Founded in 1999, Cricket Wireless is one of the largest prepaid phone service providers in the United States. Cricket reviews describe a mix of both positive and negative experiences with the company's customer service, network coverage, and overall quality of service.

Cricket Wireless provides some type of 4G LTE network coverage over most of the United States and offers international texting, data, and calls in select countries. The company claims to have upwards of 98 percent nationwide connectivity (which was bolstered by its acquisition by AT&T), allegedly covering more of the U.S. than several competitors.

Another important aspect that drives Cricket’s corporate DNA is data throttling. Every client gets a certain amount of high-speed data that comes with their plan each billing cycle, even if the plan is marketed as "unlimited." If a customer exceeds their allotted high-speed data usage amount, they notice a significant slowing of their Internet and data services. As a user approaches their monthly allowance, they may notice a slower data speed.

Jennifer Van Buskirk is the current company president. Recently, the FCC approved AT&T’s $1.2 billion merger with Leap, Cricket’s parent company.

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The Good

Large Selection
Cell Phone Plans
Add-On Features
No Contract
Customer Service
Discounts
Plan Changes

Large Selection

With a large selection of smartphone and other device options, customers are able to find a phone that fits their needs, including the new Samsung Galaxy S20. Although some pre-pay cellular services do not include Apple products, Cricket has the iPhone. In the past, users of prepaid services had a hard time finding the latest iPhone and users of prepaid phone services often had to settle for an older generation model. That is no longer the case.

Current customers appreciate the number of Android models that are available. While there are not that many Windows phones to choose from, Cricket does offer two nice Nokia models. Overall, the best variety of phones comes through Android-driven phones. All of Cricket's phones come with the standard operating systems that are on the market, including Android, iOS, and Windows.

To use your current phone with a new Cricket prepaid plan, you can purchase a $10 SIM card or bring an unlocked LTE-compatible device.

Cell Phone Plans

Cricket's basic monthly plan options include:

Talk and Text: unlimited calls and texts, but no data or picture/video messages ($25 per line)
2 GB: Unlimited talk and texts and 2 GB data access ($30 per line)
5 GB: Unlimited calls and texts and 5 GB data access ($40 per line)

The Unlimited plan, which costs $55 per month or $50 after the Auto Pay credit, includes:

Unlimited data access with upload speeds up to 3 Mbps
Video streaming at SD quality, about 480p
Unlimited calling, texts, and picture messages in the U.S.
Unlimited texts from the U.S. to 37 countries
Data access plus unlimited calls, texts, and picture messages to and from Canada and Mexico
HD voice and WiFi calling with compatible phone

The Unlimited Extra plan includes all the features of the Unlimited plan, plus unlimited high-speed data access with faster 4G LTE speeds, and 15 GB of mobile hotspot on compatible devices.

Cricket's unlimited data plan works well for family plans: You get four lines with unlimited data for $100 per month. Keep in mind that unlimited data refers to both high-speed data and lower-speed data. After 22 GB of high-speed data usage, Cricket may slow speeds.

Also, the Auto Pay credit is not available with multiline discounts or on promotional offers.

Add-On Features

Cricket offers these features as monthly add-ons at a reasonable price:

Cricket Protect, which covers you from device loss, theft, or malfunction ($7 per month)
Cricket International, which adds international communication coverage ($5-15 per month)
Individual Country Add-Ons, which include calling minutes and unlimited text, picture, and video messaging to Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Philippines, and Vietnam ($10-15 per month)
1 GB High Speed, which can be used when the high-speed access included in your base rate plan is gone ($10 per month)
Mobile Hotspot, which makes your cell phone a Wi-Fi hotspot to which you can connect your laptop or tablet to the Internet on the go (also called tethering). This add-on is only available with current
Unlimited plans and select grandfathered plans ($10 per month)

Cricket offers 30 GB, 10 GB, and 3 GB data-only plans for hotspot data usage.

No Contract

Cricket has all the bells and whistles of a contract provider but doesn't require the contract.

Customer Service

There are plenty of storefront locations to get help with your Cricket wireless plan. For the most part, Cricket Wireless reviews report that Cricket does a good job of providing quality customer service. Prospective customers can speak to Cricket customer service using the live chat feature on the website.

Discounts

The 5 GB, Unlimited, and Unlimited Extra plans are eligible for savings with Auto Pay credit and group save discounts. Families can save up to $100 per month in discounts for up to five lines. Cricket does also offer a discount for each plan if you set up an automatic payment every month.

Plan Changes

Because the company does not require a contract, you can change your Cricket phone plan anytime you'd like for no charge. Once you switch plans, your plan will take effect immediately, unless you decide to wait until your next billing cycle. However, note that you can only change your plan twice per billing cycle, and any change may affect your current discounts.

Cricket Wireless also mandates that no more than one plan change per phone number can be scheduled to start on the next billing cycle.

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The Bad

Data Throttling
High-Speed Unused Data Expires Monthly
Limited International Coverage
Claims Limits
Mixed Reviews

Data Throttling

While the data throttling option makes it easier for Cricket to "spread" data around and avoid charging overage fees, data throttling does kick in when a user is still within their allotted high-speed data amount for the month. This may make it difficult for users to check their email, surf the net, or access optimal download speeds for other purposes.

High-Speed Unused Data Expires Monthly

When purchasing the 1 GB high-speed data add-on, any high-speed unused data you have at the end of the month expires each cycle. So if you don't use up all of your additional data, you pay for it anyway.

Limited International Coverage

With the Cricket Unlimited plan, customers can call, text, and use data in Mexico and Canada. However, in the additional 37 countries with coverage, calls are not covered — only text message communication including picture/video messages. To access coverage in additional countries, you need to purchase an individual country monthly add-on.

Claims Limits

The Cricket Protect add-on covers a maximum replacement value of $1500 per claim of loss, theft, accidental physical damage or liquid damage, in-warranty exchanges, and out-of-warranty malfunction, which is really good coverage. However, each customer is limited to two claims per 12 months. For the accident-prone customer, two claims may not be enough.

Mixed Reviews

Cricket Wireless reviews are mixed, which makes it difficult to decide if the cell phone provider is a trustworthy company. Many reviews highlight poor customer service and slow data, while also appreciating Cricket's low price and affordable plans. If you want to learn more, you can find Cricket Wireless reviews below.

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The Bottom Line

There are pros and cons to the Cricket Wireless prepaid plans. The service provider features the latest Android, iOS, and Windows operating systems and the latest phones.

Cricket offers flexible plans and includes optional add-ons that let users customize their phone plans as needed, with variable data plans and lines needed per account. Cricket does a good job with multi-line discounts with a four-member family plan costing only $100 per month.

However, one of Cricket's major downfalls — like any major carrier — is its data throttling. When you reach your data limit, your Internet usage will dramatically slow and will not pick back up again until the start of your next billing cycle.

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User Reviews

Star Rating

3.1

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283 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

35%

4 grade

15%

3 grade

11%

2 grade

1 grade

34%

Sentiment Criteria

Value

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Quality

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Service

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Trustworthiness

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Junior Ramirez Tucson, AZ

I LIKE HOW CRICKET HAS BETTER COVERAGE IN THE CITY THAN TMOBILE, I TRIED VERIZON AND SPRINT ,INCLUDING BOOST MOBILE AND OTHERS, SERVICE WAS BAD , INTERNET WAS SUPER SLOW TO NO INTERNET, UNTIL FINALLY DECIDE TO SWITCH TO CRICKET/AT&T NOW I HAVE INTERNET AND SERVICE IN ALL THE ROOMS, AND 5G. THE ONLY THING I DISLIKE ABOUT THEM IS THEY DON'T CARRY ONE OF MY FAVORITE PHONES, THE NOTE LINE SAMSUNG. I HOPE THAT CHANGE IN THE FUTURE, I MEAN THEY HAVE IPHONES, BUT IPHONE IS SO LIMITED, IT'S SO ANNOYING, SO ABSOLUTELY WILL RECOMMEND CRICKET TO MY FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS, WICH ALREADY DID AND THEY ARE GLAD THEY SWITCHED

4 years ago

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Charles S. Kew Gardens, NY

I was a former Verizon customer and became fed up with their high prices for my simple needs, placing phone calls a few text messages a month that I thought I would switch to one of the lower end carriers, I did brief research and discovered that cricket was owned by at&t and that the penalty would be slower download speeds, I'm not a gamer nor do I watch lengthy videos on my phone so I felt let's give them a try. I couldn't have been happier. Their customer service has been great and living in the metro area signal strength is no problem. Now y this is the draw back, if you switch to one of their plans where a free out inexpensive phone is given you will notice the download speeds but if you option for a phone with faster processing speeds you should be quite happy with them.

7 years ago

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Laura Oravetz Denver, CO

My old cell phone died yesterday so I went to my cricket store on W. Alameda in Lakewood (Belmar), CO. I was taken right away by Bianca who was incredibly helpful. I am 71 and needed an easy to operate phone. She helped me with the choices that would be best for me and then helped with my selection. Also, gave me several choices for a case cover. She was able to transfer everything from my dead phone to the new one and explained anything I needed to know. I so appreciate the customer service I received.

5 years ago

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Cricket lover Stevens Point, WI

They basically have a very caring staff. I used to go to Cellcom. And Cellcom refused to allow me to get a new phone. So I switched to cricket. They are very easygoing. I also tried Sprint. Sprint wasn't so easygoing with caring over the number. Cricket has been everything more. There is one major annoyance or bad thing. The customer service is usually really great. But one time, The service couldn't figure out how to transfer a sim. Not much of a big deal. I just had to tell them how to do it. But I think they were new or in training. Anyways. I like cricket. They deserve a reward.

5 years ago

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Shaya Espino Meridian, ID

I just experienced the best possible customer service experience from Cricket, customer service repressive Emee, at the Cricket store in Meridian on Cherry. I was looking for a case for my phone and Emee was just amazing with her assistance and professional skills. She greeted me as soon as I came in the door and was sincere and paid attention to what my need was! I really appreciated her help today; she made my day a happy one. I have been a good Cricket customer for many years and have always been happy with my phone service but I had always felt the customer service was lacking until I met Emee today. Cricket needs to hire more reps like her. Thank you Cricket, for better customer service. Shaya Espino

7 years ago

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Kristin Hungerford CA

The Cricket Store in Clio is wonderful. Erin was courteous and helpful. She went through one pathway and the computer told her everything was fine. When it wasn’t she tried another way and her phone is now working. Thank you for making this easy and painless.

4 years ago

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Unicornmaskid Kissimmee, FL

We have been with Cricket for about 4 years now and have never had any major problems. The girl at the store Jamie has always been so nice and helpful every time my husband and I have wanted to upgrade. I think the company is great.

5 years ago

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Norma J Roberts Warren, MA

Been a Cricket customer for couple years. Brought my sister in to local store and told agent I was bringing in a referral. Agent assisted me in applying for the referral using the app on my phone. The referral code was sent to my sisters phone and the agent proceeded to set up her service. He directed her to enter the referral code when she went online to set up auto . Upon doing so a message said "not eligible". When calling customer support I'm told it was an error and they would fix it. When they didn't I called again and was told the referral is denied because it was entered after the service began. That is so not correct and there is no changing their mind. I will not be referring anyone else.

6 years ago

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Gary G. Sherman, TX

All the employees were very helpful especially the manager and Pedro. Very courteous and friendly as well as professional. I will happily return there for all my cellular needs. (My only suggestion is to provide earbud adapters for anytime purchase)

7 years ago

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Mike Lawrence, KS

My family has the "unlimited" 4 phones for $100 a month plan. For the most part Cricket we are happy with the service EXCEPT for one item. Cricket limits group texts to 10 people max. I have a group of 15 people that I have to text, but with Cricket I can only do 10 at a time. Verizon, Sprint, etc have no limit. This seems to be an arbitrary limit set by Cricket. This is my only complaint, otherwise I'd give them 5 stars.

7 years ago

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Miranda Grand Blanc, MI

Unlimited data access* with speeds up to 3 Mbps Video streaming at SD quality (about 480p) Unlimited calls, texts and picture messages across the U.S. Unlimited texts from the U.S. to 37 countries Data access plus unlimited calls, texts and picture messages to and from Mexico, Canada and the U.S.

7 years ago

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Charles E Mickler Auburn, GA

Best cell phone company I've ever worked with. They are easy to switch to, provide excellent service in all areas at the best prices for those services. Customer service is knowledgeable and friendly as well as easy to use online, by phone or in store.

8 years ago

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Janette Vogel Fairfield Bay, AR

I have been a Cricket consumer for 10 years. Since they are on the same towers as AT&T, I find the company very reliable. If you are not computer or cellphone savvy, you may want to go with AT&T unless you happen to have a Cricket store nearby as you will need to know a few things about your cellphone in order to start using Cricket. Though, if you can follow directions without getting aggravated, getting started with Cricket is not too difficult. I have 4 phones connected to my account with unlimited text and internet for a nice low price. I love Cricket!

5 years ago

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Sierra Beck Herriman, UT

I've had cricket for a couple of years and I'm very pleased with the service. I've gone into the mountains for a vacation and had service when nobody else in my family did. Cricket reached more places than Verizon did at that particular location. I also love that I've been getting more data a month without paying more money. My plan gets upgraded by a GB of data a month every so often.

7 years ago

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Paul Lytle Reading, PA

I've had cricket for over 10 years now. My explanation of cricket is its like having many thorns in your side. Initially when I switched from Verizon I was told I could only bring 2 phones over at a time after I had already placed my order for 4 lines to be transferred. After speaking to the customer rep, about a day later all sim cards showed up which indicated their customer service did not know what they were speaking about. Over the years I experienced slow service-throttling. I do not use an extreme amount of date so there is no reason to have slow service. Over the years I have spoken to customer service and most of the time it appears they don't know their product. The cricket voice mail app is somewhat horrible. At 1 time when I received VM messages the app showed it was one person who called and when you listened to the voice mail it was actually someone else that called. Another time I had created an out of office voice mail and saved it. Had someone else call my phone to verify it saved. After 2 days it reverted back to my old voicemail. For the last month service has seemed to really slow down and even though I show 3-4 bars I still cant even get on the internet while at work. I receive a lot of scam calls at least 3-4 times a day and cricket does nothing to block them on their end. My thought is they are possibly selling my information to these scam call centers. If I had to explain my dealings and phone service on cricket to someone I would say its like living in a 3rd world country.

4 years ago

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Valerie snyder Weirsdale, FL

Yes the prices are very reasonable but let’s remember the old saying “you get what you for”. How true and I get there are rules for a reason and o have not once disputed that but could have done something in my situation yes I believe so but unfortunately this girl Marium who claimed to be the manager at the Mt. Dora store in Florida was about a joke. She had friends there and talk talk talking up a storm being all loud and shouting Spanish from one side of the store to the other. She asked me after 15 min what I needed and I simply stated that I had a brand new never taken even out of the box phone and I wanted to pay the $200 difference and purchase the one I actually wanted. I didn’t purchase it my soon to be ex husband did. Well she was not happy about that for some reason she said well I’m with a customer so sorry your gonna have to wait. I had no problem with that so I waited patiently all the while I guess they didn’t really just because I am not Spanish has absolutely nothing to do with any language I speak. She just assumed I didn’t I’m sure everyone knows what happens when you assume. Well that was her first mistake then when I explained what had happened and what I was hoping to do she was oh no you cannot do that with this look on her face so unprofessional then proceeds to count on her fingers like in kindgarden with her 2 inch nails that looked ridiculous like I was a child and did not understand🤨. Best part I asked who was the manager and if I may speak with thrashed was like oh no no no I am the only manager you can’t talk to nobody else. I left that store and will never return if that is the type they allow to represent them then I need to take my 12 lines and sign with another carrier. Not to mention I have only been a customer for about 15 years. But she said so what that doesn’t matter. Great way to handle yourself I am now done and be so happy to get a new carrier.

4 years ago

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A R Fort Worth, TX

Ive had Cricket since 2016 or 2017. I had no problems until recently. During that time I did purchase a brand new Note 8. I currently have the same phone and I prefer to keep my phone. "If it aint broke" why try to replace it? The company has been switching to upgrades from 3g to 5 g. They tried to tell me my phone was not compatible. Thats false. It was a ploy to a promotion to switch to a crappy new phone they had to offer. The committment was to use a free phone for a minimal of 6 months. I was disitasfied that they couldnt see that my phone was compatible with LTE. I continued my service and now a few of my family and friends have done the same. Maybe one day we shall yse services but we all switched to T mobile with no contract.

4 years ago

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haeschliman Howell, MI

I have loved Cricket for 3 years, but had a very ridiculous customer service experience with them recently. My phone was suspended after changing my autopay because our prior card had to be cancelled due to suspicious activity. When I called to get it worked out I had to speak to several customer service representatives, just to be "disconnected" after 30+ minutes of waiting to be directed to the correct person. The second time I called, the customer service rep claimed that I was blinking out, and made me retell my story 3 times, because he couldn't hear me. He sounded crystal clear, and I was calling from my office where I use this phone to call clients all day. Then he said he would call me back, and never did. I paid the unwarranted $15 late fee, because I couldn't take more time out of my work day. Unfortunately, this seemed systematic, a phone company that has poor service or drops calls during a customer complaint... suspicious. I have loved the service for myself and my 4 adult children who live in Utah, Idaho, Ohio, and Michigan. We have used cricket for over 4 years. I would just say, do not have your autopay mess up because they are going to nickel and dime you for no reason.

4 years ago

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michelle kidd Lima, OH

I have had the worst time since switching to Cricket I have a note 10 and was told I needed to upgrade to their phones because mine wasn't compatible with their network REALLY? 🤣. I get the runaround between the store and when you have to call on phone to speak to tech. They both pass me back and forth like a tennis ball. I had verizon before them and just wanted cheaper phone bill and let's be frank I got a bigger headache with my phone dropping calls and not being able to hear on phone and lousy reception and showing only 3g network. Had hopes for cricket and I wish I could have had better experience with them. Back to Verizon I go I guess.

5 years ago

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MindyV Lubbock, TX

I was really happy when I switched to Cricket Wireless. I was able to get me and my son better quality of phones than we'd previously had. And the employee was great. The problem with Cricket Wireless is that they have NO CLUE how to process auto payments. You get a discount for having your account set up on auto pay but they don't know how to process them. One time they took money from another customer's auto pay and applied it to my account. I chatted with them about my auto pay and they said that everything went through and that I was fine, even though money hadn't been taken out of my account. Once they realized the mistake, several days after I talked to them about it, they decided that they were going to double charge me for their mistake. Auto pay shouldn't be tricky at all!!!! It should automatically take money out of the debit card that is on the account at the time the payment is due. That should be simple. But apparently it's not.

5 years ago

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Lizzy Puentes Tallahassee, FL

Cricket phone services is one of the best I have had. The data is high speed and I have cellular service most places I go to. The plans are very affordable and features like hotspot and international calls are also helpful. The only downside is sometimes I will have good cellular service but the internet will sometimes act a little slow.

5 years ago

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Richard V Tagle San Antonio, TX

I've used Cricket for many years now. Never have been disappointed, never have had to deal with minutes and such and I truly and sincerely recommend Cricket to anybody who asks me about my cell phone company.

6 years ago

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Catherine Collazo

Cricket has been the best cell phone service company that I have ever had the pleasure of receiving service from. Their prices are very competitive, their products very reliable and their customer service is superb.

6 years ago

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Kent D Rager Fort Wayne, IN

Service is okay and the advertised price is what you'll actually pay since it includes taxes/fees. However, don't expect to get a bonus from their so-called referral bonus program. I referred my parents to switch to Cricket Wireless. I got the referral URL link and emailed it to them. They received the email and we clicked on the link. The link brought up a web page that said the referral code was emailed to them. We were in a hurry, so we didn't wait to actually receive the code and went to the store and activated new SIM cards with their existing phones. They never did receive a referral code - we looked in the spam folders and everything and it was never received. So we logged into their new Cricket account and tried to get it to resend the code, but it said the email address we entered wasn't the same one (even though it was). After clicking the referral link and entering the email address, I was finally able to get a code, but now the system won't accept the code. I called customer service and they said that because their lines were already activated, we were no longer eligible for the bonus. That is just plain wrong!

6 years ago

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Mark Berry

Honestly I have been Cricket for 10 years and the service has great. When they switch to AT&T..good became great. The only downside is you can't trade your phone in for an upgrade but I'm ok with that and they dont have any customer loyalty rewards but again I'm ok with that too.

7 years ago

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Anonymous Spring, TX

THEIR AUTOMATIC PAYMENT WORKS PERFECTLY. THE TECHNICIANS IN THEIR LOCATIONS ARE YOUNG AND VERY UNDERTRAINED; THEREFORE, I HAVE TO ASSUME VERY UNDERPAID AS WELL. THEY ARE ONLY SALES PEOPLE AND NOT GREAT AT THAT. TOOK OVER 45 MINUTES TO BUY ONE PHONE AND GET IT SET UP. WHEN YOU GO TO THEM WITH A PROBLEM WITH YOUR PHONE THEY ARE USUALLY CLUELESS, AND I'VE BEEN TO SEVERAL OF THEIR PHYSICAL STORES. IT IS JUST AS BAD AT EACH ONE.

7 years ago

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Paul Nashville, TN

The best coverage by far of the prepaid services. I always recommend to other professionals and business people especially for staff and assistants with great coverage and low dropped calls.

8 years ago

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A. Taylor Panama City, FL

My favorite cellular has been Cricket Mobile. The network coverage and quality are as good as any I've ever used. The monthly plans are simple, straight forward, all encompassing, and reliable as well as very cost effective. High quality and dependability have been consistent qualities of cricket. I highly recommend it.

5 years ago

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Amanda Drews Arlington, TX

I love Cricket! I can afford cell service for 3 people thanks to them! Their customer service has been awesome and every person I have talked to has been patient with my questions and hemming and hawing over which phone I wanted. They took their time to make sure I understood the differences and pros and cons.

6 years ago

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Gold Silver Flower Saint Paul, MN

Cricket is the best option when it comes to phone services. I always use Cricket since it it’s easier. Most of my family use Cricket since I use it. I introduced them to Cricket so now all of my family have a wonderful experience with Cricket company. Xoxo

6 years ago Edited September 14, 2021

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Emily Norton Tucson, AZ

There are definitely pros and cons of using cricket. First of all, it’s cheap and they were constantly giving me more data without raising my price which is great. The service works really well in my small town, but it definitely has less coverage in other areas than some other providers. I also had some problems with messages or pictures coming in, but anytime I called cricket usually could fix whatever the problem was.

6 years ago

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Calista Huber Mesa, AZ

We get a really good deal for the price! It's fairly cheap and we have plenty good service. We do have spotty areas that other providers don't, but it's never really an issue. The plan we're on is monthly, not contracted, which is nice, and we have more data than we even need, unlimited texting and call, for a great price! We also got rebates and gift cards from signing up and buying phones there, so even our phones were a great deal! Everyone is always so helpful at the stores, and while there is sometimes a wait, it's worth it.

8 years ago

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Bjstarks

Cricket is horrible. They are rude and have terrible customer service. If you all to ask to speak to a supervisor they put you on indefinite hold. My mother changed her number due to too many spam calls and was told she would need to pay $15 on her next bill, she agreed, once they changed her number they called and said they were mistaken and she needed to pay the $15 up-front. She said she could not and was asked i she could lay within 24 hours. She agreed this was at 5:30p yet her phone was disconnected at midnight and she was charged a $47 reconnect fee. They refused to turn on her phone until after letting the phone ring for over an hour (NOT an exaggeration) before a supervisor picked up, after speaking with 5 people including at rep posing as a sup, we spoke to Marcus he apologized for the ordeal and got her phone reconnected. The next morning they disconnected her phone again. When I told the rep (Janes) the issue we had previously and that Marcus had helped us he said the phone was off because she needed an update to 4g and to go to cricket and get a new phone..I explained that her phone was working fine yesterday and this was ridiculous to which he responded "Then why don't you call Marcus!" and hung up on me I called back and asked to speak with a supervisor and rep(Vickie ) said sure then put me on hold without asking for any info and I was on hold for 1hour and 35 mins and no one ever answered. I am moving my mother's phone to my T-Mobile carrier. She is 70 years old and loves alone.. what a horrible experience and I now plan to tell everyone I possibly can what a horrible complaint Cricket is and that they should be out of business for trading period so badly. They will not last because you can't treat people so badly and expect to be successful.

4 years ago

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Katherine Zitzman Albany, NY

I tried a different service for a few weeks and went back to a Cricket store to transfer the phone number back to Cricket. He deactivated the number. I went to another Cricket store and they called Cricket and asked them to reactivate it. Cricket refused. I can't log into Facebook, Amazon, Google, Google drive and Gmail since I used that number for a safe login. I will post this on as many websites as I can to let people know how Cricket treats customers of several years. I will post this experience on social media wherever I can. I wish I could leave zero stars. If they still won't reactivate the number I will go to another carrier.

4 years ago

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yolanda encinias Tucson, AZ

My daughter bought me an iPhone from cricket in June and by August I was having trouble charging it. I called cricket and they said it was under warranty but I had to go through apple. Well through them they want to charge me almost $300 to fix it!! My daughter didn't even pay that much for the phone!! Needless to say I WON'T BE GETTING ANOTHER PHONE THROUGH THEM AMD I MIGHT EVEN SEITCH PHONE PROVIDERS!! I've been trying to get it fixed since August and they come out with that BS!! 3 different cricket stores told me that they should have just sent me a new replacement but of course apple didmt!! I guess business is so bad they have to take advantage of us!! SO SAD!!#

4 years ago

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Heath Clarkson

Last year i lost my phone . As a stop gap to keep connected I bought a cheap cricket phone with the intent to throw it away as soon as i could replace or find my phone. In between Time I bought a 100% unlocked and paid for phone. You could put any sim in it and it was golden. There were a couple of moments where the cricket phone was about to die as i was closing a deal. So i simply popped the sim in my unlocked phone until the cricket phone charged. Like I used to keep an older Samsung to use as a charger- switching batteries rather than sims but same basic principle. To make it short cricket used this as an excuse to sim lock my unlocked phone and refuse to unlock a phone that was never theirs to lock. I don’t see what they get out of this practice. Other than they have guaranteed that I’ll never be a customer again and that they will never get to use the phone they illegitimately locked. They tell me that policy dictates that they can’t unlock my phone because I don’t meet their criteria. I respond well itit wasn’t my policy that they should ever lock my phone that they lack the criteria to do so…so I’m not trying to hear their bs about policy. If they can lock it with out even the courtesy to ask , they can unlock it just as easily. #cricket=badbiz

4 years ago

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Don SC

My line was cancelled and they accused me of canceling my own ph. They claim that it was done from my number but refused to prove the evidence. We are on the EBB plan and the bill was paid before it was due. They said $15 would turn it back on but then it jumped to $25.00 and then $70. We have been loyal customers for a long time and we spent near 6 hours on the ph with customer service. Nothing was accomplished to resolve the issue. We will be switching providers. Very poor customer service and lack of knowledge on their part. STAY AWAY FROM THESE PEOPLE! DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY! IN THE END IT AIN'T WORTH IT!

4 years ago

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Concerned Customer Bayonne, NJ

I have a Samsung A10e which was released in 2019 (so still fairly new) and is compatible on 2,3 and 4G networks. With Crickets new "upgrade" I was told that as of 2/22/22 my phone would no longer work. But 2 weeks before that date, my phone was disconnected. I called customer service and I was advised that since my phone worked with 4G I would be ok. But then a couple days later I was shut off again. So again I called. I was told now Cricket will not be supporting my phone and I will need to get one of their phones or be disconnected. I told them I would switch but to please stop disconnecting me because I use my phone for business purposes and it was disrupting my business. I was told they noted it but again a couple days later I was shut off yet again. Same scenario same promise to not be shut off but again today, I was shut off. When I called this time, I asked to speak to a supervisor as the so called customer service woman was NOT helpful. I was put on hold and hung up on. I have been with Cricket for over 5 years and I'm very disappointed and frustrated that this is what it has come to. No help, no answers. I have to give up a phone I love and only had for 2 years just to stay on service. No thank you. I will be moving to a different carrier who lets me decide what kind of phone I get to have/ keep.

4 years ago

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Manuel L Houston, TX

I'm a customer of cricket for more than 10 years. After I've buying a new cellphone just 4 months ago, they say I have to buy a New one because the 5G, but if I go to other cellphone company, they will give me a free phone. It's crazy, maybe better take care about your loyalty customers and don't let they go. They don't care about it.

4 years ago

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Wendi Robishaw Anderson, IN

Horrible Customer Service Twice now I have had issues with my bill. After thinking it was resolved again spent a long period of time in a chat only to have the chat disconnected while waiting for the rep to respond and being told that I was not responding. This is kind of a small thing but if you are going to ask me my name, then spell it right when you try to provide 'personable' service later in the chat. If you can't spell my name the way I gave it to you, then don't address me by my name. Also some reps seem to have poor English skills. One rep thanked my for my comprehension??? this did not apply at to anything in the midst of the chat. Will be looking for a new cell service.

4 years ago

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Courtney Lee Dayton, OH

This company is a complete scam. Please save yourself the headache. I was with Boost Mobile for 15 years and left with get on a family plan with someone who nothing about Cricket Wireless art of scamming. WORST MISTAKE!!!! I can’t not wait until my 6months is over so I can go back home to Boost. This company will give you great deals going in but you better believe you will compensate them for everything you were giving. The have a bridge to pay program it’s A scam don’t do it. This company is NO Good !!!!! PLEASE don’t get a replacement phone with them that locks you in for 6 months or they keep the the phone lock so you can not take it to another provider. I don’t care if you originally had a phone that was brought over from another company. They lock it. DONT DO IT !!!! HBO Unlimited 5G Text 4 for 130.00 and Free Phone All Sounds Good Trust Me Let them keep it ALL you will pay for it ALL in the END!!!!!

4 years ago

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buggy crazy Clatskanie, OR

this company keeps hijacking my phone calls and harassing me with text messages and threats to cut my PAID FOR service because they are killing my phone soon and want me to buy a new one from them, needless to say even if they had a decent phone I wouldn't stay with them. I have wasted hours and had company reps promise they would stop the hijacking and it has not stopped. It is very difficult to make a call from where I live with my disabilities and I cannot afford to waste a call just to have them hijack it. UPDATE ; I went in person to close account and even their own employees cannot get thru to "customer service", it took a long time and was unable to close acct. had to settle for removing auto pay so now if they bill me again I will just sick the credit card company on them.

4 years ago Edited January 14, 2022

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Christina Cranshaw Needles, CA

Cricket has THE worst customer service Ive ever had the misfortune of dealing with. They dont listen to a word you say. I had a phone just recently that I purchased from Cricket that people couldnt hear me on unless speaker phone was on. So I paid the $75 deductible got a new phone and they told me the six months I had to stay with them in order for my phone to work on another carrier restarted. Ive been trying too get away from this company since the month I started service. No offense but no one speaks english that you can understand. Not one person that Ive ever dealt spoke english good enough to understand everything they said with out difficulty. The phone that I couldnt be heard on all of a sudden works perfect as soon as Cricket removed service from it and I used phone over wifi. Stay as far away as possible from this company. Thats my advice.

4 years ago

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Mary Kay Mehaffey Palatka, FL

While out of town we bought a hotspot unit from the local Cricket store. We were told we had 6 days to return it if not satisfied. Turns out, it didn't hold a charge or give us the internet connection we needed. We took it back in less than 24 hours. THAT's when they told us our refund would be $80 less than what they charged us because "we don't refund usage fees." Okay, but we couldn't use it because it didn't work. They gave us a "complaint phone number." For the next 4 days, we tried to get through. After extended wait periods, we'd finally get someone on the line and then get "disconnected" exactly after telling them our story. It happened 3 or 4 times. Finally I got someone who said she couldn't help, but she would get a supervisor or call me back. To "keep the line clear" because the call was forthcoming. No call. Next day, I powered through and finally got a supervisor who said "Cricket is a no refund company. Since your account was activated, we cannot give you a refund. And to set your expectations, no matter who you talk to, you will not get a refund." He also said their upper management do not have phones or email addresses!! Unbelievable! I wish I had checked the BBB before buying from them. It is FULL of complaints just like ours. My advice: Don't do business with them. I feel like I got scammed.

5 years ago

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__ Burleson, TX

Great prices and the AT&T network but terrible customer service assuming you can find customer service. Poor selection of phones but there are options to bring your own phone. It seems like the kind of company where there is extremely bad upper management that is uninterested in business at the customer level.

5 years ago

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Justin Egbert Twin Falls, ID

Totally Disappointed with this Cricket Wireless company, DO NOT USE THEM IF YOU DONT HAVE TOO. I've been a on time paying customer for 5 months, came up short for a whole months service so I did the bridge pay, long story short I was late to make the 2nd payment which is due 7 days later, my phones are shut off, for me to turn them back on they want the whole months service, bridge pay for (7 days) cost me 110$. for 7 days! My check came in late so was unable to pay the 90$ for the remainder of the month, they want 210$ for my phones to be turned back on. 15$ of which is a re activation fee. Called customer service and all I got from a manager was, it's our company policy. I feel ripped off having to pay them 100$ + for the same monthly service I pay at the sum of 190$. So I asked about getting the unlock codes for our phones, we paid 1,199.00 dollars × 2 plus taxes for 2 Samsung galaxy s20 pluses, I own these phones, they are my phones, they will not unlock them because ther (Company Policy) says the the phones have to be active for 6 months on crickets services. All of this is bad business. I paid full retail price for these phones, they are mine... not crickets. so I fined my self with out a phone for 2 weeks tell I get paid to pay there thieving hands, and yes when I pay them that 6th payment I will get my phones unlocked and go else where, I will not be charged 100+ $$$ for missing a payment by 5 hours.. this 100$ late charge costed them my business. I'm not an animal that can be thrown around, Cricket wirless get with today, treat people/Customers like you want to keep there business. This is my experience with Cricket Wirless..

5 years ago

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Loretta Ricker Wichita, KS

i like the coverage.it is good but their customer service is very bad.I had a phone for over 6 months.Then went in to the cricket store to upgrade to a better phone.They checked my account to see if i was eligible for a upgrade which i was.if it had not been 6 months they would have said not eligible for the good price i gave my older phone to a family member.Well cricket locked my older phone.which i paid for it is mine.They lied and said they will not unlock the older phone because it was only used 3 months.Flat out lie.Any way it should not matter.it is my phone.I paid for it.cricket says they are a no contract company.That is a lie then.Cricket has no right to keep my older phone locked.to try and force me to use their service for another person i gave the phone to.I have been with cricket for 10 years I should have already left.Their cusfomer service is bad.so if you buy a cricket phone.They will keep it locked.No contract should mean you can decide not to use their service.But they will keep your phone locked.Like illegal black mail it seems.Their are other better companies that do not act like this.At & T owns cricket.and i turned off my home phone because they put services on my home phone without permission all the time.Crooks and liars.Cricket should be ashamed of treating people mean.They should do the right thing and unlock my old phone.

5 years ago

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Mr. Glass Greenville, NC

I've been with cricket for a looooong time. I now have a Nokia phone and it is TRASH. I called 4 times in one day because of the freezing. I use my phone for work and because of it I'm losing money. I contacted c.s. and they followed the same script, reset and good bye. Got hung up twice because of their incompetence. This company does not care if your phone isn't working, they do care if you pay your bill. And if you don't they cut you off, but what if their service isn't working? Oh yeah they don't care but they still expect you to pay a bill on a service that doesn't work. I know you don't care cricket but I'm moving on. Signed, a no longer loyal customer. I'll give my money to a company who cares.

5 years ago

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Liz Colorado Springs, CO

Bought our phones years ago. iPhone 8+ and Android. No contact paid on time. Our phones were on auto pay. For some unknown reason the Android was removed. I called and was assured by rep that it would be fixed. The website makes it impossible to do this you’re self. Adding lines isn’t for fixing it. NO one ever told me you have to go to the store! I my husband started getting text messages a day or so to pay his bill. Last bill was due on 12-27-20 I sent payment and it sat so was charged $14.00 extra to reactivate his phone again! This happened 3 times! Cricket holds payment so service stops then you have to pay for reactivating. Decided to go elsewhere. Not one person ever told us if you’re phones are locked you can’t go elsewhere and have your # ported to use! Also informed that both our account numbers were incorrect at store and both employees stated, per corporate we are not allowed to give the numbers to you or unlock phones! Unbelievable! Employees said to call corporate office there in store and the rep said ‘Cricket refuses to unlock phones unless we pay for another month +activation fees. ‘ By now steam is coming out of my ears. I called spoke to a rep Maria demanded our account numbers she was very apologetic and stated the two employees at the Colorado Springs store on Academy wrong in everything they did and said.We meet the having service for at least 6 months. We are senior citizens on a fixed income. Daughter got me a Track phone so if any emergency can get help. My husband bought a new phone elsewhere with a carrier that doesn’t lock any of your devices. How does Cricket get away with this practice is beyond my understanding. DO NOT USE CRICKET EVER!!!. Companies like this should be put out of business or ever.

5 years ago

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Margie Marcial Phoenix, AZ

This morning I called CUSTOMER CARE due to the fact that they suspended my account, when I still had 5 service days left on my account. They mentioned to me that it was due to adding 30GB of Hot Spot data last night, when I did not. I actually called they automated line and added only 15GB of Hot Spot data and paid for it over the phone and was even given a confirmation number. Still, they wanted me to pay the full amount due on my account, which was my normal plan, plus pay for the additional hotspot they added to my account without my approval. The CSR claimed she could not do anything about it, so in order to cut my service back on, I had to be placed on their Bridge Pay and forced to pay half of my bill that was supposed to be due on the 26th. If this is how they trick people into paying for their mistakes, then it's not a good company to get involved with. They could have fixed their mistake, but chose not to. They'd rather make their customers pay additional services against their wishes by suspending their customers account and giving them no other option but to pay for their plan way before their bill is even due. They could have just had me pay for the 15GB of hotspot they added and reactivated my account since I had 5 service days left and my bill wasn't due until the 26th. Terrible phone provider, no different than Metro PCS. Will be switching providers due to how they treated this situation. Very shady, and not a trustworthy company to get involved with. Plus they sell your information, which you will get tons of spam calls/texts, which all they'll do is tell you to enter your phone number in some website to have it unlisted, which doesn't work whatsoever.

5 years ago