Before you start

A biometric passport — the normal route for a non-ECOWAS foreigner
Or a biometric ECOWAS national ID, a biometric consular card, an ONECI-issued biometric ID, or a biometric Ivorian driving licence
An unlocked handset; check eSIM compatibility with *#06# before you rely on it
Patience for the counter photo — the operator is legally required to photograph you at registration

Step-by-step

1
Buy at an authorised point, never on the street
Operator agencies and declared authorised resellers only. Abidjan has dense agency networks in Plateau, Marcory, Cocody, Treichville and Yopougon, and prepaid SIMs are sold and activated inside Félix Houphouët-Boigny airport. The décret bans street sales and pre-activated SIMs outright, so any SIM that already works when you buy it is by construction non-compliant.
In personWho: YouMinutesAbout XOF 500 for a physical SIM
2
Get identified at the counter
The agent takes an HD copy of your biometric ID and photographs you on the spot, as Article 13 requires. The data is retained for three years after the subscription ends. Identification precedes activation by law, so the line works when you walk out. Bring the passport even if you already hold a carte de résident.
In personWho: YouMinutesFree
3
Pick the operator that matches how you use a phone
On the regulator's March 2026 figures Orange holds 51% of mobile subscribers, MTN 28% and Moov 21% — but Orange shrank 3.6% over the year while MTN grew, and on mobile internet MTN is within touching distance of Orange and growing twice as fast. Carrying two SIMs is normal here rather than paranoid: national penetration is around 190%.
In personWho: YouSame dayNothing to compare
4
Load a data pass
Moov's IzyMix+ on *303*1# runs XOF 1,000 for 1 GB over ten days up to XOF 10,000 for 10 GB plus 830 minutes over thirty. MTN prices a weekly 1.2 GB at XOF 1,000 and monthly bundles from 2 GB at XOF 1,800 up to 15 GB at XOF 10,000. Prices are quoted inclusive of tax, and unused data does not roll over.
Mobile appWho: YouInstantXOF 5,000–10,000/month buys a realistic 10–15 GB
5
Consider an eSIM — and know each operator's catch
Orange sells an eSIM for XOF 500 through an agency or the Max it app, with up to ten profiles but only one active, and you cannot store contacts on it. MTN's is free at esim.mtn.ci, but identity verification still happens at an agency, and after five QR activations a re-issue costs XOF 1,000. Moov charges XOF 500 and uniquely lets you scan public 'ePoster' QR codes placed at airports and hotels — the fastest documented route to connectivity on arrival.
Mobile appWho: YouMinutes, after the agency checkXOF 0–500

Documents you’ll need

Biometric passport (the carte de résident does NOT work for a SIM)
Or a biometric ECOWAS ID, consular card, ONECI biometric ID, or Ivorian driving licence
An unlocked handset
Nothing else — no proof of address, no bank account

Things most newcomers don’t know

Your residence card opens a mobile-money wallet but will not get you a SIM.

Orange Money and Moov Money both list the carte de résident among accepted documents. Neither operator's SIM-identification list includes it — those require a biometric passport, a biometric ECOWAS ID, a consular card, an ONECI biometric ID or an Ivorian licence. It is the most reliable way for a newcomer to waste a trip to an agency.

Source: Orange Business CI / MTN CI identification pages

One Ivorian SIM roams free across six neighbouring countries.

Under the Protocole d'Abidjan, incoming calls and SMS are free in Guinea, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo and Benin, with 300 free incoming minutes over thirty days. For anyone working regionally that makes a local SIM materially more useful than a foreign travel eSIM — but you have to physically return to Côte d'Ivoire for the allowance to reset.

Source: ARTCI — Protocole d'Abidjan roaming tariffs

The SIM-deactivation stories you have read are probably about other countries.

Senegal, Benin and Mali all ran headline SIM purges in 2023–2025. Côte d'Ivoire's identification campaigns date from 2017–2018, and the regulator's news feed shows no active 2025 or 2026 campaign. Register properly anyway, but do not panic-plan around a deadline that belongs to a neighbour.

Source: ARTCI news and campaigns pages

Number prefixes tell you the original operator, not the current one.

07 was Orange, 05 MTN and 01 Moov, but portability breaks the mapping and takes under a day. Do not infer someone's network — or the cost of calling them — from the number.

Source: ARTCI numbering and portability rules

Common mistakes to avoid

Buying from a street vendor — illegal, and the SIM is either registered to a stranger or due for suspension
Bringing a machine-readable but non-biometric passport, which can be refused
Assuming the carte de résident works for the SIM because it works for the wallet
Buying MTN's eSIM online expecting instant activation — an agency ID check comes first
Letting a line go dormant and then discovering you cannot port the number
Expecting Yamoussoukro to match Abidjan on 5G — the named 5G markets are Abidjan, Bouaké and San Pedro

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.