Tello review

Updated September 30, 2026 · TariffCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 30, 2026

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Our verdict

Tello sells prepaid, rolling service billed monthly, priced from $5 and scored 9.1 overall, which makes it a fit for single users and light-data households who want a small bill and no long commitment. The trade-off is a compact feature list and an unlimited tier priced well above the field.

Key facts

Best for
A cheap sim-only line with rollover and eSIM, and no long commitment to unpick later.
SIM-only
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Price from
$5 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Reference plan prices
Talk & Text Only: $5/mo, 0GB, monthly; 10GB Plan: $15/mo, 10GB, monthly; Unlimited Plan: $25/mo, 50GB, monthly (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Unlimited plan price
$25 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
5G
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
eSIM
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Data rollover
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Hotspot sharing
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Billing
Prepaid, Rolling
Contract length
1
Official website
tello.com

Apps and profiles

Get the app
App Store
Elsewhere
WikidataWikipediaXTrustpilot

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Billing is prepaid and rolling and the plan contract is 1 month, so a line can be started or stopped without a fixed term.
  • Data rollover and hotspot sharing are both available, so unused data is not wasted and the same line doubles as laptop data.
  • eSIM is supported, so a compatible phone can be set up without waiting for a card to arrive.
  • The entry price of $5 underpins a cheap second line, since the Talk and Text Only plan is calls and messages only.

Cons

  • The Unlimited Plan costs $25, which puts Tello at 80 of 173 on that price.
  • The entry price of $5 ranks 83 of 258, so the headline figure is not among the lowest on the site.
  • The Talk and Text Only plan at $5 covers calls and messages only, so the cheapest line suits a spare or backup phone rather than a primary one.
  • The term is 1 month, so there is no fixed-term discount for anyone who could commit longer.
Tello

Ready to try Tello?

Scored 9.1 / 10 by TariffCue.

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Who it suits

  • Single users and couples who each want one line at $5, with data rollover smoothing out quiet months.
  • Travellers and new phone buyers who want eSIM activation straight away rather than a contract with GETESA (prepaid and contract) or Lonestar Cell MTN (contract and prepaid).
  • Households that dislike being tied in: the 1 month term sits against contract billing at yesss! (contract, rolling and prepaid).

Who should look elsewhere

  • Readers who want unlimited data inside a contract: yesss! (contract, rolling and prepaid) and GETESA (prepaid and contract) both bill on a contract, while the Unlimited Plan here is $25.
  • Price-first buyers chasing the lowest entry figure, since $5 sits at 83 of 258.
  • Anyone who wants prepaid billing and a term at the same time, which GETESA (prepaid and contract) offers while Tello's billing is prepaid and rolling.

What it does well

The plan is sim only, so it drops into a handset you already own and the cost is the plan rather than a subsidised phone. 5G is available, so the line is not confined to older networks, and hotspot sharing comes with it, which turns the same SIM into a data connection for a laptop or tablet. eSIM is supported, so a line can be set up on a compatible device without waiting for a card in the post, useful for a new phone or a trip. Data rollover is included, so data left unused in one cycle is still there in the next rather than expiring. Set against that, the feature list is deliberately short: one prepaid line, the everyday network features and enough flexibility to leave without a long notice period.

Where it sits among rivals

On the entry price, Tello sits at 83 out of 258 brands compared, which places the headline figure in the middle of the table rather than at the sharp end. The unlimited price reads much the same way, at 80 out of 173. Taken together, the two measures say the same thing: Tello is not priced at either extreme. So the case for it rests on what the monthly amount buys and on the absence of a long term, not on holding the lowest figure on the page. Readers sorting strictly by the cheapest monthly number will find cheaper entries and cheaper unlimited tiers higher up the tables.

Pricing

Tello's entry point is $5 for the Talk and Text Only plan, a bare line for calls and messages without any data attached, which makes it a natural fit for a second phone, a tablet or a line used only for talking and texting. A mid-size data plan sits above it in the same monthly series, and the Unlimited Plan is priced at $25. Those are the two figures worth planning a bill around: the entry figure for a light-use line, the unlimited figure for a phone that carries streaming, navigation and shared hotspot traffic. Both are monthly amounts, so the same number carries from one cycle to the next.

How Tello compares

Where Tello is available

Available
United States

Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 30, 2026)

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest Tello plan and what does it include?+

The Talk and Text Only plan is the entry point at $5, and it covers calls and messages without any data allowance. A mid-size data plan and the Unlimited Plan sit above it in the same monthly series. On entry price, Tello ranks 83 of 258 on the site, so the figure is mid-table rather than the lowest available.

How much is the Tello unlimited plan?+

The Unlimited Plan is priced at $25, and it is the tier most readers look at first. On that measure Tello ranks 80 of 173 across the brands compared, which leaves it behind a fair number of cheaper unlimited options. Worth weighing against what a lower unlimited figure elsewhere would carry.

Do I have to sign a contract with Tello?+

There is no long commitment to sign. Billing is prepaid and rolling and the plan contract runs for 1 month, so a line can be started and stopped without a fixed term. That is the clearest difference from GETESA, which pairs prepaid billing with a contract (prepaid and contract), or yesss!, which bills on a contract, a rolling basis or prepaid (contract, rolling and prepaid).

Does unused data carry over to the next month?+

Data rollover is included, so data left over in one cycle stays available in the next rather than disappearing. Hotspot sharing is there too, which lets a Tello line act as the data connection for a laptop or tablet. Both sit on the same prepaid, rolling setup described by prepaid and rolling, and the entry line costs $5 where only calls and messages are needed.

Can I activate a Tello line with an eSIM?+

eSIM is supported, so a compatible phone can be set up without waiting for a physical card to arrive. The line is billed on a 1 month term with prepaid and rolling billing, so there is no long contract to sign around the activation. A traveller or a new phone buyer can therefore have service running quickly and change their mind just as quickly.

Is 5G included on Tello plans?+

5G is available, and hotspot sharing is included alongside it. In practice a single line can carry calls, browsing and a shared data connection for another device without a second plan. The range runs from the Talk and Text Only plan at $5 through a mid-size data plan to the Unlimited Plan at $25.

How does Tello compare with the alternatives?+

Three alternatives are listed against Tello (3). GETESA combines prepaid billing with a contract (prepaid and contract), yesss! bills on a contract, a rolling basis or prepaid (contract, rolling and prepaid), and Lonestar Cell MTN sells on a contract and prepaid (contract and prepaid). Tello's own billing is prepaid and rolling, which leaves it the most flexible of the four and the least tied down.

Sources

Compiled from 3 source pages, checked September 30, 2026. We did not open an account.

Not confirmed yet: Seller type.

Tello

Tello

A cheap sim-only line with rollover and eSIM, and no long commitment to unpick later.

9.1/10See alternatives

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