Newcomer Passing on some advice about tourist SIM cards/chips

[James22]

During our three-month stay in Argentina, I purchased a used cell phone to insert a local SIM card.

We headed to Movistar in Palermo Hollywood, where a man directing traffic at the entrance made us wait in a numbered queue. When we reached the counter, we were handed a piece of paper and told to buy a SIM card at a nearby kiosk, as Movistar didn't sell them directly. After some searching, we found the kiosk a couple of blocks away. Once back home, we installed the SIM card and attempted the registration process, encountering difficulties and having to repeat it numerous times without success.

Returning to Movistar for assistance, we were met by the same individual as before, who provided us with registration instructions and little else. A kind couple tried to help us, but the employee discouraged their assistance. After several days of frustration, we finally managed to register the phone. However, we still faced hurdles in making calls due to issues with adding credit.

We decided to try Claro, located in the Palermo mall. There, an advisor promptly assisted us, installed a new SIM card in the phone, registered it on the spot, and activated the service. Furthermore, they helped us top up our credit effortlessly, using our credit card without any issues.

In conclusion, our experience with Movistar was disappointing and frustrating, whereas Claro provided efficient and friendly service.

 

[Traveler]

Why not simply purchase an eSIM online for an unlocked smartphone?

eSIM Argentina - Prepaid & Unlimited Data | Maya Mobile

Travel with unlimited high-speed data in Argentina with a prepaid travel eSIM. Instant activation via email, no SIM card required!

maya.net

 

[Ron]

Claro is the sole provider offering the "Tourist prepago sim" package priced around 9000 pesos, payable upon activation. It's valid for 30 days and can be recharged thereafter.

Movistar may register you, but often they refuse ("our system does not accept foreign IDs, only DNIs, etc."). I agree, their service can be frustrating!

Personal is another good option. Their system accepts foreign IDs, and I was able to complete the process smoothly in-store.

 

[Melibaires]

All three companies offer a prepaid tourist SIM card. Here's the information for Movistar's:

Sim Card para turistas extranjeros en Argentina - Movistar Argentina

Chip prepago para turistas extranjeros. Conseguí tu tarjeta sim prepago en kioscos o en nuestros puntos de venta.

www.movistar.com.ar

 

[superman]

Welcome

I have to give you a lot of credit and a brownie point for trying.

Just keep in mind that if you're going to travel more, you might have to jump through hoops like that.

Or, as mentioned, start using eSIMs.

 

[Leo]

For frequent international travelers from the US, Google Fi is a great option. It operates in most countries, offering data at the same rate as at home and affordable international calling rates. No need to spend time searching for local SIM cards, simply turn on your phone after landing, and you're good to go.

 

[James22]

@Traveler - My phone doesn't support eSIM, requiring a physical one.

@Ron - The 9000 pesos covers 25GB of data, which is a lot unless you're constantly streaming movies. However, additional charges apply for making calls and sending texts.

@superman - We'll be heading to Patagonia in a month and plan to recharge it before leaving. While we've used SIM cards in Mexico, Costa Rica, etc., we've never encountered this level of hassle. It's just something to be aware of, but I wanted to give the next Movistar customer a heads up.

 

[Melibaires]

@James22 I completely understand your frustration. It's unbelievable that the agent instructed others not to assist you! My assumption is that this specific branch, located in a tourist area, deals with a high number of inexperienced customers, and the agent may have unfairly categorized you without listening to your concerns.

I'm relieved that Claro was able to resolve your phone issue. However, such frustrating situations could occur at any company. I believe your experience with Movistar might have been better at the branch in Alto Palermo.

 

[Ron]

You're correct. The Claro pack only includes data, whereas Personal packs come with both data and calls.

Both companies are reputable and offer good choices!

To utilize some of that generous data allowance, you can also make calls using WhatsApp, as it's widely used by businesses in Argentina.

 

[James22]

@Melibaires The difference with Claro is that they swiftly install the chip, register your passport info, and you're set, all within 5 minutes. Movistar, on the other hand, makes you wait in line only to inform you they don't have chips, then directs you to find one elsewhere and navigate the cumbersome online registration process (if you can). While employees at other branches might be nicer, the tedious process likely remains the same.

We've also found WhatsApp to be extremely useful, especially with Wi-Fi. However, there were instances where we needed to make international calls, such as contacting a company in the US about tickets. So, the phone definitely came in handy for that purpose.

Cheers

 

[alexis h]

We purchased the Claro tourist SIMs the other day, but they ended up costing $15,000 each, not the $9,000 as advertised on their website.

 

[James22]

If they were $15,000 each, it sounds like you may have been overcharged, unless there were additional packages added at the time of purchase.
I was there a week ago, and it was definitely 9,000 pesos. If you kept your receipt, you may want to consider going back if you feel it's worth the bother.

 

[kyron]

We recently purchased SIM cards in El Calafate for less than 1000 pesos each. Additionally, we bought a 3000 peso package that includes 15 gigabytes of data, 1000 minutes, and 1000 SMS for 30 days. The only issue we encountered was a delay in activation when registering online. As we were leaving El Calafate, we finally found a very helpful gentleman at the airport snack shop who sold Claro SIM cards and was able to assist us with activation.

 

[James22]

I went to claro's website and the price is still the same:

 

[Ted89]

I have TMobile in the USA that has free data it says in Argentina. Does anyone know if that will be fast enough for using Google Maps and Whatsapp?

 

[MikeYoung]

I have TMobile in the USA that has free data it says in Argentina. Does anyone know if that will be fast enough for using Google Maps and Whatsapp?

Yes it is fast enough. I have Tmobile as well and I get free data internationally and the service is very good in Buenos Aires. You may want to download ahead of time the map for Buenos Aires on Google Maps. You can download so it will save on data. But I am using my Whatsapp here and no issues at all with Tmobile free data plan. Just make sure to note they charge you for incoming and outgoing calls. I bought a # on Skype and use that to call out to the USA and it works well.

 

[llantas]

Very good info. Thanks for sharing.

 

[StatusNomadicus]

Claro, located in the Palermo mall. There, an advisor promptly assisted us, installed a new SIM card in the phone, registered it on the spot, and activated the service.

bumping this thread for updates on SIMs and data lines for Argentine +54 (9 also?) lines in Oct2024:

Mendoza has a great Claro location downtown at Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentina

Claro Argentina · Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentinien

★★★★☆ · Telekommunikationsanbieter

maps.app.goo.gl

after getting told "no" by Movistar in-person, Tuenti online, and Personal's website won't allow VPNs and their site has broken links so they're stupid, my lady and i made one last attempt to try Claro, even though online Claro's prices are the highest.

Tuenti/Movistar/some others maybe, will NOT allow you to use a DNI that says "Temporaria" to get a post-paid/factura/bill plan!!! i have believed for the past ~11 months that once an Expat gets a physical DNI (my girlfriend got hers recently), everything is open to you in Argentina. NOPE. many websites and several in-person accounts will scan it, type the info in, and they will say "not possible for Temporary DNI; needs to be Permanent"

so let me get this right...Argentine law or some kind of phone monopoly means that even with a year-long, renewable, Temporary DNI, that took months and headache to obtain, we Expats still can't get a monthly phone plan??? (of course you can show a passport and get a Prepaid SIM card and add gigabytes). this country is wild 😛

so Movistar/Tuenti just can't have a billpay phone line. Tuenti was like 3150 Pesos/month ($3 USD), and Movistar was around 4100 Pesos/month ($4 USD). i wanted one of us to get a bill-pay plan to establish more 'roots' here for showing the judge in 2 years. i've had a Movistar prepaid SIM since i was living in Belgrano/CABA, and it's worked okay, just loses cell towers every now and then. i don't use much data so i've been spending $2 USD/month just topping it up. no contract, can pay on the app with a USA credit card. easy! decent, as...

told to buy a SIM card at a nearby kiosk, as Movistar didn't sell them directly

... @James22 has noted. Movistar was weird to setup because the store wouldn't help me without my physical USA passport (it was at the BsAs Embassy for renewal, and they wouln't look at a copy or my driver license or anything else). frustrated, i went to a few kiosks in Belgrano and bought a less-than-$1-USD SIM prepaid card and activated it after a bit of trying. it was a really strange experience; no one wanted my money! Claro told me i needed a physical passport, and to come back for their $15/month Tourist Prepaid SIM, but i ended up going with Movistar since i didn't have my passport for 2-3 weeks.

this week at Claro in Mendoza was totally different! my lady doesn't have her physical passport now because she is also renewing it at the Embassy (no consulates anywhere in Argentina...everything in CABA. and when she asked about voting and passports in Mendoza 2 weeks ago, the embassy said "no" but then a few days ago those fuckerz posted on facebook that they were coming to Mendoza....assclowns). so i was expecting her to get turned-down for a phone plan, but then she ended up getting her physical DNI (the MiArgentina app is useless and won't generate a digital DNI for a week now). so at Claro, i was already resigned to our fate, but we took a ticket to talk to an employee, and:

1. waited only 8 minutes. nice clean building here in Mendoza.
2. Paula helped us, a very educated and well-spoken human who i had no issues communicating with. i ended up leaving her a review and praising her to her boss.
3. she said of course a Temporary DNI card for 1 year or less works; why wouldn't it? (i said the same, and when i asked Movistar what the Peruvians/etc. do with their Temporary DNI to get phones, she just shrugged. i guess everyone is just using Prepaid).
4. she even said she believes a Precaria would allow her to set-up a Post-Paid/factura account with Claro!! i told her once my Movistar credits are gone, i am headed her way.
5. she showed us the following bill-pay plans, 80% off in-person, with the first month free:

2gb 4300 Pesos ($4 USD), 4gb 5340 Pesos, 7gb 7380 Pesos, 10gb 10960 Pesos, 20gb 14240 Pesos ($14 USD).

6. we picked one, she put the new SIM card in (girlfriend still has an eSIM for T-Mobile to maintain a US number and have dual-SIM double data options, but T-Mobile usually uses Claro towers anyway), everything worked and we left in 10 minutes. easy peasy. data has been working great, and online account access was simple.

***the most confusing part is that Claro's site shows WAY higher prices: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/portabilidad

• Plan Control
  2 Gigas​

  $15.050/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en Chile y Uruguay + Packs Roaming
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  4 Gigas​

  $19.390/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en países limítrofes
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  7 Gigas​

  $25.830/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  10 Gigas​

  $38.360/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  20 Gigas​

  $49.840/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Libre
  30 Gigas​

  $57.470/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500

wtf??? i can't be the only one who stayed away from Claro initially because it was showing 15,000 Pesos ($14-15 USD) per month for a Postpaid plan, when other companies are offering similar plans for under 5000 Pesos ($5 USD). in-store was 4300 Pesos instead of 15,050 Pesos...she said it was 80% off with the first month free. crazy. i would have gotten Claro immediately once i had my Precaria if i knew this earlier in the year 😛

Personal

PS: this guy says Personal won't have coverage in the south/Patagonia:

eSIM online

for my case, i already have an eSIM for T-Mobile, and older iPhones only have one eSIM slot and one physical SIM slot (still dual-SIM data, but not the latest options). could be a good idea! i see lots of South America roaming eSIM options but haven't tried any because T-Mobile has served me well for a decade of traveling (just don't get flagged as abusing it).

I have TMobile in the USA that has free data it says in Argentina. Does anyone know if that will be fast enough for using Google Maps and Whatsapp?

been here Nov2023-Oct2024, post here if you need specific info. it works slow but okay in iraq, europe, argentina, peru, etc.

All three companies offer a prepaid tourist SIM card. Here's the information for Movistar's:

make sure you bring your physical passport. i made that mistake and was blocked by all other than Movistar prepaid at a kiosk.

Google Fi

do you use GoogleFi? i was told by the company that extended travel was not allowed. i was headed to Argentina for 6 months and went to get Fi, but ended up going back to T-Mobile. https://support.google.com/fi/threa...g-suspended-due-to-international-travel?hl=en (t-mobile seems to be more lenient...just like Schwab ATM fees, don't stand-out from the crowd!)

I believe your experience with Movistar might have been better at the branch in Alto Palermo.

i don't think so. most of these companies are clowns and just say 'no prepaid tourist SIMs - go to kiosk'

$15,000

14,900 Pesos ($15 USD) today as of 15Oct2024 on the site: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/planes-prepago-pospago/turistas


TL;DR - Claro postpaid looks great if you have a Precaria or 1-year Temporary physical DNI, compared to the other companies that arbitrarily tell you to pound sand.

 

[Betsy Ross]

bumping this thread for updates on SIMs and data lines for Argentine +54 (9 also?) lines in Oct2024:

Mendoza has a great Claro location downtown at Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentina

Claro Argentina · Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentinien

★★★★☆ · Telekommunikationsanbieter

maps.app.goo.gl

after getting told "no" by Movistar in-person, Tuenti online, and Personal's website won't allow VPNs and their site has broken links so they're stupid, my lady and i made one last attempt to try Claro, even though online Claro's prices are the highest.

Tuenti/Movistar/some others maybe, will NOT allow you to use a DNI that says "Temporaria" to get a post-paid/factura/bill plan!!! i have believed for the past ~11 months that once an Expat gets a physical DNI (my girlfriend got hers recently), everything is open to you in Argentina. NOPE. many websites and several in-person accounts will scan it, type the info in, and they will say "not possible for Temporary DNI; needs to be Permanent"

so let me get this right...Argentine law or some kind of phone monopoly means that even with a year-long, renewable, Temporary DNI, that took months and headache to obtain, we Expats still can't get a monthly phone plan??? (of course you can show a passport and get a Prepaid SIM card and add gigabytes). this country is wild 😛

so Movistar/Tuenti just can't have a billpay phone line. Tuenti was like 3150 Pesos/month ($3 USD), and Movistar was around 4100 Pesos/month ($4 USD). i wanted one of us to get a bill-pay plan to establish more 'roots' here for showing the judge in 2 years. i've had a Movistar prepaid SIM since i was living in Belgrano/CABA, and it's worked okay, just loses cell towers every now and then. i don't use much data so i've been spending $2 USD/month just topping it up. no contract, can pay on the app with a USA credit card. easy! decent, as...


... @James22 has noted. Movistar was weird to setup because the store wouldn't help me without my physical USA passport (it was at the BsAs Embassy for renewal, and they wouln't look at a copy or my driver license or anything else). frustrated, i went to a few kiosks in Belgrano and bought a less-than-$1-USD SIM prepaid card and activated it after a bit of trying. it was a really strange experience; no one wanted my money! Claro told me i needed a physical passport, and to come back for their $15/month Tourist Prepaid SIM, but i ended up going with Movistar since i didn't have my passport for 2-3 weeks.

this week at Claro in Mendoza was totally different! my lady doesn't have her physical passport now because she is also renewing it at the Embassy (no consulates anywhere in Argentina...everything in CABA. and when she asked about voting and passports in Mendoza 2 weeks ago, the embassy said "no" but then a few days ago those fuckerz posted on facebook that they were coming to Mendoza....assclowns). so i was expecting her to get turned-down for a phone plan, but then she ended up getting her physical DNI (the MiArgentina app is useless and won't generate a digital DNI for a week now). so at Claro, i was already resigned to our fate, but we took a ticket to talk to an employee, and:

1. waited only 8 minutes. nice clean building here in Mendoza.
2. Paula helped us, a very educated and well-spoken human who i had no issues communicating with. i ended up leaving her a review and praising her to her boss.
3. she said of course a Temporary DNI card for 1 year or less works; why wouldn't it? (i said the same, and when i asked Movistar what the Peruvians/etc. do with their Temporary DNI to get phones, she just shrugged. i guess everyone is just using Prepaid).
4. she even said she believes a Precaria would allow her to set-up a Post-Paid/factura account with Claro!! i told her once my Movistar credits are gone, i am headed her way.
5. she showed us the following bill-pay plans, 80% off in-person, with the first month free:

2gb 4300 Pesos ($4 USD), 4gb 5340 Pesos, 7gb 7380 Pesos, 10gb 10960 Pesos, 20gb 14240 Pesos ($14 USD).

6. we picked one, she put the new SIM card in (girlfriend still has an eSIM for T-Mobile to maintain a US number and have dual-SIM double data options, but T-Mobile usually uses Claro towers anyway), everything worked and we left in 10 minutes. easy peasy. data has been working great, and online account access was simple.

***the most confusing part is that Claro's site shows WAY higher prices: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/portabilidad

• Plan Control
  2 Gigas​

  $15.050/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en Chile y Uruguay + Packs Roaming
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  4 Gigas​

  $19.390/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en países limítrofes
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  7 Gigas​

  $25.830/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  10 Gigas​

  $38.360/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  20 Gigas​

  $49.840/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Libre
  30 Gigas​

  $57.470/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500

wtf??? i can't be the only one who stayed away from Claro initially because it was showing 15,000 Pesos ($14-15 USD) per month for a Postpaid plan, when other companies are offering similar plans for under 5000 Pesos ($5 USD). in-store was 4300 Pesos instead of 15,050 Pesos...she said it was 80% off with the first month free. crazy. i would have gotten Claro immediately once i had my Precaria if i knew this earlier in the year 😛


PS: this guy says Personal won't have coverage in the south/Patagonia:


for my case, i already have an eSIM for T-Mobile, and older iPhones only have one eSIM slot and one physical SIM slot (still dual-SIM data, but not the latest options). could be a good idea! i see lots of South America roaming eSIM options but haven't tried any because T-Mobile has served me well for a decade of traveling (just don't get flagged as abusing it).


been here Nov2023-Oct2024, post here if you need specific info. it works slow but okay in iraq, europe, argentina, peru, etc.


make sure you bring your physical passport. i made that mistake and was blocked by all other than Movistar prepaid at a kiosk.


do you use GoogleFi? i was told by the company that extended travel was not allowed. i was headed to Argentina for 6 months and went to get Fi, but ended up going back to T-Mobile. https://support.google.com/fi/threa...g-suspended-due-to-international-travel?hl=en (t-mobile seems to be more lenient...just like Schwab ATM fees, don't stand-out from the crowd!)


i don't think so. most of these companies are clowns and just say 'no prepaid tourist SIMs - go to kiosk'

14,900 Pesos ($15 USD) today as of 15Oct2024 on the site: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/planes-prepago-pospago/turistas


TL;DR - Claro postpaid looks great if you have a Precaria or 1-year Temporary physical DNI, compared to the other companies that arbitrarily tell you to pound sand.

The saga continues. Many things are a pain here and shouldn't be this difficult. I didn't know Google Fi didn't allow extended travel. I was told the same thing but TMobile recently that you can't be living outside of the USA. Travel was ok but I got warnings on my phone saying I have exceeded the limit.

 

[Blockchain]

bumping this thread for updates on SIMs and data lines for Argentine +54 (9 also?) lines in Oct2024:

Mendoza has a great Claro location downtown at Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentina

Claro Argentina · Av. San Martín 1123, M5500 Mendoza, Argentinien

★★★★☆ · Telekommunikationsanbieter

maps.app.goo.gl

after getting told "no" by Movistar in-person, Tuenti online, and Personal's website won't allow VPNs and their site has broken links so they're stupid, my lady and i made one last attempt to try Claro, even though online Claro's prices are the highest.

Tuenti/Movistar/some others maybe, will NOT allow you to use a DNI that says "Temporaria" to get a post-paid/factura/bill plan!!! i have believed for the past ~11 months that once an Expat gets a physical DNI (my girlfriend got hers recently), everything is open to you in Argentina. NOPE. many websites and several in-person accounts will scan it, type the info in, and they will say "not possible for Temporary DNI; needs to be Permanent"

so let me get this right...Argentine law or some kind of phone monopoly means that even with a year-long, renewable, Temporary DNI, that took months and headache to obtain, we Expats still can't get a monthly phone plan??? (of course you can show a passport and get a Prepaid SIM card and add gigabytes). this country is wild 😛

so Movistar/Tuenti just can't have a billpay phone line. Tuenti was like 3150 Pesos/month ($3 USD), and Movistar was around 4100 Pesos/month ($4 USD). i wanted one of us to get a bill-pay plan to establish more 'roots' here for showing the judge in 2 years. i've had a Movistar prepaid SIM since i was living in Belgrano/CABA, and it's worked okay, just loses cell towers every now and then. i don't use much data so i've been spending $2 USD/month just topping it up. no contract, can pay on the app with a USA credit card. easy! decent, as...


... @James22 has noted. Movistar was weird to setup because the store wouldn't help me without my physical USA passport (it was at the BsAs Embassy for renewal, and they wouln't look at a copy or my driver license or anything else). frustrated, i went to a few kiosks in Belgrano and bought a less-than-$1-USD SIM prepaid card and activated it after a bit of trying. it was a really strange experience; no one wanted my money! Claro told me i needed a physical passport, and to come back for their $15/month Tourist Prepaid SIM, but i ended up going with Movistar since i didn't have my passport for 2-3 weeks.

this week at Claro in Mendoza was totally different! my lady doesn't have her physical passport now because she is also renewing it at the Embassy (no consulates anywhere in Argentina...everything in CABA. and when she asked about voting and passports in Mendoza 2 weeks ago, the embassy said "no" but then a few days ago those fuckerz posted on facebook that they were coming to Mendoza....assclowns). so i was expecting her to get turned-down for a phone plan, but then she ended up getting her physical DNI (the MiArgentina app is useless and won't generate a digital DNI for a week now). so at Claro, i was already resigned to our fate, but we took a ticket to talk to an employee, and:

1. waited only 8 minutes. nice clean building here in Mendoza.
2. Paula helped us, a very educated and well-spoken human who i had no issues communicating with. i ended up leaving her a review and praising her to her boss.
3. she said of course a Temporary DNI card for 1 year or less works; why wouldn't it? (i said the same, and when i asked Movistar what the Peruvians/etc. do with their Temporary DNI to get phones, she just shrugged. i guess everyone is just using Prepaid).
4. she even said she believes a Precaria would allow her to set-up a Post-Paid/factura account with Claro!! i told her once my Movistar credits are gone, i am headed her way.
5. she showed us the following bill-pay plans, 80% off in-person, with the first month free:

2gb 4300 Pesos ($4 USD), 4gb 5340 Pesos, 7gb 7380 Pesos, 10gb 10960 Pesos, 20gb 14240 Pesos ($14 USD).

6. we picked one, she put the new SIM card in (girlfriend still has an eSIM for T-Mobile to maintain a US number and have dual-SIM double data options, but T-Mobile usually uses Claro towers anyway), everything worked and we left in 10 minutes. easy peasy. data has been working great, and online account access was simple.

***the most confusing part is that Claro's site shows WAY higher prices: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/portabilidad

• Plan Control
  2 Gigas​

  $15.050/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en Chile y Uruguay + Packs Roaming
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  4 Gigas​

  $19.390/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en países limítrofes
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  7 Gigas​

  $25.830/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  10 Gigas​

  $38.360/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Control
  20 Gigas​

  $49.840/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500
  
  
  

  Plan Libre
  30 Gigas​

  $57.470/mes
  
  Roaming de datos incluído en América y Europa
  • Te invitamos 2 meses de MAX
  • 1 mes de Amazon Prime
  • 1 mes de Disney+ Premium
  • Claro Drive incluido
  • Con Claro en tu casa también ahorrás $1.500 x mes
  • +10% Cashback con tope $1.500

wtf??? i can't be the only one who stayed away from Claro initially because it was showing 15,000 Pesos ($14-15 USD) per month for a Postpaid plan, when other companies are offering similar plans for under 5000 Pesos ($5 USD). in-store was 4300 Pesos instead of 15,050 Pesos...she said it was 80% off with the first month free. crazy. i would have gotten Claro immediately once i had my Precaria if i knew this earlier in the year 😛


PS: this guy says Personal won't have coverage in the south/Patagonia:


for my case, i already have an eSIM for T-Mobile, and older iPhones only have one eSIM slot and one physical SIM slot (still dual-SIM data, but not the latest options). could be a good idea! i see lots of South America roaming eSIM options but haven't tried any because T-Mobile has served me well for a decade of traveling (just don't get flagged as abusing it).


been here Nov2023-Oct2024, post here if you need specific info. it works slow but okay in iraq, europe, argentina, peru, etc.


make sure you bring your physical passport. i made that mistake and was blocked by all other than Movistar prepaid at a kiosk.


do you use GoogleFi? i was told by the company that extended travel was not allowed. i was headed to Argentina for 6 months and went to get Fi, but ended up going back to T-Mobile. https://support.google.com/fi/threa...g-suspended-due-to-international-travel?hl=en (t-mobile seems to be more lenient...just like Schwab ATM fees, don't stand-out from the crowd!)


i don't think so. most of these companies are clowns and just say 'no prepaid tourist SIMs - go to kiosk'

14,900 Pesos ($15 USD) today as of 15Oct2024 on the site: https://www.claro.com.ar/personas/planes-prepago-pospago/turistas


TL;DR - Claro postpaid looks great if you have a Precaria or 1-year Temporary physical DNI, compared to the other companies that arbitrarily tell you to pound sand.

Just make sure to keep on eye on the prices. Sometimes they give you a promotional price a few months and then jack the price up even though they said it would be another price. Keep an eye out on your bill. That happened to a few expats that I met down there. I don't understand why they make it so difficult to get a phone line. It's like they are allergic to money down there.