AT&T vs. T-Mobile for Enterprises

Employees today need the mobility, features, and accessibility of smartphones and that means companies need to tap into mobile networks and plans. 

AT&T and T-Mobile are two of the leading mobile carriers in the U.S., with the AT&T accounting for 44.8% of the market and T-Mobile accounting for 24.9%. 

See below for in-depth comparison of AT&T and T-Mobile for enterprises to help you find which one is right for your company:

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Portfolio

AT&T

As you might expect from the nation’s largest phone carrier, AT&T offers a wide portfolio of features. Under each of its four main plan categories, there are multiple customization options and that doesn’t include all of the company’s other offerings for businesses.

Some of its main features include:

• Unlimited data, talk, and text
• Managed threat detection and response
• Spam and fraud call blocking
• Identity monitoring
• Secure remote access
• Network and on-premises edge computing
• Software-defined networking
• IoT video intelligence
• Assigning higher priority to some data to mitigate congestion
• Cloud consultation and content delivery networks

T-Mobile

Like AT&T, their business plans include many customization options, so you can tailor your service to your needs and industry. The main features include:

• Unlimited data, talk, and text
• Fixed wireless and 5G business internet
• Carrier-neutral data center access
• Unlimited “Premium Data,” which T-Mobile prioritizes on their networks
• Microsoft 365 basic license
• Private high-bandwidth cloud connectivity
• Scam blocking and reporting
• Distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection
• Artificial intelligence (AI)-based endpoint protection
• Custom IoT management solutions 

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Partners

AT&T

AT&T has 96 partners in its ecosystem, according to Partnerbase. Among these, most are channel partners, but roughly a third are technology partners, with the largest of these companies ranking among industry leaders in their respective fields. These partnerships include:

AWS

Salesforce

Red Hat

VMware

Fortinet

Zoom

Deloitte

Symantec

Datadog

Genesys

T-Mobile

In comparison, T-Mobile’s partner network is far smaller. The company has just over a third of the partnerships that AT&T has, but the organizations that do appear in this list are just as noteworthy. There’s considerable overlap between the two partner ecosystems too. Some of T-Mobile’s most recognizable partners are:

Salesforce

Fortinet

Okta

Twilio

Thales Group

Ericsson

Nokia

Viacom

Sierra Wireless

TIBCO

Notably, T-Mobile also acquired Sprint in 2020, expanding its reach in mobile technologies and infrastructure.

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Use cases

Mobile carriers, in general, cover many helpful use cases for enterprises. Using more digital communication, for instance, can improve team efficiency and continues to reduce costs from purchasing supplies. While these two companies share many use cases, their specific strengths can help make the right decision between AT&T and T-Mobile for enterprises.

AT&T

In addition to supporting mobile device connections, the company emphasizes its cybersecurity services and digital training. They’ve also helped implement Internet of Things (IoT) solutions and support remote work systems.

Featured customers: FedEx, ReMedi Health Solutions, Concord Hospitality, Wintrust Financial Corporation, Siemens, and the University of Missouri

Industry verticals: Finance, manufacturing, energy and utilities, sports, hospitality, higher education, and health care

T-Mobile

T-Mobile stays true to its mobile roots, but that doesn’t mean it exclusively offers mobile phone coverage. The company also specializes in IoT solutions, including asset tracking and fleet management. Cybersecurity and voice technology also find a place in its list of use cases. Some of its most notable customers include national and state government agencies.

Featured customers: California Department of Housing and Community Development, Miller Tool, U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, Guardian Roofing, and Catalytic Health Partners

Industry verticals: Government, health care, automotive, supply chain, contracting, and emergency services

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Ratings

One of the most important factors in any B2B purchasing decision is customer and industry ratings. Both AT&T and T-Mobile score strong ratings among their clients and independent reviewers, which is promising but can make it challenging to narrow down the best option. Here’s a closer look at how each company compares across review sites.

AT&T

At Gartner Peer Insights, AT&T has a score of 4.3 out of stars. Notably, its public cloud storage and unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) both earn perfect scores. On Forbes’ 2022 “Best Business Phone Plan” list, AT&T is tied with T-Mobile for fourth place with 4.3 out of 5 stars.

Business.org gives AT&T Business 4 out of 5 stars, citing its impressive speeds and no-contract plans as positives while criticizing its higher prices. In an Open Signal study, AT&T shows the highest download speeds in business locations of any carrier.

T-Mobile

T-Mobile scores slightly lower than AT&T at Gartner Peer Reviews, with 4 out of 5 stars, with limited reviews. In most ratings, T-Mobile falls either just behind or equal with AT&T, such as tying with it in Forbes’ reviews.

RootMetrics rates T-Mobile as the top carrier for 5G across all availability and speed, though Verizon wins for reliability. T-Mobile’s download speeds are behind AT&T’s in the Open Signal study, but T-Mobile still outperforms other competitors. Similarly, while The SMB Guide didn’t assign T-Mobile a numeric rating, the platform comes in 5th place out of 10, with AT&T in second.

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Recognition

AT&T

As the nation’s largest mobile carrier, AT&T has earned its fair share of accolades. Some of its most impressive awards include:

Best Network by GWS OneScore 2021

Ranking highest in all six categories in the J.D. Power 2021 U.S. Business Wireline Satisfaction Study

Ranking in the top 10 on DiversityInc’s Top 50 Companies for Diversity list every year over the past seven years

Named to the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index in 2017

Ranking as a Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR) Inclusion Index 5-star company in 2020

T-Mobile

T-Mobile has also won several accolades, especially in regard to its customer service. Some of its most noteworthy awards include:

Ranking first for U.S. Wireless Full-Service Customer Care from J.D. Power 17 times

Winning the FICO Industry Vanguard Award in 2021

Ranking among the best places to work for disability inclusion from the Disability Equality Index in 2018

Winning the Best Customer Service for Telecommunications from Newsweek in 2020 and 2018

Earning a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index in 2021, 2020, 2019, and 2018

AT&T vs. T-Mobile: Overall

It’s easy to see why AT&T has such dominant control over the mobile market. Its vast portfolio, extensive partnerships, and high ratings make it outshine the competition. Although it might fall behind T-Mobile in use cases and recognition, it doesn’t score poorly in either category, making it an excellent choice for any business.

And while the edge in the AT&T vs. T-Mobile B2B battle may go to AT&T, T-Mobile remains a solid choice for businesses. Its portfolio and partnerships might come in behind AT&T, but its long list of awards and use cases make it a comfortable alternative for many enterprises.