T-Mobile Acquisitions: Every Company It Bought, 2013 to 2026

Updated on October 30, 2026

11 min read

By The Utility Search Marketplace Team · 20+ years in consumer home services

T-Mobile spent the last few years transforming itself from a wireless-only carrier into a converged fiber-and-5G competitor — partly by building, but largely by buying. This is a complete, sourced reference to T-Mobile acquisitions in fiber and spectrum from the 2020 Sprint merger through October 2026, with deal values, close dates, and what each one actually added. Every figure here traces to a company filing or press release; sources are listed at the end.

The two strategies: spectrum vs. fiber

T-Mobile acquisitions fall into two distinct buckets, and it helps to separate them:

Spectrum and wireless acquisitions expand the airwaves and subscriber base behind its 5G network — this is the Sprint, Mint Mobile, and UScellular lineage.

Fiber acquisitions are a newer, deliberate push into wired home internet, almost always structured as 50/50 joint ventures with a private-equity partner (EQT, KKR) rather than outright buys — this is the Lumos and Metronet lineage.

The fiber JVs share a common shape: T-Mobile takes a 50% equity stake and the residential retail customers, while the acquired company becomes a wholesale network operator that keeps building. Through these partnerships, T-Mobile has said it expects to reach 12–15 million fiber households by the end of 2030.

T-Mobile acquisitions: spectrum & wireless

Sprint — 2020 — ~$26 billion (merger)

The foundational deal. T-Mobile’s merger with Sprint closed in 2020 and gave it the 2.5 GHz mid-band spectrum that underpins its 5G network lead. It also brought Sprint’s prepaid brands and the Assurance Wireless Lifeline business into the fold.

Ka’ena Corporation (Mint Mobile + Ultra Mobile + Plum) — ~$1.35 billion — FCC-approved April 2024

T-Mobile acquired Ka’ena, the parent of value brands Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile (plus Plum), for up to $1.35 billion. The brands continue to operate separately. This was a subscriber and prepaid-brand play rather than a spectrum grab.

UScellular wireless operations & select spectrum — ~$4.3 billion — closed August 1, 2025

T-Mobile acquired substantially all of UScellular’s wireless operations — customers, retail stores, and certain specified spectrum assets — for approximately $4.3 billion (about $2.6 billion cash plus roughly $1.7 billion in assumed debt). The deal notably strengthened rural and regional coverage. UScellular retained a large share of its spectrum and towers, continuing as a separate infrastructure company renamed Array Digital Infrastructure. T-Mobile also entered a long-term lease on at least 2,100 retained UScellular towers, and concurrently closed the smaller “Iowa Transactions” (~$175 million) for several Iowa wireless operators.

T-Mobile acquisitions: fiber (joint ventures)

Lumos — with EQT — ~$950 million for 50% — announced April 2024, closed early 2025

T-Mobile’s first fiber footprint. Partnering with investment firm EQT, T-Mobile invested roughly $950 million for a 50% stake in a JV that acquired Mid-Atlantic fiber-to-the-home provider Lumos (then reaching about 320,000 households over 7,500 route miles). A further ~$500 million contribution is planned for 2027–2028. The JV targets 3.5 million homes passed by the end of 2028, with Lumos operating as a wholesale network and T-Mobile as anchor tenant.

Metronet — with KKR — ~$4.9 billion for 50% — announced July 2024, closed July 24, 2025

T-Mobile’s largest fiber deal. In a JV with KKR, T-Mobile invested about $4.9 billion for a 50% equity stake plus 100% of Metronet’s residential fiber retail operations and customers. Metronet — one of the largest independent fiber-to-the-home providers in the U.S. — reaches more than 2.6 million homes and businesses across 19 states over 42,000+ miles of fiber, and aims for 6.5 million homes passed by the end of 2030. Post-close, Metronet became a wholesale provider with T-Mobile Fiber handling residential service.

GoNetspeed + Greenlight Networks — with Oak Hill Capital — $2 billion for 50% — announced April 2026

T-Mobile’s third fiber venture bundles two Northeastern builders Oak Hill already owned: Greenlight (Rochester, Buffalo and Albany, New York; central Pennsylvania; Maryland) and GoNetspeed (Pittsburgh and Connecticut). The combined company expects about 1.3 million passings by the end of 2026. Same structure as Lumos and Metronet: T-Mobile takes the residential customers under T-Fiber, the network stays a wholesale operator. Closing is expected in the first half of 2027.

i3 Broadband — with Wren House — $700 million for 50% — announced April 2026

i3 Broadband builds fiber in Peoria, Champaign and the Illinois river cities, the St. Louis suburbs in Missouri, and Rhode Island, with about 500,000 passings expected by the end of 2026. T-Mobile is paying $700 million for half, with closing expected in the second half of 2026. Together the two April deals add roughly 1.8 million locations and $2.7 billion to the fiber tally below.

What the T-Mobile acquisitions add up to

Taken together, these T-Mobile acquisitions in spectrum (Sprint, Mint/Ka’ena, UScellular) cemented T-Mobile’s 5G and subscriber scale, while the fiber JVs (Lumos, Metronet) built a wired-home-internet business almost from scratch — targeting 12–15 million fiber households by 2030, on top of a 5G Home Internet fixed-wireless base serving millions more. For consumers, the practical upshot of these T-Mobile acquisitions is more places where T-Mobile competes for your home internet, and more pressure on incumbent cable and telephone providers. As always, what’s available — and at what price — comes down to your specific address.

T-Mobile acquisitions: the questions people ask, answered

What people type when they hear T-Mobile bought something, in their own words, answered as of October 25, 2026.

How many cellular companies has T-Mobile bought?

Four that matter, counting from the modern T-Mobile US: MetroPCS (2013, the merger that created T-Mobile US), Sprint (2020, about $26 billion), Ka’ena Corporation, the parent of Mint Mobile, Ultra Mobile and Plum (2024, about $1.35 billion), and the wireless operations of UScellular (closed August 1, 2025, about $4.3 billion plus debt). Smaller buys such as SunCom (2008) and Iowa Wireless (2018) round out the list, and T-Mobile has also bought wireless spectrum from UScellular and others without buying the companies.

Who did T-Mobile buy out, in order?

MetroPCS in 2013; Iowa Wireless in 2018; Sprint in 2020; Mint Mobile, Ultra Mobile and Plum (Ka’ena) in 2024; Lumos fiber, with EQT, closed early 2025; Vistar Media, an advertising company, in 2025; UScellular’s wireless business, closed August 2025; Metronet fiber, with KKR, closed July 2025; and the April 2026 agreements for GoNetspeed and Greenlight Networks (with Oak Hill) and i3 Broadband (with Wren House), which close between late 2026 and mid-2027. The fiber deals are 50-50 joint ventures, not outright purchases.

What fiber companies did T-Mobile acquire?

Lumos (Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania), Metronet (Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Texas, Florida, North Carolina and more), and, pending closing, GoNetspeed, Greenlight Networks and i3 Broadband. In each case T-Mobile owns 50 percent of the network through a joint venture with a private equity partner (EQT, KKR, Oak Hill, Wren House) and 100 percent of the residential customers, who are sold service under the T-Fiber brand.

Are T-Mobile and T-Fiber the same company?

Yes. T-Fiber (also written T-Mobile Fiber) is T-Mobile’s brand for home fiber internet delivered over the networks it co-owns through the Lumos and Metronet joint ventures and over partner networks it resells in a few markets. Your bill, app and support come from T-Mobile; the fiber in the street may still carry the Metronet or Lumos name on the trucks during the transition.

Is Spectrum part of T-Mobile, or are T-Mobile and Spectrum working together?

No on both. Spectrum is the consumer brand of Charter Communications, a cable company that is in the process of absorbing Cox; T-Mobile has no ownership stake in Charter and Charter has none in T-Mobile. The two overlap in one way: Spectrum Mobile runs on Verizon’s network, not T-Mobile’s, and Charter sells home internet over cable while T-Mobile sells it over 5G and fiber. If you see T-Mobile and Spectrum on the same mailer, it is a retailer selling both, not a partnership.

T-Mobile Fiber vs Spectrum cable: which is better?

Where T-Fiber is available it is the better product on paper: symmetrical upload (Spectrum uploads at 20 to 100 Mbps on most tiers), no data caps on either, and T-Mobile’s five-year price guarantee versus Spectrum’s promo-then-standard pricing. Spectrum wins on availability, since cable reaches far more addresses than T-Fiber does today, and on bundling with TV. Check both at your address above; the real comparison is the total monthly price in year two, not the headline speed.

How much spectrum does T-Mobile have?

More mid-band than any other U.S. carrier: roughly 200 MHz or more of 2.5 GHz in most markets from the Sprint deal, plus 600 MHz low-band nationwide, the 3.45 GHz and C-band licenses it bought at auction, and the 2.5 GHz, 700 MHz and other licenses it picked up from UScellular and in 2024 and 2025 spectrum swaps. The exact MHz-per-market figure varies by city; the point is that T-Mobile’s 5G capacity lead comes from spectrum it bought, which is why it can sell home internet over the same towers.

Did T-Mobile acquire Sprint’s towers?

No. Sprint had already sold most of its towers to Crown Castle and others years earlier and leased them back, so T-Mobile inherited leases, not towers. After the merger T-Mobile decommissioned thousands of redundant Sprint sites and moved the spectrum onto its own network; the towers themselves stayed with the tower companies. UScellular’s towers were likewise kept by UScellular’s former parent (now Array Digital Infrastructure) and leased to T-Mobile.

Does T-Mobile resell fiber from local providers?

In some markets, yes. Besides the networks it co-owns, T-Mobile has resale and open-access agreements with regional fiber builders, so T-Fiber can show up in a town where T-Mobile owns no network. The service is still billed and supported by T-Mobile, but the installation and repairs are done by the local network owner. The address check above shows T-Fiber only where it is actually serviceable today.

Who bought out T-Mobile?

Nobody. T-Mobile US is a public company (NASDAQ: TMUS) majority-owned by Deutsche Telekom of Germany, which has held control since T-Mobile US was formed in 2013 and increased its stake to above 50 percent after the Sprint merger. SoftBank, Sprint’s former owner, sold most of its shares after 2020. T-Mobile is the buyer in every deal on this page, not the target.

Did T-Mobile buy Claro?

No. Claro is the Latin American wireless brand of América Movil, and there has been no agreement for T-Mobile to buy any part of it; T-Mobile’s only presence in the region is a Puerto Rico network that it inherited from the Sprint merger, which competes with Claro Puerto Rico. Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile’s parent, likewise has no stake in América Movil.

What is T-Mobile buying next?

The announced pipeline is fiber: closing the i3 Broadband venture in late 2026 and the GoNetspeed/Greenlight venture in the first half of 2027, then building toward 12 to 15 million fiber passings by 2030. Rumored but unconfirmed targets in 2026 have included Windstream’s Kinetic fiber assets. On the wireless side, T-Mobile has said it is done with large carrier mergers and is buying spectrum licenses rather than companies. We update this page when a deal is signed, not when it is rumored.

Also searched as: T-Mobile buyouts, companies T-Mobile bought out, T-Mobile acquisition history, who did T-Mobile buy, T-Mobile fiber joint ventures and T-Mobile bought. They all mean this list.

FAQ

What companies has T-Mobile acquired recently?

The most significant T-Mobile acquisitions break down like this. On the wireless/spectrum side: Sprint (2020), Ka’ena/Mint Mobile (FCC-approved 2024), and UScellular’s wireless operations (closed August 2025). On the fiber side, through joint ventures: Lumos (with EQT, closed early 2025) and Metronet (with KKR, closed July 2025).

How much did T-Mobile pay for Metronet?

About $4.9 billion for a 50% equity stake in the KKR joint venture, plus 100% of Metronet’s residential fiber retail operations and customers.

Are T-Mobile’s fiber acquisitions outright purchases?

No — both Lumos and Metronet are structured as 50/50 joint ventures with a private-equity partner (EQT and KKR, respectively). T-Mobile takes the residential retail customers; the acquired company becomes a wholesale network operator.

How many fiber homes does T-Mobile plan to reach?

Through its fiber partnerships and joint ventures, T-Mobile has said it expects to reach 12–15 million fiber households by the end of 2030.

Did T-Mobile get spectrum from the UScellular deal?

Yes — the ~$4.3 billion deal included certain specified spectrum assets along with customers and stores, though UScellular (now Array Digital Infrastructure) retained a significant portion of its spectrum and towers.

Sources: T-Mobile newsroom & SEC 8-K filings: Metronet JV (Jul 2024 announce; Jul 24 2025 close), Lumos JV (Apr 2024), UScellular acquisition (May 2024 announce; Aug 1 2025 close); KKR / Metronet press releases (2.6M homes, 19 states, 42,000+ miles); FCC approval of Ka’ena/Mint Mobile (Apr 2024); Cleary Gottlieb deal summary (UScellular close, $4.3B, Iowa Transactions). Figures are company-reported; verify current details directly before relying on them.

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