Prepaid WiFi: hotspots, data plans and no-contract home internet
Three ways to get WiFi you pay for up front: a hotspot with a data plan, the hotspot on your phone plan, or prepaid home internet. What each costs and who it suits.
If you already have a phone, the cheapest prepaid WiFi is the hotspot on a prepaid plan: Visible includes unlimited hotspot from $25/mo. If you want a separate device, a Straight Talk hotspot with a data-only plan is $25 for 10 GB or $50 for 100 GB. If you need WiFi for a whole home, prepaid home internet from $30/mo is faster and has no data cap.
Some links are affiliate links. Prices checked Oct 18, 2026 from carrier and retailer listings; confirm before you buy.
Quick picks
Three kinds of prepaid WiFi
- Your phone's hotspot: no extra device or bill. Cheapest, but drains the battery and most plans cap hotspot speed or data.
- A mobile hotspot with a data-only plan: a pocket device that shares a cellular connection over WiFi. Good for travel, a car or a second location. You pay per GB.
- Prepaid home internet: a router at one address, usually unlimited and faster. See no-credit-check internet if approval is the reason you're going prepaid.
The picks
Visible
Every plan includes unlimited hotspot data, capped at 5 Mbps on Visible, 10 Mbps on Visible+ and 15 Mbps on Visible+ Pro. Enough for email, browsing and video calls on a laptop; slow for big downloads. Visible review.
See Visible plans →Straight Talk hotspot plans
Data-only plans for a Straight Talk hotspot or tablet, refilled online or with cards from Walmart. No phone line needed and no credit check. You need a Straight Talk-compatible hotspot device.
See plans at Walmart →Mint Mobile Unlimited
Mint includes 20 GB of hotspot data on Unlimited. Through Oct 22, new customers pay $10/mo for six months ($60 up front), then $35/mo on a 6-month plan. Mint's Black Friday deal.
See Mint plans →US Mobile Unlimited Premium
About $44/mo, with 100 GB of full-speed hotspot data before it slows. The best fit if a phone hotspot is your main internet for weeks at a time. US Mobile's current code.
See US Mobile plans →Prepaid home internet
A router that stays at home, usually with unlimited data and faster speeds than a hotspot. NOW Internet is $30/mo on Xfinity's cable network; Visible Home Internet is $30/mo with a Visible phone line.
Compare prepaid home internet →Buying a hotspot device
Data-only plans from Straight Talk and other prepaid brands only work on that brand's devices, so buy the hotspot and the plan together. If you want to switch carriers later, an unlocked 5G hotspot works with most carriers' data SIMs. A 5G model is worth it only if your area has 5G coverage from that carrier.
How much data you need
Email and browsing use well under 1 GB an hour. A video call uses about 1 to 2 GB an hour, and streaming in HD uses about 3 GB an hour. A 10 GB plan suits occasional travel; 100 GB covers daily work from a hotspot. For more on speed, see what internet speed you need.
Traveling?
For trips, flights and road time, see our guide to internet on the go, and our in-flight WiFi guide.
Questions
What is prepaid WiFi?
WiFi you pay for before you use it, with no contract or credit check. It comes three ways: a mobile hotspot with a prepaid data plan, the hotspot on a prepaid phone plan, or prepaid home internet with a router.
How much does prepaid WiFi cost?
Data-only hotspot plans start around $25 a month for 10 GB. Prepaid phone plans with hotspot start at $25 a month with Visible. Prepaid home internet starts at $30 a month.
Can I get prepaid WiFi at Walmart?
Yes. Walmart sells Straight Talk hotspot devices and data-only refills, including $25 for 10 GB and $50 for 100 GB per 30 days on Verizon's network, plus prepaid phone plans with hotspot.
Is a hotspot enough to replace home internet?
For one person who mostly browses and streams on one device, often yes. For a household, gaming or heavy streaming, prepaid home internet is faster and usually has no data cap.
- Walmart.com Straight Talk hotspot and data-only plan listings, checked Oct 18, 2026
- Visible, Mint Mobile and US Mobile plan pages, checked Oct 2026
- ShopHighSpeed provider reviews and Black Friday phone plan deals, Oct 2026
Prices and offers change often; confirm at your address before you order. How we research
Jean founded ShopHighSpeed after trying to find one straight answer about business internet in his own town. He has been a Comcast and Verizon Fios customer, and ranks providers on what they actually deliver, not on what they advertise.