Mobile Providers in Barcelona

If you’ve just arrived in Barcelona and settled in, chances are you’ll be looking for a local mobile provider. As there are numerous options it may be a bit of a challenge to choose the one that fits your needs. Here are a few of the most popular providers and the options that they offer.

Contract versus Pay-As-You-Go?

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One of the first choices you’ll have to make is whether you’d want a fixed contract or the more flexible pay-as-you-go plans. You’ll find that almost all providers offer both. In most cases the contract plans make sense if you want to get a free or reduced phone. Otherwise, if you already have a phone, a pay-as-you-go plan is likely preferred.

Another reason you may want to get a contract is to benefit from the bundles that include TV and Internet. In case you just got a new flat, chances are you may want this. The biggest providers that offer bundles are Orange, Movistar, and Jazztel. However, be warned that aside from the bundle packages they are rather expensive.

Cheap and No Frills Plan

Now if the above options aren’t what you’re looking for, there are some alternatives. The most popular are Masmovil (Orange network), Pepephone (Movistar network), or Yoigo. Many of these plans are best if you just want a monthly data plan and rarely call or send SMS.

The Hidden Details

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As with many services, there are a few things you might want to look out for. As mentioned earlier, the no-frills plans tend to just include monthly data. All other services like calls, SMS, and roaming are often extra. If they offer ‘free calls’, be aware this usually means a minimum connection fee between 0,10-0,20€ and is just for 5 minutes. After the 5 minutes, you’ll pay a standard fee. Most times SMS will cost around 0,10€ per SMS. Finally, inside the EU the calls/SMS and roaming fee costs are standard. However, outside the EU the fees vary based on your plan.

Whichever plan you’ve chosen there is a fairly high chance that there might be hiccups with your service. Unfortunately, in Barcelona, many of the providers suffer from rather poor customer service. Yet this is rather common, so I recommend only switching plans if the situation isn’t resolved after a month.

Providers and Options

Here is a table that shows some of the options you can choose from:

If there are any other providers, feel free to add them in the comments below. The providers and the offers available change frequently.