Connectivity Guide for Uzbekistan
byCharles McQuainUzbekistan has four mobile networks: Beeline, Ucell, Mobiuz, and Uzmobile. Ucell is state-owned, Mobiuz is the former UMS, and Uzmobile is the mobile brand of the state telecom company, Uztelecom. 4G covers the cities and main tourist routes, but speeds are modest by European standards, and 5G is still patchy: Ucell has it in Tashkent and a few other cities, Uztelecom in regional centres, and Beeline's is still a pilot in central Tashkent. Most travel eSIMs that name a network use Beeline; a few use Uzmobile.
The classic Silk Road route — Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva — is well connected in the cities themselves. The long drives between them, especially across the desert to Khiva, are where you're most likely to lose signal, so download offline maps before you set out. The high-speed trains between Tashkent, Samarkand, and Bukhara are the easier way to cover those distances.
Yandex Go is the main ride-hailing app in Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva; Uber and Grab don't operate here. Telegram is the dominant messaging app, used by many hotels, guesthouses, and tour operators. Internet access in Uzbekistan is more restricted than in most of the countries we cover, so some websites may be unavailable.
IMEI Registration: Why an eSIM Is Simpler
If you buy a local Uzbek SIM, your phone's IMEI must be registered — foreigners get 60 days from the first time the SIM is used before that's required. A travel eSIM is issued abroad and connects by roaming, which the registration rule doesn't cover, so you can install it at home and use it from the moment you land.
Why trust this comparison?
We compare 13 providers for Uzbekistan using published plan data and real-world testing. Affiliate commissions keep AvailSim free but never influence rankings. Read our methodology