Basics[]
Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay (Spanish: República del Paraguay), is a landlocked country in central South America, bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest.
In Paraguay there are 4 mobile operators:
- Tigo
- Personal
- Claro
- VOX
Tigo is the clear market leader with 1/2 of all customers. Personal is not too far behind with 1/3. The last two operators remain pretty small. Paraguay has a very poor landline network (by Copaco), but mobile phones are thriving and everyone has a least one, many locals two or three. As calls between networks are rather expensive people often swap SIM cards or use dual SIM phones.
All 4 operators have 2G/GSM, 3G/HSPA and 4G/LTE. The operators use standard American frequencies: 2G/GSM and 3G/HSPA on 850 MHz and 1900 MHz (VOX: 900 MHz) and started 4G/LTE on 1700 MHz and 1900 MHz (bands 2 and 4). In 2018 new LTE licenses on 700 MHz (band 28) were auctioned off to Tigo, Personal and Claro to be used soon.
Local SIM cards don't allow you to make (only to receive) international calls. Use VoIP to make internatl. calls instead.
All rates are in Paraguayan guaraní (PYG) that is not linked to the US$ anymore, but free floating nowadays. All taxes are included.
In 2017 Paraguay’s parliament has approved a bill that seeks to further regulate the activation of mobile SIM cards in the country. Under the terms of the new legislation anyone seeking to acquire a SIM card needs to provide their identity card or passport details, complete a form prepared by the country’s communications regulator Conatel and provide a fingerprint. All mobile users will be required to comply with the new rules within a maximum of 12 months, with the country’s operators required to record all sales and activations for a minimum of five years and switch off any lines that haven’t been unregistered within the set period.
The countries of the Mercosur Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay have agreed in 2019 to implement a "roam like at home" scheme similar to the EU. After this deal is approved by all local parliaments operators must not charge additional fees for roaming between the bloc’s member states, and must apply the same tariff conditions that apply in the user’s home state for local outgoing calls, SMS and data.
Tigo[]
Tigo by Millicom is the largest provider in Paraguay with 51% market share. It has GSM/EDGE on 850 and 1900 MHz, UMTS/HSPA on 850 MHz. 4G/LTE started in 2016 on 1700 MHz AWS (= band 4) in major towns and is about to cover 127 of the 247 districts by the end of 2017.
Tigo has the best network with the best coverage and highest prices: 2G/3G/4G coverage map.
Availability[]
Their SIM card is available in their shops for PYG 5000 in all 3 sizes: incomplete list of shops. Their new 4G/LTE requires a recent SIM, so if you already have an old SIM, you can exchange it there for a new one.
Top-up[]
You can online through account management, by composing *222# and following the prompts, paying with credit card or in their and many other shops.
Data feature packages[]
These "unlimited" mini bundles are offered for data, no longer packs:
| Validity | Data | Price | Extras |
| 2 days | 800 MB | PYG 7,000 | free WhatsApp |
| 3 days | 1.5 GB | PYG 10,000 | free WhatsApp |
| 3 days | 1.5 GB | PYG 12,000 | free WA + 30 dom. mins |
| 5 days | 2 GB | PYG 15,000 | free WA + 100 dom. mins |
To buy a bundle dial *222# and follow prompts or by app. Unlimited WhatsApp is added for free. You can add unlimited Facebook for PYG 2000 per day.
Tigo Money[]
Like in Africa, the mobile phone system is also used to send or receive money. This is for a 4% fee and quite common to make payments like for reservations in some more remote places. You go to one of the many shops that sell credit for a Tigo phone, give name and phone number of the recipient and your phone and ID number. Then they can withdraw the money from any Tigo shop in their locality.
More information[]
- Website in Spanish: https://www.tigo.com.py
- APN: internet.tigo.py
Personal[]
Personal by Núcleo S.A. is the second largest provider in Paraguay with a 33% share. It has GSM/EDGE on 850 MHz, UMTS/HSPA on 850 and 1900 MHz. They are the only provider to use 4G/LTE on 1900 MHz (band 2) and started in Asunción.
They offer a good coverage at lower prices than Tigo.
Availability[]
Their SIM card is available in their shops (shop list). It costs PYG 10,000 and has PYG 40,000 valid for 7 days on it.
Top-up[]
You can top up in their shops, by buying a refill card and composing *222<refill code>, online on their website by credit card or by dialing *111 and following prompts, paying with credit card.
To check balance, dial *121#.
Data feature packages[]
| Name | Price | Data | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mega Pack 1Mil por día | PYG 1.000 | 50 MB | 24 hours |
| Mega Pack 80MB | PYG 1.500 | 100 MB | 24 hours |
| Mega Pack 110MB | PYG 2.000 | 150 MB | 24 hours |
| Mega Pack 200MB | PYG 3.000 | 250 MB | 24 hours |
| Mega Pack 250MB | PYG 5.000 | 400 MB | 48 hours |
| Mega Pack 500MB | PYG 7.000 | 700 MB | 72 hours |
| Mega Pack 1GB | PYG 10,000 | 1 GB | 48 hours |
To buy bundles dial *454#, choose "Internet Mobile" and follow prompts. To know remaining data dial *454# and select "Consulta de Packs".
They also offer a night pack with unlimited internet at PYG 3,000 valid between midnight and 6am.
More information[]
- Website in Spanish: https://www.personal.com.py/
- APN: internet Username and Password : personal
Claro[]
Unlike in many other Latin American countries in Paraguay Claro remains a rather small provider with 11% market share. It has GSM/EDGE on 1900 MHz, UMTS/HSPA on 1900 MHz. 4G/LTE started on 1700/2100 MHz (AWS band 4) in 14 cities in 2016.
Their coverage is lower, but still sufficient, if you stay in the centers mostly (coverage map) and at lower rates than Tigo or Personal.
Availability[]
Their SIM card is available at their agencies and service centers: list of service centers.
Top-up[]
Top-up is sold at the same places as the SIM and in independent stores. 3rd parties propose online recharge for a fee. Claro gives high bonuses like x5 for top-ups to calls or data bonuses below:
- top-up PYG 5,000-9,000: 100 MB for 24 hours
- top-up PYG 10,000-14,000: 200 MB for 48 hours
- top-up PYG 15,000+: 300 MB for 72 hours
To check balance, enter *111#.
Data rate[]
Data price is PYG 1,500 for 100 MB per day when you use internet. Beyond, PYG 9 per MB until midnight. "Free" WhatsApp messages (up to 1 GB).
There are these data packs on offer:
| Data | Price | Validity |
|---|---|---|
| 200 MB | PYG 2,000 | 1 day |
| 500 MB | PYG 5,000 | 1 day |
| 1 GB | PYG 6,000 | 1 day |
| 1 GB | PYG 8,000 | 5 days |
| 1 GB | PYG 10,000 | 7 days |
| 2 GB | PYG 12,000 | 3 days |
| 2 GB | PYG 15,000 | 7 days |
| 2 GB | PYG 20,000 | 10 days |
| 3 GB | PYG 30,000 | 15 days |
To activate, dial *989# or text code "PACK" to 454. All packages include free WhatsApp traffic.
Data-only SIM[]
Claro is the only provider that sells data-only SIMs for prepaid, but at similar prices. Data price is PYG 5000 per day that you use internet. FUP is 500 MB per day with subsequent throttling to 128 kbps. After you're throttled you can send "TURBO" to 252 to buy a new pack of 500 MB for PYG 5,000 until the end of the day.
More info[]
- APN: igprs.claro.com.py
- Website in Spanish: http://www.claro.com.py/
VOX[]
VOX is the smallest operator in Paraguay, backed up by the only landline provider Copaco. It has GSM/EDGE on 850 MHz, UMTS/HSPA on 900 and 1900 MHz and LTE on AWS (band 4 in 1700/2100 MHz).
Vox has only a 5% market share and offer reliable coverage in and around the capital area: coverage map. That's why they can't be recommended for travelers so far. Check coverage, before you buy a SIM card.
Availability[]
Their prepaid offer is called "VOX fácil" and available in their shops (list) for PYG 5,000. For the activation of your SIM, they give 1 GB data and 20 on-net minutes valid for 7 days.
Top-up[]
Top-ups are available all over the country (list) and online. Go to their website and choose "Recarga de saldo online".
Data feature packages[]
Default rate is PYG 100 per MB. They offer these packs with data:
| Price | Data | Validity |
|---|---|---|
| PYG 49,000 | 1 GB | 30 days |
| PYG 69.000 | 2 GB | 30 days |
| PYG 89,000 | 4 GB | 30 days |
To buy packs dial *222*2#. Some other packs may be available with *222#.
More info[]
- APN: vox.internet
- Balance: text "SALDO" to 210
- Website in Spanish: https://www.vox.com.py/