Straight Talk is a US-based prepaid wireless operator under TracFone Wireless and Walmart. It is a no-contract wireless provider that offers cheap phone plans with unlimited Talk, text, and data and a wide selection of high-quality cellphones. You can buy their products and services at their exclusive retailer, Walmart. Most essentially, Straight Talk allows its customers to enjoy excellent services on the US’s most significant and reliable 4G LTE and 5G networks. This article will primarily focus on does Straight Talk use Verizon towers for a reliable network?
Each Straight Talk phone plan comes with reliable 4G LTE coverage throughout the country. Is that factual, or is it just a trick? You might doubt the claim because many of the network towers across the US belong to three major carriers. Fine, Straight Talk use tower that runs on the same towers as primary networks, including Verizon. Luckily, since Straight Talk is not the one building or maintaining the towers, they can charge our customers less and still offer reliable coverage wherever and whenever they want.
With the MVNO, you will never miss a beat once you switch to their network. They offer cellular service as far as the eye can see with countrywide, coast-to-coast network coverage on the US’ primary and most reliable 4G LTE networks. If you don’t believe this claim, you can check the Straight Talk coverage map for yourself. You only need to enter your zip code to see if you reside within their service area.
Does Straight Talk Use Verizon Towers?
Straight Talk is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) type of cellular carrier operating in the US. This Straight Talk’s mode of operation means that the operator doesn’t use or have its wireless network infrastructures and towers. But instead, it purchases the right to use network towers from one of the ‘big three’ US carriers.
Unlike most virtual operators signing a contract with one of the significant carriers, Straight Talk has partnered with Verizon and the other two (T-Mobile and AT&T) to provide comprehensive coverage. In that way, you have to know what towers does Straight Talk use. Using the three prominent network towers is one of MVNO’s significant advantages and selling points.
One advantage of using the three network towers is that every Straight Talk customer can get the best possible coverage, notwithstanding where they live. Secondly, the MVNO doesn’t incur the extra cost of constructing and maintaining the cell towers; thus, using their savings to offer a better service at an affordable cost.
To make things clear to you, the fact that the MVNO has partnered with all three networks doesn’t mean that you have access to all of them. You can only have access to one of the primary carriers, Verizon towers, depending on your location and the type of device you use.
That way, you will need to find the nearest cell tower to provide you with the best possible coverage. Since our main concern is about Verizon towers, the article will primarily discuss its coverage with Straight Talk in subsequent sections.
How Good Is Verizon Network Towers with Straight Talk?
From the fact that Straight Talk uses network towers of all the major US carriers, Verizon towers turn out to be incredible in terms of coverage! Since consumers get access to a robust network for their cellphones and the place they live, most of them use Verizon towers since it has 70% 4G coverage.
Straight Talk consumers using Verizon’s 4G LTE network have access to the US’s excellent 4G LTE coverage. With 70% coverage of the US landmass, Verizon’s 4G LTE is exceptionally robust in cities and towns. Furthermore, Verizon ranks best for rural coverage, where both T-Mobile and AT&T don’t have the best coverage. If you are using the rather networks, you purchase one of the best cell phone boosters for rural areas to improve the coverage.
When it comes to 5G network coverage, Verizon, a 4G LTE leader, lags behind its competitors. This lag is because Verizon focused on mmWave technology for its early 5G rollout, which offers fast speeds but poor coverage.
The carrier started focusing on low-band 5G in due course, which exponentially improved its reach. Its 11% coverage feels somehow low; however, its 5G has a strong presence in most metropolitan areas. This presence gives Verizon (Straight Talk) adequate coverage to securely say that it has coast-to-coast 5G coverage.
How can Verizon network towers’ coverage compare?
Straight Talk’s network towers coverage area can be best compared to and described as the total of Verizon’s, AT&T’s, and T-Mobile’s coverage area. Their total network coverage reaches 99.6% of the US population, making Straight Talk have excellent coverage among the MVNOs.
If you plan to switch to Straight Talk’s service, you will access Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile networks. Below is how Verizon network’s 4G and 5G coverage can compare.
Overall best coverage:
- Verizon:(best overall coverage)
- T-Mobile: (second-best overall coverage)
- AT&T: (third-best overall coverage)
4G coverage:
- Verizon: 70% 4G coverage
- AT&T: 68% 4G coverage
- T-Mobile: 62% 4G coverage (99% of the population)
5G coverage:
- T-Mobile: 36.7% 5G coverage (80% of the population)
- AT&T: 15.9% 5G coverage
- Verizon: 10.9% 5G coverage
Verizon passes the threshold from the above info, and now it is the most reliable 4G network that you can use with Straight Talk. The Verizon network ranks third when it comes to 5G network, and its presence is adequate in most urban areas.
However, it is worth noting that traveling will affect your phone reception as none of the major carriers offers 100% coverage. That way, you will always find a place with lousy coverage, irrespective of the network you use.
Moreover, the country’s remotest areas and hiking grounds like mountainous areas have patchy to no coverage on all networks. The article recommends one of the best portable cell phone signal boosters for hiking to improve network coverage in those areas.
How to improve Straight Talk cell phone reception?
To improve cell phone reception, you need to look for ways of getting a better signal with Straight Talk. That means you can access the signals from the nearest Straight Talk cell tower. The following are ways of improving cell phone reception on Straight Talk.
i) Change your location
If you are experiencing poor cell reception, you need to move to locations that have a direct orientation to the direction of the nearby cell tower. This movement will ensure you get a better signal.
ii) Upgrade to a newer device
The latest device offers you better performance and coverage than an old one since radio technology is upgrading endlessly. You need to select devices that work with your coverage.
iii) Avoid any interference
Radio waves from devices like microwaves, bulbs, and walkie-talkies can cause interference to your cell signal. Therefore, you need to remove the devices from your cell signal for better cell reception.
iv) Purchase a signal booster
If you experience prone signal problems, you need to purchase a Straight Talk signal booster to improve your network coverage. The signal booster works by catching a weak outside signal with the help of an outdoor antenna.
The signal passes through special cables to the booster box, strengthening and amplifying. Consequently, the indoor antenna rebroadcasts the signal for comprehensive coverage.
Some of the best boosters to use with Straight Talk are;
- weBoost Home MultiRoom – 470144
- weBoost Home Complete – 470145
- SureCall Fusion2Go 3.0 RV
- HiBoost Cell Phone Signal Booster
- Goboost Cell Phone Signal Booster
- SuperBars Cell Phone Booster for Home
- AmazBoost A6 Signal Booster
Is Straight Talk faster than Verizon?
The Verizon network provides faster speeds than Straight Talk. Straight Talk’s average download speed is 31.1 Mbps, while its average upload speed is 15.6 Mbps. Verizon has an average download speed of 53.3 Mbps and an average upload speed of 17.5 Mbps. Having stated that, both networks provide decent download and upload speeds.
Will Verizon cellphones Work with Straight Talk?
Verizon cellphones will work on Straight Talk as long as they are compatible with the Straight Talk network. You can check and verify compatibility at the Straight Talk website before beginning.
However, you must remove your Verizon SIM card and replace it with a Straight Talk SIM card and purchase a Straight Talk plan before it becomes active.
Bottom line
Straight Talk Wireless offers many benefits like non-contract service, affordable phone plans, and service from three major carriers to most people and businesses. If you were not sure if Straight Talk uses Verizon towers, you could see from the article that the MVNO uses the Verizon towers in addition to T-Mobile and AT&T towers.
That way, Straight Talk can provide a broad network coverage of about 99% to its customers. Straight Talk customers using Verizon towers will have the best 4G LTE coverage at 70%. If you experience patchy coverage in your area, you can purchase a Straight Talk signal booster to improve the coverage.
