Before you start

Unlocked handset
Passport and the visa page with your entry stamp
Egyptian address and bank account, for postpaid

Step-by-step

1
Buy from an official operator store
Airport kiosks and operator branches register properly. Random back-street shops are where registration problems originate.
In personWho: You
2
Register against your passport
The shop takes a copy of your passport and of your visa page including the entry stamp, then registers the SIM in your name. No fingerprints or photos are required.
In personWho: You
3
Choose Vodafone or Orange for coverage
Both have strong nationwide reach. Etisalat competes on price; WE is the smallest and least consistent, particularly outside the cities.
In personWho: You
4
Move to postpaid once you have residency
Contracts require an Egyptian address and usually a local bank account.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport
Visa page with entry stamp
Egyptian address and bank account, for postpaid

Things most newcomers don’t know

They need your visa page, not just your passport.

Shops copy the passport and the visa page including the entry stamp before registering the SIM to you. Arriving with a passport but no record of your entry stamp — or with the stamp in an older passport — creates an avoidable problem at the counter.

Source: Egyptian SIM registration practice

Buy from an official store, not a street kiosk.

Registration is the whole transaction, and a SIM registered incorrectly or in someone else's name can be cut off later. The five minutes at a Vodafone or Orange branch is worth it over a marginally cheaper kiosk.

Source: community-reported, widely corroborated

WE is a genuine step down, not just cheaper.

Telecom Egypt's mobile arm is the smallest of the four and coverage and speeds are noticeably less consistent, particularly outside the main cities. Unless price is the only consideration, Vodafone or Orange is the better default.

Source: community-reported, corroborated across coverage comparisons

Use ride-hailing rather than street taxis, and you'll need data for it.

Uber and Careem both operate extensively in Cairo, price transparently and remove the fare negotiation that street taxis involve. That makes a working data connection one of the first practical necessities on arrival rather than a convenience.

Source: community-reported