Afrihost Air Mobile demolishes MTN, TFG Connect, PnP Mobile

Afrihost Air Mobile’s prepaid data prices are significantly lower than MTN and other mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that use its network infrastructure.

MyBroadband compared prepaid data pricing and out-of-bundle rates for MVNOs that run on MTN’s network. Our comparison includes Afrihost Air Mobile, PnP Mobile, and TFG Connect.

MVNOs leverage the network and infrastructure of prominent mobile operators in South Africa, such as Cell C and MTN. This comparison analyses pricing for MVNOs that use MTN’s network.

We also compared MTN’s prepaid data and out-of-bundle rates.

A comparison of the four networks’ out-of-bundle rates is provided in the table below.

Afrihost Air Mobile has the lowest out-of-bundle rate for data at R0.10 per MB, with PnP Mobile taking second place with R0.20 per MB.

TFG Connect charges R0.45 per MB when consuming data out-of-bundle, while MTN charges R0.49 per MB for customers that have previously purchased data bundles.

MTN prepaid customers that have never bought a data bundle pay R0.29 per MB.

Regarding voice minutes, Afrihost Air Mobile, TFG Connect, and MTN all charge the same rate at R0.99 per MB, while PnP Mobile’s out-of-bundle minute rate is significantly higher at R1.49.

TFG Connect has the lowest rate for SMSs at R0.49 per SMS, while Afrihost, MTN, and PnP Mobile charge R0.50, R0.50, and R0.60, respectively.

Prepaid data price comparison

Afrihost Air Mobile has the cheapest data bundles of the lot — and by some margin. It charges R10 for a 100MB bundle, while PnP Mobile, TFG Connect, and MTN charge R20 for the same data allocation.

Looking at larger data allocations, Afrihosts’ 500MB, 1GB, 2GB, 3GB, and 5GB bundles cost R25, R30, R60, R90, and R100, respectively.

Afrihost Air Mobile customers can get 5GB of data for less than PnP Mobile, TFG Connect, and MTN customers pay for 2GB.

PnP Mobile’s data bundles were the most expensive of the networks compared, with the MVNO charging R40 more for a 2GB data bundle than MTN — the operator that provides its infrastructure.

It is the only MVNO that charges more for its data bundles than MTN does.

It should also be noted that each network has different validity periods for its data bundles. They are summarised below:

• Afrihost Air Mobile — bundles valid for 60 days (two months).
• PnP Mobile — bundle valid for 30 days (one month).
• TFG Connect — bundles valid for 30 days (one month).
• MTN — bundles valid for 30 days (one month).

So, not only are Afrihost Air Mobile’s prepaid data bundles significantly cheaper than the rest, but they are also valid for twice as long.

A comparison of prepaid data bundles ranging from 100MB to 5GB in size is summarised in the table below.