The cheapest way to call from Türkiye to Iran

There are several main ways to call Iran from Turkey: buying a tourist SIM card, buying an electronic SIM card (e-SIM) and roaming. In this article from Alibaba Tourism Magazine, we explain all three options for calling abroad.

Of course, we suggest that you take a look at Alibaba’s tourism SIM card offer.

The first method: buying a tourist SIM card in Türkiye (Tourist SIM)

For some, the easiest and cheapest way to make a phone call from Turkey to Iran is to buy a Turkish SIM card, activate it right there, and have peace of mind until the end of the trip. If you think this option is suitable for you, be sure to read about the service providers before buying a SIM card in Turkey and making phone calls from Turkey, because each one has different services, packages and prices.

Internet service providers in Türkiye

In Turkey, there are three internet service providers (Internet Service Provider or ISP) that are more popular and more economical than the others:

• Turkcell (Turkcell)
• Vodafone or Vodafone (Vodafone)
• Turk Telecom (Turk Telekom)

These three service providers have official sales and service representatives in almost all Turkish cities, as well as in Istanbul Airport (IST) and Sabiha Gokcen Airport (SAW). For example, if you are going to Turkey by plane, you can buy a Turkish SIM card at the same airport and make phone calls to Iran from Turkey.

Of course, some stores may also have Turkish tourist SIM cards, but we suggest you buy from official agencies because they have a better price, they can activate it for you, and if there is a problem, they will fix it.

What documents do I need to buy a SIM card in Türkiye?

It doesn’t matter if you buy a Turkish tourist SIM card at the airport or at agencies in the city; In any case, be sure to take your passport with you because your passport number will be used to complete the purchase and the agency may even take a copy of the first page of your passport.

Another important point is that Turkish tourist SIM cards have an expiration date and their validity is between 7 days and 60 days; That means, for example, if you buy a seven-day tourist SIM card, after a week the SIM card will expire and stop working.

Türkiye tourist SIM card price

The prices we have given here are according to the latest updates of the service providers, but it is better to know that the Turkish lira fluctuates quite a lot and the price of these services may differ slightly.

Vodafone tourist SIM card price

Vodafone only offers a tourist SIM card model, the details of which are:

This tourist SIM card is valid for 28 days.

For more information, you can visit the Vodafone website (www.vodafone.com.tr). Of course, it is better to say that Vodafone packages are usually a little more expensive than Turkcell and Telecom.

If your internet package with Vodafone SIM card is over, you can buy internet packages with the following codes:

Data pack 1– 6 GB

• Data: 6 GB
• Activation: ABONE 1AY6GB
• Validity: 1 month

Data pack 2– 12 GB

• Data: 12 GB
• Activation: ABONE 3AY12GB
• Validity period: 3 months

To use any of the above data packs, text the activation code to 3636.

Vodafone also has a normal SIM card that can be purchased from any Vodafone dealer, but the price depends on the location of the store. If only the internet package is more useful to you, you can also add any of the following packages:

Data pack 1 2 lira ($0.36) – 150 MB

• Data: 150 MB
• Activation: pkkokijij
• Validity: 24 hours

Data pack 2 5 lira ($0.91) – 250 MB

• Data: 250 MB
• Activation: ABONE H250MB
• Validity period: 7 days

Data pack 3 7 lira (1,27 Dollar) – 500 MB

• Data: 500 MB
• Activation: HAFTALIK 500
• Validity period: 7 days

Data Pack 4 10 lira (1,82 Dollar) – 1 GB

• Data: 1 GB
• Activation: 1 GB HAFTALIK
• Validity period: 7 days

Data pack 5 – 250 MB

• Data: 250 MB
• Activation: ABONE DEVAM 250 MB
• Validity: 30 days

Data Pack 6 16 lira (2,91 Dollar) – 500 MB

• Data: 250 MB
• Activation: ABONE DEVAM 500 MB
• Validity: 30 days

Data Pack 7 – 1 GB

• Data: 1 GB
• Activation: ABONE DEVAM 1 GB
• Validity: 30 days

Data pack 8 | 30 lira ($5.46) – 2 GB

• Data: 2 GB
• Activation: ABONE DEVAM 2 GB
• Validity: 30 days

Data Pack 9 |– 4 GB

• Data: 4 GB
• Activation: ABONE DEVAM 4 GB
• Validity: 30 days

To activate these data packs, text the activation code to 3636. To see how much of your package is left, write the same activation code but change the word “ABONE” to “SORGU” and then text it to 3636.

The price of Turk Telecom tourist SIM card

Turk Telecom offers two models of tourist SIM cards, the details of which are:

These SIM cards are valid for 30 days.

For more information, you can visit the Turk Telecom website (www.bireysel.turktelekom.com.tr).

The price of Turkcell tourist SIM card

Turkcell offers only a tourist SIM card model, the details of which are:

To find out how much credit you have left, enter the command code *#123 (star one two three square).

For more information, you can visit the Turkcell website (www.turkcell.com.tr).

You can also buy only the SIM card itself without any package and then buy the internet and call package separately. If you do, take a look at other Turkcell packages and tariffs:

Plan 1 1 GB

• Data: 1 GB
• Activation: HAFTALIK 1GB
• Validity period: 7 days

Plan 2 | – 1 GB

• Data: 1 GB
• Activation: YENI 1GB
• Validity: 30 days

Plan 3 |- 2 GB

• Data: 2 GB
• Activation: YENI 2GB
• Validity: 30 days

Plan 4 |- 4 GB

• Data: 4 GB
• Activation: YENI 4GB
• Validity: 30 days

Plan 5 |- 6 GB

• Data: 6 GB
• Activation: YENI 6GB
• Validity: 30 days

Plan 6 |- 8 GB

• Data: 8 GB
• Activation: YENI 8GB
• Validity: 30 days

To activate any of the above packages, you must text the activation code to 2222 and confirm the activation by sending EVET to the same number.

If you want to deactivate the data package, text the name of the data plan along with the word IPTAL (meaning cancellation) to 2222.

If you want to see how much is left of your internet package, dial *#100 (one hundred square star) or text the word KALAN (meaning remaining) to 2222 and you will receive the balance SMS immediately.

Is the Turkish tourist SIM card 4G?

The SIM cards that you buy as a tourist to call Iran from Turkey have a 4G network, and all tourist cities in Turkey also have 4G coverage.

If you are going to famous and big cities in Turkey (such as Istanbul, Ankara, etc.), your SIM card type does not matter because they all have good antenna coverage, but if you are going to more remote cities, we suggest you buy a Turkcell SIM card because it has more coverage and better antenna coverage.

How to call Iran from Türkiye with a tourist SIM card

Until then, make sure to decide which service provider you will buy from and what type of SIM card you want. If you bought from an official dealer, they will activate the SIM card for you right there.

Now, to make a phone call from Turkey or to send an SMS, you must enter two codes before the main number: the international code and the country code. Now we will explain more precisely.

You can enter the international code in the form of a plus sign (+) or in the form of two zeros (00).

The country code of Iran is 98.

Now suppose the number you want to call or text is: 09121111111; To call this number with a tourist SIM card from Turkey, you must enter the number as follows: 00989121111111

The second method: buying an electronic SIM card (e-SIM)

Using an electronic SIM card to make calls from Turkey to Iran has differences from the previous method. First, in this method, you don’t buy a SIM card to put on your phone, but you scan an OR code; The second difference is that with an electronic SIM card, it is not possible to make a line call, and for this you can use the Internet of the electronic SIM card and call other applications.

Of course, e-SIM also has advantages; For example, you can buy and activate it online even before your trip (i.e. in Iran) in order to use it after entering Turkey; Also, electronic SIM card internet is usually faster.

In this section, we introduce the two main service providers for electronic SIM cards; Each of these has different services and tariffs, and you should choose the right option based on your needs.

Buy an electronic SIM card from Airalo

By installing the Airalo application and selecting the destination country, you can see the available packages. Currently, the packages offered are:

Now let’s see how we can buy and use this electronic SIM card:

• first step: Install the Aloair application on your phone (download for Android and download for Apple)
• Second step: After entering the program, choose your destination country (you must find the “Turkey” option)
• The third step: Choose one of the available packages and pay, so that the QR code will be displayed to you. Install the SIM card using it.
• Fourth step: Whenever you enter Turkey, activate the Merhaba SIM card from the network settings on your mobile phone so that your internet is activated.

If you need more information, visit the Aloair website (www.airalo.com).

Buy an electronic SIM card from Holafly

The Holafly collection, like Airalo, offers suitable packages for the amount of internet. First of all, let’s look at its tariffs:

Now if these packages are suitable for you, let’s see how to buy and use them:

• first step: Make sure that your phone model is compatible with the Holafly electronic SIM card and can be used. Where should you be sure? A little lower, we have listed the list of compatible mobile phones with this SIM card in the table; If your phone model is not in this list, you should not buy this SIM card.
• Second step: Buy the package you want. (You can refer to this page).
• The third step: After completing the purchase, an email will be sent to you with an OR code. After entering Turkey, scan that OR code and turn on the internet on your phone.

Also, pay attention to the fact that if you buy an electronic SIM card, there is no need to turn off or remove the SIM card from your phone; This means that you can use an electronic SIM card for the Internet and a normal SIM card for calls and SMS at the same time.

Make sure before buying that your mobile phone model is listed in this table:

For more information, you can visit the Holafly website. (www.esim.holafly.com/esim-turkey)

The third method: using roaming

With the same SIM card you have, you can access the Internet abroad and use call and SMS services; The way is to activate the roaming of your phone. According to the SIM card you have, enter one of the following guides and proceed step by step to activate roaming:

Do you have any question?

If you have any questions about any of the methods we have mentioned, be sure to write to us in the comments section.