Best tariff plans for data — Airtel, Glo, 9mobile, MTN

Online communication has increasingly been resorted to for diverse reasons ranging from speed of message transfer to availability, and this need has birthed the question: which is the best tariff plans for data.

What actually drives this kind of communication is ‘internet data‘, an allowable measure by which internet access is metered.

These are sold to users of the internet by broadband telecom operators at fixed prices relative to the quantity required. The need for the affordability of these ‘access tokens‘ beckons the need to weather-down the curiousity on which is the best tariff plans for data in Nigeria.

How internet data plays a pivotal role in telecommunication

Aside the fact that telecommunication companies surfaces with an intent of providing seamless communication for its subscribers, as well as consistently developing new technology to put its network in tandem with current trends, telcos create communication protocols in order to make money; profiting from the services they render.

Majorly, telecom providers provides its network users two services: voice and internet services. While voice calls are charged from airtime reserves, internet usages are charged mainly from available data balances.

This data is measured same like internet usage: conventionally calculated in bytes.

The size of data consumed upon landing on any internet page or opening any internet means is dependent on the size of the content displayed on the page.

It then means that for any subscriber to access much numbers of internet pages or perform more online activities, he/she needs to purchase enough data. When you’ve exhausted your data, you will be restricted from performing any online activity.

Exception is where a Pay As You Go protocol is permitted by the service provider in use. A PAYG service allows subscribers to access the internet with their airtime balances.

How cheap could these internet data be?

Knowing how important mobile internet data has been, its affordability becomes necessary. From ordering a taxi to the new kinds of internet-powered television, its importance isn’t exaggerated.

However, lowly priced is this data?

We make an analysis.

The average value of a N1,000 data plan in the country is 1.5GB. Now, doing the maths, a 1GB data plan in Nigeria is averagely priced at N667. 1GB of data monthly is the data value the Alliance for Affordable Internet, A4AI sets for estimating the prices of internet in select countries.

Although majority of states are yet implement it, the Nigerian federal government has adopted N30,000 as the new national minimum wage. If the N667 average cost of 1GB of data is wagered against the minimum wage of N30,000 , an average Nigerian would have spent about 22% of his earnings on data.

This is far above the 2% benchmark of which data could be considered affordable. And the statistics looks even more terrible as about 30% of Nigerians are unemployed; earning far less than the minimum wage.

India is considered to be one of the country with affordable data offers. With an average minimum wage and price of 1GB data at Rs. 10,300 and Rs. 18 respectively, a calculated data cost per income percentage of 1.7% is arrived. This falls within the A4AI benchmark for affordable internet.

A different analysis by The Economist Intelligence Unit (The EIU), which weighs how cheap data is relative to the income of the people and competition among MNOs, ranks Nigeria at spot 25. The African powerhouse is ranked the country with the most affordable Internet in the continent. The metrics used in the analysis projected Nigeria ahead of South Africa, Ghana, Botswana and Cameroon.

Best MTN tariff plans for data

MTN Pulse

The pulse package is one centered on data; it’s actually made for subscribers who prefer an unbalanced proportion of more data benefits than calls.

There are some special data bundles restricted for only pulse subscribers.

They are:

• A unique 750MB 3-days data plan for just ₦300.
• A 1.5GB weekly data plan at a cost of ₦500.
• Pulse Nightlife Bundles at 250MB Pulse Nightlife bundle at N25
• Special instagram Bundles:
  • InstaBinge Lite 250MB at ₦100 valid for 24hours
  • InstaBinge heavy 1GB at ₦200 valid for 3days

Subscribers are also rewarded data bonuses upon airtime recharges. Subscribe to Pulse by dialing *406*1#.

MTN BetaTalk

This tariff plan is the best MTN plan for calls, and it also offers some cool data bonuses aswell.

BetaTalk offers 250% bonus airtime on every recharge of N100 and above, while for recharges below N100, 150% bonus airtime is given. With BetaTalk, there’s a 35MB at N50 bonus data bundle, and a 250MB bundle at N200.

Upon every recharge on the first day of the week, a free 10MB data bonus is given.

To migrate to MTN BetaTalk, simply dial *123*2*1# or text BT to 131.

MTN mPulse

For Children within the age of 9 – 15 years, the mPulse plan presents an oppurtunity for subscribers to afford themselves awesome bundles. These special data bundles to be usable on the mPulse website includes a 700MB for N150 bundle and another which offers 200MB for N50.

Subscribers within the acceptable age range gets a free WhatsApp monthly for 7days. Data bonus is also offered on recharge. To migrate to MTN mPulse, dial *344*1# or send ‘mPulse’ to 131.

Best tariff plans for data – Glo

Globacom Nigeria is the telecom brand of choice when affordable data is concerned. Below are some of the telco’s tariff plans that offers data bonuses.

Glo Jollific8

The following are the features of Glo’s Jollificate:

• Every recharge gives 8 times the value of recharge amount
• Every recharge comes with free voice and data bonus
• All recharges comes with free data which you could gift others
• Dial #122# for Voice/data bonus check
• Dial *606# to transfer data gift
• Bonus validity for all recharge values are 7 days
• Onnet call rate: 74K/s (glo to glo numbers)
• Offnet call rate: 74K/s (glo to other networks)
• Gifting data bonus validity is 60 days.

To migrate to Glo Jollific8, dial *603#.

Glo Gbam Hi 5ive

With a rental fee of N5 each day, the Gbam hi 5ive offers a data bonus on each new day. The 5MB daily bonus is obtainable everyday as far as a subscriber has maintained at least N5 in his account balance.

The following are other features in the package:

• Onnet call rate:18K/s (glo to glo numbers)
• Offnet call rate:18K/s (glo to other networks)
• N5 Daily Rental Fee
• 11k/s to 5 Glo numbers as Family and Friends
• If airtime balance is below N5 on any day, rent will not be deducted and your calls will be charged at 25K/sec (including FnF calls).

To migrate to the Glo Gbam Hi 5ive, dial *100*5*1#.

Best tariff plans for data – Airtel

Airtel Nigeria is the third largest telecom operator in the country.

The telco has the following tariff plans which affords subscribers cheap data offers:

Airtel SmartTrybe

SmartTrybe subscriber gets to enjoy a bonus of 5MB data upon a recharge of N100. For a second recharge of N100 within that same week, users gets a better 10MB data as bonus.

The following are other features of the Airtel SmartTrybe:

• Call rate of 11 Kobo/Sec for all local and international calls after first 50 secs.
• 250MB for N25 night browsing (12 am – 5 am).
• 1GB data for N500 Naira (valid 7 days)
• Free access to Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and BBM when near or on campus
• 60mb data bonus on N200 airtime recharge valid for a month.
• Free 5 SMS when you pay for 2 SMS.
• 30% bonus on data plans worth N500 and above.

The SmartTrybe is a tariff plan dedicated for data discounts. Migration to it could be done by dialing *312#.

Airtel Smart Premier

The SmartPremier tariff plan is a comprehensive one which offers some good data bonuses.

The Airtel telecom operator promises that for a recharge of N100 to N198 on the SmartPremier plan, a 5MB data would be offered and is valid for 1day.

There’s also a 15MB bonus on recharge of N200 to N498 valid for 1day, 50MB bonus on recharge of N500 to N998 valid for 3days and 150MB bonus on recharge of N1000 above valid for 7days.

Other benefits of the plan includes:

• First-minute call to all networks in Nigeria will be billed at 40k/sec, while subsequent calls will be billed at 11k/sec.
• Recharge of N5000 and above within a month gives you up to 500 minutes of free incoming calls while roaming.
• SMS rate is N4.

Migration to the plan is done by simply dialing *318#.

9mobile best tariff plans for calls

9mobile is Nigeria’s 4th largest telecom operator by market share. In a recent analysis of 9mobile tariff packages, we highlighted the unpleasant downtrod of the once-popular telecom firm.

The following are the best tariff plan from the network provider:

9mobile CliqLite

Intended for subscribers aged from 8 – 15 years, 9mobile Cliqlite offers some unique data and call discounts. In terms of pricing and tariffs, after expending about N25 in any new day on calls charged at 40k/s, the tariff drops from 40k/sec to 20k/ sec, if calls are to fellow cliqlite numbers; 25k/sec, if calls are to 9mobile lines; and 30k/ sec, if calls are to other networks.

The network provider promises a free SMS gift for every billed sms, as well as a free one minute calltime for every 5 minutes call from other networks. Also promised is a 10MB data gift to browse any site & free access to browse 6 educational sites, 1 game site & 1 social site upon a N100 weekly recharge.

To migrate into CliqLite, dial *244*10#.

9mobile MoreCliq

The MoreCliq tariff plan is necessarily provided by the telco for data reliefs.

With this plan, subscribers get a 100% data bonus on selected data plans purchased (40MB -500MB). This data bonus could however only be used in the evening from 11:00PM – 4:59AM daily.

With this tariff plan, subscribers gets the access to subscribe to Cliq of d night, social me daily, social me weekly, and social me monthly. These are in addition to a 250% and 350% independent bonus airtime upon every recharge of N100 and above, with the bonuses valid for only 3 days.

To migrate to moreCliq, dial *244*1#.

End Note

Migrating to a tariff plan that offers data benefits, much to your advantage as a pious internet user, makes for effectiveness while accessing the internet.

It reduces unnecessary yet avoidable costs and goes a long way to make for a better and result-centred harness of the world wide web.

In a nut shell, cheap data is what Nigerians don’t easily take for granted given the economic realities in the country. As such, any medium to which this is accomplished is of relish to them. The listed ‘best tarrif plans for data’ hints subscribers on tariff plans with favourable data offering.

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