--- title: "T-Mobile hotspot limits: high-speed allowance, 600 kbps after, and video · Kilobat" url: "https://kilobat.app/hotspot-limits/t-mobile" description: "What T-Mobile publishes about Mobile Hotspot: a high-speed allowance on many plans, a reduced speed on many after that allowance, and how to check usage." --- Hotspot limits · United States # T-Mobile hotspot limits **Checked 1 November 2026** against T-Mobile’s own pages. Plans change: your plan’s terms win. T-Mobile calls it Smartphone Mobile Hotspot. Most of its plans include it, with a set amount of high-speed hotspot data that depends on the plan. Once that’s used, hotspot keeps working, slowly, until the bill cycle ends. Hotspot data A high-speed allotment that varies by plan (T-Mobile’s example is 15 GB). After it Many plans continue at up to 600 kbps after high-speed hotspot data is used; rules vary by plan. Video Phone video typically streams in SD unless HD is turned on; tethered video often isn’t detected. Check T-Life app, T-Mobile.com › Usage › Data, or dial `#WEB#`. ## Hotspot allowance - Mobile Hotspot is included with many plans, such as Experience More, Experience Beyond and Go5G. The amount of high-speed hotspot data “varies depending on your plan”. - You can share with up to 10 devices over Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB, in 5G and 4G LTE coverage only. - One-time Mobile Hotspot Data Passes add 10 GB of high-speed hotspot data on Go5G and Experience plans, one at a time, for up to 30 days, in the US only. ## Speed after the allowance - On many current plans, once the high-speed hotspot data is used, tethering continues at up to 600 kbps (“3G speeds”) until the end of the bill cycle. - When a cell is busy, T-Mobile prioritises data used on the phone itself over tethering, so hotspot speeds can drop below the phone’s even before the allowance runs out. - On plans with a limited amount of high-speed data in total, going over it slows all data to 2G speeds, 128 kbps on most plans. ## Plans without hotspot - The T-Mobile Essentials plan includes tethering at a maximum of 600 kbps from the start. - T-Mobile’s support page says most plans include Mobile Hotspot, not all of them; your plan’s details in T-Life say whether yours does. ## Video - On the current plans, phone video “typically streams in SD” unless you turn on HD on a capable device. - T-Mobile’s network management page says video watched through a VPN, Apple Private Relay or while tethering may not be identified as video, so it may not be optimised either. - Plans no longer sold may have different video features; T-Mobile points to your account for them. ## Check what’s left 1. Open the T-Life app and look at the Data Usage Meter. 2. Or sign in at [T-Mobile.com](https://www.t-mobile.com) and choose **Usage › Data**; pick a line to see how much Mobile Hotspot data it has used. 3. Or dial `#WEB#` (`#932#`) from the phone and press Send for the data you’ve used. T-Mobile also texts at 80% and 100% of a Hotspot Data Pass. ## What Kilobat can tell you If every speed test and big download on your hotspot stops near the same speed, such as the 600 kbps or 128 kbps T-Mobile publishes, on different occasions while the ping stays normal, Health says it looks like T-Mobile’s hotspot cap. A weak signal or a busy cell wanders instead, and Kilobat says nothing then. It also notices video held near 1.5 Mbps while other downloads run faster. It can’t see your allowance or tell a hotspot cap from a plan that caps everything: check on the phone too. It’s free in Health on any phone hotspot, with the measurements behind it in Kilobat Pro, and in the terminal with `kilobat hotspot`. More in [the docs](https://kilobat.app/docs/usage#hotspot-throttling) and [saving hotspot data](https://kilobat.app/save-hotspot-data). ## Questions **Why is my T-Mobile hotspot so slow when my phone is fast?** A used-up high-speed hotspot allowance or congestion can explain a slow hotspot. Check your allowance in T-Life and compare phone and laptop speeds; these checks do not conclusively identify every cause. ## Sources - [T-Mobile Support: Smartphone Mobile Hotspot (Wi-Fi sharing and tethering)](https://www.t-mobile.com/support/plans-features/smartphone-mobile-hotspot-wi-fi-sharing--tethering) - [T-Mobile: Network Traffic Prioritization & Management](https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/consumer-info/policies/internet-service/network-management-practices) - [T-Mobile: Consumer billing information (usage short codes)](https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/consumer-info/additional-info/avoiding-bill-shock) - [T-Mobile: Cell phone plans](https://www.t-mobile.com/cell-phone-plans) Checked against T-Mobile’s own plan pages, terms and help articles on 1 November 2026. Allowances and speeds differ by plan and change often; what your own plan says wins. ## See what your hotspot is really doing Kilobat is a Mac menu-bar app that shows which apps use your hotspot’s data, holds back updaters on metered networks, and says when downloads keep stopping at the same speed. [Download for Mac ↓](https://kilobat.app/downloads/Kilobat-1.31.1.dmg?via=site) ``` brew install seifip/kilobat/kilobat ``` ## More carriers - [Mint Mobile](https://kilobat.app/hotspot-limits/mint-mobile): Mint doesn’t publish a hotspot speed after the 20 GB; you can add more data in the app. - [Verizon](https://kilobat.app/hotspot-limits/verizon): Up to 3 Mbps on 5G Ultra Wideband and 600 kbps on 5G/4G LTE (Plus, Welcome), 1 Mbps (Simplicity), up to 6 Mbps (Ultimate). - [AT&T](https://kilobat.app/hotspot-limits/att): A maximum of 128 kbps for the rest of the bill cycle. - [Visible](https://kilobat.app/hotspot-limits/visible): Always capped at up to 5 Mbps (Visible), 10 Mbps (Visible+) or 15 Mbps (Visible+ Pro).