Tigo prepaid packs have app-specific limits
Tigo's current help page describes its PaqueTigos Todo Incluido prepaid range as starting at US$1.50 at the time of checking. These packages mix ordinary browsing data with Tigo-network calls, some minutes to other Salvadoran networks, the United States and Canada, and access to named social apps. The operator lists Mi Tigo app or web, its *123# menu and points of sale among purchase channels. A visitor buying in person should check the amount charged at that channel: Tigo says the price can vary by sales route, and each package expires at its stated time or when its metered resources are used.
Tigo's app wording deserves close attention. It says WhatsApp Chat is included among social services but WhatsApp calls and video calls are excluded from that specific benefit; Instagram calls, Facebook Messenger and subscriptions are excluded too. It also states that the US$1.50 and US$2.50 packs have limited social and video use, while packages from US$4 have broader named-app allowances. The help page says packages apply on Tigo's network within El Salvador and that data sharing is unavailable on packages advertised with unlimited gigabytes. Someone intending to tether a laptop should verify that the selected tariff permits it rather than choosing only by the largest-looking allowance.
Claro separates Superpack data from regional benefits
Claro's prepaid page promotes Superpack bundles without a contract and describes eSIM among the available prepaid benefits. The operator says each Superpack combines its own amount of data, validity and included benefits, so a short visit and a longer stay may call for different bundles. The listed benefits combine data, calls to Claro, a specified number of minutes to other networks and selected apps. Review the individual pack's terms before assuming that every type of traffic, country or duration is included; the ordinary data quota and a named app benefit are separate things.
Claro says prepaid balance can be checked by sending SALDO to 72536, and its page points customers to *555# for account services. This is practical when a short bundle expires in the middle of a journey. It also publishes customer-service and shop locations, including addresses in San Salvador and La Libertad. If an online checkout or eSIM application cannot verify a foreign document, locating a staffed Claro outlet in advance is a better fallback than relying on a particular airport counter. The operator's live pages do not clearly set out a universal passport procedure for all prepaid visitors, so confirm the accepted document before making a special trip.
Movistar publishes a direct prepaid eSIM route
Movistar El Salvador's eSIM page gives a more explicit prepaid activation route: scan its QR code to download the profile, then activate through its website or by dialling *119 from that eSIM. It says the QR route allows one prepaid eSIM download per device. The benefits shown on that page are 1.5 GB of full browsing, included apps, calls to Movistar and to the United States and Canada, ten minutes to other mobile networks, and two days of validity. No price is displayed with that list, so do not treat it as a free plan. Confirm the payment and identification steps during activation before relying on it for travel.
The same operator distinguishes new postpaid eSIM enquiries, which lead to a WhatsApp conversation, from its prepaid QR flow. Check that the particular device supports eSIM and is unlocked before departure. Keep the home SIM active for messages if needed, but select the Salvadoran profile for data after activation and check which line will handle outgoing calls. Movistar's page explains profile installation; it does not promise that a visitor's foreign ID will pass the subsequent account check.
Check the route rather than a national coverage slogan
Tigo publishes a municipality-level LTE mobile coverage list split into central, western and eastern regions. It includes San Salvador-area places such as Soyapango and Santa Tecla, and La Libertad locations including Tamanique and the municipality of La Libertad. A municipality's appearance is a useful starting point, but it does not establish reception on every beach road, inside a hotel or on a hillside. Compare the intended stops with the operator map before choosing the line, particularly if navigation is needed beyond the capital.
Claro also links to a national map for mobile coverage and branches from its consumer page. The regulator SIGET has a coverage directory, but the page could not be opened reliably during checking; this guide therefore makes no unverified coverage percentage or speed comparison. Save the route and accommodation details for offline use before a long drive. For trips involving buses or pre-booked taxis, maintain enough ordinary browsing data for a live map and messages rather than counting on a social-app allowance to cover everything.
Crossing into Central America changes the tariff
A Salvadoran domestic bundle should not be read as automatic data service in Guatemala, Honduras or Nicaragua. Tigo expressly limits the PaqueTigos described in its help page to users on its El Salvador network in national territory. Claro says roaming for its prepaid and postpaid customers depends on an agreement with the destination, and its own page directs travellers to check partner coverage. Its prepaid marketing also advertises Claro Sin Fronteras on selected offers, but the exact pack conditions still govern. Check the named destinations, eligible allowance and validity before crossing rather than relying on the same brand name appearing in another country.
Movistar provides a concrete example of a separate outbound roaming product: its prepaid page lists a seven-day, 2 GB Central America package for US$7 at the time of checking. Its destination list includes Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, as well as Mexico. That product is for a Movistar El Salvador line travelling out of the country; it does not describe what a foreign visitor's home SIM will cost while roaming into El Salvador. Keep data roaming disabled on a line whose rates remain unknown.
Prepare the first connection and a voice fallback
Before flying to the San Óscar Arnulfo Romero international airport, download the operator app or save the eSIM QR instructions and check whether the phone can keep two lines active. Movistar explicitly requires an existing mobile-data or Wi-Fi connection for profile installation. The airport authority has previously advertised a procurement for free terminal Wi-Fi, but that old notice does not confirm the service's present availability, so do not make it the only activation plan. If arranging a local SIM after landing, take the original passport and ask the chosen operator what identification it currently accepts.
The UK government's El Salvador guidance lists 911 for ambulance, fire and police and gives a separate tourist-police contact. It also recommends pre-booked or hotel taxis for short urban trips, a reason to preserve enough data for confirmation messages and the driver's details. A data-only eSIM may be sufficient for maps and messaging, but none of the cited Salvadoran sources establishes that it can place a voice call to 911. Keep a working voice-capable line or another dependable way to ask for help. Test a map, a normal webpage and a call or message while a trusted connection is still available, then note which line is carrying mobile data.
Networks our El Salvador plans use
These are the operators named on our plans for El Salvador, taken from the plan data, so the list follows the catalogue.
- Claro4G
- CTE S.A. de C.V. (Claro)4G
- Digicel4G
- Digicel S.A. de C.V.4G
- movistar4G
- Movistar4G
- Telemovil4G
- Telemovil El Salvador4G
- Tigo4G