Expanish Volunteer Blog
How to Buy a Cell Phone in Buenos Aires
When you arrive for your volunteer placement in Buenos Aires, one of the things that you are going to want to purchase is a cell phone for your time here; it’s a great way to keep in touch with the friends you have, call a taxi when necessary, and just to keep in touch with the world.
Here is how you can go about buying a cell phone in Buenos Aires.
- First, if you do not have a D.N.I, which comes with residency, you cannot sign up for a phone contract. So, unless you know someone with a D.N.I or are friends with an Argentine that is willing to sign up for the plan while you use it, forget about getting a cell plan.
- There are a few big companies in the city where you can buy a cell phone and then buy phone cards that will allow you to put credit into your phone.
- The major three are
These three offer similar priced phones and similar priced phone credit cards. You must head to one of their offices in the city and buy a cell phone and a chip (which is put into the phone with your number), and then head to a kiosko(corner store) and buy a card for that company. For example, if you buy a phone from Claro, you buy a Claro card.
- These cards can be purchased for AR$10, AR$20, AR$30, AR$50, and AR $90. For the best deal, you buy a bigger card amount and you will receive extra credit. For example, with AR$20 you often receive AR$10 free, with AR$50 you receive AR$45 free.
- To use the card, call the number on the back and then enter in the code that is under the part you scratch off.
- Average prices for calls are like this: AR$1.5 for local calls, AR$3.00+ for international, and about AR$.06 for texts.
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