MTN South Africa to Increase Subscription and Voice Charges Next Year

MTN South Africa will raise subscription and voice charges from February 2026, citing rising operational costs and the need to protect and expand network infrastructure. While voice and subscription costs will increase, device and data bundles remain unchanged, with new customer benefits added to ease the impact.

MTN South Africa has announced that it will increase subscription and voice charges from February 1, 2026, with contract customers set to experience an average 5.4% rise across monthly bills. The adjustment comes as the telecom giant seeks to balance affordability with the rising cost of maintaining and securing its network infrastructure.

In this article, we break down the details of the price changes, the reasons behind them, and what South African consumers can expect next year.

What’s Changing in MTN South Africa’s Pricing?

MTN confirmed that its subscription fees will rise by an average of 9.7%, while voice call rates will increase by around 8%. These adjustments will affect contract customers across various plans.

Despite easing national inflation, MTN says operational pressures within the telecom sector have intensified.

According to the company, costs related to:

Electricity,
Network security, and
Infrastructure restoration due to vandalism

continue to rise, creating financial strain on operations that the price adjustments aim to address.

Related:

What Will Not Change?

Some parts of MTN’s pricing structure will remain unchanged despite the hike. These include:

Device repayment fees
Insurance costs
Value-added services
Out-of-bundle data rates
Top-up bundles

This means customers using these services will not see price increases.

New Benefits to Offset Higher Charges

To cushion the impact on consumers, MTN is adding benefits across selected plans:

MegaFlex customers: Up to 17% extra airtime
Yellow Plans: 20% more voice minutes
Home Internet 5G and LTE users: Speed upgrades of up to 50%

These additions aim to justify the new price points while keeping customers engaged.

When Will the Price Increase Take Effect?

The effective date varies by billing cycle:

Out-of-bundle charges change on February 1, 2026
Subscription fee increases appear when each customer’s monthly billing cycle resets

Most MTN billing cycles fall on the 1st, 5th, 11th, 12th, 17th, or 27th of the month. Customers can check their specific cycle in the MTN app or on their latest invoice.

Industry Context: Rising Demand and Infrastructure Pressure

South Africa’s telecom operators face the challenge of meeting skyrocketing data consumption while protecting infrastructure from theft and vandalism. As digital access becomes essential rather than optional, operators like MTN must balance pricing with the cost of maintaining resilient, high-performance networks.

MTN reportedly engaged with ICASA earlier this year to address sector-wide issues such as high data prices and limited digital access, challenges that continue to affect millions of users.

The MTN South Africa subscription and voice charge increase in 2026 reflects broader economic and operational realities facing the telecom industry. While customers will feel a noticeable rise in their bills, MTN is attempting to offset some of the pressure by enhancing airtime, call minutes, and internet speeds across popular plans.

As data dependency grows across South Africa, these price adjustments highlight the ongoing tension between network affordability and infrastructure sustainability.

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