Switch Carrier Deals — Save Up to $1299 on Free Phones

When carriers say "port in," they mean transfer a phone number from a competing carrier. In exchange, they reward you with free phones, bill credits, and trade-in bonuses worth $200–$1,300+. The catch? Your number must come from a different carrier family. That's where understanding carrier families matters.

T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T spend billions each year competing for subscribers. Their most effective tool is the port-in promotion — offering a free flagship phone like the iPhone 17 Pro Max or Galaxy S26 Ultra to anyone who brings a number from a rival network. These promotions are applied as monthly bill credits over 24–36 months, meaning the phone is effectively free as long as you keep the line active.

The process is straightforward: you need a phone number, account number, and PIN from the right carrier family. You can use your own number from an existing account, or purchase a verified port number for $14 if you don't want to move your personal line. Either way, the carrier store handles the rest — the entire visit typically takes 20–40 minutes.

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Carriers are grouped into families — networks that share the same parent company. You cannot port within the same family and qualify for switch deals. For example, T-Mobile owns Metro by T-Mobile and Boost Mobile, so a Metro number won't work for a T-Mobile deal. You'd need a number from Verizon, AT&T, or Cricket instead.

This is the single most common mistake people make when trying to claim switch deals. Before you visit the store, check the carrier family chart to make sure your port number qualifies. The wrong carrier family means the deal won't apply, and you'll need to start over with a new number.