Yoigo Spain Review: Cheap, Fast & Great (+Speedtests)

In March 2022, I decided to go on a big trip.

I visited Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Italy, Malta, Greece, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia & Slovenia.

I felt like going out again because I was at home for a year after coming back from Taiwan, also for a year, in March 2021.

There were many travel restrictions in 2021, but many were being lifted throughout the European Union.

Because of that, I wanted to take the opportunity (re-)test 41 local SIM cards, like Iliad, Airalo's Eurolink Europe eSIM, Nomad's Europe eSIM & SimCorner's Europe travel SIM cards.

And because my partner wanted me back in Australia as soon as possible, I tried to fit as many countries in one trip before heading back to Australia (yes, I am writing this from Australia now while I am fighting an angry kangaroo).

If you have read any of my SIM card buying guides before, like the Spanish one, or watched a YouTube video of mine, you know that I am crazy enough to buy and test so many SIM cards.

If this is your first Phone Travel Wiz review – welcome.

I buy and test all/most SIM cards in a country and tell you which ones are the best so that you do not have to 😎.

Yoigo is not a mobile operator active in multiple countries – only in Spain.

But you may have heard that it is a great mobile operator because it is cheap.

And it is – offering 150 GB of data for just 35 EUR.

And I say just because there are countries out there (*cough* Canada *cough*) that charge about the same (45 CAD) while only giving you 4.5 GB of data.

So yeah, Yoigo is cheap.

But does that mean Yoigo is any good?

The only way to find out is to test Yoigo and compare it with the other Spanish SIM cards (Movistar Spain, Orange Spain & Vodafone Spain).

And that is what I did – and I will share my experience in this review.

Let's get started, shall we?

Original publication: 29^th of August 2022. Last updated: 15^th of January 2024.

---

Table of Contents

Who is Yoigo?

As mentioned in the introduction, you may have never heard of Yoigo before because it is only active in Spain.

But the company behind Yoigo, Grupo Más Móvil, has been very active buying up many Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs).

For example, Hits Mobile Spain, Lebara Spain, Lycamobile Spain & Llamaya Móvil Spain are all owned by Grupo Más Móvil.

I guess the company hates competition 🤪.

But yes, Yoigo is the newest mobile operator and the cheapest one by having the most generous data allowances of the Big Four.

In Spain, you have four mobile operators:

• Movistar Spain
• Orange Spain
• Vodafone Spain
• Yoigo

Of course, I tested the other three mobile operators during my trip to Spain in March. You can read them here: Movistar Spain review, Orange Spain review & Vodafone Spain review.

You also have many Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), like Lycamobile Spain, but they are honestly not worth your time.

In the title of this review, I called Yoigo cheap, fast & great.

And if those are the words you like to see when buying something because they meet your requirements, you may want to immediately get yourself a Yoigo SIM card.

But before you do so, there are some things to be aware of with Yoigo.

Let's talk about Yoigo's coverage first, after these quick frequency details:

• 2G: 1800 MHz
• 3G: 2100 MHz
• 4G/LTE: 1800 MHz (Band 3) & 2100 MHz (Band 1)
• 5G NR: 3500 MHz (n78)
• VoLTE: Yes
• VoWiFi: No

Here you have Yoigo's APN settings:

• Name: yoigo navegador
• APN: internet

Note: leave anything not mentioned above untouched.

---

Yoigo Coverage + My Experience

You can have a mobile operator providing you 1 Gbps download speeds.

But if it covers only one street in the entirety of Spain, it will be useless.

So, how is Yoigo's coverage?

When looking at 4G/LTE availability, Yoigo has an availability percentage of 82.4% behind Orange Spain (87.7%), Movistar Spain (87.9%) & Vodafone Spain (89.1%), according to Opensignal.

Yoigo has the worst 4G/LTE coverage experience (6.9 on a 10-point scale) – (far) behind Vodafone Spain (9.2) and Movistar Spain and Orange Spain with a shared score of 9.5.

When looking at 5G NR, Yoigo is winning the 5G NR availability race (10.6%) with Movistar Spain (9.9%) and Orange Spain (9.6%).

Apparently, Vodafone Spain is far behind (4.1%).

When we take a look at the 5G NR reach, Yoigo is winning again, with a reach score of 3.3, ahead of Movistar Spain (3.1), Orange Spain (2.9) & Vodafone Spain (1.9).

So far, I have been talking about coverage from other reports, but what was my coverage experience with Yoigo?

It was excellent, honestly – I had nothing to complain about.

I do not recall having many reception blackspots – not even on the metro in Madrid.

When I took the high-speed train from Madrid to Barcelona, reception did cut off every now or then, but that is expected.

And the same applied when I took the bus to Andorra (to try out Andorra Telecom).

The closer to got to the Andorran border, the worse coverage I got and the more I was on 3G instead of 4G/LTE.

But that is normal too – nothing out of the ordinary.

But one thing that surprised me is that although Yoigo has the best 5G NR availability and reach, I barely had any 5G NR reception.

And I stayed in the two largest cities of Spain… which was odd.

Or 5G NR was not enabled (properly) to prepaid customers yet, Yoigo lied, or I was just unlucky.

But at least its 4G/LTE network is decent in urban areas.

Below, you have the coverage maps of Yoigo in mainland Spain + the Balearic Islands (consisting of Formentera, Ibiza, Mallorca & Menorca) and in the Canary Islands on the west of Morocco (consisting of Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote & Tenerife) – on the right produced by Speedtest:

Below are the coverage maps of Yoigo of Cueta (south of Gibraltar and north of Morocco) and of Melilla (north/northeast of Morocco) produced by Speedtest:

---

How to Get a Yoigo SIM Card & Prices

Now you have a basic understanding of Yoigo and the telecom market in Spain, it is now time to talk about how to actually get a Yoigo SIM card.

Unlike many countries in Europe, especially the European Union, I recommend visiting a Yoigo (Más Móvil) store to get your SIM card.

That is because of the SIM card registration laws in Spain – SIM card registration is mandatory.

• Find out which countries have SIM card registration regulations and what is required from you (lookup tool)

Spanish SIM cards are also sold by third parties, like grocery stores or convenience stores like in many other countries.

But unlike Movistar Spain, Orange Spain & Vodafone Spain, it will be much harder to find Yoigo SIM cards lying around in other stores.

So you better visit a Yoigo store – the process will be quicker (here is a Yoigo store locator).

By the way, Movistar Spain SIM cards are not sold at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) or Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport (BCN).

I got my Yogi SIM card in Madrid near Puerta del Sol (where I got my Orange Spain and Vodafone Spain SIM cards).

It was inside a mall called El Corte Inglés on an unknown floor.

Back when I was in Madrid, searching for “Yoigo” on Google Maps barely gave any results, which is why it was “a challenge” to find such a store.

Nowadays, Yoigo stores are now shown on Googe Maps, so you can use that to locate a Yoigo store or reseller (in Madrid at least).

The store I visited, known as Mas Life, seemed more of a popup store for multiple SIM card options.

Here, you can sign up for any plan under the Más Móvil brand, which includes Yoigo and various other Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) like Lebara (prepaid), Llamaya (postpaid), Más Móvil (postpaid) & Pepephone (postpaid).

So if you go to a Mas Life store, you can sign up for Lebara too.

Initially, I asked the salesperson for both a Lebara and Yoigo SIM card, in my broken Spanish, but she first signing up me up for Lebara before switching to Yoigo halfway… and only Yoigo.

Ah well, I had enough SIM cards and eSIMs to test in Spain anyway 😜.

Officially, Yoigo sells SIM cards for 0.01 EUR.

I will list all the prices in EUR (Euro).

To convert EUR to your currency (let's say GBP – (British) Pound (Sterling)) with up-to-date exchange rates, use the Wise Currency Converter tool.

Disclaimer: the SIM card prices mentioned in the review were current when I was in Spain – the offering and prices may have changed since then. To see Yoigo Spain's current starter packs, check out my Spain SIM card buying guide.

But you know that you cannot just walk into a Yoigo store, pay 0.01 EUR, and walk away – you have to purchase a plan 🤓.

You have five Yoigo plans to choose from, ranging from 9.90 EUR to 35 EUR with 100 MB of data to 150 GB.

And all plans, except for the 35 EUR one, include unlimited local/EU minutes.

I chose the 10 EUR plan with 10 GB of data and unlimited local/EU minutes for 1 month.

What does Yoigo Telekom consider to be the EU/EEA? Below is a list:

After processing registration, the salesperson handed me my SIM card, and I was off to go.

Be aware that Yougo does not have a tourist SIM card – only standard prepaid SIM cards are available.

But with generous data allowances, you probably do not need a Yoigo tourist SIM card anyway.

When I was in Madrid (and Barcelona to some extent), Yoigo did not offer eSIMs to prepaid customers.

And I do not think they will do so anytime soon.

While Yoigo has generous data allowances, just like the other Spanish mobile operators, you do have to deal with SIM card registration requirements in Spain.

While the registration process does not take more than a few minutes, you have to hand over highly sensitive information to the mobile operators.

Some travelers do not want to do this – and that makes sense.

Because hackers can steal your (critical) personal data if the mobile operator does not secure your data properly, like what happened in Australia (10 million Optus customers were affected, where info, like passport numbers, were stolen (including mine – luckily not my passport number but my boyfriend was not as lucky) or Indonesia (1.3 billion SIM card-related data was hacked).

A way to legally avoid registration is by using a travel eSIM.

During my one-month Europe trip, I also tried out Airalo's Eurolink eSIM in Spain (on the Vodafone Spain network) and the Nomad Europe eSIM (on a network I did not write down and thus forgot 🥲).

They worked exceptionally well.

While they are not necessarily cheaper than the Spanish SIM cards, they do offer good value for money (including Holafly, which offers unlimited data (I did not use Holafly back then, but many other Phone Travel Wiz readers have, and they love unlimited data packages)).

Anyway, I compare the best Spain travel eSIMs in my comparison guide and drop a few discount codes for you 😏.

---

Yoigo Plans, Bundles & Offers

Yoigo has one data-featured prepaid plan: Tarifas Móvil Prepago (Mobile Prepaid Tariffs). It features data (with 5G NR access) and minutes.

Tarifas Móvil Prepago can be activated on the Mi Yoigo app:

Disclaimer: these were the available plans at the time I was in Spain – the offering may have changed since then (including whether 5G NR is available to prepaid customers or not). To see Yoigo Spain's current plans, check out my Spain SIM card buying guide (which gets updated regularly – at least once a year).

I will list all the prices in EUR (Euro).

To convert EUR to your currency (let's say GBP – (British) Pound (Sterling)) with up-to-date exchange rates, use the Wise Currency Converter tool.

Price	Data	Local/EU Minutes	Validity
9.90 EUR	100 MB	Unlimited	1 month
10 EUR	10 GB	Unlimited	1 month
15 EUR	20 GB	Unlimited	1 month
20 EUR	35 GB	Unlimited	1 month
35 EUR	150 GB	N/A	1 month

EU Roaming

You can use your Yoigo allowances in the following EU/EEA member states without paying roaming fees:

As Yoigo does not have dedicated EU/EEA roaming allowances, you can use your full allowance without restrictions in other EU/EEA member states.

---

Yoigo Top-Up, Recharge & Balance Check

Yoigo top-ups are sold in Yoigo stores, grocery stores, corner shops & electronics shops throughout Spain.

I did not have to recharge my Yoigo SIM card because Spain was a short stop on my one-month Europe trip.

But I will still let you know about topping up your Yoigo SIM card.

---

Yoigo Spain Speed Test Results (in Barcelona & Madrid)

Alright, now it is time to talk about the speeds you can expect to get with Yoigo after covering all the other essential topics like coverage.

But before I share my 11 speed test results from Barcelona and Madrid, I do want to set the stage first and make a small comparison with Yoigo's competition.

Yoigo is regarded by Speedtest as the slowest mobile operator in Spain in Q4 of 2021.

With a Speed Score of 62.67, Yoigo is behind Vodafone Spain (45.57), Orange Spain (51.34) & Movistar Spain (62.67).

However, when we look at 5G NR, Yoigo is the second-slowest, with a median download speed of 125.2 Mbps.

This is ahead of Movistar Spain (103.99 Mbps) but behind Orange Spain (146.31 Mbps) & far behind Vodafone Spain (277.11 Mbps).

Okay, those were valuable insights – let's talk about my speed test results now.

I did speed tests with the Speedtest app at various test locations: three in Barcelona and eight in Madrid.

Here are the results:

---

My Overall Experience with Yoigo – Is It Any Good?

I would recommend Yoigo, but it would not be my first recommendation.

Getting a Yoigo SIM card was straightforward, and activation was quick.

While Yoigo has the worst 4G/LTE coverage, you should still have reception almost everywhere.

Yoigo promised that 5G NR was available to prepaid customers.

However, I had no or barely 5G NR reception in Barcelona and Madrid.

While the speeds with Yoigo were on the slower end for regional standards.

With a median download speed of 28.82 Mbps, Yoigo was slower than any other SIM card or eSIM I tested in Spain (yes, including travel eSIMs and SIM cards that roam on the networks of the other three mobile operators).

But in return, you get generous data allowances at competitive prices for Spanish standards.

With extensive coverage, generous data-features plans & decent speeds, there is not much to complain about Yoigo.

While I would recommend Yoigo, it certainly would not be my first (e)SIM (card) recommendation for Spain.

---

Spanish SIM Card Reviews

As mentioned earlier, I also tried out Movistar Spain, Orange Spain & Vodafone Spain when I was in Barcelona and Madrid.

You should read those reviews too.

>>> Movistar Spain Review | Orange Spain Review | Vodafone Spain Review <<<

Later, I will make a comparison post of the four Spanish mobile operators… but that will take a while (I have many reviews of other countries that I still need to write, so they are prioritized).

But you can still make an educated purchased after reading the Spanish SIM card reviews.

Check out my reviews page if you want to read all the other reviews I have written, including other European SIM cards from this trip.