T-Mobile, one of the top mobile providers in the U.S., has quietly brought back a generous promo to keep its loyal customers from jumping to another phone carrier.

Recently, T-Mobile has been facing tougher competition from phone carriers such as Verizon and AT&T, which have both been launching free perks and phone deals to attract customers. Cable giants such as Spectrum and Xfinity have also been offering phone plan discounts when bundled with TV and internet services.

As the wireless market becomes increasingly competitive, more consumers are exploring various options for more affordable phone plans outside their current provider, especially as they notice their monthly bills becoming more expensive. 

How higher phone bills are impacting Americans:

  • The average cost of a single-line phone plan is $76 per month. 
  • Approximately 42% of Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T customers have seen their phone bills rise in the past year, which is 7% higher than average. 
  • Also, 58% of Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T customers are considering switching to a different phone carrier as their monthly bills become less affordable.
  • T-Mobile risks losing 75.9 million customers due to high mobile plan pricing.
    Source: WhistleOut
T-Mobile is navigating increased promotional activity from competitors.

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T-Mobile rolls out free phone line offer to loyal customers

Amid this nationwide consumer trend, T-Mobile saw its postpaid phone churn (the number of customers who cut their phone service) reach 0.89% during the third quarter of this year, which is 3 basis points higher than what it was during the same quarter last year, according to its latest earnings report. 

To help retain loyal customers, T-Mobile is quietly offering free lines to select customers, a promotion that began on Dec. 11, according to a recent report from The Mobile Report. The last time T-Mobile launched a free line offer was in September. 

The new “Line On Us” promotion offers customers who have had a wireless plan with the company for at least three years an additional line to their existing account for free, with no purchases required. To qualify, customers must also have two paid lines on their account. 

Related: T-Mobile launches free offer for customers after major loss

It is also important to note that customers will encounter a one-time activation fee of $10. For customers on a phone plan that doesn’t include taxes and fees, such as the Experience plans, they will have to pay taxes on that free line each month.

Also, the promo is “bring your own device,” meaning customers can’t finance a phone through that free line. 

To claim this offer, which T-Mobile employees can search under the segment name “Loyalty BYOD Dec 2025,” customers must either contact customer service or visit a T-Mobile store. The promotion is unavailable through the T-Life app. 

T-Mobile recently made harsh changes, impacting customers

The move from T-Mobile comes after it has frustrated some of its loyal customers with recent pricing, discount and phone plan changes. For example, in April, T-Mobile increased the monthly prices for some of its older phone plans by $5 and raised its Regulatory Programs & Telco Recovery Fee (customers pay for this monthly). 

It also officially discontinued its Go5G plans in June and started removing taxes and fees from plan pricing. More recently, T-Mobile hiked its late fee for customers who don’t pay their bills on time in October. It also began warning customers that they will lose their monthly autopay discount if they make early payments with a credit card. 

During an earnings call in October, then-T-Mobile Chief Operating Officer Srini Gopalan, who is now the CEO of T-Mobile, said the company aims to tackle the “friction and frustration” it causes customers by focusing more on simplifying the customer experience through the implementation of a “digital transformation.”

More Telecom News:

  • T-Mobile announces free offer for Verizon and AT&T customers
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  • Spectrum raises red flag on cause of fleeing customer problem

“Digital acquisition and moving our customers to digital is fundamentally going after customer pain points and going after the way we’ve always done things in this industry, changed and radically relooking at that process, and just making it simpler to do the one thing you can’t do on your wireless, which is buy wireless,” said Gopalan. 

As part of this digital transformation, T-Mobile is reportedly planning to make customers solely dependent on its T-Life app to handle upgrades, activate accounts, add new lines, etc., by January. 

The company already launched its Easy Switch tool earlier this month, which allows consumers to switch to T-Mobile from rival phone carriers in 15 minutes or less through the T-Life app. 

It is vital for T-Mobile to address customer pain points, as it currently lags behind mobile virtual network operators such as Mint Mobile and Visible by Verizon in terms of consumer satisfaction with postpaid phone plans, according to a recent survey from J.D. Power.

Phone carrier consumer satisfaction rates for postpaid phone plans:

  • Consumer Cellular has a satisfaction score of 726 (on a 1,000-point scale).
  • Google Fi Wireless takes second place with a score of 671.
  • T-Mobile falls behind Google Fi Wireless with a satisfaction score of 626. 
  • Spectrum Mobile is three points behind T-Mobile with a satisfaction score of 623.
    Source: J.D. Power 

“This new study is a window into the complete customer journey with their wireless carrier,” said Carl Lepper, senior director of technology, media and telecom at J.D. Power, in a press release. “The findings show that value is the most important driver of the overall experience, followed closely by service quality.”

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