Does Alltel have the best coverage?

Question

From what I have been reading, it appears that Alltel has the largest network in the United States, so they have the greatest coverage area over any other wireless provider. Is this true? I have read stories about people who were traveling with friends who used Verizon, and when their phones went dead, the Alltel phone was still getting a signal.

Please describe your experiences using Alltel. Do they really have better coverage than everyone else?

Answer 1

No. Verizon has the largest coverage area, followed by sprint, then cingular, then tmobile. Now, quality of that signal is another question, tmobile has the smallest coverage area, though really not too shabby at all, and mine has been very reliable and worked almost everyone I've gone in the last 5 years I've had it.

Answer 2

JR is incorrect.
Alltel has really good service, but only in random places. I would not go with Alltel. Verizon has good coverage, but poor call quality, and they use CDMA, so there are no roaming agreements, and they are EXPENSIVE.
Cingular has nice phones, coverage in a lot of places, but in all those places there isen't like 5 bars, there are a few. And as hard as they try to brainwash people into thinking that they have the "fewest" dropped calls, they really don't. They have a lot of dropped calls, and are also expensive (they treat their customers like crap too). I would go with T-mobile, I have them and love them. They are the cheapest large company too.
www.t-mobile.com/coverage
see how good coverage you have at your house.
Alltel covers many rural spots, but have many holes in their coverage map, their coverage isen't too reliable.