BlueCosmo offers a range of Iridium prepaid satellite phone plans for both short-term and long-term needs. These flexible, pay-as-you-go plans are perfect for seasonal travelers, remote workers, adventurers, or anyone who needs reliable satellite communication without a monthly commitment.
Contents
- What Is an Iridium Prepaid Plan?
- Iridium Prepaid Options and Pricing
- Before Activation
- After Activation
What Is an Iridium Prepaid Plan?
An Iridium prepaid SIM card gives you access to satellite service using a fixed amount of airtime that is valid for a set period.
Here's what you should know before getting started:
- You purchase a fixed amount of airtime to use within a defined expiry period.
- No contract or monthly fee, pay only for what you need.
- No activation fees, you can activate your SIM when you're ready.
- You need to monitor your balance and expiry to ensure you have airtime when you need it. You can enable auto-refill and disable it from MyAccount.
- You can refill the card at any time.
- With prepaid service, you won’t receive a record of your calls.
- Iridium prepaid SIM cards are compatible with the Iridium 9555, 9575, and 9505A device models.
Iridium Prepaid Options and Pricing
Iridium offers global and regional prepaid plans:
- Global prepaid SIM cards will allow you to connect to the Iridium network anywhere with a clear view of the sky.
- Regional prepaid SIM cards offer the same global calling features but will only allow you to connect within the specific region of that SIM Card.
The tables below show common examples of minute increments and associated expiry dates for Iridium Global options. For up-to-date pricing and full terms and conditions, please visit:
- Iridium Global Prepaid Cards
- Iridium GO! Prepaid Cards
- Iridium Regional Plans: Iridium Canada/Alaska, Iridium Latin America, Iridium Middle East & Africa (MEA).
Iridium Global Prepaid
The table below shows the available minute increments and expiry periods for Iridium Global prepaid cards.
| Included Minutes | Validity Period |
|---|---|
| 100 | 1 Month |
| 200 | 6 Months |
| 300* | 1 Year |
| 600 | 1 Year |
| 1200 | 2 Years |
| 4000 | 2 Years |
*For the 300-minute card, airtime cannot be rolled over or extended.
Airtime Usage Rates
Incoming landline, cellular calls, and SMS/text messages are free. All outgoing rates below are per minute unless otherwise noted.
| Service Type | 100 Min | 200 Min | 300 Min | 600 Min | 1200 Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Units Included | 6,000 | 12,000 | 18,000 | 36,000 | 72,000 |
| INCOMING | |||||
| Landline/cellular | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
| SMS/Text messages | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE | FREE |
| Two-stage dialing | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units |
| OUTGOING | |||||
| Landline or cellular | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units |
| Voicemail retrieval | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units |
| Other Iridium | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units | 30 units |
| Other satellite network | 540 units | 540 units | 540 units | 540 units | 540 units |
| SMS/Text messages | 6 units/msg | 6 units/msg | 6 units/msg | 6 units/msg | 6 units/msg |
| Data | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units | 60 units |
Calculating Your Airtime — Global Prepaid
To estimate how long your balance will last, divide your total units by the burn rate for the type of call you're making. Here are some examples using the 100-minute card (6,000 units):
- A 10-minute outgoing call to a landline uses 600 units (10 × 60 units/min), leaving you with 5,400 units.
- Sending 20 SMS messages uses 120 units (20 × 6 units/msg), leaving you with 5,880 units.
- A 5-minute call to another Iridium phone uses 150 units (5 × 30 units/min), leaving you with 5,850 units.
Iridium Go! Global Prepaid
The table below shows the available data and text options for Iridium GO! prepaid cards.
| Included (Data or Text) | Validity Period |
|---|---|
| 400 Data* | 6 Months |
| 1000 Data* | 1 Year |
| 3000 Text* | 6 Months |
*GO! Data uses half a voice minute on GO! Prepaid Plans, 400 GO! Data minutes = 200 voice minutes.
Airtime Usage Rates
Incoming calls and text messages are free. All outgoing rates below are per minute unless otherwise noted.
| Service Type | 400 Data Min | 1000 Data Min | 3000 Text Messages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Units per Voucher | 12,000 | 30,000 | 9,000 |
| INCOMING | |||
| Calls and text | FREE | FREE | FREE |
| Two-stage dialed | 60 units | 60 units | 75 units |
| OUTGOING | |||
| Iridium GO! data | 30 units | 30 units | 150 units |
| Iridium to landline/cellular | 60 units | 60 units | 75 units |
| Iridium to Iridium | 30 units | 30 units | 36 units |
| Iridium to voicemail | 30 units | 30 units | 36 units |
| Iridium to data (landline/cellular) | 60 units | 60 units | 150 units |
| Iridium to data (Iridium) | 60 units | 60 units | 150 units |
| Iridium to other satellite | 540 units | 540 units | 600 units |
| Text messages (SMS) | 10 units/msg | 10 units/msg | 3 units/msg |
Calculating Your Airtime — Iridium GO!
Here are some examples using the 400 Data Minute card (12,000 units):
- 30 minutes of Iridium GO! data uses 900 units (30 × 30 units/min), leaving you with 11,100 units.
- A 10-minute voice call to a landline uses 600 units (10 × 60 units/min), leaving you with 11,400 units.
- Sending 50 SMS messages uses 500 units (50 × 10 units/msg), leaving you with 11,500 units.
Iridium Regional Prepaid
Regional prepaid cards work within the card's region and up to 12 nautical miles offshore. The table below shows the available options by region.
| Region (Plan) | Included Minutes | Validity Period |
| Canada/Alaska | 200* | 6 Months |
| Canada/Alaska | 500* | 1 Year |
| Middle East & Africa (MEA) | 500* | 1 Year |
| Latin America | 200* | 6 Months |
| Latin America | 500* | 1 Year |
Airtime Usage Rates — Canada/Alaska
Incoming voice calls and text messages are free. All outgoing rates below are per minute unless otherwise noted.
| Service Type | 200 Min | 500 Min |
|---|---|---|
| Iridium Units | 4,800 | 12,000 |
| OUTGOING | ||
| Landline or cellular (to North America) | 24 units | 24 units |
| Landline or cellular (to outside North America) | 48 units | 48 units |
| Voicemail retrieval | 18 units | 18 units |
| Other Iridium | 18 units | 18 units |
| Text messages | 12 units/msg | 12 units/msg |
| Other satellite networks | 324 units | 324 units |
| Data calls (originating within region) | 36 units | 36 units |
| INCOMING | ||
| Voice calls | FREE | FREE |
| Text messages | FREE | FREE |
| Two-stage dialed | 36 units | 36 units |
Airtime Usage Rates — Latin America
Incoming voice calls and text messages are free. All outgoing rates below are per minute unless otherwise noted. All rates apply within the card region.
| Service Type | 200 Min | 500 Min |
|---|---|---|
| Iridium Units | 12,000 | 30,000 |
| OUTGOING | ||
| Landline or cellular (from card region to anywhere) | 60 units | 60 units |
| Voicemail retrieval | 30 units | 30 units |
| Other Iridium | 30 units | 30 units |
| Text messages | 30 units/msg | 30 units/msg |
| Other satellite networks | 810 units | 810 units |
| Data calls (to landline/cellular) | 60 units | 60 units |
| Data calls (to Iridium) | 30 units | 30 units |
| INCOMING | ||
| Voice calls | FREE | FREE |
| Text messages | FREE | FREE |
| Two-stage dialed | 60 units | 60 units |
Airtime Usage Rates — Middle East & Africa (MEA)
Incoming voice calls and text messages are free. All outgoing rates below are per minute unless otherwise noted. All rates apply within the card region.
| Service Type | 500 Min |
|---|---|
| Iridium Units | 30,000 |
| OUTGOING | |
| Landline or cellular (from card region to anywhere) | 60 units |
| Voicemail retrieval | 48 units |
| Other Iridium | 48 units |
| Text messages | 30 units/msg |
| Other satellite networks | 906 units |
| Data calls (originating within region) | 102 units |
| INCOMING | |
| Voice calls | FREE |
| Text messages | FREE |
| Two-stage dialed | 150 units |
Calculating Your Airtime — Regional Prepaid
Here are some examples using the Canada/Alaska 200-minute card (4,800 units):
- A 15-minute call to a North American landline uses 360 units (15 × 24 units/min), leaving you with 4,440 units.
- A 5-minute call to a number outside North America uses 240 units (5 × 48 units/min), leaving you with 4,560 units.
- Sending 10 text messages uses 120 units (10 × 12 units/msg), leaving you with 4,680 units.
Keep in mind that calls to other satellite networks use units at a significantly higher rate across all regional plans. If you need to check your current balance at any time, you can do so through your MyAccount portal.
Before Activation
- When you order prepaid airtime, your SIM card is not activated when it is shipped to prevent airtime expiration during delivery.
-
Once you receive your card, you can activate it whenever you want by logging in to your online account.
- For detailed instructions, please visit: How To Activate Your SIM Card.
- You have 12 months to activate the SIM card from the purchase date.
After Activation
- Once activated, carefully insert the SIM card into your Iridium device.
- You can then take the device outside, power it on, and you’ll be able to register with the network, make and receive calls.
If you have any questions before you purchase, feel free to reach out to our Inside Sales team at insidesales@bluecosmo.com.
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