Djibouti - Post Report Question and Answers
Is high-speed home Internet access available? How long does it typically take to install it after arrival?
We never signed up for the embassy internet (DSL) like most people did/do, and instead just used the scratch-off internet cards. It's like you're playing the lottery, except instead of possibly winning the big one, the best-case scenario is that you're actually given the amount of internet you bought, and then the power doesn't cut out so much that period that you can actually use said internet you bought. ( In short, we weren't streaming Netflix, or anything at all, but we didn't have time for that anyway, so the scratchers, as annoying as they were, worked for us. Much cheaper than the embassy internet, especially since we didn't need all that much on a regular basis.) If you live online, it's probably best to get the embassy internet, though I'm pretty sure that wasn't without its problems as well. - Feb 2025
I believe the current embassy houses are already wired and internet can be initiated quickly. It's not very high speed, and it's very expensive, but it does generally work. Any new houses added to the housing pool can take months to get wired. In that case, many people will use WiFi pucks and just run 4G from a SIM card. - May 2022
I wouldn't call it high-speed, but it's available and pricey. - Sep 2020
It's available but costly. - Apr 2018
Hi-speed internet is available at a hefty price. For the largest package - 6MB Unlimited - it costs more than $2,000/year. It took about 2 weeks to set up. I recommend getting extenders so it's available throughout the house. Right now we only get strong connections upstairs, nothing downstairs. - Jun 2016
US$100-150 a month for really bad internet. The rule in Africa is you pay for 4 meg and you get it "when it's available". Catch 22. It's never available. But Skype works most of the time and some people even download and stream movies. I just buy them from Amazon. BFF. - Aug 2015
Yes. Various plans are available. They are on the expensive side, but not terrible. - Feb 2013
High speed! HAH! Internet is very expensive and slow. It is good enough for Skype, but connectivity will be hit or miss. Djibouti Tel has blocked Vonage. - Apr 2010
As mentioned above, when DSL became available, unrestricted band-width was $600 per month. The price has since dropped to something like US$300 per month, plus there are cheaper (and slower) options available. Dial up was coasting people around $50-$100 per month (billed on usage). - Aug 2008
Yes, very expensive. - Apr 2008
