TIM in Brazil

The figures here come from Anatel, Brazil’s telecoms regulator, from TIM’s investor relations pages and earnings releases, and from TIM’s own site, each with its date.

TIM’s share of Brazil’s mobile lines

Anatel’s report on competition in the second quarter of 2026 puts TIM at 22.4% of the country’s mobile accesses. Mobile Time quoted the regulator calling TIM the only large operator to lose market share continuously across the whole series it analysed. Mobile Time added that TIM’s net additions in the quarter were negative. TIM’s own count at the end of June 2026 was 61.9 million mobile customers: 33.7 million on postpaid and 28.2 million on prepaid.

Who controls TIM?

The company behind the brand is TIM S.A. On 30 September 2026, TIM Brasil Serviços e Participações S.A. held 67% of its shares, and other shareholders held 33%. TIM’s investor pages describe TIM Brasil as a wholly owned subsidiary of Telecom Italia Finance S.A., which in turn belongs wholly to Telecom Italia S.p.A.

When TIM’s 4G and 5G started

TIM switched on 4G on 30 April 2013 in Brasília, Belo Horizonte, Fortaleza, Recife, Salvador and Rio de Janeiro, the six host cities of that year’s Confederations Cup, at 5 Mbps to begin with. It bought 4G spectrum at 2.5 GHz in 2012 and at 700 MHz in 2014. In Anatel’s 2021 auction it added frequencies at 2.3 GHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz. Agência Brasil reported that TIM, Claro and Vivo were the first operators to offer pure 5G in Brasília, on 6 July 2022. Under 2022, TIM’s history page says its 5G went next to São Paulo, Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro, and records 5G coverage in all 27 state capitals. Its coverage map notes that this 5G uses the 3,500 MHz band by preference.

How far does TIM’s signal reach?

On 31 October 2025 TIM reported 5G in 1,000 cities. The same report said it covered every neighbourhood of the 27 state capitals and about 75% of the urban population. In the São Paulo metropolitan area, area code 11, it had replaced the equipment at 3,000 sites across 64 cities, raising network capacity by 40%. TIM also shares network infrastructure with Telefônica Brasil, the company behind Vivo, under an agreement Anatel approved in 2020.

eSIM and prepaid lines

Every TIM plan for individuals can switch to eSIM through the Portal Troca Chip, and swapping a physical chip for an eSIM there is free. TIM says a customer does not need to change chip for 5G, only a compatible phone and a place inside 5G coverage. For prepaid lines, Anatel’s registration page lists a CPF number, a date of birth and a home postal code among the details, and a chip with wrong or missing data is not activated.

Install the eSIMSwitch it on after landingNo connection