Which SIM Card Providers in Vietnam should I go with?

So when you are planning to visit Vietnam, often lots of travelers will ask this question: Where to buy a SIM card at Ho Chi Minh City’s international airport and which SIM Card Providers in Vietnam are suitable for me.

Ok, let us help you:

1. Best SIM Card Providers in Vietnam

There are three main SIM card providers in Vietnam, which are Viettel, Vinaphone, and Mobifone. There’s also a fourth provider called Vietnamobile but in this post, we will cover the 3 biggest one only

Here’s a quick summary:

Viettel	Vinaphone	Mobifone
Best coverage	Great coverage	Good coverage
Fast speeds	Fast speeds	Fast speeds
Very cheap	Very cheap	Very cheap
Roaming in Laos/Cambodia	No free roaming	No free roaming

The short version summary is that Viettel and Vinaphone are about the same in terms of coverage and speeds, but Viettel takes the edge in terms of rural areas.

1.1Viettel

Sim data 4G Viettel (SGN Airport Pick Up)

Viettel is the market leader in Vietnam, owned and operated by the Ministry of Defence. This also the network of choice for the Vietnamese Army, which is a great endorsement for anyone thinking of getting a SIM card in Vietnam. If you plan to travel around the country, this should be your first choice.

Pros:

Best coverage in Vietnam (3G/4G/LTE)
Best regional coverage in rural areas
Free-roaming in Laos and Cambodia
Reasonably priced

Cons:

Not much

Viettel has the best 3G coverage in Vietnam, even in extremely rural areas. To top it off, they’ve covered 95% of the country with 4G/LTE towers – making it the market leader in terms of both customer share and coverage.

You can get this SIM here: Sim data 4G Viettel (SGN Airport Pick Up)

1.2 Vinaphone

Vinaphone is also government-operated, this time by the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group. They’re the second-largest carrier and the local partner of Vodafone in Vietnam, holding 30% market share of the country. While Viettel still has the edge, Vinaphone has good network coverage and speeds across most of Vietnam.

Pros:

Great coverage in Vietnam (3G/4G/LTE)
Great regional coverage in rural areas
Reasonably priced

Cons:

No free roaming

If you can’t find a Viettel store, Vinaphone is a reasonably good second choice.

1.3 Mobifone

Mobifone holds around 20% market share of the country and is currently in the process of becoming privatized, which may mean improvements in the future. It was possible to roam onto the Vinaphone networks up until early-2018, but this appears to have been shut down. This makes Mobifone the third-place provider in Vietnam with somewhat patchy coverage across regional areas.

Pros:

Good coverage in Vietnam (3G)
Reasonably priced

Cons:

4G/LTE network needs some work
Patchy regional coverage
No free roaming

Note: if you’re staying in Vietnam for a shorter period of time (less than a week or two), special tourist SIM packages are available. I personally think the regular packages are still better value, but be sure to ask if you’d like to get more details.

You can get Sim data 4G Mobifone (SGN Airport Pick Up)

Sim data 4G Mobifone (SGN Airport Pick Up)

2.How to Buy a SIM Card in Vietnam

Please follow this post since we already cover it over here: How to buy a Sim card in Vietnam

3.Getting a SIM Card in Vietnam

Getting a SIM card there is very convenient. You can get it either before you go through passport control or after. You should be getting it AFTER you’ve got your bags and left the customs area because the desks before passport control are not official sellers and many people report the SIM card stopped working after 12 hours
Also, only the international terminal has SIM cards. If you arrive in the domestic terminal (which is in a separate building), you won’t be able to buy a card there
Where to find the SIM card vendors at the international terminal:

Pick up your bags and exit the customs
Turn left and walk towards the end of the building
After walking just 80 meters or so at the very end of the terminal building, you will see on your right-hand side you see a SASCO Travel SIM cards counter at Tan Son Nhat airport. SASCO Travel sells all type of sim including 3 largest telecom companies in Vietnam: Viettel, Mobifone, and VinaPhone

4.How Much Are SIM Cards in Vietnam?

The price range from 160.000 vnđ to 245.000 vnđ depends on what type of SIM do you choose

5.How to Top Up on Phone Credit

Please check with the counter for more details info but it is pretty easy for you to do. It takes only 1-2 mins.

Ps: Also if you are planning to visit Vietnam or just transit at the airport, remember to check out the number Airport Lounges Chain from SASCO.