22 February 2024 update on Brazil (Brasil) SIM cards for foreigners

[travguy]

22 February 2024 update on Brazil (Brasil) SIM cards for foreigners

 

When visiting Brazil using your cell phone can be a problem if you do not have inexpensive roaming on your cell plan. Do not expect a non BR prepaid plan to work in BR. Briefest version: Airalo via eSim which you might be able to buy and then use even after arrival in Brazil seems like the easiest solution and not that expensive for light to moderate use, if you can use wifi as often as possible. Less expensive and will be I think the best choice if your cell phone cannot handle an eSIM is a TIM prepagado SIM cartao or chip pre pago (prepaid SIM card from the company, TIM) bought at a local newspaper and candy kiosk (which seem to be omnipresent on busier shopping streets) for about 15 R$ (3 Euro, Pound, or Dollars) seems to be the next easiest way to do it, but you still need to understand a bit of Portuguese (PT). Claro and Vivo seem a bit hopeless and Claro at least will likely be time consuming for no good reason.

In BR for a foreigner to get a BR SIM card some Claro/Vivo/TIM offices (if they will even assist you, and some will not) will need you to bring your passport and prefer it if you have a CPF card – like a tax ID and should take 2-10 business days for a foreigner to get one. With the CPF, you can also get some discounts at stores and supermarkets. Getting the CPF is a different topic and there are many web links. Please use a newer link, as this can all be done online now, post COVID. Here is one: https://media.doterra.com/br-otg/pt/flyers/gac-step-by-step-english.pdf

At some Claro/Vivo/TIM offices, they might only speak PT or SP. They might not have any interest in assisting you per numerous web reports. At the post office, the process to get a post office SIM might not be so easy and some report that coverage is not great. So why bother…..exactly !!

 

Searches:

https://search.brave.com/search?q=brazil+sim+card+for+tourist&source=web

https://www.traveltomtom.net/destinations/south-america/brazil/sim-card-brazil

Nice detailed information. He likes airalo.

Please check Airalo.com and the various links to make certain your cell phone is on the list for eSIM compatible phones for airalo. I do not know if any eSIM enabled phone will work or not. Same for iPads, tablets, etc. You will find up to date pricing as well, currently 30 days, 3 GB, is 11 USD.

https://toomanyadapters.com/buying-sim-card-brazil/

Good advice and comments here too.

https://www.iheartbrazil.com/brazil-sim-card/

Somewhat older advice.

https://abrokenbackpack.com/brazil-sim-cards/

Makes this seem too easy, which it is not.

https://www.phonetravelwiz.com/buying-a-sim-card-in-brazil-guide/

Some might find a few helpful hints here.

 

Ok, airalo might seem a bit pricey or you do not have a compatible eSIM phone. A TIM SIM card seems like the next best choice – you buy this once in BR.

Step by step directions:

-make sure your phone, tablet, etc is not locked to your current cell carrier. Easy to check with iphone. Not so easy to be certain with Android.

-After arrival in BR, go to local newsstand and candy kiosk. (Might be able to get TIM SIM card at airports in BR after you arrive, but you can arrange local transportation with airport wifi and arrive at your place ok.) Ask for a TIM prepagado SIM cartao or chip pre pago (prepaid SIM card from the company, TIM). They might have 4G or 5G SIM cards. For most of us 4G should be fine. Expect to pay about 15 R$ (3 Euro, Pound, or Dollars). This is the price ONLY for the SIM card itself-nothing else, no data, no minutes, no texts. At most kiosks, they will only speak PT and maybe some SP, so please don’t expect much assistance, if any, from them. You can do the rest on your own….well yes, mostly, sort of (if you cannot handle any foreign words). I think this would be most difficult for non western language speakers, like Japanese.

-After you buy the TIM SIM card, go back to your place (hotel, airbnb, etc) and use wifi and the SIM itself to do the rest. Why? You will prefer privacy when giving details of your passport to follow.

-take a photo of the numbers on the sticker of your SIM card and write them down as well, just in case. These include parts of the SIM card number.

Also photograph or copy all of the numbers you see on the credit card size SIM plastic card and the actual SIM number (zoom up a photo for this). Mine included PIN, PIN 2, PUK, and PUK 2 numbers. You might not need any of them, but you never know. The PIN and PIN 2 are NOT your password code for the meuTIM app.

-you can insert the TIM SIM card into your phone or tablet now. Be aware that my TIM SIM card came with 3 size choices in the packet. The expected tiny SIM with 2 larger surrounding pieces of plastic if your SIM slot requires this. I have never seen this before and the tiny SIM worked fine in my cell phone.

BEFORE contacting TIM, have your passport with you or a copy of the page(s) with your number and issue date, etc. Also have a copy of your full address in Brazil, just in case they ask (which, apparently they don’t). Ok if it is a Hotel address. Some old posts indicate TIM uses this to figure out the correct BR area code and number for you. However, these days, when you insert your TIM SIM card you automatically receive a phone number !!

There is no need to go to a TIM store unless you expect major language issues (eg Japanese only speakers)

-BR phone numbers: 55 (21) 12345 6789. 55 is the country code for BR. If you are in Rio, 21 is one of several State codes within Brazil. The next 9 numbers are your number. But when using the TIM phone app, do not use 55!! Your number begins with the numbers 11-99 depending on what State of Brazil your SIM card links to. So there will be 11 digits to enter for the meuTIM app. My 11 digits start with 21 and then the 12345 6789.

- with the new TIM SIM card in your phone, dial *144. Despite previous postings, the robot never defaulted to English and hung up on me around 2:15. If you are luckier and hear English, press 3 to get to an English speaking attendant. If you do not hear English around the 50 second mark, after hearing “DOISHE” the EN pronunciation for the PT word for 2, listen carefully for “trAYsh”, like “trace” with the C replaced with SH, PT word for 3. Then press 3 on your cell phone (not sure if also had to hit “*” as well). When I did this the English speaking attendant came on quickly in less than 15 seconds (weekday, around 1500 hours in Rio). The connection was not great, but it worked. She wanted my passport number, country, date of issue, and my name. Nothing else. I spelled my last name for her, although she did not ask for this. I thought it best just in case name she put it did not match name on credit card to pay for data etc to follow. She said I could buy service plan, data, days of service etc at drug stores, kiosks, TIM stores, etc, but not with her by phone now.

-throughout the process of plonking the TIM SIM card into your device and activating it by calling TIM you will receive MANY text messages.

- Pay special attention to any text that includes the word “senha” and copy the 4 digit number down. This is the password code you need for the meuTIM app.

-I clicked on one of the text links that followed my TIM English conversation within minutes to get a prepaid plan. Paid 30 R$ (about 6 Euros, Pounds, Dollars). I think it was via ativar.tim.com.br. I could not pay with the phone VPN on, so might need to start from scratch with the phone VPN off if you do this via phone. Went through seamlessly.

-It will be difficult to figure out what you actually bought !! I thought I was getting 30 days, but it seemed like I got 90 days of service and 12GB or more of data, with bonus data depending on when the data is used, like overnight. Using a few apps and checking emails, maps, a few websites and social media I can often get by on 2GB/week using wifi when eating, at museums, etc. I think texts are unlimited and calls are unlimited (perhaps in State of RJ or only BR). There are multiple discount and other offerings as well. For example with the Ze food delivery service. (Claro adds completely free whatsapp, which is hugely popular in BR, but this was not noted with TIM) So no complaint about price or set up time with TIM. From buying the 15 R$ TIM SIM card at a nearby kiosk to finishing call with TIM attendant to buying a 30 R$ 12 plus GB 30 or 90 day prepaid plan took less than 30 minutes and cost around 9 Euros, Pounds or Dollars !!

-you can add the meuTIM app on your phone via Apple or Google Play store. Can do it on your computer browser as well if you like. I assume topping up if you need more data or longer stay will be very easy as well – but I have learned, never assume.

-as always, can save cellular data via using wifi when able. Always use VPN when possible.

 

Other numbers to be aware of:

*244 or *244# to top up

*222# to check balance

 

Hope this step by step guide will assist folks and sorry for the long post necessitated therein.

[Latbear4blk]

If you reside in the US, make it simple. Get a Google Fi second phone. They are cheap and you get a flat rate with wifi and calls not only for Brazil but for mostly every single country you may travel to (or I may travel to).

[floridarob]

On 2/23/2024 at 11:33 AM, Latbear4blk said:

Get a Google Fi second phone.

or  T-Mobile 

[Latbear4blk]

1 hour ago, floridarob said:

or  T-Mobile 

Is it as good as Google Fi? I was able to use GF hotspot in Buenos Aires, Medellín, and Rio with no usage limits and a quiet high speed. If T-Mobile provides the same quality, I would look into it.

[floridarob]

https://www.t-mobile.com/cell-phone-plans/international-roaming-plans?icid=MGPO_TMO_P_TMOTRVLBNF_TD9F4G9464MO28R29943

I've had them since they started with free international in 140+ countries I think. I buy a monthly data pass for $50usd (higher speeds and free calls) when I'm travelling, but not really needed.

 

My monthly plan costs $30 usd a month, including all taxes/fees plus gives you free wifi on United Airlines flights, which is who I fly normally.

[Connordrick]

i have a T-Mobile too. but I can't remember how my connection was in SP.  

Now that I am coming back, i am checking the options posted above in case I need them. I'm leaving in two weeks.

cant wait for my trip to SP and Rio 😜 and it looks like they will keep the visa requirement for April 10. i will report if I run into any ads or something.

 

 

[Marc in Calif]

On 2/23/2024 at 7:19 AM, travguy said:

Hope this step by step guide will assist folks and sorry for the long post necessitated therein.

Thanks for all the details! 

I prefer getting local SIM cards whenever I travel. They provide me with a local phone number in whatever country I'm in. 

Making free texts and free phone calls back to friends and family in the USA -- or any other country? That's what WhatsApp is for, of course! 

[Latbear4blk]

13 hours ago, Marc in Calif said:

Thanks for all the details! 

I prefer getting local SIM cards whenever I travel. They provide me with a local phone number in whatever country I'm in. 

Making free texts and free phone calls back to friends and family in the USA -- or any other country? That's what WhatsApp is for, of course! 

I wish WhatsApp was as popular in the US as it is abroad. When I am traveling, I am often teleworking, WhatsApp does not help.

[Mavica]

I'm based in US.  Cell phone calling / texting is the cultural norm here.  Communicating from US to contacts abroad and when traveling within countries other than the US I use WhatsApp.

[Marc in Calif]

2 hours ago, Latbear4blk said:

I wish WhatsApp was as popular in the US as it is abroad. When I am traveling, I am often teleworking, WhatsApp does not help.

All of my work colleagues here in the US use WhatsApp for personal communications. For work-related communications, we use Slack internally via Windows and via mobile, so that's not a problem either when we're abroad.

[Marc in Calif]

2 hours ago, Mavica said:

I'm based in US.  Cell phone calling / texting is the cultural norm here.  

I'm also based in the US.

I text but I also use WhatsApp, which allows video chat as well. I seldom use the phone. 

[Latbear4blk]

19 minutes ago, Marc in Calif said:

All of my work colleagues here in the US use WhatsApp for personal communications. For work-related communications, we use Slack internally via Windows and via mobile, so that's not a problem either when we're abroad.

Lucky you. I do not think your circumstances are representative of most US people. Of course, I may be wrong. Correct me if I am wrong, but you probably work and live in an environment where people are used to international contact. I work in a K-12 charter school in DC. Only 20% of our staff has WhatsApp on their phones. Only 60% of the families with kids enrolled use WhatsApp, not coincidently the immigrant families are 52% of our enrollment.

[Marc in Calif]

10 minutes ago, Latbear4blk said:

Lucky you. I do not think your circumstances are representative of most US people. Of course, I may be wrong. Correct me if I am wrong, but you probably work and live in an environment where people are used to international contact. I work in a K-12 charter school in DC. Only 20% of our staff has WhatsApp on their phones. Only 60% of the families with kids enrolled use WhatsApp, not coincidently the immigrant families are 52% of our enrollment.

I live and work where people enjoy using (and trying out) apps that make communication easier and more convenient. But my family in Chicago all use WhatsApp too.

It's becoming less of an international-only tool. Of course, the integration of FB, Instagram, and WA makes this more possible. They're all now part of Meta. 

[xpaulo]

21 hours ago, floridarob said:

I buy a monthly data pass for $50usdto

If I understand this correctly, you can pay a one-time monthly fee of $50 to use your phone in almost every country in the world. Canada is so fucked up when it comes to cell phone service, especially in other countries. I'm with Virgin Plus and to be fair, I've never really figured cell phone plans, but I think they also do a bit to make sure the plans are confusing. Anyway, it always ends up costing a lot more than I thought it would. My trip in January to Colombia I just had the sim card changed at the airport and as far I know, Virgin didn't have any way to add on extra charges. I used the esim in Europe last year, it was fine, but because of some shit going on at home I had to keep changing back and forth... paid dearly for that.

[Marc in Calif]

25 minutes ago, xpaulo said:

because of some shit going on at home I had to keep changing back and forth... paid dearly for that.

In the future, encourage family and friends at home to use WhatsApp.

You'll be able to talk, text, and cam with them for free from anywhere in the world -- on phone, tablet, or computer.

Get a SIM card for any country you're in. You'll be able to use WhatsApp on your phone as usual with no Virgin complications in the way. 

[xpaulo]

2 hours ago, Marc in Calif said:

use WhatsApp

The main issue was there is and was a $16 daily charge even if I had to flip over to make a single phone call. This was an unexpected financial thing that came up that had to dealt with. And I'm not sure that anybody who hasn't lived in Canada can truly appreciate how badly we're ripped off by a handful of big corporations that control the communications and banking industries.         

[Marc in Calif]

1 hour ago, xpaulo said:

The main issue was there is and was a $16 daily charge even if I had to flip over to make a single phone call. 

Not sure I understand...

What does this have to do with using WhatsApp with a SIM card when you're traveling?  I'm suggesting a way for you to avoid those $16 daily charges and ANY restrictions by using a local SIM card. It seems that you did have a SIM card in Colombia. Did you then try to make calls to Canada with your phone by switching the SIM cards?

6 hours ago, Marc in Calif said:

use WhatsApp

 

[Latbear4blk]

Definitely, WhatsApp is not the best option for communications with and within the US. No matter how much I do like WA.

[Marc in Calif]

2 hours ago, Latbear4blk said:

Definitely, WhatsApp is not the best option for communications with and within the US. No matter how much I do like WA.

Who said it's "the best option for communications"? I'm not making this a popularity contest! But I'm happy that WA has been quickly growing in the US compared to 10-15 years ago. 

Your diagram shows that about 23% of the US population uses WA. The actual number today is 29%, with 98 million people using it. The number has been growing fast in recent years. 

https://engage.sinch.com/blog/whatsapp-in-the-us-potential/#:~:text=There are currently 98 million,and 78% at least weekly.

Feb 13, 2024
The "WhatsApp Phenomenon": What's behind the sudden rise of WhatsApp in the US

There are currently 98 million WhatsApp users in the US. According to Apptopia, as reported by Big Technology, WhatsApp's daily active users grew by 9% in the US in 2023, with 50% of WhatsApp users chatting daily on the app and 78% at least weekly. 

In the second quarter of 2022, the messaging app had 6.6 million downloads in the US from Apple's App Store alone, making it the country with the most WhatsApp downloads in that time period.

[xpaulo]

16 hours ago, Marc in Calif said:

Did you then try to make calls to Canada

No, but banks and others use my Canadian number and text messages to verify it's really me for various transactions. I don't think missed anything important, but I worried about it. I use  Whatsapp a lot, especially in Colombia where it's pretty much a necessity.

[wncdemcub]

On 2/24/2024 at 9:09 PM, Marc in Calif said:

Thanks for all the details! 

I prefer getting local SIM cards whenever I travel. They provide me with a local phone number in whatever country I'm in. 

Making free texts and free phone calls back to friends and family in the USA -- or any other country? That's what WhatsApp is for, of course! 

I can tell you that most people in other countries rarely use traditional calling or text as its still too expensive. They use whatsapp for both as in many of their plans its cheaper. 

[Marc in Calif]

59 minutes ago, wncdemcub said:

I can tell you that most people in other countries rarely use traditional calling or text as its still too expensive. They use whatsapp for both as in many of their plans its cheaper. 

Agreed! That's why WhatsApp first grew to be so dominant in Asia. 

But... I like to have a local phone number in case I have to send a text or make a call. Doing that helps people recognize that I'm local. Also, having a local number to use for WA is much more convenient. I don't want to be the only "foreigner" in a WA group or when making a new contact.

[Xclay]

Huge hassle getting physical SIM cards in Brazil.

Airalo is the leading electronic SIM (i.e., eSIM) company. As TravGuy noted above, If you have a fairly new phone that can accept eSIMs this is a convenient way to go.

I travel to a variety of countries and use the Airalo's global option that covers 124 countries for one year for 20GB for US$69 (lucky number too).

Along with lots of country specific and regional options, Airalo also offers a Brazil only deal for one month and 10GB for US$26.

Tips:
Airalo's "top off" options can be expensive, so it is sometimes better to get a new eSIM instead of topping off the current one. Also, you usually need to restart your phone when you land in a new country to let the eSIM sort itself out with the new local provider (usually Claro in Brazil).

[Riobard]

On 2/25/2024 at 6:32 PM, xpaulo said:

The main issue was there is and was a $16 daily charge even if I had to flip over to make a single phone call. This was an unexpected financial thing that came up that had to dealt with. And I'm not sure that anybody who hasn't lived in Canada can truly appreciate how badly we're ripped off by a handful of big corporations that control the communications and banking industries.         

+1

I obtained a local SIM, in 2016 in Porto Alegre. Just the once since travelling with a mobile phone became the norm. I don’t recall using my phone very much beyond where local wifi such as lodgings was accessible, or tapping into restaurant or sauna or bar wifi where available. It’s usually a question of dark mode a few hours at a time. 

Obviously, Google translate functions in ‘roaming off’ mode. 

$18.40 for the Canada plan 00.00-23.59ET. Alexander Graham did not anticipate sales tax.

Post-pandemic I have undertaken the ‘Airplane mode’ challenge fairly successfully as I had at times previously accepted the full Bell communications tasting menu with post travel blues then augmented by seeing the racking up of telecommunications racket charges for the sake of usually very minimal use out and about. This winter so far I have managed to slay it over a cumulative period total of 6 weeks abroad.

Just one $18.40 charge in all that time because I needed a final WhatsApp exchange out on the street for an appointment with a guy who I realize had given me an incomplete buzzer code, not matching the buzzer building panel, when I looked at the array of specific apartment codes and I did not want to press the wrong one of three selections that it could have been. This delivery man of donations always rings once. In this case the Bell fee turned out to be well worth it. A wise decision as he later demonstrated his understandable sensitivity about drawing neighbours’ attention to guest traffic.

Surprisingly, I found that Google Maps showed my exact location most of the time without local SIM or activated roaming in cases where I wanted to check I was walking to a destination in the correct direction. Usually having a few map screenshots in my Photos file was sufficient for guidance.

Yet my strategies did little to reduce the sneering of a wealthy but frugal friend in my age group who does not possess a cell phone and travels abroad successfully. He may have to break down one day and sacrifice the final word. 

[xpaulo]

2 hours ago, Riobard said:

Google Maps showed my exact location

That's really interesting, because it's getting lost that usually does me in and then I have to turn on the cellular data. I've tried lots of things... taking screen shots of google street maps ahead of time, etc... but something unexpected often defeats me. I'll try it without roaming sometime.