Does anyone know if US cell phones will work in Guatemala? Or will we need an unlocked phone and a chip?

January 23, 2012

Question by Genevieve H: Does anyone know if US cell phones will work in Guatemala? Or will we need an unlocked phone and a chip?
We are traveling from LA to Guatemala–we have regular US cell phones have an unlocked phone we purchased in Thailand–over there we just had cards inserted as we traveled. Just curious which works in central America!

Best answer:

Answer by James D
You can purchase a Sim card from the cellular providers in Guatemala. The stores are quite prevalent. AT&T phone worked fine.

Add your own answer in the comments!

August 19, 2011 -- Do all unlocked cell phones work on any cell phone carrier?
May 9, 2011 -- Q&A: Does anyone know of a home security system that can work without electricity or a phone line?
November 20, 2010 -- Why do these stupid cell phone companies think that old people are stupid and need the simplest of phones?
June 19, 2010 -- Does anyone know about Virgin Mobile pre-paid cell phones?
May 5, 2012 -- i love cell phones, can somebody what careers there are that work with cell phones?
May 3, 2012 -- Q&A: Can cell phone GPS be used to know your location without subscribing to anything?
April 26, 2012 -- What are some cheap and affordable Cell Phones and Cell Phone Plans?
April 25, 2012 -- Wholesale Cell Phones, Finding Reliable Cell Phone Suppliers
April 24, 2012 -- is there a trac phone that makes calls to cell phones in Saudia Arabia and Egypt ?
April 7, 2012 -- what license you need to sell cell phones in new york?

Tags: anyone, cell, chip, Guatemala, Know, need, Phone, phones, Unlocked, work

5 Responses to Does anyone know if US cell phones will work in Guatemala? Or will we need an unlocked phone and a chip?

HijoDelSol on January 23, 2012 at 2:38 am

It should work, but your roaming will be out of this world. You can pick up a sim if you want, or just pick up a prepaid phone down there. They are very cheap and the cost of calls back to the US are cheap.

Strawberry_Sweet on January 23, 2012 at 3:29 am

If you are planning to use your regular US phones with the regular US card, then they will probably work on roaming. Cingular though doesn’t really work all that well. US cell phones that have not been unlocked will not work if you insert a card from a different company that is not the one you bought the phone from. So I would suggest traveling with the unlocked phone and getting a card here, or buying a really cheap pre-paid phone once you get to Guatemala which you can always sell back. I’m not sure if you can buy just the cards, but I’m pretty certain you can. As for cell phone companies here, I would definitedly suggest going with Tigo whatever you decide to do as they have the most coverage and rates. Oh, and the pre-paid phone should work all over central america.

guido1900us on January 23, 2012 at 4:03 am

It is much simpler to buy a cheap phone, once you arrive in Guatemala. They are inexpensive.

Su on January 23, 2012 at 4:32 am

I DON’T THINK SO MINE DID NOT WORK. WELL IT WORKED BUT YOU CAN’T MAKE CALLS ANYWHERE

Spidey . on January 23, 2012 at 5:05 am

I have Sprint and mine worked just fine down there, the dialing to the U.S. is different tho, I can’t remember exactly right now but I think it was 147-130 then the U.S area code and number u wanted to call.

Sorry I can’t remember the digits right now, but like I said, my cell worked just fine down there and it still works here in the U.S.

Good luck and be CAREFULL with cells down there, u can get killed for one, LITERALLY :-s