There are 3 mobile operators in Armenia: Ucom, Viva MTS, Team. Team has the cheapest rates: “Smart” costs 1500 AMD per month. Ucom offers the cheapest unlimited rate: 4900 AMD upgrade per month.
Mobile operators in Armenia
There are three mobile operators in Armenia: Ucom, Viva MTS, and Team. Ucom is the only operator that is not owned by a Russian company. VIVA-MTS is the owner of MTS PJSC and Team is the owner of VimpelCom PJSC (Beeline). VIVA has the most subscribers, with Team in second place.
The communication quality ranges from 2G in remote mountainous areas to 4G in big cities. The network also starts with the metro. When we measured the internet speed in our central Yerevan office, Ucom showed 30 Mbps, Team – 10 Mbps, VIVA-MTS – 2.34 Mbps. This means that the options offered by these three operators are enough to comfortably surf or watch 1080p videos on YouTube.
If a telecom provider is not satisfied with certain services, it can easily switch to another one: “mobile slavery” has been non-existent since 2014.
Team
Team Telecom Armenia is an Armenian brand and the strongest team of thousands of professionals. Team Telecom Armenia provides Internet, digital television, mobile and fixed-line communications services on the territory of the Republic of Armenia.
As the heir to the first telecommunications system in the Republic of Armenia, Team combines the rich experience of the first telecom operator with modern technologies.
In 2021, the company began building a unique NGN (Next Generation Network) network in the region with a speed of 25 Gb/s and 25G-PON technology. In the near future, mobile stations operating throughout Armenia will be connected to this network.
Team Telecom Armenia also provides GSM 900/1800, 3G (UMTS) and 4G (LTE) mobile communications, fixed telephone communications, IPTV and OTT digital television services, as well as Internet access using FTTH, FTTB, VDSL and ADSL technologies.
As part of corporate social responsibility programs, Team Telecom Armenia implements projects that promote the creation of Armenian-language content, supports startups and Hi-Tech events in Armenia.
Ucom
After Orange Armenia left the market, a new mobile operator entered the market – Ucom, which previously offered only Internet communications, and is now also a mobile communications provider. The company offers a wide range of services to both corporate and private clients. Ucom numbers start with the following codes: 095, 055, 041, 044. Central customer service offices can be found at the following addresses: Northern Avenue 1/2 and Mashtots Ave. 5. Addresses of all service centers in Armenia can be found here.
SIM cards can be purchased at any service center, in all departments of the HayPost post office, in Mobile Center stores, in Yerevan City supermarkets, as well as in the Ucom online store.
Ucom offers different prepaid and postpaid tariff plans. In order to choose the most suitable tariff for you, we recommend that you consult with the service center or call the support center.
You can get detailed information about international calls and packages of international minutes at Ucom here.
You can top up your Ucom account balance at service centers, through ATMs and payment terminals, at postal service branches, through a mobile application that is available on the App Store and Play Market , as well as online on the official website.
Ucom also offers the opportunity to use an eSIM electronic SIM card. More information can be found here.
Official website: www.ucom.am
Customer support center: 444
Customer support center (landline phone): 011 444 444
VivaCell MTS
One of the largest cellular operators in Armenia is the VivaCell MTS company, which provides high-quality and innovative services in the field of telecommunications and information technologies. VivaCell MTS is constantly expanding and developing the services it provides. Thus, in 2010, the company was the first in the country to launch an innovative 4G LTE network. VivaCell numbers start with the following codes: 093, 094, 077, 098, 049. Central customer service offices can be found at the following addresses: Northern Avenue 6/14, st. Abovyan 33/7, st. Amiryan 3. Cards can be obtained at the airport, at numerous customer service centers, by presenting only your passport. The addresses of all service centers in Armenia can be found here.
Like previous operators, VivaCell offers a large selection of prepaid and postpaid tariff plans. In order to choose the most suitable tariff for you, we advise you to consult with the service center or call the support center.
You can find prices for international calls here.
You can top up the balance of your VivaCell account at service centers, through ATMs and payment terminals, at postal service branches, through a mobile application that is available on the App Store and Play Market , as well as online on the official website. More detailed information on payment methods for services and replenishment of prepaid cards can be obtained here.
VivaCell also offers the opportunity to use an eSIM electronic SIM card. More information can be found here.
Official website: www.mts.am
Customer support center: 111
Customer support center: 093 297111
Regional packages, postpaid, prepaid
Let’s introduce three terms that can be misleading when choosing a tariff.
Prepaid and postpaid tariffs
Prepaid tariff. When connecting to it, you must first pay and then use minutes and gigabytes.The postpaid tariff works in the opposite way: payment occurs at the end of the month. At the same time, you will not be able to go beyond the tariff limits. Often postpaid plans include more minutes and gigabytes of data.This is where the differences between prepaid and postpaid plans end. They carry more of a marketing than a practical component.
Regional tariffs
This type of tariff is intended for calls from regions. There is a higher fee for its use in Yerevan. It does not provide any advantages, such as improved communication quality in the mountains. Therefore, just do not pay attention to regional tariffs.
Where to buy a SIM card?
You can buy and top up a SIM card at service offices:
Ucom ,
VIVA-MTS ,
Team .
How to change the language of USSD requests?
USSD requests – requests to the operator via a call to a number like *XXX#. Using USSD requests, you can, for example, activate roaming, convert minutes to gigabytes, or change the tariff.By default, operators use Armenian. You can change it at Ucom (dial: * 111 * 5#) and at VIVA-MTS (* 129 * 2#). Team does not provide the ability to change the language. But there is
a list of USSD requests on his website .
How we compared operators
For a correct comparison in each category, we took tariffs that differed from each other by no more than 200 drams and were endowed with similar capabilities. On the website of each operator you can find other packages that were not included in the comparison.
What do table rows mean?
| Line | Decoding |
|---|---|
| Name | Tariff name on the operator’s website |
| Price ֏/month | Tariff cost in AMD per month. The current ruble to dram exchange rate is available on Rate.am |
| Internet (GB) | The volume of Internet traffic that can be spent within the tariff |
| Minutes of communication | How many minutes can you communicate with subscribers of other operators? |
| Unlimited social networks | When using these social networks, traffic will not be consumed. Official applications from the AppStore or PlayMarket must be installed |
| Unlimited services | When using these services, no traffic will be consumed. Official services from the AppStore or PlayMarket must be installed |
Comparison of minimum packages
The minimum tariff is suitable for travel, transit, second room and situations in which it is necessary to radically reduce costs.
| Ucom | Team | VIVA-MTS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Level Up | Smart | Start |
| Price ֏/month | 1800 | 1500 | 2000 |
| Internet (GB) | 6 | 3 | 5 |
| Minutes of communication | 200 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA and Canada) | 10,000 to Team numbers | 300 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA, Canada, MTS Russia subscribers). + 10,000 minutes within the network when the package is used up |
| Unlimited social networks | 7 | 0 | 8 |
| Viber, Whatsapp, Telegram, Facebook Messenger, Zangi, Signal, Facetime | No | TikTok, Instagram, Viber, Whatsapp, Telegram, Facebook Messenger, Zangi, Twitter | |
| Unlimited services | 13 | 4 | 4 |
| Zoom, Skype, Google, Maps, Yandex, Maps, Yandex, Taxi, ggTaxi, Coursea, Doulingo, Microsoft, Teams, Google, Meet, Google, Classroom, uMediaroom | Yandex Music, Yandex Navigator, Yandex Taxi, Yandex Disk | Zoom, Skype, IMUSIC, IVI |
Thus, you can tweet unlimitedly only on Viva, send unlimited Signals on the Level Up 1800 package, and Team for 1500 is an ideal solution for introverts.Are prices different at the airport?Yes. These minimum fares are not available at the airport.
Comparison of optimal packages
This category includes tariffs with the best ratio of gigabytes/minutes/price. Often, 5-7 gigabytes of traffic is enough for a month.In addition, in VIVA-MTS you can exchange minutes for gigabytes, and in Ucom you can accumulate the remaining traffic from the last month (but no more than two monthly volumes: if your package has 8 GB of Internet, you can only “accumulate” 8 GB).
| Ucom | Team | VIVA-MTS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Level Up | BeFree | Y |
| Price ֏/month | 2900 | 2900 | 2800 |
| Internet (GB) | 8 | 10 | 10 |
| Minutes of communication | 450 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA and Canada) | 450 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA, Canada + Beeline RF and Tele2 to numbers with certain codes) | 800 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA, Canada, MTS Russia subscribers) + 10,000 minutes within the network when the package is used up |
| Unlimited social networks | 12 | eleven | 10 |
| Telegram, Whatsapp, Instagram, Messenger, Facebook, Viber, VK, TikTok, Zangi, Snapchat, Facetime, Signal | Telegram, Whatsapp, Instagram, Messenger, Facebook, Viber, VK, TikTok, Zangi, Snapchat, OK | Telegram, Whatsapp, Instagram, Messenger, Facebook, Viber, TikTok, Zangi, Snapchat, Twitter | |
| Unlimited services | 16 | 5 | 6 |
| Spotify, iTunes, Yandex Music, Zoom, Skype, SoundCloud, Google Maps, Yandex Maps, gg Taxi, Yandex Taxi, Coursea, Doulingo, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Google Classroom, uMediaroom | Spotify, iTunes, Yandex Music, Zoom, deezer | Spotify, Zoom, Skype, IMUSIC, IVI, Clubhouse |
Ucom’s smaller number of GB is compensated by unlimited services and instant messengers. But if calls are important to you, especially to Russia, then it is more profitable to subscribe to tariffs from MTS or Team.Free VPN only in a mousetrapTo save money, we strongly do not recommend connecting to public Wi-Fi networks without a VPN installed on your phone. Your personal data can be stolen by hackers.
Comparison of unlimited packages
An unlimited tariff is a good replacement for a home modem when renting an apartment. It is enough to distribute the Internet from a smartphone to a laptop.It is worth remembering that Ucom has a specific concept of “unlimited”: as soon as you spend 200 GB, the speed will drop to 512 Kbps. This is not even enough to load pictures in the Telegram feed. This feature was not noticed with other operators.
| Ucom | Team | VIVA-MTS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Level Up | Be Free Unlimited | Unlim |
| Price ֏/month | 4900 | 4900 | 4500 |
| Minutes of communication | 1500 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA and Canada) | 1500 Armenia, Artsakh, USA, Canada + Beeline RF and Tele2 to numbers with certain codes) | 450 (Armenia, Artsakh, USA, Canada, MTS Russia subscribers) + 10,000 minutes within the network when the package is used up |
Coverage areas
Team has the smallest 4G coverage area. This is compensated by the best 3G coverage. Moreover, in Yerevan, stable 4G is available to all operators. The images below show the 3G coverage areas of each operator. Click on the title to go to the full maps.
Which mobile operator to choose?
Choose according to your tasks and capabilities. Our summary:
- The cheapest – Smart from Team
- Optimal everyday package with 28 unlimited services – Ucom Level Up 2900
- The best unlimited package – VIVA-MTS Unlim
Interesting service from Team
On the Team website in the
“Device Settings” section you can find step-by-step guides with pictures about using a smartphone, modem and set-top box: from setting up the Internet to checking Static IP.