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Revenue from Contracts with Customers
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2025
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]  
Revenue from Contracts with Customers
Note 11 – Revenue from Contracts with Customers

Disaggregation of Revenue

We provide wireless communications and broadband services to a variety of customers, but focus primarily on two categories of customers:

•Postpaid customers generally include customers who are qualified to pay after receiving service utilizing phones, 5G broadband gateways, fiber connections, mobile internet devices (including tablets and hotspots), wearables, DIGITS and other connected devices (including SyncUP and IoT); and
•Prepaid customers generally include customers who pay for service in advance.

We also provide services to wholesale customers which include Machine-to-Machine and Mobile Virtual Network Operator customers that operate on our network but are managed by wholesale partners.

Postpaid service revenues, including postpaid phone revenues and postpaid other revenues, were as follows:
Year Ended December 31,
(in millions)202520242023
Postpaid service revenues
Postpaid phone revenues$49,443 $45,762 $43,449 
Postpaid other revenues8,489 6,578 5,243 
Total postpaid service revenues$57,932 $52,340 $48,692 

The balances presented in each revenue line item on our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income represent categories of revenue from contracts with customers disaggregated by type of product and service. Postpaid and prepaid service revenues also include revenues earned for providing premium services to customers, such as device insurance services.
Contract Balances

The contract asset and contract liability balances from contracts with customers as of December 31, 2025 and 2024, were as follows:
(in millions)Contract
Assets		Contract
Liabilities
Balance as of December 31, 2024$720 $1,219 
Balance as of December 31, 20251,307 1,653 
Change$587 $434 

Contract assets primarily represent revenue recognized for equipment sales with promotional bill credits offered to customers that are paid over time and are contingent on the customer maintaining a service contract.

The change in the contract asset balance reflects customer activity related to new promotions, offset by billings on existing contracts and impairment, which is recognized as bad debt expense. The current portion of our contract assets of $920 million and $492 million as of December 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively, was included in Other current assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Contract liabilities are recorded when fees are collected, or we have an unconditional right to consideration (a receivable) in advance of delivery of goods or services. Changes in contract liabilities are primarily related to the activity of prepaid customers, including customers acquired through the Ka’ena Acquisition, as well as contract liabilities assumed in the UScellular Acquisition. Contract liabilities are primarily included in Deferred revenue on our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Revenues for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, include the following:
Year Ended December 31,
(in millions)202520242023
Amounts included in the beginning of year contract liability balance$1,173 $787 $747 

Remaining Performance Obligations

As of December 31, 2025, the aggregate amount of the transaction price allocated to remaining service performance obligations for postpaid contracts with subsidized devices and promotional bill credits that result in an extended service contract is $2.7 billion. We expect to recognize revenue as the service is provided on these postpaid contracts, generally over a period of 24 months from the time of origination.

Information about remaining performance obligations that are part of a contract that has an original expected duration of one year or less has been excluded from the above, which primarily consists of monthly service contracts.

Certain of our wholesale, roaming and service contracts include variable consideration based on usage and performance. This variable consideration has been excluded from the disclosure of remaining performance obligations. As of December 31, 2025, the aggregate amount of the contractual minimum consideration for wholesale, roaming and service contracts is $1.2 billion, $938 million and $2.2 billion for 2026, 2027 and 2028 and beyond, respectively. These contracts have a remaining duration ranging from less than one year to six years.

Contract Costs

The balance of deferred incremental costs to obtain contracts with customers was $2.0 billion for both December 31, 2025 and 2024, and is included in Other assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Deferred contract costs incurred to obtain postpaid service contracts are amortized over a period of 24 months. The amortization period is monitored to reflect any significant change in assumptions. Amortization of deferred contract costs included in Selling, general and administrative expenses on our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income were $1.9 billion, $2.0 billion, and $1.8 billion for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

The deferred contract cost asset is assessed for impairment on a periodic basis. There were no impairment losses recognized on deferred contract cost assets for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023.