Planning your trip to Paraguay and wondering what is the best way to stay connected? This guide is exactly what you are looking for with everything you need to know about buying a sim card in Paraguay or other ways to stay connected on your trip to Paraguay. Find out where to buy a local prepaid sim card, the best e-sim cards for Paraguay, the best 4G/5G network in Paraguay, up to date prices as per August 2023, my recommendation, info about international sim cards for Paraguay and more.
Buying a local prepaid sim card or getting an e-sim card is the first thing I do when getting to a new country and no difference when I got to Paraguay, country 129 on my journey to visit every country in the world. That is also why you can find already more than 200 prepaid sim card guides on Traveltomtom: Brazil, Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica, Bogota, Colombia, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Europe, USA, New York, Canada, Germany, Frankfurt, Madrid, Spain, Istanbul, Dubai and many more…
So whenever you are planning your next adventure abroad come check out Traveltomtom for the latest up to date local sim card advice. Bookmark this website!
Why buying a sim card for Paraguay
Of course you can use overseas roaming, but are you aware of the extremely high roaming charges? And did you know that the internet speed abroad is capped? Simply not recommended! There are much better AND much cheaper ways to stay connected when traveling abroad.
When buying a local prepaid sim card in Paraguay you are guaranteed with the fastest data speed available and the best 4G network connection. The other option is to order an e-sim card for Paraguay so you are connected as soon as the plane lands.
Relying on WiFi would be possible as the bigger hotels, bars and restaurants all have free public WiFi. However, as soon as you step outside you won’t be able to access data on your phone. Ordering an Uber, getting directions from Google Maps, finding nearby friends and staying in touch then suddenly becomes impossible. Also keep in mind that data on your phone can get you through long bus rides across the country. The bus from Asuncion to Ciudad del Este can take up to 6 hours and it is a blessing if you are connected to kill time.
Also another reminder that public WiFi is through an unsecured network. In these cases it is recommended to use a VPN to protect your personal data.
Buying a sim card in Paraguay is easy, done fast and is the cheapest way to get data on your phone during your trip to Paraguay.
My recommendation
Traveltomtom recommends buying a Tigo prepaid sim card for traveling in Paraguay. For a little over $2 USD you get 3 GB data for 1 week including unlimited calls. On top of that I recommend you to get an e-sim card for the first day, because on the airport of Asuncion you can not buy a sim card for tourists.
You spend a couple dollar but you already will save it by ordering an Uber instead of taking a normal taxi.
We also recommend looking into international sim cards that cover Paraguay or even easier e-sim cards for Paraguay. Check out my article about the best international sim cards for traveling in 2023.
Best e-sim cards for Paraguay
The easiest way to stay connected when traveling to Paraguay in 2023 is an e-sim card. No more swapping physical sim cards and going to a shop. You can now arrange everything online, right here, right now. After buying an e-sim card online you will receive a QR code and instructions in your email. Scan the code, follow the simple steps and you are connected instantly.
Check out the following Paraguay e-sim card deals:
- 1 GB data for 7 days = $8.5 USD
- 2 GB data for 15 days = $16 USD
- 3 GB data for 30 days = $22.5 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $35 USD
Click here to directly order an e-sim card for Paraguay online or find more info.
Where to buy a sim card in Paraguay
Asuncion International Airport
The best place to buy a sim card for your trip to Paraguay would be at Asuncion Airport on arrival. However, unfortunately it is not possible to buy a sim card at airport. There is no no phone store or sim card shop at Asuncion International Airport. Therefore my recommendation to get a 1 GB e-sim card for Paraguay.
Asuncion
If you want to buy a prepaid sim card in Paraguay you will need to wait until you get to the city center of Asuncion. A great place to go is the Shopping del Sol mall where you will find official retail stores from the main mobile internet providers in Paraguay.
Keep in mind that very few people in Paraguay speak English, so bring a friend who can translate. Although buying a prepaid sim card is pretty standard and straight forward so I am sure you will succeed even if you don’t speak any Spanish.
Ciudad del Este
May you travel to Paraguay and arrive in Ciudad del Este then you can find official retail stores of the mobile internet providers in the city center of Ciudad del Este. Use Google Maps to locate the nearest one.
Mobile internet providers in Paraguay
There are 3 main mobile internet operators in Paraguay: Tigo, Claro and Personal. They all sell prepaid sim cards for tourists.
Registration process
The registration process is very simple and straight forward. You will have to bring your passport when buying a prepaid sim card in Paraguay. In the store they will take a copy of your passport and register the sim card under your name and passport number.
Are you not ok with that then I recommend you looking into an e-sim card for Paraguay!
Prices prepaid sim cards in Paraguay
Prices and info below are updated as per August 2023 and prices are in Paraguayan Guarani: $1 USD = 7,250 PYG and 10,000 PYG = $1.38 USD.
Tigo
A Tigo sim card is free, the registration will be done in the store and then you will have to add credit to your number and activate one of the following prepaid data packages:
- 2 GB data for 4 days = 11,000 PYG - $1.5 USD
- 2 GB data for 5 days = 13,000 PYG - $2 USD
- 3 GB data for 7 days + unlimited calls = 16,000 PYG - $2.3 USD
- 4 GB data for 7 days = 16,000 PYG - $2.3 USD
- 4 GB data for 10 days = 25,000 PYG - $3.6 USD
- 4 GB data for 15 days = 35,000 PYG - $5 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = 65,000 PYG - $9.5 USD
The Tigo prepaid packages are pretty flexible, although the data bundles are pretty small. It is recommended to just add a bunch of credit onto your account then when you run out of data your bundle renews automatically. See for more info the Tigo website.
Claro
At Claro they charge you 10,000 PYG ($1.5 USD) for the registration of the prepaid sim card and then you can top up with any of the above data packages. Here are some examples:
- 2 GB data for 7 days = 22,000 PYG - $3.2 USD
- 3 GB data for 7 days = 27,000 PYG - $3.9 USD
- 4 GB data for 7 days = 16,000 PYG - $2.3 USD
I know it does not make any sense, but when I asked the guys in the store if it was a typo they said nope, this is the way it is. See for more info the Claro website.
Personal
A Personal prepaid sim card is also free and registration and activation of one of the following packages is done in the store right away:
- 3 GB data for 3 days = 11,000 PYG - $1.5 USD
- 4 GB data for 10 days = 25,000 PYG - $3.6 USD
- 4 GB data for 15 days = 35,000 PYG - $5 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = 65,000 PYG - $9.5 USD
As you can see the Personal prepaid sim cards have the exact same prices/value as the Tigo prepaid sim cards. For more info see the Personal website.
Best 4G/5G network in Paraguay
As prices for data packages in Paraguay are very affordable and don’t differ so much from each other let’s have a look at the mobile internet network coverage.
Is there 5G in Paraguay?
No, as of August 2023 there is still no 5G in Paraguay.
Personal 4G network coverage map
Claro 4G network coverage map
Tigo 4G network coverage map
Comparing the 4G network coverage of the mobile internet providers in Paraguay we can come to the conclusion that all operators have a pretty extensive 4G network around the country. But from what we can see from the above 4G coverage maps for Paraguay is that Tigo has the best 4G network in Paraguay as of 2023.
Best prepaid sim card for Paraguay
Since the prices for prepaid sim cards with data in Paraguay are cheap and more or less the same, it is the strength of the 4G network that is telling us what is the best prepaid sim card for traveling in Paraguay.
We have seen in the above that Tigo has by far the strongest 4G network, especially compared to Claro. Therefore Traveltomtom comes to the conclusion that Tigo is the best prepaid sim card in Paraguay in 2023 for tourists.
Are you only visiting Asuncion and Ciudad del Este then a Claro and Personal sim card would work too, but personally I would always choose the mobile operator with the strongest 4G network, especially since prices for data packages in Paraguay are really cheap!
My experience buying a sim card in Paraguay
On arrival at Asuncion Airport I searched everywhere for buying a sim card for Paraguay, but unfortunately. Airport staff looked at me like I was a weirdo, haha. Since I arrived really late I had to wait until the next day to get connected with a local prepaid sim card. On arrival I used my Global E-sim card that covers almost 100 countries and also Paraguay.
But when I got to my hotel in the city center of Asuncion I was kind of surprised with the super fast hotel WiFi. I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Asuncion and it was about $65 per night, a very nice hotel in a great location with amazing staff.
The next day I went to the nearby shopping mall ‘Shopping del Sol’ where you can find a Tigo, Claro and Personal store. I shopped around to see what they were offering and also because I read that Tigo has the best 4G network in Paraguay I chose Tigo as my prepaid sim card for my trip to Paraguay.
It was a little annoying that after I bought the Tigo sim card I had to go to another shop to buy credit and a data package, but it was done in just a minute. Just weird they couldn’t fix it immediately at the Tigo store.
Check out my vlog about buying a sim card in Paraguay below if you are interested:
xxx - coming soon
Using my Tigo prepaid sim card in Paraguay was a very smooth experience and I was always connected and happy with the data speed. Must say though that at big events like football games the network was not responding, but my friend had Claro and he had the same issue.
During my bus journey from Asuncion to Ciudad del Este and back I was constantly online with a 4G signal, which I was kind of expecting because I chose a Tigo sim card for their extensive 4G network in Paraguay. Tigo lived up to the expectations for me. Must say that another friend who had a Personal prepaid sim card didn’t have any problems staying connected either between Ciudad del Este and Asuncion.
As I traveled almost 3 weeks around Paraguay I ran out of my data package a lot of times and topping up was very easy. You can just walk into any gas station for example, give them your number and add like 35,000 PYG ($5 USD) to your credit. You can pay by credit card and it takes just 1 minutes. Then you dial *222# and you choose the data package that suits you. I always chose the one for 16,000 PYG ($2.3 USD) which gave me 3 GB data for 1 week + unlimited calls/text.
I hope all the above info was helpful for your upcoming trip to Paraguay. May you have any more questions about buying a sim card in Paraguay then please leave me a comment below and I will try to answer your question or help you out. Also regarding traveling to Paraguay!
If you are interested what it looks like traveling to every country in the world then check out my Instagram profile @traveltomtom for some serious wanderlust. As of August 2023 I have visited more than 155 countries around the world, still more than 40 to go, but no rush.
Enjoy your trip to Paraguay!
Some links in this article about the best sim cards for traveling to Paraguay are affiliate links. If you buy any of the products after using an affiliate link I will earn a small commission. Don’t worry this is at absolutely no extra cost to you.