Ethiopia SIM Cards: Everything You Need To Know

Visiting Ethiopia soon? Make sure to know what to expect when it comes to purchasing an Ethiopia SIM card.

Fortunately, Africa is one of the best places where you can buy a SIM card easily. You should be able to find a cheap SIM card pretty much anywhere in Africa.

In fact, most data packages are affordable, which makes the whole thing easier!

In this guide, we’ll explain where to buy a SIM card in Ethiopia in person and online. We’ll also discuss prepaid SIM cards. There is no eSIM option that covers Ethiopia as of now, hopefully, this will change soon.

Before you read this guide, you may wonder if you actually need a SIM card in Ethiopia. If you don’t mind not having Internet, you’ll likely find free Wifi in restaurants, shopping malls, and hotels.

That said, if you need data to get around, call a cab, or translate Oromo, Amharic, or any other Ethiopian language – you may want to get a SIM card for your travels in Ethiopia.

Best SIM Cards In Ethiopia

If you’re traveling in Ethiopia, there is only one option as there is only one network in the country. So during your trip to Africa, you will need to buy a separate SIM card for Ethiopia.

How To Buy A SIM Card In Ethiopia

You can either buy an Ethiopian prepaid SIM card in person in some international airports, mobile provider stores, convenience stores, or online.

Usually, you can expect higher costs and low data offers at the airport, so we don’t recommend buying a SIM card at the airport.

That said, you won’t necessarily find SIM card shops in every airport, so it’s essential to keep this in mind. And, when you see a shop, you might also have limited options.

For this reason, I’d recommend buying a SIM card directly from the mobile provider store. Note that you may need your passport to buy one.

Although, this means you won’t get data right upon your arrival. So, if you prefer to be connected at all times, you could purchase an African prepaid SIM card online.

Now, let’s take a look at the data plans offered by Ethio Telecom.

Ethio Telecom SIM Cards

Ethio Telecom offers several different types of data-focused plans:

• 500 MB, valid for 1 day for ETB 25 ($0.46)
• 1 GB, valid for 7 days for ETB 49 ($0.90)
• 2 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 100 ($1.84)
• 4 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 175 ($3.22)
• 10 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 379 ($6.97)
• 20 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 549 ($10.09)
• 50 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 799 ($14.69)
• 100 GB, valid for 30 days for ETB 849 ($15.61)

How To Buy A Ethiopia Prepaid SIM Card Online

If you wish to have your SIM card ready for your arrival, you could purchase it online or on websites like Amazon.

You’ll find different plans on Amazon. For example, Orange Holiday World SIM works in more than 100+ countries and gives you up to 10 GB of data for 14 days. Ethiopia is included.

But there are many other options worth considering, so have a look and make sure the countries you plan on visiting are listed.

Browse your options on Amazon

Final Thoughts On SIM Cards In Ethiopia

As you can see, there aren’t many options when getting a prepaid SIM card in Ethiopia.

I believe buying a SIM card online is the most convenient way to get data in Ethiopia if you wish to have data upon your arrival. This way, you won’t need to go to a store to buy a SIM card.

But if you want to buy a SIM card in person, Ethio Telecom has some really good deals.

Traveling to Africa soon? Read one of the following blog posts:

• Tanzania SIM cards
• Seychelles SIM cards
• Tunisia SIM cards
• Mozambique SIM cards