Where to Buy a SIM Card in Budapest

The prices vary a lot depending on the provider as well as the specific plan that you pick. Tourists and visitors can choose plans for as little as €3,75, but these plans often don’t include SMS or much data access.

 

A basic monthly plan which includes about 100 minutes for calls, 100 SMS messages and around 1 GB of mobile data is approximately €10 per month in both Vodafone and Telenor, with Telenor having a bit of a better plan overall.

 

But the prices can grow fast from there. If you want to have true freedom with your phone, including unlimited messages and calls as well as 10 GB of mobile data, you’ll be looking at prices of over €40 per month. If you want something more specific, for example, you don’t want to pay for calls that you don’t use, but you want more mobile data, ask the cashiers at the till to help you find the right plan for you.

 

The first district, also named Budavár or Várkerület, is one of the most historical parts of Budapest. Situated right in the centre of Budapest on the western side of the Danube River, the district is not exactly known for its abundance of shops. As such, there are no phone operator stores in this district. However, there are many shops just outside the neighbourhood so that we can point you to those.

 

Telenor has a shop on Csörsz Street 29, 1124 as part of the modern MOM shopping park. It’s a relatively small store, but it’s got good reviews and the staff there should help you with everything you need. The same shopping park also has a Vodafone store, so you can quickly jump there and compare their offer. Another shop is next to the district's northern boundary in the Mammut shopping centre on Lövőház street 2-6, 1024 on the second floor.

Similarly to the 1st district, the 5th district is also mostly seen as a historical site and, as such, does not offer the same range of services as more suburban areas. Hence, the phone operator stores are mostly on adjacent streets of the district and not precisely in it. Telenor has a shop across the street from the 5th district’s southern end on Károly boulevard 3/a, 1075.

 

Another shop is very close to the Nyugati pályaudvar train and metro stations of the same name north from the district on Váci street 1-3, 1062. Both are convenient and well-rated by customers. Vodafone has a well-situated shop in the middle of the 5th district’s side on Deák Ferenc tér 6, 1061. So while there are no shops within the community itself, there are still options of where to go to buy a SIM card.

These two districts are next to the 5th district, so they have some shops we already mentioned, especially the ones at the southern and northern ends of the community. The south end of the 7th district also has a Vodafone shop on Erzsébet boulevard 5, 1073, but there aren’t that many more shops in these two districts to speak of. Their Northeast end borders a large park and a historical castle, so there aren’t any phone operator shops either.