Mobile phone plans

The battle of the smooth operators A1, Vivacom, and Yettel.

Bulgaria has three major mobile network providers A1, Vivacom, and Yettel (former Telenor). A1 is the leader with approximately 2.9 million customers (37% market share), the second place is taken by Yettel with 2.6m customers (33% share), and Vivacom is third with 2.3m customers (30% share).

Vivacom was the first in Bulgaria to launch a 5G network in the 27 district centers of the country in September 2020. Their 4G network is covering 99% of the country’s population. By the beginning of June 2020, full coverage is available in 2200 locations, including the 44 largest cities across the country. A1 Mobile 5G network covers over 100 towns and resorts and the 4G network covers over 99% of the population of Bulgaria.

All three of them offer both pre-paid sim cards, as w

ell as monthly plans with a contract for 1 or 2 years.

The longer 2-year contract comes with a cheaper monthly plan compared to the 1-year contract. All providers are trying to encourage customers to pay online by offering them money off their bills, for example, 1 BGN monthly discount or an additional 500 MB of data.

Pre-paid sim cards come with lots of terms and conditions. The card itself has a validity of 365 days. The credit on the account has a validity of 60 days and the minutes and MBs purchased have a validity of between 14 and 28 days.

Option A: Monthly plans with a 24-month contract (2 years)

 

Option B: Pre-paid sim card (pay as you go = no contract)

  • Vivacom FREE2GO 10 BGN comes with 3 BGN of credit plus 400 min and 6,000 MB of data
  • Future top-ups of 9.99 BGN would secure 800 min and 12,000 MB of data

But be mindful:

  • Sim card initial validity is 12 months. Every subsequent top-up extends validity.
  • The minutes already included are only valid for calls within the same network (Vivacom)
  • The credit balance has to be used within 60 days or otherwise is lost
  • The minutes and MB have to be used within 28 days or otherwise, is lost.

Existing customers

As of the beginning of 2023, all three operators announced monthly plans price will rise with the inflation. A1 for example will increase prices by 15.3% (circa 2 BGN per month).

Before your current contract runs out, most operators will try to offer you a personalized deal to try to keep you on. The trick is not to accept it straight away. Always try to negotiate better terms than their initial offer.

For example, my current A1 (2-year) contract expires on 20.09.2023. A1 offers me a new “Unlimited Special Plus 23” for a monthly fee of 22.99 BGN including unlimited national minutes, as well as unlimited data.