Kigali eSIM
In Kigali you connect to MTN or Airtel, whichever is performing better where you are standing. The median across the country is 34 Mbps. Your data starts working the moment you land, before you reach the immigration hall.
- Networks
- MTN and Airtel
- Real speed in Rwanda
- 34 Mbps median, 8 Mbps for the slowest tenth92 travellers across Rwanda, rolling 90 days
- 5G
- yes, non standalone
- Throttle
- None on metered plans
- Tethering
- Allowed on every plan
Plans that cover Kigali
| Data | Validity | Price per GB | Price | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GB | Never expires | $15.89 | $15.89 | |
| 3 GB | Never expires | $11.30 | $33.89 | |
| 5 GBMost travellers | Never expires | $10.38 | $51.89 | |
| 10 GB | Never expires | $8.79 | $87.89 |
How Rwanda compares across Africa
- Speed rank
- 4 of 20 destinations we sell in Africa
- Regional median
- 29.5 Mbps
- Consistency
- The slowest tenth still reaches 24 percent of the median
- Upstream networks
- 2, MTN, Airtel
- 5G
- Yes, non standalone
- Next fastest nearby
- Seychelles, 41 Mbps
- Next slowest nearby
- Kenya, 33 Mbps
- Cities with their own page
- 1: Kigali
- tenth percentile
- 8 Mbps
- Behind these figures
- 92 travellers, rolling 90 days
Landing at Kigali International Airport (KGL)
- Airport
- KGL / HRYR
- Distance
- 5 km from the centre of Kigali
Getting into Kigali
- Kigali Bus Services Kibaya, Kanombe Airport, Downtown route (KGL)
Worth knowing about Kigali
- Kigali's airport is only about 5 km east of the central business district.
- A large new airport at Bugesera, about 25 km away by air and 40 km by road, has slipped to a 2028 completion and is intended to complement rather than replace Kigali International.
- Kigali International is operated by the Rwanda Airports Company and was formerly called Kanombe International Airport.
- Kigali buses are cashless. The operator states you cannot travel without a valid Tap&Go smart card holding enough credit, so a card has to be bought and loaded before a first ride.
- Tap&Go cards are issued by AC Group and topped up at marked agents, including bank branches, mobile operator outlets and named shops in Kimironko, Samuduha and at the UTC building.
- Rwanda's Smart Kigali programme put free 4G LTE wifi from Olleh Rwanda Networks on Kigali's public buses, launched on 18 February 2016 across 487 buses after a five bus trial in 2015.
- Rwanda has granted a visa on arrival to citizens of every nationality at Kigali International Airport and at land borders since 1 January 2018.
- Citizens of African Union, Commonwealth and Francophonie member states get a fee waived visa on arrival in Rwanda, valid for 30 days.
- Citizens of East African Community states are issued a free entry pass on arrival in Rwanda valid for six months, rather than a standard visa.
- Rwanda has banned single use plastic bags since 2008. Any found in a traveller's luggage are confiscated at the airport or other point of entry.
- Rwanda's nationwide 4G runs on KTRN, a wholesale network owned 51 percent by Korea Telecom and 49 percent by the government, live since January 2018 and resold by MTN and Airtel.
- Kigali won UN-Habitat's 2008 Scroll of Honour for cleanliness, and the city keeps Umuganda, a monthly community cleanup day residents are expected to join.