Assurance Wireless Lifeline Free Smartphone Plan

Assurance Wireless, a long-time participant in the Lifeline program, now also participates in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Being a participant, they offer free monthly unlimited data, free monthly unlimited texts and free monthly unlimited talk minutes. They also offer free 10 GB of mobile hotspot data each month to qualifying households.

They call this plan the Assurance Wireless Unlimited plan. This plan is being offered to new eligible households signing up for their program. Although Assurance Wireless has nationwide coverage, there are some states where Assurance Wireless is not available. Therefore, in order to sign up for their service you must live in one of the following states:

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin or West Virginia*

*Some offers may vary by state.

To receive the benefits you must live in one of the above states and participate in the Lifeline and ACP programs so make sure to be enrolled prior to starting the Assurance Wireless application.

Eligibility for Lifeline and ACP

To qualify for Lifeline, you or someone in your household must receive benefits from one of the following government assistance programs:

Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
Federal Public Housing Assistance
Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
Medicaid/Medi-Cal
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Food Stamps or SNAP)/CalFresh
Supplemental Security Income
Tribally-Administered Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Tribal Head Start
Veterans and Survivors Pension Benefit

Note: This is not a complete listing of qualifying programs. For more information on qualifying programs, visit the USAC website

Or, you can qualify for Lifeline if your household income is at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.

The eligibility requirements for the ACP program are very similar to the requirements for Lifeline with one exception. The household income eligibility is at or below 200% of the federal poverty guideline instead of 135%.

You must have documented proof of eligibility whether it’s household income or government program participation. Having the proper documents in hand will make the application process easier and faster.

Applying for Lifeline/ACP

After you’ve determined eligibility, you must enroll in the National Verifier Program. Once enrolled and approved, you can then go to the Assurance Wireless website or call Customer Care at 1-888-898-4888 to apply for Lifeline and Affordable Connectivity Program benefits.

If you've applied for service through Assurance Wireless and want to know the status of your application, got to the Lifeline Wireless Application Status page and insert your zip code. There you can find out whether your application was mailed, your approval letter was sent or your phone has shipped.

Things to Note:

You must be 18 or older to apply.

Only one Lifeline benefit per household

There is an annual recertification process to ensure you remain eligible to receive benefits. When asked to recertify, you must do so within 60 days or lose your benefits.

When completing the application, make sure you enter your home address to not use PO boxes.

You must use your service at least once every 30 days or run the risk of being terminated. In other words, make a call, send a text or go online at least once a month.

In this post-covid world with supply and inventory shortages, you might experience a delay in receiving your device.

If you suffer from hearing loss (professionally certified) you may qualify for ClearCaptions, a free captioning service.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: This site was created to help people find information about free government phones. The ower of this site does not mail, activate or repair free government phones nor provide phone service. If you have questions about phone service it is suggested that you contact the phone service provider directly.

Last Modified: 21 February 2023