MTN South Africa to increase subscription and voice charges next year

MTN South Africa will increase its consumer contract prices from February 1, 2026, by an average of 5.4% across monthly bills. The adjustments will primarily affect subscription and voice costs. Subscription fees will rise by an average of 9.7%, while voice rates will increase by about 8%. 

The company said the decision is necessary to maintain investment in network capacity, protect infrastructure, and continue delivering high-performance connectivity as the country’s demand for data accelerates. 

The increase reflects the growing cost pressures facing telecom operators in South Africa, where mobile networks underpin everything from fintech to online retail.  For MTN, these price adjustments are positioned as a response to rising operational costs, even in a period where general inflation has eased. 

“Although general consumer inflation has eased, MTN and the telecommunications sector in South Africa continue to face steeper increases in operational costs, including electricity and measures to protect and restore network infrastructure from vandalism,” MTN said. 

Device repayments, insurance fees, value-added services, out-of-bundle data rates, and top-up bundles will remain unchanged. Although consumers will feel the higher charges, MTN is also introducing new benefits to select plans to offset the impact. MegaFlex customers will receive up to 17% additional airtime, Yellow Plans will include 20% more voice minutes, and MTN’s Home Internet 5G and LTE customers will see speed upgrades of up to 50%.

In October, MTN held talks with the country’s communications regulator, Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), as part of efforts to tackle persistent challenges in the telecoms sector, from high data costs to uneven digital access. But the subscription includes data plans. 

Read: MTN South Africa, ICASA hold talks to make data cheaper and expand digital access

The timing of the increase will vary depending on each customer’s billing cycle. Out-of-bundle charges will change on  February 1, 2026, but the updated subscription fees will appear only when a customer’s monthly bill resets. Most billing cycles fall on the 1st, 5th, 11th, 12th, 17th, or 27th of the month. Customers can confirm their specific billing date by checking their latest invoice in the MTN app.

MTN’s price adjustments highlight a broader challenge of balancing affordability with the high cost of keeping networks modern, resilient, and fast. As data consumption continues to grow, infrastructure pressures intensify, and customers require affordable networks, the industry will increasingly need to navigate this tension.

Read: MTN South Africa to invest $17 million in Gauteng network upgrade