AT&T International Talk & Text Add-Ons

Some AT&T postpaid plans already include international benefits, such as unlimited texting to over 120 countries, as well as roaming in Mexico and Canada. That said, if your plan doesn’t come with these perks or you’re wanting to call destinations other than Mexico or Canada, there are several international talk and text add-ons available, including:

• AT&T World Connect Value
• AT&T World Connect Advantage
• International texting packages
• International Day Pass
• AT&T Passport

Mobile customers can also choose to pay for the talk, text, and data they use while traveling, as opposed to committing to one or more international packages.

AT&T International Add-Ons

AT&T offers many different international perks for you to choose from, including:

• International Day Pass ($10/day)
• World Connect Value ($5/month)
• World Connect Advantage ($15/month)

AT&T World Connect Value

This international talk feature is exactly what its name implies—it’s cheap. For only $5/month per line, you get unlimited calling to Canada and Mexico, plus discounted calling to over 255 countries. You can only add AT&T World Connect Value to a postpaid plan that includes. This is a low-cost way to stay in contact with a close friend or family member who is residing in one of these countries for an extended period of time.

AT&T World Connect Advantage

This long distance international calling perk is a step up from the value add-on. For $15/month, you receive:

• Unlimited calling to Canada and Mexico
• Unlimited calling to landline numbers in 70 countries
• Unlimited calling to wireless numbers in 36 countries
• Discounted calling to all other eligible countries

Again, you must have a postpaid plan that includes unlimited domestic calling in order to qualify.

Without an international calling package, pay-per-use rates are rather expensive. Consider the following rates:

• Canada and Mexico: $1/minute
• Europe: $2/minute
• Rest of the world: $3/minute

Forgoing a calling package may only make sense if the country you want to call isn’t included in the international add-on.

International Texting Packages

Select AT&T cell phone plans, such as the AT&T Unlimited &More, Unlimited &More Premium, and Mobile Share plans already include unlimited texting to over 120 countries worldwide. If you aren’t on an eligible plan, AT&T also offers the following international texting packages:

• • $10/month: 100 sent texts
  • $15/month: 1,000 sent texts

With both of these packages, the overage cost is $.20/message sent. If for some reason you don’t want to commit to a package, you can always pay per message sent, although that may not be the most economical choice. The AT&T pay-per-use messages rates include:

• Picture/video texts: $1.30/message

With these rates, you end up paying $50 for 100 sent texts or $500 for 1,000 sent texts, so you might as well save some money and choose a texting package.

International Day Pass

AT&T’s International Day Pass is a great way to use your talk, text, and data plan allowances while traveling abroad. For instance, if you’re on an unlimited data plan, you will have unlimited messaging, calling, and high-speed data use while traveling (with a 22GB data deprioritization threshold). This pass costs $10/day and you’re only charged on the days that you use your phone, which provides you with some flexibility while you’re on the go.

AT&T Passport

AT&T Passport, which is available in more than 200 countries, offers two options to choose from—the $60 package and the $120 package. You can pay for one month or you can set up recurring charges for extended trips. The recurring option requires a 2-month minimum commitment.

• $60/month AT&T Passport 1GB: Unlimited texts, 1GB of data, and $.35/minute
• $120/month AT&T Passport 3GB: Unlimited texts, 3GB of data, and $.35/minute

These packages cost as much as, if not more than, many AT&T phone plans, and the data allowances are fairly meager all things considered. But if you’re going to be traveling for an extended period of time and will have WiFi access where you’re staying or living, this may be the best option for you.

AT&T Phone Plans

AT&T’s plans tend to be a bit more expensive than plans offered through Sprint and T-Mobile, and more or less in line with Verizon’s. One key benefit of going with AT&T is the coverage, as the network is the second or third best in the country, depending on which test you’re looking at.

AT&T’s plans come with great features like:

• Live TV
• Unlimited international texting
• Roaming in Mexico and Canada

However, the carrier isn’t necessarily the top choice for features. Like AT&T, T-Mobile’s unlimited plans include unlimited texting worldwide and roaming capabilities in Mexico and Canada, but they also include unlimited data in over 210 countries and Netflix subscriptions and hotspot allowances with the unlimited plans.

Sprint has the worst coverage out of the four main carriers, with just 27% coverage, but the carrier offers:

• Huge hotspot allowances
• Roaming in Mexico and Canada
• Unlimited texting and basic data in more than 200 countries
• Free Hulu and Tidal subscriptions

AT&T Plans and International Add-Ons Vs. Verizon Plans and International Add-Ons

AT&T plan prices are comparable with Verizon’s, although Verizon does offer the most expensive plan on the market—the $90/month Get More Unlimited Plan. However, Verizon boasts the top network in the country, thus justifying their high prices (although AT&T’s network, as mentioned, is strong as well).

Both AT&T and Verizon offer nice unlimited plans with decent perks. AT&T offers Live TV, roaming in Mexico and Canada, and unlimited texting to more than 120 international destinations. AT&T’s most expensive plan, the $80/month Unlimited &More Premium plan, also includes an entertainment subscription of your choice: HBO, Showtime, Starz, Cinemax, VRV, or Pandora Premium. This entertainment option could save you $15/month if you choose HBO or Cinemax.

Verizon unlimited plans include Apple Music, hotspot allowances, and roaming in Canada and Mexico (although 4G data is limited to .5GB/day). The Get More Unlimited Plan also comes with 500GB of Verizon Cloud, and a super high 75GB data deprioritization threshold. Verizon also sells a daily TravelPass ($10/day) so you can use your plan internationally.

Head to head, AT&T’s International Day Pass and Verizon’s TravelPass are similar international perks—they both cost $10 per day and include talk, text, and high-speed data while traveling abroad. The major difference is that with Verizon’s option, you are limited to .5GB of 4G LTE data per day, even if you’re on an unlimited data plan. Conversely, AT&T doesn’t restrict your data usage.

AT&T Plans and International Add-Ons Vs. T-Mobile Plans and International Add-Ons

AT&T’s network is neck and neck with T-Mobile’s—AT&T falls just 1% behind T-Mobile. AT&T and T-Mobile’s plan prices may appear similar, but T-Mobile includes all taxes and fees, making their offerings ultimately less expensive than AT&T’s.

Some of the unique perks offered by T-Mobile include Netflix subscriptions on some unlimited plans, unlimited data in over 210 countries, and 4G LTE data allowances in Mexico and Canada. Although AT&T offers unlimited talk, text, and data, in Canada and Mexico, their fine print states that you may experience 2G data speeds in either of these countries.

T-Mobile’s version of a data pass is called the International Pass and it comes with some flexibility:

• $5/day: .5GB of 4G data + unlimited calling
• $35 for 10 days: 5GB of 4G data + unlimited calling
• $50 for 30 days: 15GB of 4G data + unlimited calling

T-Mobile International Pass doesn’t come with unlimited international texting because their plans already include this at no extra charge. Choosing the 10-day package saves you $1.50/day or $15 total. It’s an affordable way to use your phone while traveling abroad. That said, if you’re a heavy phone and app user, the limited data allowance may be a nuisance to you. AT&T International Day Pass grants you more data freedom, but it also comes with a price. 10 days abroad would cost you $100, instead of T-Mobile’s more manageable $35 package.