BEST MOBILE OPERATORS IN ISRAEL

MOBILE SERVICE PROVIDERS IN ISRAEL | BEST OPERATORS BY COVERAGE | 5G 4G COVERAGE MAPS | BEST OPERATORS BY SERVICE TYPE | SIMTOISRAEL OFFERS FROM LEAD OPERATORS CELLCOM & PELEPHONE | BEST IN VIDEO EXPERIENCE | BEST IN VOICE APP EXPERIENCE | BEST IN GAMES EXPERIENCE | BEST IN DOWNLOAD SPEED EXPERIENCE | BEST IN UPLOAD SPEED EXPERIENCE

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All Mobile Service Providers in Israel

Israel Mobile Network Operators

• Cellcom
• Pelephone
• Partner
• Hot Mobile
• Golan Telecom

Israel MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators)

• 012 MOBILE
• 018 XPHONE
• 019 TELZAR
• 365 TELECOM
• ANNATEL
• CELLACT
• HOME CELLULAR
• RAMI LEVY
• YOUPHONE
• X2ONE

Best Mobile Operator by Coverage

• Cellcom
• Pelephone
• Partner
• Hot Mobile
• Golan Telecom

Best Mobile Operator by Service Type

• Best in Video Experience
• Best in Voice App Experience
• Best in Games Experience
• Best in Download Speed Experience
• Best in Upload Speed Experience
• Best in 4G Coverage Experience

All MOBILE SERVICE PROVIDERS IN ISRAEL

Israel has five big mobile network operators:

• CELLCOM
• PELEPHONE 
• PARTNER (formerly Orange)
• GOLAN TELECOM
• HOT MOBILE (MIRS)

Apart from main network operators there are so called MVNOs – mobile virtual network operators*:

• 012 MOBILE (Partner)
• 018 XPHONE (Partner)
• 019 TELZAR (Partner)
• 365 TELECOM (Pelephone)
• ANNATEL (Partner)
• CELLACT (Pelephone)
• HOME CELLULAR (Cellcom)
• RAMI LEVY  (Pelephone)
• YOUPHONE (Partner)
• X2ONE (Pelephone)

* Mobile virtual network operators are wireless communications services providers that do not own the wireless network infrastructure over which they provide services to customers. An MVNO has a business agreement with a mobile network operator and buys bulk access to network services at wholesale rates and redistributes them at retail prices independently.

Combined mobile operators provide service to Israel’s 9 184 500 population. Number of mobile subscriptions is 13 752 000 as of 2021 and mobile penetration is at 149.73%.

CELLCOM

Cellcom – the biggest cellular network in Israel, veteran cell service provider with most mobile users which total 2 825 000. Cellcom network continues to grow. In 2020 Cellcom acquired Israel’s Golan Telecom thus expanding further. Cellcom was founded in 1994 and most of the company’s business is centered on wireless service.

*Cellcom Israel is not to be confused with other similarly named companies in the world such as Cellcom in the US, Canada, Guinea, or Malaysia (although spelled with a single L)

Cellcom hosts Home Cellular mobile virtual network operator.

Cellcom’s advantages are generous data plans, nationwide solid coverage and lowest tariff rates in the country. 

Cellcom for Tourists: SimtoIsrael partnered with Cellcom to offer a solid data plan with unlimited calls, card delivery and a 24/7 customer support with English speaking operators, something not always available timely and fully from the main operators due to overload.

Tourist cards cost $ 22 – $ 120 depending on active period, 5 days up to 3 months.

PELEPHONE

Pelephone, also known as P mobile, Hii Mobile, Bezeq is the oldest operator in Israel, founded in 1986, is used for high-speed 4G internet in smartphones, iPads, MiFi-s, computers, USB Modems and other mobile device with hotspots and tethering enabled. 

Why Pelephone: Pelephone is another mobile operator able to offer lowest tariffs with nationwide coverage. For as low as 8 USD you can get a card to get buy for 3 days during a quick visit to Israel.

Pelephone for Tourists: As with Cellcom, SimtoIsrael partnered with Pelephone to offer a prepaid service plan for tourists with unlimited calls, high speed data, sim card delivery and 24/7 customer support included. 

Data only sim cards are also available. If for whatever reason card inclusion will be spent before tourists leave Israel, SimtoIsrael adds GBs free of charge should tourists inform customer service by contacting the English speaking operators 24/7.

In partnership with Pelephone SimtoIsrael offers Tourist sim cards. Cards cost $ 22 – $ 120 depending on active period, 5 days up to 3 months.

PARTNER

Partner Israel (formerly Orange) is the third leading cellular company in Israel. The company operates a cellular network under the name Partner and under 012 mobile. It also provides local telephone services, internet surfing and international calls. Partner has also launched media services under the name PARTNER TV.  The company’s antenna network serves both Partner’s customers and HOT Mobile customers, in accordance with the agreement signed between the two companies in 2016.

Partner SIM cards are available in cellphones shops and retailers around Israel for 30~₪40 (USD 10-12) without any credit on card.

Using data without a plan will cost user ₪4.01 ($ 1.2) per MB. A dollar per MB is quite high of a rate, so data plan options are available for cost saving.

Why Partner: Partner is the third biggest operator in the country with low service rates and stable coverage. Partner offers a prepaid sim card “BigTalk” to country visitors. It can be purchased from operator’s point of sales or redistributors.

Partner has a strong network and hosts a number of MVNOs.

MVNOs hosted on Partner

HOT MOBILE

HOT Mobile has been around in Israel’s mobile market since 2010. Starting 2016, the company operates a shared antenna network with Partner although not one of the telecom giants.

Hot Mobile has a good coverage, low prices and is now servicing over 1.5 million subscribers in Israel. Hot Mobile offers the most prepaid sim cards. Like other companies, the bigger upfront payment the lower an air minute.

Since 2015 Hot Mobile offers a classic prepaid SIM cards – “Hottalk”. They can be purchased at Hot Mobile point of sales, post offices and general shops for a ₪49 fee ($15.68), valid for three months.

Why Hot Mobile: Hot Mobile offers the most prepaid cards around the country and keeps rates competitive.

** With Hot Mobile there can be a 2G fallback so you may need to enable data roaming on your phone to get stable internet connection all over Israel.

GOLAN TELECOM

Golan Telecom started offering own prepaid plans under the brand GolanTalk from June 2018.

In 2020 Golan Telecom was sold to rival Cellcom and is merging with Cellcom network. As a new prepaid operator, it may be harder to find GolanTalk SIM cards in cellphone shops compared to other brands. A list of shops is available at their website (currently in Hebrew).

Why Golan: Golan Telecom has a number of network advantages which users shall make use of such as quality in video experience, voice app experience or mobile gaming experience. More details about in which categories Golan is among leasers is in “Israel mobile network experience report” below.

Israel’s MVNOs – Mobile Virtual Network Operators

MVNO is an add-on over a real telecom operator, another brand on the same physical network. The main difference between MVNOs is that they do not have their own cell towers, base stations, or transmitters.

Users often do not see the difference between MVNO and the brand of the main operator, they compare rates.

Below are the MVNOs in Israel with parent networks on which they are hosted.

ISRAEL MOBILE CARRIERS COVERAGE MAP

ISRAEL

CELLCOM

PELEPHONE

PARTNER

HOT MOBILE

GOLAN TELECOM

*2G – the second-generation cellular technology and the first to use digital encryption of conversations. 2G networks were the first to offer data services and SMS text messaging. Compared to 2G, next generation mobile technologies have higher transfer rates.

3G – followed 2G cellular technology, offering faster data transfer rates. It is the first to enable video calls. This makes 3G  especially suitable for use in modern smartphones, which require constant high-speed internet connection for many applications.

4G – the fourth generation of mobile phone communications standards. It is a successor of the 3G and provides ultra-broadband internet access for mobile devices. The high data transfer rates make 4G networks suitable for use in USB wireless modems for laptops and even home internet access.

5G – the fifth generation of mobile phone communications standards. It is a successor to 4G and promises to be faster than previous generations while opening up new uses cases for mobile data. The 5G benefits range from faster speeds (up to 10x faster), much lower latency (up to 50x lower) and greater capacity allowing many more devices to be connected at the same time.

Israel Operators

Cellcom

Pelephone

Partner

Hot Mobile

Golan

As can be seen can be seen Cellcom, Pelephone, Partner and Hot Mobile offer 5G coverage. Particularly Pelephone has the best 5G coverage, denser and more spread.

Best Mobile Operator by Service Type

ISRAEL MOBILE NETWORK EXPERIENCE REPORT

by Opensignal mobile analytics company as of June 2021

Opensignal is an independent mobile analytics company researching experience consumers receive on wireless networks. Ultimate mission of Opensignal is improving mobile connectivity across the world. Report summarizes the fierce competition in Israeli mobile market. Each operator has excellence and shares at least a joint win with its competitors.

Best in Video Experience

Video Experience directly measures video streams from end-user devices, using an ITU-based approach to quantify factors such as load times, stalling and video resolution over an operator’s networks. Video Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100. Category winners:

1^st – Pelephone
2^nd – Cellcom/Partner (Orange)
3^rd – Golan Telecom

Best in Voice App Experience

Voice App Experience measures the quality of experience for over-the-top (OTT) voice services – mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook Messenger etc. – using a model derived from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)-based approach for quantifying overall voice call quality and a series of calibrated technical parameters. This model characterizes the exact relationship between the technical measurements and perceived call quality. Voice App Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100. Category winners:

1^st – Hot Mobile
2^nd – Golan Telecom/Cellcom
3^rd – Partner

Best in Games Experience

Games experience metric measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-100, it analyzes how the multiplayer mobile Games Experience is affected by overall multiplayer Games Experience. Category winners:

1^st – Hot Mobile
2^nd – Golan Telecom/Cellcom
3^rd – Partner

Best in Download Speed Experience

Download Speed Experience shows the average download speed experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s networks. Category winners:

1^st – Pelephone
2^nd – Partner
3^rd – Cellcom

Best in Upload Speed Experience

Upload Speed Experience measures the average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s networks. Category winners:

1^st – Pelephone
2^nd – Golan Telecom
3^rd – Cellcom

Best in 4G Coverage Experience

4G Coverage Experience metric is a measure of how mobile subscribers experience 4G coverage on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-10, it analyzes the locations where customers of a network operator received a 4G signal relative to the locations visited by users of all network operators. Category winners:

1^st – Partner
2^nd – Pelephone
3^rd – Cellcom

Summary

Israel’s mobile market is in fierce competition and year by year offers better deals at lower price for local customers and tourists.

Postpaid rates: Lowest rates are offered by Cellcom, Pelephone, Partner allowing to optimize communication costs for local users via post paid plans.

Prepaid rates: For tourists getting and maintaining their mobile plans can be accompanied with some inconveniences due to operator websites unavailability from abroad (apparently from security reasons),
or be in Hebrew only, or be problematic to understand which rates apply to you or be difficult to get in touch with customer services due to overload. In this scope SimtoIsreal’s packages come in handy, combining cheapest rates from leading operators Cellcom & Pelephone, with large data inclusions and hand-to-hand sim card delivery to users house, the airport or a hotel with guided 24/7 English/Russian speaking customer support covering al technical issues and malfunctions that gadgets might be subjected to while in the country.

However if user is looking for a particular technical excellence:

Best video experience – Pelephone, Cellcom, Partner, Golan are the top choice

Best voice app experience – Hot Mobile, Golan, Cellcom, Partner 

Best gaming experience – Hot Mobile, Golan, Cellcom, Partner 

Best download speed experience – Pelephone, Partner, Cellcom

Best upload speed experience – Pelephone, Golan, Cellcom

Best in 4G coverage experience – Partner, Pelephone, Cellcom

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