AT&T Again Raising Price of Grandfathered Unlimited Data Plans

AT&TStarting in March of 2017, AT&T will raise the prices of its grandfathered unlimited data plans by $5, according to information obtained by DSLReports. The price hike is AT&T's second price increase in the last 12 months and will raise prices from $35 to $40.

DSLReports forum users began receiving notifications about the $5 price increase in early January, and the site was able to confirm AT&T's plans. AT&T's statement on the new pricing is below:

Our Mobile Share Advantage plans and our AT&T Unlimited Plan provide several benefits that our legacy unlimited plan doesn't. If you have a legacy unlimited data plan, you can keep it; however, beginning in March 2017, it will increase by $5 per month.

AT&T no longer offers standalone unlimited data plans to customers, but a small number of people continue to hold onto unlimited data plans that were purchased before AT&T discontinued them in 2010. Those plans allow customers to use an unlimited amount of data, but throttling does occur with excessive data usage.

AT&T previously raised prices for its unlimited data customers in February of 2016, increasing data plan costs from $30 to $35. AT&T's data plan costs are charged in addition to voice and text plan costs for unlimited customers, putting the minimum price on an unlimited data plan with text and voice (not unlimited) in the neighborhood of $90.

Over the course of the last several years, AT&T has used price hikes, data caps, and throttling to attempt to get its grandfathered unlimited customers to switch to new plans. In 2014, the FTC launched a federal court complaint against AT&T for its throttling practices, which led AT&T to scale them back.

At the beginning of 2016, AT&T reintroduced $100 unlimited data plans but limited them to AT&T users who subscribe to an AT&T DirecTV or AT&T U-Verse plan.

Tag: AT&T

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
imac video apple feature

Apple Makes Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever

Tuesday February 3, 2026 12:45 pm PST by
Apple recently acquired Israeli startup Q.ai for close to $2 billion, according to Financial Times sources. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone maker Beats in 2014. This is also the largest known Apple acquisition since the company purchased Intel's smartphone modem business and patents for $1 billion in 2019....
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...

Top Rated Comments

Number 41 Avatar
119 months ago
I expect everything AT&T does to be the absolute worst -- yet, somehow, they still manage to exceed my expectations.
Score: 45 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cariacou Avatar
119 months ago
I switched to T-Mobile a couple years ago. Couldn't be happier.
They have similar unlimited plans, and none are anywhere close to $90/user.
I think it's about $140/4 users?

Oh, and did I mention they've never raised my plan's cost? Actually they've "lowered" it several times (added very useful benefits for free, like free international texting/free international data and a lot more).

Disclaimer: I don't work for T-mo, don't own any shares. Just enjoy how they have been treating me.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
freediverx Avatar
119 months ago
This will not persuade me to switch to one of their newer, ******** plans. It will merely lead me to switch to T-Mobile.
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
goobot Avatar
119 months ago
Incoming **** storm of people complaining about the price increase. Like, I get it. I absolutely do. But how is this a surprise? Apple raises the price of their Plus iPhone $29, and no one blinks an eye.

But these telecom companies raise the price on your plan, and this one they haven't offered for almost 7 years and you're surprised? I'm not defending what they're doing, and I know this is going to trigger a lot of people, but getting worked up over a trivial amount of money just isn't worth it. Especially when you knew it was coming.

And if you want to flame me, keep it civil please. There's worse things in the world than getting worked up over $5.
$5 dollars monthly isn't the same as 5$
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Deep Dish Avatar
119 months ago
Why does anybody still use AT&T? I switched to Cricket a couple years ago, I'm still on the AT&T network, and I pay $30/month for unlimited everything. Yeah, my friends make fun of me for using Cricket, but I haven't noticed any difference in quality of service despite paying less than half of what I used to.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Born Again Avatar
119 months ago
ever notice how the at&t logo looks like the death star?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)