Costco ATT program

[emeryjre]

I am, a long time AT&T Cellular Customer,
get a 25% discount as a Veteran on the cellular plan
Have taken advantage of buying a new Iphone every 3 years and trade in my old phone
Left with a $3.00 a month cost for the phone after trade in

Costco has become a vendor for ATT and has access to all the cellular plans and trade in deals

Costco is offering an upgrade deal
I have paid off my Iphone with the December payment
I can now trade in my old phone and upgrade to a new phone for $3.00 a month for 36 months

Costco sweetens the deal slightly by offering no activation fee ($35 discount)
Provides a $50 discount spread out over 10 months
AND a $100 spend card for Costco
Altogether a $185 discount for the same ATT

Has anyone used this Costco ATT offer
Has there been any downside from ATT for doing this

 

[Sandi Bo]

I have not, but have been very tempted to switch to AT&T due to the Costco offer. We are currently with Verizon. They offered a great deal and we've been discussing.

 

[emeryjre]

I have not, but have been very tempted to switch to AT&T due to the Costco offer. We are currently with Verizon. They offered a great deal and we've been discussing.

The ATT Cell Service is generally Very Good
There are spots in the country where Verizon is SLIGHTY better
There are spots in the country where ATT is SLIGHTLY better

Customer Service has become a little worse with ATT over the years
Costco ATT has a dedicated service customer number and team at ATT that is very good the last two times I have dealt with them with questions
They are superior to customer service number and team at ATT

ATT is definitely less expensive for me at the same service level as Verizon the last time I compared (about 2 months ago)

 

[RX8]

I was with ATT for many years but the cost kept rising to the point where I ended up switching to Consumer Cellular. Service has been no different than ATT but it is a lot cheaper. You also get a discount with an AARP membership (the discount exceeds the cost of membership).

 

[Luanne]

I worked for ATT prior to retirement. I would have been eligible for ATT cellular service for free when I retired. I switched to Verizon. I am looking into switching to Consumer Cellular right now.

 

[TolmiePeak]

I am, a long time AT&T Cellular Customer,

How much are you paying every month?

 

[emeryjre]

How much are you paying every month?

About $55 a month with the updated iPhone 17 Pro Max for 3 years

 

[TolmiePeak]

About $55 a month with the updated iPhone 17 Pro Max for 3 years

If you want to get a new phone every 3 years that is a good deal. You can get deals that are far cheaper but you have to pay for your phone.

 

[emeryjre]

If you want to get a new phone every 3 years that is a good deal. You can get deals that are far cheaper but you have to pay for your phone.

I do want a new phone every 3 years

I have shopped everyone
Especially at the 3 year mark
For the features, it is the cheapest because of the hotspot data included and the international travel plan
I will milk it for every byte at Harborside

It is slightly cheaper with the Costco ATT discounts
But I am reading on other social media sites that ATT is not happy with their deal with Costco
Costco will probably sign me up for the same plans at a slightly lower price
ATT will have an increased cost because of the commission it pays to Costco

 

[Cornell]

I belong to a Costco Product Review group on FB. Several very negative posts about AT&T in there.

 

[dioxide45]

The folks at the AT&T kiosk in Costco are not Costco or even AT&T employees.

 

[ScoopKona]

I'm paying less than $20 a month total with US Mobile, which uses the Verizon network.

 

[TolmiePeak]

I'm paying less than $20 a month total with US Mobile, which uses the Verizon network.

Agreed. $15 a month for Mint. Of course I don't get a "free" phone every 3 years though....

 

[ScoopKona]

Agreed. $15 a month for Mint. Of course I don't get a "free" phone every 3 years though....

I'm told Mint coverage/drop-rate isn't very good in Hawaii. Otherwise I'd subscribe, too. Cellular barely matters anymore. Nothing important ever happens because of my phone. Mostly it's scam calls.

 

[TolmiePeak]

I'm told Mint coverage/drop-rate isn't very good in Hawaii. Otherwise I'd subscribe, too. Cellular barely matters anymore. Nothing important ever happens because of my phone. Mostly it's scam calls.

I had no problems driving around Oahu in September.

 

[emeryjre]

The folks at the AT&T kiosk in Costco are not Costco or even AT&T employees.

They are a third party independent seller with a contract to use the Costco name
A contract with Costco gives them a lot of credibility
An arrangement to sell ATT products gives them a lot of credibility

I belong to a Costco Product Review group on FB. Several very negative posts about AT&T in there.

I am happy with ATT for the most part
Been with them for 9 years
There are things I could complain about
But that is true of any cellular company from my experience

 

[Cornell]

They are a third party independent seller with a contract to use the Costco name
A contract with Costco gives them a lot of credibility
An arrangement to sell ATT products gives them a lot of credibility

I am happy with ATT for the most part
Been with them for 9 years
There are things I could complain about
But that is true of any cellular company from my experience

I’m referring to the Costco AT&T program, not the AT&T service itself.

 

[emeryjre]

I’m referring to the Costco AT&T program, not the AT&T service itself.

Sorry
What were their complaints

I have heard that people were told things by the sellers that did not prove true

 

[Cornell]

At least a dozen posts like this …each with many comments expressing frustration

“Word of advice. Never do phone changes thru kiosk at Costco. Did it month ago to AT&T. Worst experience ever. Now still trying to get service & bill corrections. Nobody speaks clear English & nothing sold to us at kiosk is now true. Can’t get anyone to help or support issues. Colorado based & we live in Wyoming. AT&T sends us back to Costco. Costco says go to AT&T. Am ready to take the $$$ loss & chuck it all.”

 

[emeryjre]

At least a dozen posts like this …each with many comments expressing frustration

“Word of advice. Never do phone changes thru kiosk at Costco. Did it month ago to AT&T. Worst experience ever. Now still trying to get service & bill corrections. Nobody speaks clear English & nothing sold to us at kiosk is now true. Can’t get anyone to help or support issues. Colorado based & we live in Wyoming. AT&T sends us back to Costco. Costco says go to AT&T. Am ready to take the $$$ loss & chuck it all.”

If you would like to post this number on the forum there

I will get you the Costco ATT Customer Service Number which puts a person in touch with the Support Team inside ATT

Talking with anyone else inside ATT about a purchase through Costco is an exercise in futility

Would be tomorrow late morning central standard time

 

[ScoopKona]

I had no problems driving around Oahu in September.

Yeah. That's the big city compared to where I live. During the pandemic, all the radio stations reduced their broadcasting wattage and now I can't listen to the radio. I have to drive two miles before I can pick up any signal. And forget about the possibility of broadcast TV. I actually packed a decent TV antenna with the hope my elevation and clear shot to Oahu might work. Nope.

 

[easyrider]

We had several business lines with att for years. I thought they were pretty good with the exception of their service area. We finally had to switch to tmobile. They are huge in Washington State and we haven't had any problems traveling with tmobile.

Att might be better than before but when a company starts giving too many incentives I kind of wonder where they make up for it. US Cellular was giving away phones and had decent service plans and soon after they were bought out by tmobile.

Bill

 

[Ken555]

I'm paying less than $20 a month total with US Mobile, which uses the Verizon network.

Actually, US Mobile offers Verizon, ATT, and T-Mobile. You choose. What’s cool about this is that you can even switch between the networks (depending on your plan, switching is either included or a $2 charge). I don’t know any other vendor that offers this feature.

I switched to US Mobile from Mint a few months ago. It’s been great so far. I don’t care which network I use since all three have good coverage in my area, so I am on ATT as that offered the best deal when I signed up. Unlimited data for ~$22 per month for a year (they’re offering a better deal today of just $195 for a year for their premium plan, which includes a watch sim, unlimited hotspot data, free network transfers (ATT to Verizon, etc) and more international data).

I promised myself years ago I wouldn’t commit myself to a provider by having them subsidize my phones. I also keep my phone for 4-5 years so it pays to just buy it outright (or at 0% interest over time, if offered at time of purchase) and choose my carrier. I absolutely want the ability to switch providers whenever I want without having to buy out a phone and deal with unlocking it, should service quality change, etc.

These carriers, like airlines and hotel/timeshare programs, have no loyalty to me. I see no reason why I should have loyalty to them.

 

[Bucky]

We’ve never been the type that has the best of anything. We txt very little and make very few outgoing calls. Our data plan is basically only used for trolling the internet while in the Drs office waiting on appts. That said, my wife and I share a 2GB data plan on US Mobile. We have 2 iPhone 15 max phones with 2 seperate lines and our total cost incl tax and fees is $18 mo which includes unlimited txt and 2Gb total data. We only change phones every 4-5 yrs and when we do we pay cash for the new ones.

 

[Cornell]

If you would like to post this number on the forum there

I'm not going to do that.

My point is that the Costco product review group has over 700K members on Facebook. You came here asking for feedback on their AT&T program and I did a search in that Facebook group and there are many, many, many negative posts and comments.

I'm in the camp of previous comments here - I buy unlocked phones so I don't have to be tethered to a carrier. That way I can shop around for better plans.