However, many MVNOs tend to sell somewhat older phone models (e.g. All major and regional MNOs use 4G LTE / LTE Advanced and 5G NR protocols (2G and 3G having been deprecated and shut down), under either GSM ( T-Mobile and AT&T) or CDMA ( Verizon and UScellular) technologies. In general, the types of phones and other devices supported by the MVNOs are in line with the technologies used by the Mobile Network Operator (MNO), the underlying cellular network provider.

As of 2016, MVNOs across the nation such as Metro by T-Mobile, Boost Mobile, Cricket Wireless, and Tracfone brands including Straight Talk have served about 36 million subscribers. Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) in the United States lease wireless telephone and data service from the three major cellular carriers in the country, AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile US, and Verizon, as well as the regional carriers such as UScellular, for resale. ( August 2022) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting, such as Reflinks ( documentation), reFill ( documentation) and Citation bot ( documentation). Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style. This article uses bare URLs, which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot.

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