It's time to choose the best mobile internet plan for your smartphone in 2021. What should it be like? Good Internet is profitable Internet. And here we immediately note that profitable and cheap are not always identical concepts. As in the case of cola bottles, for example, as the volume increases, the price increases disproportionately. Large volumes, be it cola or mobile traffic, are more profitable to buy than small ones, but they are still more expensive.
We advise you not to fall for this trick and first of all decide clearly how many gigabytes per month you need.
Take part in the survey at the same time 
In this review, we have identified 3 categories based on package size:
- Small - 5-9 GB.
- Average - 15 GB.
- Large - more than 20 GB.
In search of the cheapest and most profitable mobile Internet, we studied the tariffs of the operators: Tele2, Beeline, MTS, MegaFon. Thus, a tariff contender for the title of best was selected from each operator in each category.
We also considered the availability of unlimited traffic options for social networks and instant messengers, because you can’t live without them.
Regarding unlimited plans, it is important to consider the following: they do not apply to third-party links in applications, old versions of applications, traffic going through a VPN - all this will consume the main package.
A couple more warnings and we'll review it.
- We didn't look at connection speeds, reviews, or other carrier quality criteria (but you can read our analysis of those here), and focused solely on prices.
- Tariffs are considered for Moscow and the Moscow region; prices in other regions may differ; this should be clarified on the operator’s websites.
Well, the foreplay is over, let's go!
Criteria for choosing mobile Internet
Before you settle on any operator, there are a few things to consider that can help you make the right choice. These include the following criteria:
- speed;
- traffic volume;
- price.
Cost has recently played a very minor role, since the price of mobile Internet for each operator is approximately the same, and even the cheapest tariff is quite a bit less expensive than the most expensive.
Particular attention must be paid to the speed and number of gigabytes provided. When choosing the Internet for a mobile device, you need to take into account how the owner of the smartphone will use the traffic. If you plan to watch movies on your phone, then the minimum connection speed should be at least 1 Mbit/sec. For video calls via Skype you need from 512 Kbps, and for online games – 128–256 Kbps. The volume of traffic also depends on the purposes for which the Internet will be used for the phone.
4G speed in Moscow for 2021
Despite the rapid development of high-speed wireless Internet, the quality of service provision throughout the country, as well as in the capital, has decreased significantly. This is mainly expressed in an unstable connection, which many users complain about, regardless of the operator. Also in the middle of the year, a noticeable decrease in the average 4G speed of 1Mb/s was recorded, which is about 10% percent of the total speed. This unpleasant moment is explained by the growing number of users with devices that support the 4G standard. Also, many clients are starting to use this Internet as a home Internet, which further increases the load on the network.
Internet from MTS
MTS is one of the most popular operators throughout Russia and neighboring countries. The provider's tariffs are distinguished by great variety, flexibility and differentiated offers for owners of different mobile devices. In the competition, all mobile operators are trying to improve their services, and MTS is no exception.
The company offers its customers a choice of the following tariff plans for smartphones:
- "Internet Maxi".
- "Internet Mini".
- "Internet VIP".
The difference between the three tariffs is the cost and the number of megabytes provided per month. So, in Internet Mini, the client receives 3 GB of traffic for daily use and pays 350 rubles. Thus, the cost of 1 GB is 116 rubles 67 kopecks. “Internet Mini” provides 12 GB at night and 12 GB during the day for 700 rubles. This means that for 1 MB you will have to pay less than 6 kopecks, and for 1 GB – 58 rubles. “Internet VIP” allows unlimited use, and daily traffic is 30 GB at a price of 1,200 rubles – 40 rubles/GB. If a subscriber has the opportunity to pay 1,200 rubles per month, then the “Internet-VIP” package will be the most optimal solution.
The company also provides the opportunity to use unlimited mobile Internet from MTS on smartphones and tablets. To do this, you need to connect to the “Smart Unlimited” tariff plan, the cost of which is 12.90 rubles per day in almost all regions except Moscow and the Moscow region, where from the second month MTS subscribers will have to pay 19 rubles per day.
Megaphone
"Internet S"
MegaFon does not provide tariffs for smartphones with a small Internet package (5-9 GB). However, it is possible to connect, which gives the user 5 GB per month for 400 rubles. (80 rubles for 1 GB). This option on the smartphone will only work in the home region. You can activate the service through the MegaFon application, your personal account, using a special command or SMS.
Line “Turn on!”
Tariffs from the “Turn On!” line are the most economical among those that provide medium and large volumes of traffic. Let's look at two of them with minimal prices per 1 GB: “Turn on! Communicate" and "Turn on! Look+.” Both tariffs provide unlimited traffic to social networks and instant messengers, and the second also provides unlimited access to watching videos on YouTube, Rutube and Vimeo. Until August 31, 2021, you can use popular music services in the metro for free. And don't forget that unlimited use is only possible with official applications and the latest versions of browsers. Tariff “Turn on! Communicate” offers an average Internet package of 15 GB for other services for 600 rubles. per month (40 rubles per gigabyte), as well as 600 minutes of calls to any numbers in the country. And when you subscribe to the “Turn On! Look+" with a subscription fee of 1000 rubles, you will receive 30 GB of network traffic for other services (33.3 rubles per 1 GB) and 1500 minutes of calls to all numbers in the country. Calls to MegaFon Russia numbers remain free even after the reserve minutes have expired. The advantage is that the minutes and internet packages are valid throughout the country. The downside is that balances are not carried over to the next billing period.
As a bonus, it provides free traffic to MegaFon.TV and ESET NOD32 Antivirus.
Mobile Internet from Beeline
This cellular operator has four service packages:
- 600 minutes + 300 SMS.
- 1,100 minutes + 500 SMS.
- 2,200 minutes + 1,000 SMS.
- 3,300 minutes + 3,000 SMS.
The cost of each package is respectively 500, 800, 1,200 and 1,800 rubles per month. Each of them provides the ability to connect to unlimited Internet. Thus, the subscriber has a chance to use unlimited mobile Internet for 500 rubles per month. In addition, the user must have 500 rubles in his account. This amount will initially be frozen and will eventually be returned to the owner.
Results. Who has the best rate?
If you are not tied to any operator and can easily change it, then by far the most advantageous tariff offer, judging by the reviews, is “My Unlimited” from Tele2. The solutions offered by Beeline also look good, although various restrictions do not allow us to call them the best.
Megafon has distinguished itself with the most non-standard approach to the issue of providing unlimited Internet, because it can be connected to any tariff. boasts the largest variety of solutions for its subscribers, due to which almost every user will be able to choose the one that suits him best than others. As for simplicity, YOTA simply has no competitors. A convenient designer allows the subscriber to choose the volume of services that he needs.
Internet from Tele2
This is another operator that needs to be mentioned. Tele2 offers its subscribers three tariffs:
- 7 GB for 299 rub.
- 15 GB for 599 rub.
- 30 GB for 899 rub.
Thus, the price of 1 GB in these tariffs is 42.71 rubles, 40 rubles. and 30 rub. This is also a good offer. Of course, mobile Internet from Tele2 is not the most profitable, but the cost of 1 GB is cheaper than in tariffs from MTS.
Tariff without monthly fee
Previously, “Super MTS” could easily have won in this nomination, but this year they made something unsightly out of it, so “Classic” from Tele2.
- There is no subscription fee.
- Outgoing calls to any numbers in any regions of Russia – 1.95 rubles
- Outgoing SMS to any numbers in any regions of Russia – 1.95 rubles
Calls to other regions for the price of home calls are great. And the cost per minute is quite good. A very simple and fairly cheap tariff plan. In Moscow, however, Tele2 only works on 3G/4G networks, so the phone must support at least 3G.
Yota
The latest provider that provides its subscribers with unlimited mobile Internet is an operator called Yota. In addition to traffic, Yota offers unlimited messages and calls within the network, as well as 100, 300, 600, 900 or 1,200 minutes to numbers of other operators.
The not best thing is that a phone with a Yota card cannot be fully used as a modem. If you do this, 3G will not function fully. The speed will be limited to 128 Kbps, but for tasks that do not require a high-speed connection, it will be enough to ensure good performance.
Many believe that the quality of communication on Yota is not the best among all others, however, the services of this operator are available in all regions where Megafon has a connection.
Comparing connection quality
Comparing companies in terms of communication quality is no less a fruitful topic for debate than comparing the quality of mobile Internet. However, as in the case of mobile Internet, it will not be possible to simply determine the winner - modern cellular operators have long been competing not so much in technology, but in the profitability of tariffs.
To determine the operator with the objectively best connection, you need to look at the cellular coverage map on the official website of both companies:
- In Beeline you can view telephone communications using a special tab “Our Network”, which displays a map of cellular coverage of different regions + metro networks. IN
- MegaFon can enable such a map by clicking on the “Coverage Map” button.
Research by Roskomnadzor (which Beeline disputes) shows that average speech intelligibility (determined by comparison with a voice recording in ideal quality), that is, Beeline, is at the lowest level of all. In addition, the company has the highest percentage of connections with low speech intelligibility (4.3% compared to MegaFon's 1.2%).
Beeline also has the worst dialing performance - during testing it showed over 15% of unsuccessful connection attempts. MegaFon showed the best result - only 0.7% of unsuccessful dialing attempts.
Internet for modems
A large number of subscribers are wondering which operator to choose to connect to the Internet via a modem. The first on the list is the MTS “Connect 4” tariff. This is one of the most favorable tariffs for a modem. To connect it, you need to purchase a modem from MTS. Any other company's device will not work. Data transfer speed is approximately 21 Mb/s. The activation cost is 699 rubles. After this, the subscriber must pay 600 rubles for each month.
Good internet for the modem is provided by Beeline and Megafon. The cost can be up to 1,000 rubles. depending on the region. Also, these two operators give their clients access to entertainment content (exchangers, game servers) without traffic charges.
Coverage and Communications
The first step is to answer the question of which connection is better - Megafon or Beeline, because it is impossible to make the right decision without information about this indicator. Both opponents are characterized by high communication quality:
- A large number of towers;
- Wide coverage of cities - the network’s operating area includes not only the capital, Moscow Region, St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region. Towers of both companies can be found in such distant corners of the country as cities in the Far East, Chita, Belomorsk, and Crimea;
- Work without failures.
To choose which catches better, Megafon or Beeline, we recommend:
- Study the network coverage map on the website using the link;
- View the number of towers in a certain city.
Don't forget to take into account weather conditions and terrain features. In general, both operators offer stable operation and a large network coverage area.
Find out more about how to turn off the weather on Beeline.
Now let’s try to compare Megafon and Beeline and understand the tariff plans class=”aligncenter” width=”1068″ height=”703″[/img]
