Connecting to a phone network in Argentina

If you are moving to Argentina, you will probably need to communicate with your family and friends outside the country. The country has many telephone operators. You can choose between land lines and mobile phones or public telephones. Choose the one which best suits your situation and your financial means.

If you are staying in a hotel or in a holiday villa, you could use their phone. However, rates may be higher.

Land line

There are two main mobile operators in Argentina: Telecom Argentina and Telefonica. However, the land line telephony market has been going down. During the past, the mobile phone market has been experiencing a real boom. But you can still get a land line if you are planning a long stay.

To obtain a land line, go to any branch of the telephone company of your choice with your identification documents. Proof of residence may be requested. Formalities should only last a few minutes. In general, the device and its installation are free of charge.

Useful links:

Telecom Argentina www.telecom.com.ar
Telefonica www.telefonica.com.

Making phone calls

To make local or national calls, you must know the code of the province you would like to call to.

Here is the list of prefixes for some of the major Argentine cities:

Buenos Aires : 011
Cordoba : 0351
Mendoza 0261
Rosario : 0341
Santa Fe : 0342
Mar del Plata : 0223
Ushuaia : 02901

To make calls abroad, you need to dial the following codes :

United States : 00 + 1 + the phone number without the initial '0 '
UK: 00 + 41 + phone number without the initial "0"
Switzerland: 00 + 41 + phone number without the initial "0"
Australia: 00 + 61 + phone number without the initial "0"
Canada: 00 + 1 + area code + phone number without the initial "0"

Mobile phones

If you already have a mobile phone, make sure to get it unlocked before leaving. If you are on a short stay in Argentina, you are advised to activate the roaming option. If you plan to stay longer, you should buy a local sim card. The sim card generally costs some thirty pesos. You get a phone number and a certain amount of credit. Once your credit is over, you can buy prepaid cards in all supermarkets, shops, service stations, etc.

Useful links:

Movistar www.movistar.com.ar
Claro www.claro.com.ar
Personal www.personal.com.ar
Nextel www.nextel.com.ar

Payphones

If you do not have a land line or a mobile phone, you can still use payphones. You can find these in all major cities. You can just buy phone cards which are available in kiosks to make calls. Some still work with coins.