If you are travelling around Panama, having mobile data is almost essential. Google Maps, WhatsApp, Uber, hotel bookings, translation apps and travel information can quickly become indispensable, especially when travelling between cities or heading into more remote areas.
Fortunately, topping up a prepaid SIM in Panama is relatively easy. The two major networks most commonly encountered by travellers are +Móvil and Tigo, and both allow you to add regular credit and then use that credit to purchase a data package.
One important thing to understand is that adding money to your phone is not necessarily the same thing as buying data. A top up puts money onto your prepaid account. You then use that balance to purchase a package, unless you have a promotion or plan where the recharge itself activates a particular offer.
Getting a Panamanian SIM card
If you are arriving in Panama as a traveller, you can purchase a prepaid SIM from one of the country's mobile operators.
Once the SIM is installed and activated, you can add money whenever you need it. It is worth keeping your Panamanian phone number somewhere safe because you may need it when logging into the operator's app or receiving verification codes.
If your phone supports dual SIMs, keeping your home SIM active while using the Panamanian SIM for mobile data can also be convenient.
The easiest method: use the operator's app
For travellers who have a credit or debit card that works in Panama, using the operator's app is generally the easiest way to manage everything.
With Tigo, the Mi Tigo app allows prepaid customers to recharge their line, purchase data packages, check their remaining data and see their balance. Tigo specifically says that prepaid customers can buy packages using their recharge balance, credit or debit cards and Yappy.
For +Móvil, the Mi Más App allows customers to recharge their cellphone and purchase service packages using a credit card.
This is particularly useful for backpackers because you don't have to find a shop every time you run out of data.
How to top up Tigo
With Tigo, you have several options.
Using Mi Tigo
Open the Mi Tigo app and select your mobile prepaid line.
Choose Recargar, select the amount you want to add and choose your payment method.
Tigo says prepaid customers can recharge through Mi Tigo, its website, authorized businesses, ATMs and other available recharge points.
Once the money appears in your account, you can use it to purchase a Paquetigo.
Buying data directly
Instead of simply adding credit, you can go directly into Mi Tigo and select a data package.
This is often the better option if you know how much data you need.
As of September 2026, Tigo has a range of prepaid packages, including packages combining data with WhatsApp and packages offering unlimited data subject to Tigo's fair usage policy. Current examples include 2 GB plus WhatsApp for 2 days at B/.2.50, 3 GB for 3 days at B/.3.50, 4 GB for 5 days at B/.5, 10 GB for 10 days at B/.8 and 15 GB for 15 days at B/.10.
Tigo also currently lists unlimited data packages, including a 7 day option for B/.7 and a 30 day option for B/.22, although promotions and conditions can change.
For a short holiday, buying a package is usually much better than simply leaving your phone to consume prepaid credit at standard rates.
You can also use *888#
If you don't want to download an app, Tigo provides a USSD menu.
Dial:
*888#
You can then follow the menu to manage your prepaid service and purchase packages.
Tigo also uses this menu for checking consumption. Its official instructions say to dial *888#, select option 3 for consultation and then option 1 for the relevant prepaid balance information.
This method is particularly useful if your data has already run out because USSD menus can generally be accessed without needing an active internet connection.
How to top up +Móvil
The process with +Móvil is similar.
You can recharge your prepaid phone through the Mi Más App, where you can also purchase packages and manage your mobile service. +Móvil's current information specifically states that the app can be used to recharge cellphone credit and purchase service packages using a credit card.
You can also purchase a recharge through other available payment channels and then use the resulting balance to purchase a prepaid data package.
The exact packages offered by +Móvil can change, so it is worth checking the current options inside the Mi Más App rather than relying on an old list of package prices.
Don't confuse "recarga" with "paquete"
This is probably the most important thing for visitors to understand.
If somebody tells you:
"Haz una recarga."
They are talking about putting money onto your phone.
If they say:
"Compra un paquete de data."
They mean purchasing a specific mobile internet package.
For example, you might add B/.10 to your prepaid account. That does not necessarily mean you now have 10 GB of internet.
You may need to use that B/.10 to purchase a package.
This distinction can save you from accidentally burning through your balance.
Where can you physically recharge?
You don't always need an app.
Panama has numerous places where prepaid customers can add credit. Tigo says its customers can recharge through authorized businesses, ATMs and recharge points, as well as through its digital services.
You may encounter small shops displaying signs for mobile top ups, supermarkets, convenience stores and other businesses where you can ask for a recarga.
You simply give the cashier your phone number and tell them how much you want to add.
For example:
"Una recarga de cinco dólares para este número, por favor."
Or:
"Una recarga de diez dólares para +Móvil."
Because Panama uses the US dollar alongside the balboa at the same value, prices are normally displayed in dollars or as B/.
You can recharge someone else's phone
Another useful feature is that you don't necessarily have to recharge your own number.
If you're travelling with a friend, you can often purchase a recharge for their number as well.
This can be extremely useful if somebody in your group has run out of data and doesn't have a functioning payment method.
Just make absolutely sure you give the cashier the correct phone number before confirming the transaction.
What if you have no data left?
This is where using the USSD system or finding WiFi becomes important.
If you have completely run out of mobile data, you may not be able to open the operator's website or app normally.
With Tigo, *888# can be used to access prepaid services and purchase or manage packages.
Alternatively, connect to WiFi at a hostel, café, hotel or restaurant and use the operator's app.
This is one reason experienced backpackers often keep a small amount of prepaid credit available rather than allowing their account to reach zero.
A useful Panama travel trick
If you are travelling through Panama for several weeks, don't automatically buy the largest package available.
Your data requirements can vary enormously.
If you're staying in a hostel with good WiFi, you might only need mobile data while walking around town or travelling between destinations.
But if you're heading into rural Panama, hiking, taking buses or travelling through areas where WiFi is unreliable, having a larger package can be extremely useful.
For someone travelling from Panama City to Boquete, for example, having mobile data available for maps, transportation apps and WhatsApp can make the journey considerably easier.
And if you're continuing Boquete to Bocas del Toro, having data can be especially useful for coordinating buses, taxis, boats and accommodation.
Don't wait until you have zero data
The best time to buy your next package is usually before you completely run out.
Check your remaining data periodically in the operator's app.
Tigo's Mi Tigo app displays your remaining data, minutes and messages and allows prepaid customers to purchase another package when they are running low.
This can prevent the classic backpacker problem of standing on a Panamanian roadside with 1 percent battery, no WiFi and absolutely no internet.
Can you use a Canadian credit card?
Often, yes, although acceptance can depend on the particular payment system and card.
If your card doesn't work inside the operator's app, another option is to recharge at a physical location using cash.
For travellers carrying some US dollars, this is one of the advantages of Panama: you don't need to exchange money into a completely different currency just to purchase a phone recharge.
The simplest strategy for travellers
For most visitors, the process can be reduced to four steps:
1. Buy and activate a Panamanian prepaid SIM.
2. Download the operator's app when you have WiFi.
3. Add credit using a card, bank service or physical recharge location.
4. Use the credit to purchase a data package.
For Tigo users, Mi Tigo and *888# provide particularly convenient ways to manage prepaid service, while +Móvil users can use Mi Más App to recharge and purchase packages.
And remember the magic words when you walk into a little Panamanian shop:
"Una recarga, por favor."
Once you've learned that phrase, keeping your phone connected while travelling around Panama becomes remarkably easy.