T-Mobile's $15 New York Home Internet Plan: The 50 GB Cap, the State Settlement and What Changes

Last updated: November 2026

This guide is for New York households that use or qualify for T-Mobile's $15 home internet plan under the state's Affordable Broadband Act, and for T-Mobile Home Internet customers elsewhere who want to know how the company slows heavy users. It covers what the New York Attorney General found, what T-Mobile agreed to on November 9, 2026, the deadlines, and what the plan's own page said when we read it on November 12, 2026. It is based on the signed agreement, the state's announcements, the statute and T-Mobile's published terms.

Key Takeaways

• New York's Attorney General found that T-Mobile's $15 plan cut download speed by more than 97 percent once a customer used 50 GB in a month, and that a typical customer reached that point in about four days.
• T-Mobile agreed to remove the cap and offer the plan at every New York address where it sells home internet, within 120 days. By our count that is March 9, 2027. The agreement includes no fine and no refunds.
• As of November 12, 2026, T-Mobile's page for the plan still listed 50 GB of data per month and speeds of up to 600 Kbps after that. The deadline to change it has not passed.

What did New York find about T-Mobile's $15 plan?

The Attorney General's office made three findings, set out in an Assurance of Discontinuance dated November 9, 2026.

• A 50 GB cap. After 50 GB in a month, T-Mobile reduced the customer's speed. The Attorney General's press release says a typical customer reached the cap "after about four days of usage."
• 5G areas only. T-Mobile offered the plan only where it has 5G home internet, although its full-price 4G service could deliver 25 Mbps. The agreement says 5G reaches roughly 40 percent of rural upstate homes and often more than 90 percent of homes in metro areas.
• Hidden from search. T-Mobile's website was coded so that search engines would not list the plan's page.

The state's own documents give two figures for the reduced speed. The press release says 650 Kbps. The signed agreement says speed fell "from 25 Mbps to 600 Kbps," and T-Mobile's plan page also says 600 Kbps. Either figure is a cut of more than 97 percent.

By our math, reaching 50 GB in four days is a pace of about 375 GB a month, so the allotment covered roughly 13 percent of a typical month's use. At 600 Kbps, a 1 GB download takes about 3.7 hours. At 25 Mbps it takes a little over 5 minutes.

Attorney General Letitia James said: "T-Mobile flouted the law designed to help vulnerable New Yorkers access it." The agreement says the state's Department of Public Service brought the matter to the Attorney General in June 2025.

What did T-Mobile agree to, and by when?

The agreement took effect November 9, 2026 and sets four deadlines. The calendar dates below are our count from that date.

Requirement	Deadline	Date by our count
Publish a plan page that search engines can index, with a prominent link from the home internet deals page	60 days	January 8, 2027
Stop intentionally limiting plan customers to speeds below 25 Mbps	120 days	March 9, 2027
Offer the plan at every New York address where T-Mobile sells residential fixed wireless internet	120 days	March 9, 2027
Certify compliance to the state, with the number of New York enrollees and their average speeds	300 days	September 5, 2027

The press release says T-Mobile must deliver 25 Mbps to plan subscribers "unless network congestion requires temporary reductions."

Is T-Mobile paying a fine or refunding customers?

No. The agreement contains no penalty, restitution, refund or bill credit. It states that T-Mobile "neither admits nor denies" the Attorney General's findings.

A T-Mobile spokesperson told MediaPost: "We have a long history of helping customers in New York stay connected through low-cost broadband, and we're updating our plan to meet the state's requirements while maintaining the same low price."

Has the $15 plan changed yet?

Not on T-Mobile's website as of November 12, 2026. When we read the plan's page that day, it listed these terms:

• "50GB of data per month"
• "After data allotment, speeds up to 600Kbps."
• "Minimum download speed of 25 Mbps"
• "$35 device connection charge due at sale."
• "Return gateway undamaged or pay up to $370."
• The address "must be eligible for 5G Home Internet service."

The page's metadata also still carried a NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW directive, the instruction that tells search engines not to list a page. T-Mobile has until early January to replace it and until early March to end the cap, so none of this is a breach of the agreement today. It does mean current customers should not assume the cap is gone.

What does New York's Affordable Broadband Act require?

The Affordable Broadband Act, General Business Law section 399-zzzzz, requires covered internet providers to offer qualifying low-income households one of two plans:

• At least 25 Mbps for no more than $15 per month.
• At least 200 Mbps for no more than $20 per month.

Those prices are "inclusive of any recurring taxes and fees such as recurring rental fees for service provider equipment." The statute also says a low-income plan must carry "the same terms and conditions, other than price and speed," as the provider's regular plans. It covers wireline, fixed wireless and satellite providers. Mobile phone plans are not included. Providers serving no more than 20,000 households can be exempted by the Public Service Commission.

The law took effect in January 2025, after the US Supreme Court declined in December 2024 to hear the industry's challenge. The Attorney General enforces it, and a court can impose a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation.

Who qualifies, and how do you sign up with T-Mobile?

A household qualifies if at least one member receives Medicaid, SNAP, HEAP or another utility affordability benefit, free or reduced-price school lunch, or a Senior Citizen or Disability Rent Increase Exemption. The Attorney General's press release adds that households without one of these benefits "may still qualify" based on income. T-Mobile's page lists only the benefit programs.

T-Mobile's sign-up process, as described on its page:

1. Confirm that your address is eligible for T-Mobile 5G Home Internet. Until the agreement's 120-day deadline, the plan remains limited to 5G addresses.
2. Complete the online eligibility verification form and upload proof that you participate in a qualifying program.
3. When you receive an approval code, open the chat on T-Mobile's site and type "Interested in the New York Home Internet $15 Rate Plan." T-Mobile lists chat hours of 7:00 am to 3:00 am Eastern, seven days a week.
4. Expect a $35 device connection charge at sale. The gateway is a certified preowned unit that you return when service ends.

T-Mobile is one of several providers that must offer a plan. The state says help with enrolling is available by calling 211, or 311 in New York City. New York City's benefits site names Spectrum Internet Assist, Optimum Advantage and Verizon Forward as examples of other providers' plans. If your address has weak T-Mobile signal, our cell tower map guide shows how to check which towers serve you before you order.

Does T-Mobile Home Internet have a data cap outside New York?

T-Mobile's regular Home Internet plans have no cap that cuts speed to a fixed level, but they do have a threshold. T-Mobile's network management disclosure states: "As of January 18, 2024, new T-Mobile Home Internet customers who exceed 1.2TB of data usage for the current billing cycle are Home Internet Heavy Data Users who will be prioritized last on the network."

The same disclosure says Home Internet customers in general "receive the same network prioritization as Mobile Wireless Heavy Data Users." In practice, home internet traffic is slowed before phone traffic when a tower is busy, and how often that happens depends on the tower.

The New York plan's 50 GB allotment was one twenty-fourth of that 1.2 TB threshold. The agreement applies only to the New York Affordable Broadband Act plan. It does not change T-Mobile's terms for other customers or in other states.

If you are weighing T-Mobile Home Internet for other reasons, our guide to double NAT and CGNAT on 5G home internet covers its limits for gaming and remote access, and our T-Mobile cancellation guide covers how to leave.

What should you do if you are on the $15 plan now?

1. Check your data use in the T-Life app. If you pass 50 GB, expect reduced speed until T-Mobile changes the plan.
2. Run a speed test when the connection is slow and save the result with the date. A record helps if you need to complain later.
3. After March 9, 2027, test again. If speeds still drop to a fixed low level after 50 GB, contact T-Mobile and cite the agreement, Assurance No. 26-069.
4. If T-Mobile does not fix it, contact the New York Attorney General's office. Its press release lists a general helpline at 1-800-771-7755.
5. Compare the other providers at your address. A cable or fiber provider's plan under the same law has the same $15 price ceiling.

FAQ

Does T-Mobile's $15 New York internet plan have a data cap?

As of November 12, 2026, yes. T-Mobile's page lists 50 GB of data per month with speeds of up to 600 Kbps after that. T-Mobile has agreed to stop limiting plan customers below 25 Mbps within 120 days of November 9, 2026.

Will T-Mobile refund customers who were slowed down?

No. The agreement with the New York Attorney General includes no refunds, credits or penalty.

Did T-Mobile admit to breaking the law?

No. The agreement says T-Mobile neither admits nor denies the Attorney General's findings.

Can I get the $15 plan if I only have T-Mobile 4G at my address?

Not yet. The plan is currently limited to addresses eligible for 5G Home Internet. T-Mobile agreed to offer it at every New York address where it sells residential fixed wireless internet within 120 days.

Is the $15 plan available outside New York?

No. It exists because of New York's Affordable Broadband Act, and the agreement covers New York only.

How fast is 600 Kbps?

600 Kbps is 0.6 Mbps, about 2.4 percent of the plan's 25 Mbps minimum. A 1 GB download takes about 3.7 hours at that speed.

Sources and how this article was reported

Findings and deadlines come from the signed Assurance of Discontinuance and the state's press releases. Plan terms are quoted from T-Mobile's own page as read on November 12, 2026. Calendar dates for the deadlines and the usage and download figures are our own calculations from the numbers in those documents. We did not contact T-Mobile; its statement is quoted from MediaPost. ModemGuides sells refurbished networking equipment and has no affiliate relationship with T-Mobile or any internet provider named here. This is general information, not legal advice.

• Assurance of Discontinuance No. 26-069, New York Attorney General and T-Mobile USA, November 9, 2026
• New York Attorney General press release, November 9, 2026
• Governor Hochul press release, November 9, 2026
• New York General Business Law section 399-zzzzz
• T-Mobile: NY Affordable Broadband Act plan page
• T-Mobile network management disclosure
• MediaPost via Yahoo Finance, November 11, 2026, with T-Mobile's statement
• Governor Hochul press release on the law taking effect, January 23, 2025
• New York ConnectALL consumer resources
• ACCESS NYC: Affordable Broadband Act