How do you get a mobile phone number in Romania in 2026?

Buy a prepaid starter pack from Orange, Vodafone, or Digi. From late 2025 into 2026 Digi absorbed Telekom Romania’s prepaid customer base, so older “grab Telekom at Otopeni” tips age fast; verify live Magazin branding before you queue. Henri Coandă (OTP) airport packs often cost more for less data than city operator stores in Bucharest malls or street Magazin counters: Living in Bucharest. Aula or Unirii mall Magazin desks usually stock clearer prepaid combos than arrivals kiosks.

Romania generally has no mandatory prepaid SIM registration law in force. The Constitutional Court struck earlier government mandates, so anonymity is still possible in practice. Individual retailers may still ask for a passport or ID for their own process. Postpaid contracts usually want residence documents and a CNP. Bring an unlocked phone and a small lei cash float for top-up vouchers if card top-ups fail for foreign cards. Keep packaging until SMS codes succeed for bank onboarding.

Stay prepaid until residence, address proof, and banking calm down: Paperwork after moving. Travel eSIM or roaming covers the flight and first café hours, yet local OTPs still favour a Romanian number for BCR, ING, or Revolut Romania flows. Digi often pairs well if you also want fixed fibre later: Utilities, internet, and transport.

Coverage is strong in Bucharest and Cluj corridors; test your operator on a weekend trip toward Brașov or Constanța before you lock a long contract. Mountain valleys and some rural roads still thin Digi’s edge versus Orange or Vodafone. Romanian still appears on some Magazin forms even when staff speak English: Bureaucracy without Romanian.