Prepaid 4G SIM card in Turkey: how much does it cost? Where to buy it? What speed?
Where to buy a prepaid SIM card at Istanbul airport (Atatürk)?
Just after passing the immigration and collecting your luggage, go out and you will find immediately on the right a big red Vodafone store, you can’t miss it.
Having arrived at the end of the day, we didn’t go around to see if there were other options available, at first glance it didn’t seem to be the case.
How much does a Vodafone SIM card cost at Atatürk Airport?
In this Vodafone store, the prices seemed quite high to me, here they are :
For my part, I chose the offer with 7 GB of data for 320 TL (44 euros in October 2018).
For this price, the seller offered us an external battery for smartphone (worth 100 TL). This isn’t what we came for but it isn’t useless since Anh didn’t have one.
I asked the seller if the SIM card was valid for one month, he answered yes without further details.
I imagine that it is possible to have better rates in the city, I will complete if I have other information.
Where to buy a SIM card at Istanbul Sabiha-Gökçen airport?
At the exit, turn left towards the airport exit. You will see two kiosks: Türk Telecom and Turkcell.
Türk Telecom’s rates were not indicated and we had no time to ask.
Concerning Turkcell, here are the rates:
What documents are requested?
The seller will ask you for your passport. He will make a copy and fill out a form that you will have to sign.
The operation takes about ten minutes, you can pay by card or cash.
How to install and configure your SIM card?
The seller offered to install the SIM card for me.
There is actually nothing to do, just insert the SIM card, the configuration and activation is automatic and instantaneous.
Remember to keep the card on which the SIM has been cut since it has your PIN code written on it (the scratch-off part). As it isn’t the usual “0000”, it would be a shame to lose it…
How much does a Teknosa SIM card cost in Turkey?
A few days later, we went to the TeknoSA store(the equivalent of Darty) to buy a SIM card for Anh and they offer SIMs that are much more affordable than those found at Vodafone at the airport.
So I opted for :
- the purchase of a 90TL SIM card
- and 40TL of credit to be able to subscribe to the 6GB offer for 33TL
Either 123 TL (2.6 times cheaper than at Vodafone) or 17.3€ This
credit can be used for one month.
To do so, you must give your passport.
The seller asks me to charge the account, in this case 40TL of credit
Then, he sends an SMS to choose the Tekno L Faturasizoffer (which costs 33TL) thatyou can see on the flyer
An SMS is sent to me to confirm me that I have 5GB + 1GB for Whatsapp and social networks (at least I think so), valid for one month
Comparison of flow rates
Here is Vodafone’s throughput
And that of Teknosa
On this measurement carried out at the same time in the same context (in a poorly receiving apartment in Istanbul), Teknosa’s flow was better, both in terms of upward and downward flow.
Conclusion
If you’re not too eager to get the Internet, it’s better to buy a SIM card in the city rather than at the airport. Then, for TeknoSA top-ups, I don’t know if it’s on sale everywhere, but I know that there are many TeknoSA stores in Istanbul, near the metro.
To know more about it
You liked this article, see our other articles about Turkey :
- Itinerary & Budget: 9 days in Turkey
- All you need to know about hot air balloons in Cappadocia
- Itinerary, Google Maps & budget: 3 days in Cappadocia
- Pamukkale Field Guide
- Practical Guide for Ephesus
- and all our travel diaries & things to do in Istanbul
The hotels we recommend in Istanbul, in the old city (Sultanahmet district) :
- Eternity Hotel (64€ per night), link Booking
- Hotel Ibrahim Pasha (99€ per night), Booking link with a breathtaking view of the city and the Blue Mosque
