriers and analyzing factors like eligibility requirements, pricing, and plan variety, we’ve shortlisted the best phone plans for veterans by the following providers:
- AT&T
- Verizon
- T-Mobile
- PureTalk
1. AT&T
AT&T is the third-largest wireless carrier in the U.S., known for its extensive fiber and 5G networks.
The carrier doesn’t have dedicated plans for veterans, but it offers attractive military discounts that veterans and their families can use: 25% off the company’s popular unlimited plans. The table below outlines the available plans, features, and their monthly price per line if you get four lines:
Note: The prices don’t include fees and taxes.
To qualify for the military discount as a veteran, you’ll need to submit one of the following documents:
- Department of Defense form DD214
- Department of Defense form NGB 22/22A
- Veteran-designated driver’s license
AT&T enables you to leverage the discount and upload a relevant document within 14 days—if you don’t, your benefits will be removed.
2. Verizon
With over 146 million wireless retail connections (as of the second quarter of 2025), Verizon is the largest wireless carrier in the U.S.
The carrier offers special discounts for military, veterans, and their families. Prices depend on the number of lines and the selected plan—below is an overview of current deals:
The shown prices don’t include fees and taxes and apply if you enable Auto Pay and paper-free billing.
To qualify for the Verizon military discount, you’ll need to set up an ID.me account and upload one of the following documents:
- DD214 form
- Veteran-designated driver’s license
- Honorable Discharge Certificate
- NGB form 22
- Reserve Separation Orders
- Veteran ID
- VA Eligibility letters
- Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
- Veteran Identification Card (VIC)
3. T-Mobile
T-Mobile is the second-largest mobile carrier in the U.S., providing services to over 130 million customers in the first quarter of 2025.
The carrier used to have special plans for active-duty military personnel and veterans, such as the Magenta or Go5G plans, but they are no longer available for new activations. Veterans can now take advantage of attractive discounts for different T-Mobile plans. The table below summarizes the available options:
The above prices are for three phone lines. Taxes and fees are extra. You can get up to five lines per account for additional charges.
You have 45 days from activation to verify your military status, or you will be moved to a plan with no military discount. For verification, you’ll need to submit one of the following:
- DD214
- NGB 22
- Honorable Discharge Certificate
- Driver’s license (if your state lists veteran status on it)
- VA Form 26-1880
- Veteran ID
T-Mobile requires you to be the primary account holder to minimize the risk of fraud.
4. PureTalk
PureTalk is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which means it doesn’t own or manage its mobile network infrastructure but loans AT&T’s.
As a veteran-owned company, PureTalk shows gratitude toward active-duty military and veterans with a 15% discount on all cell phone plans. By default, each plan comes with unlimited talk, text, 2 GB of hotspot, and 3 GB of data. You can select up to 10 lines and customize the hotspot and data allocation for each line.
PureTalk offers a simple discount calculator that lets you mix and match your cell plans and see the final price. Here are a few examples to give you an idea of how much PureTalk plans might cost you:
PureTalk requires you to first activate your PureTalk plan. Then, you verify your veteran status by sending an email to us.military@puretalkusa.com and including one of the following documents:
- DD214
- Veteran ID
- Veteran-designated driver’s license
Because activation precedes verification, the first month of service will be charged at regular prices, and the discount will be applied from the second month onward.
Why Veterans Should Avoid Free Phone Plans
Government programs, such as the federal Lifeline program, enable qualified veterans to get free phones. While these sound appealing at first, they often come with limitations or strings attached. Take the Lifeline program, for example—while the program itself is legitimate, eligibility is based on income, not veteran status. This means that if your income is above a certain threshold, you won’t be able to leverage the program.
Companies often use special military discounts to attract new customers, but these usually come with fine print and strings attached. Carriers may offer a free device or an excellent discount on a cell phone plan, but conveniently leave out the part about higher long-term costs or restrictive contracts. For example, you may get a limited data allowance or low-speed internet without the option to change or cancel your contract—the carrier may offer add-ons, but at inflated prices.
Illegitimate companies with deceptive offers are another issue. They don’t provide you with a phone or a plan—instead, they try to trick you into revealing sensitive information to steal money from you or even commit identity theft.
Keep in mind that a free phone (or a heavily discounted plan) is never just that—to leverage an offer, you’ll need to provide your information, which raises concerns regarding data privacy and security. Your data could be used for advertising purposes or sold to third parties, potentially exposing you to cyberattacks and scams.
Veteran discounts from reliable carriers could be a decent option, but even these require careful consideration. More importantly, the discounts shouldn’t be the only value you focus on.
Veteran Discounts Go Hand-in-Hand With High Security
While heavily discounted veteran cell phone plans can be tempting, price isn’t the only factor to consider when selecting the right option for your needs. As veterans, protecting your data and privacy should come first—an affordable plan or a free device means little if your sensitive information is exposed or you fall victim to scams.
Take major carriers, for instance. All boast attractive veteran discounts, but they barely discuss how they safeguard a user’s privacy and security. If you research any of these carriers, you’ll come across red flags—all have suffered multiple data breaches affecting millions of users.
A bigger concern is how major telcos collect, store, and share your data. If you sign up for a phone plan with a major carrier, you’ll have to provide your name, email, and payment information.
On top of this, your carrier will collect information that compromises your privacy. This can include information about your device, location, and online activity. Carriers keep this data for “as long as needed” and often share it with third parties, exposing you to privacy breaches, cyberattacks, and unsolicited marketing.
Finding a carrier that prioritizes privacy is key to reducing risks. One of the best options you have is Cape—a mobile carrier founded by veterans and national security professionals with advanced protocols to preserve your privacy.
Switch to Cape for Security and Peace of Mind
As a privacy-first mobile carrier founded by veterans, Cape prioritizes data protection and user confidentiality and is built from the ground up on a unique minimum trust philosophy. The idea behind this is simple: nobody can misuse the data you don’t provide (not even Cape). For this reason, the only data point you share with us is your phone number. Any data we do collect, such as your call data records, is deleted within 60 days. We will never, ever sell your data.
Below is an overview of the core security features Cape offers:
Cape is $99/month, with all taxes and fees included. The plan includes:
- All security and privacy features
- Unlimited talk and text
- Unlimited, nationwide 4G and 5G data
- Mobile hotspot
- International roaming for eligible devices and destinations
Signing up is risk-free. If Cape doesn’t meet your expectations within the first three days, you will get a full refund.
You don’t have to sign any long-term contract. You can cancel any time, no questions asked.
Sign Up for Cape Today
All you need to set up a Cape account is an eSIM-compatible phone. You can sign up by visiting cape.co/get-cape.
To offer enhanced protection while you’re using the internet, Cape partnered with Proton, a leading provider of privacy-first solutions. Cape subscribers can get Proton Unlimited or Proton VPN Plus for just $1 for six months.
Disclaimer: We aim to update this page regularly, but for the latest offers for veterans, please refer to the official pages of the mobile carriers we’ve discussed.
