Belize is well served by cellular service that covers most of the country and certain marine areas close to major coastal population centers. The major telecommunication company is the government owned Belize Telemedia Limited. The second company SMART SPEEDNET is privately held. Tourists and business visitors to Belize may want to read our Internet and Satellite Access In Belize article.
Belize Telemedia Ltd. offers its cellular service under the “Digicell,” brand, a digital service on the GSM dual band 850/1900 MHz technology, and on 4G LTE network provided by Huawei infrastructure. Cell plans in Belize are easy to understand. Basically they can be broken into two segments – Post and Pre Paid.
Digicell Post Paid plans are attractive for businesspersons, Belizeans or expatriates. The cell number is permanent. If you damage or lose your cell phone or the SIM card, you can get a replacement SIM for a nominal charge with your same number. As of April 2023 both DIGICELL and SMART offer eSIMS to their customers. Post Paid Plans are Offered under the Digi Premier Plan which has the following requirements:
Current Passport or Belize Social Security Card. A non-Belizean resident must produce evidence of intended Belizean residence for the next 12 months. A deposit may be required. This is determined at the time of activation at Digi locations. In 2016 both companies began offering 4G cellphones and devices at discounted prices. Cell phones are available for purchase from both carriers on monthly loan payment plans that work out to about 35% above the cost of purchasing a cell phone at local cell phone distributors. Many Belizeans use U.S. carrier cell phones that are unlocked to be able to connect to the local cell phone companies. Some of the places to buy cell phones in Belize are from the cell phone companies and from bricks and mortar mom and pop phone shops.
Digicell Service Plans With DigiNet Bundle
In 2018 BTL rolled out its Internet Fibre Network. Apart from very basic Internet access via high-speed fibre, it also rolled out its Diginet Bundle Plans. These plans work out to approximately 50% less in cost and twice the speed of its previous offerings.
In April 2023 the company upgraded its Internet Services:
DigiNet Boost Plans (inclusive of GPON Modem rental)
DigiNet Entry Plan 20Mbps at $49, DigiBasic Boost 40Mbps at $79, DigiDouble Boost 80Mbps at $119 and DigiTriple Boost 150Mbps at $199.
In April 2023 DigiNet began offering its quad-play service that includes a basic IPTV bundle and increased internet speed of 200Mps for Bz $219.
SMART Cellular Service from Speednet Communications
Smart Telecom Belize offers much the same service as Digicell except that it uses the CDMA network spectrum. Smart offers slightly lower prices compared to Digicell. SMART began operating in March 2005 and is a private company. All its services are delivered over WIFI and air spectrum.
Belize Telephone and Internet system
Among the countries with the fastest download speeds and in addition to the Cayman Islands, were Puerto Rico, with an average download speed of 72.78 Mbps, and Aruba, with 61.10 Mbps. At the other end of the spectrum, and in addition to Cuba, were Suriname, with an average download speed of 9.48 Mbps, and Haiti, with 9.54 Mbps.
Belize is usually lumped in with distant Caribbean islands in regional comparisons, and this does not take into account the country’s geographical location in northern Central America. The maximum residential broadband speed offered by Diginet Belize is 200Mbps down and 100Mbps up for U.S. $110. For comparison, 10 minutes across the border in Quintana Roo Mexico, the cost for true symmetric broadband 200Mbps up and down from TELMEX is US $36. or BZ $72.
Above-average system in Central America; trunk network based primarily on fibre optic underground network backed up by microwave radio relay
Domestic: fixed-line teledensity of 10 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 55 per 100 persons
Belize International: country code – 501; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) fiber-optic telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; satellite earth station – 8 (Intelsat – 2, unknown – 6) (2008)