Best SIM card for Morocco: options and prices
Do you want to have internet during your trip to Morocco? Contrary to what you may think at first you can use your smartphone there without any limitation is very easy. In this article I will discuss the different options to get a SIM card for Morocco. I guess I don’t need to tell you that if you surf with yours you will pay a lot of money.
If you are looking to stay connected with your family and use your social networks in Morocco normally while paying a fair price you have several options. In this article I will discuss the pros and cons of each of them so you can decide which one best suits you and your trip. The duration of the trip, comfort and price are the three factors to take into account.
Before talking about SIM cards, I would like to comment on two other very important issues that you should plan in advance from home. The first one is the insurance, it is important that you hire a good travel insurance for Morocco, in this case it is included in the European coverage and it will be very cheap. The second is to have clear how to change euros to dirhams, something essential for the day to day. Morocco Tours 8 days
Carrying the SIM card for Morocco from home
The first option is to bring your SIM card for Morocco from home. This is the most convenient option as you only have to insert the card into your smartphone upon landing or during the ferry ride. We have used the Holafly ones, I will tell you the advantages of this option.
It is the safest since no one will tamper with your phone and the SIM card has all the guarantees. We have never had anything happen to us because we bought the card in a store and we think it is very unlikely that it will cause problems. But we have read on the internet some bad experiences in that sense.
It is quick and easy. If you can opt for an e-SIM it arrives instantly by email. If you need a physical card it will be mailed to your home within 48 hours.
If you have any problems there is a 24 hour support service that will help you solve them so that everything works correctly. However, we have never needed it.
After our experience with the Holafly SIM in Morocco we also saw some negative points.
The coverage you get is from Orange. In Morocco the best company is undoubtedly Maroc Telecom, especially if you are going to go to the desert or out of the big cities.
Logically the service is more expensive than buying a SIM card on your own in any store.
I explain below the different plans and prices.
Lifetime physical SIM card
If your phone does not accept the e-SIM you must buy the physical card. These are the different plans and prices, you can buy it with a 5% discount on this link.
- 7 days / 2GB for 29€.
- 10 days / 3GB for 38€.
- 30 days / 5GB for 42€.
Using a data eSIM for Morocco
If you end up accepting the e-SIM, everything becomes much simpler as you receive it by email as soon as the payment is completed. The modalities and prices are these and we also offer you a 5% discount if you buy it here.
- 5 days / 2.5GB for 29€.
- 7 days / 3.5GB for 34€.
- 10 days / 5GB for 39€.
- 15 days / 7.5GB for 47€.
Buying the SIM card upon arrival in Morocco
The other option you have is to buy a SIM card in any store once you arrive in Morocco. It doesn’t have to be a cell phone store, there is a lot of prepaid services, so you can buy it in any store with the logos of Maroc Telecom or Orange. If you choose this option our recommendation is Maroc Telecom, the first operator in the country.
We spent almost a month and a half in Morocco and when we ran out of the Holafly SIM we opted to try this other option. The Maroc Telecom SIM cost us 40 dirhams and to load it with 10 GB another 100. A total of 140 dirhams for 10 GB for 30 days. As you can see this option is cheaper -at the exchange rate it is about 14€- but it is not as comfortable, nor as secure.
If you don’t mind being without internet for a while when you arrive, wasting time looking for a store and you feel safe watching a Moroccan manipulating your mobile -to charge it they call you on the phone and dial some codes in Arabic- this is definitely the best option for you. Casablanca Desert tours
How much data do I need?
To find out how much data you will need, it is best to look at your phone’s history of what you have used in the last week and assess whether your consumption will increase or decrease while you are on vacation.
It is also important that you minimize your consumption so as not to run out of data. In this sense it will help you a lot to connect to the WIFI of your accommodation and if you see that you are running out, ask for the key also in restaurants, etc.. These moments of relaxation are the ones that usually have a higher consumption.
Why is the usual SIM card useless?
As you may already know, in the EU and in a handful of other countries such as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and the UK you can call, receive calls, send SMS and surf as if you were in Spain. Morocco is outside of that roaming agreement so if you use your Spanish SIM they will charge you an awful lot. Tour del Marocco
My phone operator in Spain has these rates. As you can see using your regular SIM is not an option.
Calls sent/received from Morocco to Spain: 1,50€/min.
Text messages sent: 1,21€/SMS
Data traffic sent/received: 12,10€/MB
Be careful with the last figure, it is 12,10€ per megabyte, not per gigabyte. Remember that 1 gigabyte is 1000 megabytes. We are talking about astronomical amounts if you use data in Morocco and a good pinch if you are connected by mistake.
With this I think I have explained everything you need to know to choose the SIM card for Morocco that best suits your trip and your budget. If you have any specific questions I’ll be waiting for you in the comments section. Viajes a Marrakech
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