Cell phones and smart phones

If you aren’t that happy with your wireless provider’s customer service, you have plenty of company. Wireless customer care satisfaction has decreased for the first time in two years, according to the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Wireless Customer Care Study—Volume 1.

In previous years online satisfaction has been down but in-store experiences have won praise. In this survey, consumers are less happy with both types of customer care.

Carl Lepper, senior director of technology, media and telecom at J.D. Power, suggests wireless offerings have become more complex with bundling, adding different products, payment plans and sales. He said customer service reps are trained on each of these different aspects of customer care,  however, frequent changes to offers and the combination of products require “near mastery” to give the level of service the customer expects.

Patricia, a longtime Verizon customer from Buffalo, told us she had a bad experience at a Verizon store.

“I attempted to get a question answered via the 800 number agent who admitted she couldn't help me so I went to the Verizon Company store, waited 30 minutes and was coldly received by an associate who was rude,” Patricia wrote in a ConsumerAffairs review. “I asked to speak with someone else, waited another 15 minutes and it was worse - unprofessional, condescending and arrogant.”

The study found that T-Mobile ranks highest in the mobile network operators segment for a 15th consecutive volume, with a score of 837. The segment average is 819.

But among ConsumerAffairs reviewers, even T-Mobile gets plenty of 1-Star reviews for its customer service.

“I wish I could give 0 stars,” Kaitlyn, of Tampa, told us. “No one up here seems to know what’s going on, not even the supervisors.”

Other top performers

According to J.D. Power, Spectrum Mobile ranks highest in the full-service mobile virtual network operators segment with a score of 845. Metro by T-Mobile (836) ranks second and Cricket (832) ranks third.

Consumer Cellular ranks highest in the value mobile virtual network operators segment for an 18th consecutive volume, with a score of 883. Mint Mobile (857) ranks second and Visible by Verizon (821) ranks third.

The study is based on responses from 19,035 customers who contacted their carrier’s customer care department within the past three months. 

How satisfied are you with your wireless provider? Your answer may indicate your age.

When J.D. Power polled consumers about their wireless customer experience, they found that what it calls “pre-boomers” have more complaints about their wireless service than baby boomers, with the number of issues increasing as consumers get younger, with Gen Z reporting the most.

One possible explanation could be that Gen Z uses their phones a lot more than older generations. According to the J.D. Power survey, Gen Z averages 300 minutes a day on their phones while boomers use their devices much less.

“Younger generations, particularly Gen Z, are very demanding of their wireless networks,” said Carl Lepper, senior director of technology, media and telecom at J.D. Power. “Not only do they heavily rely on their devices, but they also stream and game at higher rates than older generations and have less tolerance for data-related issues. As wireless users get younger, network speed and reliability must remain at the forefront for providers to retain and attract customers." 

When it comes to reported problems with service, AT&T and Verizon Wireless ranked the highest in a tie for fewest problems in the Mid-Atlantic and North Central regions, each with nine problems per (PP) 100 uses.

Verizon Wireless ranked highest in the Northeast region with eight PP100. T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless ranked highest in a tie in the Southeast region, each with nine PP100. Verizon Wireless ranked highest in the Southwest region with 10 PP100 and ranked highest in the West region with 10 PP100.

What ConsumerAffairs reviewers say

When it comes to ConsumerAffairs reviewers, none of the “Big Three” providers poll particularly well. Verizon has an overall rating of 1.3-Stars, with 1-Star reviews accounting for 88% of all reviews.

T-Mobile also manages only an average of 1.3-Star reviews. Complaints range from coverage to service.

AT&T does slightly better, averaging 1.4-Stars with our reviewers. Eighty-seven percent of its reviews are 1-Star.