What kind of coverage does sprint have

Or you can switch over to T-Mobile. Transferring your service won't count as a new account, so you won't get all the added benefits of a new T-Mobile customer. You will also first need to pay off your Sprint phone completely and satisfy any other financial obligations you have on your Sprint account. Both carriers have long offered certain benefits to their respective subscribers, like streaming services bundled into plans.

At the moment you can't access the other carrier's benefits or promotions, but expect some kind of universal promotion in the future. The exception is T-Mobile Tuesdays , the app that offers free stuff and deals every Tuesday from various partners. If you were on Sprint, you can download the app and access these freebies just like T-Mobile customers.

You might just see extended roaming capabilities if Sprint's coverage is poor in a specific area. You can check your phone's compatibility with T-Mobile here. Our recommendation is to buy an unlocked phone, which supports GSM and usually includes support for Sprint's network. It can also go through walls, which is a problem for some 5G signals, like millimeter wave. T-Mobile now owns that spectrum and has already started deploying it in cities like Philadelphia. T-Mobile and Sprint customers using a 5G phone will gradually start to see faster data speeds.

To benefit, you'll also need to pony up for a new phone that supports 5G. To get the merger approved, T-Mobile had to agree to expand rural coverage with a 5G network that covers 97 percent of the US population in three years and 99 percent in six years. Search for the device you want or any 5G device to see which plans are compatible, then go from there.

If you search for all plans without specifying a 5G device, you'll see more plan options, many of them cheaper but that may not apply to the 5G device you're eyeing.

If you also don't care for 5G and have an older plan you'll still be able to get the phone, it just will be limited to 4G LTE. As always, we suggest looking out for deals, like a bundle or buy-one, get-one, or else some enticement to sign on with a new carrier. Remember, too, that if the price of a 5G phone seems steep, you can pay month by month instead of buying the phone outright.

As with any phone, the downside is that you may still wind up paying for a first-gen 5G phone that in two years could feel out of date.

Coverage that varies block to block. Unexpected switches between 5G and 4G. Large parts of the country -- both urban and rural -- with no 5G at all. Verizon made it possible to upload content -- like photos and videos -- over its faster 5G network. The carrier plans to expand its super-fast millimeter-wave 5G network to 60 cities in and plans to launch a lower band nationwide this year as well.

While T-Mobile and Sprint have merged, the two sides are still in the process of consolidating into a single carrier "the new T-Mobile" , which should make it a formidable competitor in the 5G space. For now, you can still sign up for a 5G plan from Sprint though that will change on Aug.

If you are getting a Sprint phone you'll want to make sure you're buying a 5G phone to ensure you'll be able to connect to T-Mobile's 5G network. For its part, T-Mobile currently has the strongest 5G network among the major carriers both in terms of availability and its capacity to leverage all three flavors of the new wireless technology: low-band which allows for nationwide coverage , midband thanks to Sprint, this allows for faster speeds at longer ranges and indoors and millimeter-wave though this is only in a handful of cities.

Ookla is tracking the global rollout of 5G networks through its Speedtest. The Speedtest interactive map lets you drill down to the city level to see which companies have deployed 5G. The map, however, doesn't tell the whole story.

As a next step, compare where you live and work or attend school with each carrier's coverage map. If you're frequently near a carrier's hotspots, that might push you to 5G sooner rather than later.

The full range of the spectrum assigned for 5G spans under 1 GHz for low-band, to over 24 GHz for higher frequency millimeter-wave. And while 5G promises speeds that will let you download a full-length movie to your phone in seconds, it's not just about the rocket-fast connections. Check out our full explainer on 5G.

The wireless standard is designed to significantly reduce network latency or lag time , letting you play a real-time combat game against other players on your phone , for example, or helping self-driving cars monitor each other on the road one day. To create their 5G networks , the major US carriers are using a combination of available spectrum bands and their mix of bands defines the coverage. There are generally three flavors of 5G. The first is "low band," which is efficient and reliable at providing connections over long distances, indoors and out.

Most 4G networks use this band, which runs on , and MHz frequencies, so you can expect similar coverage to what you get today. But don't expect the insane speeds you've been hearing about as a result of that range.

To get that, 5G needs to tap into "millimeter-wave" or "mmWave" spectrum, which offers much higher capacity over much shorter distances that is, ultra-fast speeds over 1Gbps. Think of it as a supercharged Wi-Fi hotspot. Reception has been finicky in our early experience, with walls, glass and even a hand able to block the mmWave signal, though peak speeds have been impressive.

Lastly, there's "midband," which sits in between low and mmWave as a compromise in speed and range while still being able to work indoors. T-Mobile is the only one using midband spectrum thanks to a stash of radio airwaves it purchased with the Sprint deal.

Midband currently runs on radio waves below the 6GHz spectrum bands. We've got answers. Not all devices have the same capabilities. Older devices weren't built to take advantage of the network we have today. For example, if you don't have a device with 5G, you won't be able to tap into our nationwide 5G network. For more information, check out our Metro coverage map to see what kind of coverage you can expect where you live, work, and play with the device you're using.

See More FAQ's. Unlimited high-speed data plans. Get a great new phone or bring the one you love. Shop Phones.

Explore Plans. Bring Your Own Phone. Video streams at up to p. Unlimited data on smartphones and on network only. Unlimited is only available on select plans. Capable device req'd; coverage not available in some areas. T-Mobile, due to prioritization.

There's a 5G phone within reach. Find out more. Limited-time offer, while supplies last. In-store only. See store for details. Affordable 5G with no compromises You don't have to choose between the best price and an amazing network.