Roaming prices: Vodacom vs MTN vs Cell C vs 8ta

Exorbitant international data roaming prices have been making headlines for years, but these rates have also not changed significantly over the last few years. Prices of well over R100 per MB are commonplace, with peak rates exceeding R300 per MB.

The mobile operators have previously explained that they are not to blame for these exorbitant rates, and that they merely pass on the rate which is charged by foreign operators.

However, local operators also charge international travellers very high data roaming charges. This essentially means that local operators perpetuate the practice of exorbitant roaming costs.

A year ago South African operators said that they are actively trying to reduce international roaming costs, but the following table shows that South Africans should still be very careful when roaming abroad.

It should be noted that the roaming data costs can differ relative to which operator you use to roam in a certain country.

From this table it is clear that it is very expensive to use data when roaming internationally.

The best option is always to purchase a local SIM in the country which you are visiting, and purchase a data package which suit your needs.

In the United States, for example, there are many pre-paid packages offering unlimited calls, SMS, and data at an affordable rate.

If it is important to keep your number while roaming, the cellular operators have custom packages aimed at reducing international roaming costs.

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