Picking a phone plan on a major US carrier can be surprisingly complicated, especially with the multiple tiers of "unlimited" that has become popular recently. Verizon is promising to overhaul its unlimited plans with fewer distinct plans and an emphasis on choice.

Verizon currently offers six different unlimited 5G plans, ranging in price from $65 per month for "Welcome Unlimited" on one line to $90/mo for "5G Get More" on one line. Each plan has a different combination of hotspot data, bundled perks (like Disney+ or Apple Music), premium network access, and savings on Verizon Home Internet. It's not a great system, but Verizon is hardly alone in the world of confusing phone plans -- AT&T has three unlimited plans, and T-Mobile has six options during the migration period to "Go5G" plans.

Verizon is overhauling its unlimited plans with a new "myPlan" system. There will be two plans, "Unlimited Welcome" and "Unlimited Plus." The Unlimited Welcome plan will be $65 for one line, with the price-per-line going down as you add more people, with regular 5G service and not much else. The Unlimited Plus plan is $80 for one line, with the same price drops as you add more people, and includes 30 GB of "premium hotspot data." That plan also gives you access to "5G Ultra Wideband" -- Verizon's name for mmWave and C-Band 5G. With a group of four people, Unlimited Welcome is $30 per line, and Unlimited Plus is $45 per line.

With both plans, you have the option of adding services like The Disney Bundle, 100 GB of mobile hotspot data, or Apple One, each for an additional $10 per month. The add-ons are still cheaper through Verizon than they would be on their own -- for example, Apple One is $10/mo through Verizon, but it's $16.95/mo through Apple directly. You can also change the add-ons through the MyVerizon app at any time.

The new myPlan system sounds better than Verizon's current offerings, but it seems inevitable that it will grow to become more complicated over time, until eventually another reset is needed. The prices are also still expensive, though not too different from similar plans at T-Mobile and AT&T -- you'll probably still get a better value at MVNO carriers like Visible, Mint Mobile, Google Fi, or Cricket.

Verizon's new plans will be available starting May 18.

Source: Verizon