Claro in Peru

The figures on this page come from OSIPTEL, Peru’s telecoms regulator, and from the trade press that reported Claro’s launches, each with its date.

Claro’s share of Peru’s mobile lines

OSIPTEL counts a line as active when it sent or received calls, messages or data in the past three months. At the end of June 2026 Peru had 39.64 million such lines, and 33.39% of them ran on Claro. Bitel held 24.68%, Entel 22.72% and Movistar 18.95% on the same count. In March 2026 Claro’s figure stood at 33.35%. Number porting moved in its favour in September 2026: 190,592 lines arrived from other operators and 160,780 left, a net gain of 29,812.

On OSIPTEL’s 4G quality index for August 2026, which weighs speeds, latency, packet loss and time on 4G, Claro scored 80.07%. The national average that month was 79.84%, with 4G downloads averaging 12.92 Mbps across all operators.

When did Claro’s 4G and 5G start?

Claro announced its 4G service in May 2014. It used part of the 1900 MHz band it already held, and the first coverage was in some areas of Lima’s main districts.

Mobile 5G followed on 13 April 2021, in some areas of Metropolitan Lima, once the transport ministry (MTC) had given its approval. In the 2025 spectrum auction Claro’s company won a 100 MHz block in the 3.5 GHz band. It signed the concession contract on 17 December 2025 and switched its 5G on over that spectrum the next day, 18 December. By 9 April 2026 the 5G network reached 110 districts, from Lima and Callao to Arequipa, Cusco, Puno and Abancay. Only a phone that supports 5G will use it.

What the auction asks of Claro

The new spectrum came with duties to build. Under the ministry’s resolution of September 2025, América Móvil Perú agreed to bring 4G to 416 rural localities and along 540 km of highway corridors. A quarter of these duties falls due in the first year after the contract, and all of them within four years. Claro also took on 5G service for 49 level III hospitals, 25 national universities and 248 schools.

Who owns Claro in Peru?

The company behind the brand is América Móvil Perú S.A.C. TeleSemana described Claro as the Peruvian subsidiary of América Móvil when it reported the 4G launch in May 2014, and the 2025 auction tables list the spectrum under the América Móvil name.

Does Claro offer eSIM?

Yes, on its own lines. In October 2022 Claro opened eSIM activation to all its customers with Android phones. On Apple devices it was available from the iPhone 12 onward and on the Apple Watch.

Buying a Claro line as a visitor

OSIPTEL changed the rules for foreign customers in November 2025. Under temporary measures in force from 22 November 2025, a foreign national can take out a mobile line only in person, at a store or service point, after a biometric check against the records of Migraciones, the immigration authority. OSIPTEL linked these measures to the state of emergency declared that year, so ask in the store whether they still apply when you arrive.

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