Here's what the 'AT&T Turbo' indicator on your phone's status bar means

AT&T is one of the prime carrier choices in the US, and many people prefer it over T-Mobile and Verizon based on their coverage, plans, and feature needs. If you have an AT&T smartphone, you might have seen a new “AT&T Turbo” branding as your carrier label on your iPhone or Android flagship. This AT&T Turbo branding means you are subscribed to AT&T Turbo, and there’s no cause for concern.

Reddit user No-Highlight7476 spotted that their iPhone 16 Pro Max started displaying the “AT&T Turbo” branding as the carrier label in the status bar.

Reddit user Visvism spotted it on their Pixel, so it’s visible on both iPhones and Androids.

AT&T updated its website to mention this about the Turbo icon:

AT&T Turbo Icon: The AT&T Turbo Alpha Tag is an icon displayed on the device indicating that your line is subscribed to Turbo. This icon will appear sometimes when Turbo is inactive, such as when on Wi-Fi or when your hotspot allotment is exceeded.

This branding remains visible when the phone has an active connection to AT&T’s network and services, and the user is subscribed to AT&T Turbo.

Besides making your phone’s status bar look visually busy, this branding is harmless. If nothing else, it will be great to alert users that they have subscribed to Turbo. Users who had accidentally signed up for it (and are thus paying extra) can now take steps to cancel the add-on if they don’t need it.

What is AT&T Turbo?

AT&T launched AT&T Turbo in May this year for 5G-capable smartphones. This add-on service allows customers to pay $7 per month per line for prioritized data on their wireless connection when network traffic is high.

AT&T pitches its benefits in crowded areas, where your connection will be prioritized over standard AT&T users. The Mobile Report suggests that Turbo bumps customers back up to a priority level of QCI 7 (Quality of Service Class Identifiers), which was the previous level before all plans were seemingly downgraded to QCI 8.

AT&T Turbo is available to subscribe on select AT&T postpaid plans, such as Unlimited Premium PL, Unlimited Extra EL, and Unlimited Elite plan that’s eligible to be included in an Unlimited Your Way group (minimum $85.99 a month before discounts). The catch here is that this prioritized data applies only to the extent of data allowed on your plan — when you run out of your data limit, you will still be bumped down to lower speeds, and Turbo by itself does not add any more data to your limits.

Customers can easily activate or deactivate the feature through their online account management or the myATT app.

If you’re wondering how AT&T Turbo differs from “premium data” that AT&T already includes in its Turbo-eligible plan, that is an excellent question.

AT&T Turbo improves wireless data connectivity when on the AT&T network by giving customers the ability to upgrade their high-speed (premium) and hotspot data allotments to performance data.

AT&T doesn’t provide a convincing enough explanation for why premium data users need Turbo when they already have premium data (which should theoretically already be better than standard/regular data). AT&T even mentions that AT&T Turbo performance benefits may not be noticeable during peak network congestion, so we’re left scratching our heads about what Turbo actually does and if it’s worth the additional monthly cost.

Did you get the AT&T Turbo carrier label on your phone? Are you subscribed to AT&T Turbo, and do you notice a difference in your data speeds in congested areas? Let us know your experience in the comments below!