Recharge, data packs and USSD codes in Nepal

USSD codes work with no data connection and no app, which is exactly when you need them. Dial them like a phone number.

There are three routes and all three are common. Scratch cards are still sold in every corner shop, kiosk and bookshop in Nepal in denominations from around Rs 50 upward: scratch the panel, dial the recharge code, enter the PIN.

Digital wallets — eSewa, Khalti, IME Pay — and mobile banking apps all top up NTC and Ncell instantly, and are what most Nepalis actually use. They are also the easiest way for a visitor to recharge without finding a shop, provided the wallet is set up.

Operator apps (Nepal Telecom's own app, MyNcell) let you recharge and buy packs directly, and show what you have left more clearly than USSD.

This is the single most important habit. Data used without an active pack is billed against your main balance at pay-as-you-go rates, and a few minutes of video can eat a hundred rupees.

Both operators sell daily, weekly and monthly data volume packs, plus combo packs bundling data with on-net minutes and SMS. Prices and names change frequently, so check the current menu through the operator app or USSD data-pack menu rather than trusting a figure written on a blog.

As a rough planning figure, a month of moderate use in Nepal costs a few hundred rupees to about Rs 1,000–2,000 for heavy or unlimited-style use.

If you are a foreign visitor on an Ncell TouristPro plan, note that while you are on a tourist plan you can generally only buy other tourist packs. That is a deliberate restriction, not a bug.

Tourist plans bundle fair-use unlimited data and calls for a fixed window — Rs 595 for 7 days, Rs 995 for 14 days, Rs 1,995 for 28 days — with throttling after 10 GB on the 7-day plan and 25 GB on the 14-day plan. If your stay is longer or lumpier than those windows, a normal prepaid SIM plus volume packs is usually the better structure.

Nepali prepaid numbers stay active as long as they are used or recharged within the operator's validity window. Leave one dormant long enough and it is deactivated and eventually recycled to a new subscriber.

If you want to keep a Nepali number between visits — common for Indian nationals, NRNs and returning trekkers — a small recharge every few months is enough. Because dormancy periods have changed over time, confirm the current window with your operator rather than assuming.

Direct international dialling from a Nepali prepaid SIM is not cheap, and almost nobody does it. Nepal runs on internet calling: WhatsApp, Viber, Messenger and IMO are the default for both Nepalis and visitors, and Viber in particular is far more widely used in Nepal than in most countries.

The practical setup is a data pack plus an internet calling app. Keep a small main balance for local calls to hotels, guides and taxis, which is where a Nepali number genuinely earns its keep.