Shoppers in Tehran's Grand Bazaar as Iran internet prices rise and the economy strains

Tehran's Grand Bazaar (file photo; a related place, not this week's events). Photo: Antoine Taveneaux, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Iran Internet Prices Jump 40% as Rial Slumps and a Mayor Is Shot Dead

Iran internet prices rose up to 40% on Oct. 23 as the rial nears record lows, inflation hits 88.7% and the mayor of Junqan is shot dead.

by AI reporter

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Economic Warfare & Trade Policy Sanctions

Iran internet prices jumped by up to 40% on Friday, Oct. 23, when the country’s two biggest mobile operators raised tariffs for data, calls and text messages. The increase landed as the rial trades near record lows, official inflation runs near 89% and, on Wednesday, Oct. 28, a town mayor in southwestern Iran was shot dead.

Iran internet prices rise up to 40%

Hamrah-e Aval, also known as MCI, and Irancell said the new rates took effect early Friday, Oct. 23, according to IranWire. Mobile data packages rose 40%, and call and SMS tariffs rose by up to 40%. Irancell also raised prices for its fixed TD-LTE and fiber-optic home internet by up to 40%.

The operators said packages bought before the change stay valid at the old price until they expire. Traffic to domestic websites is billed at half rate, and domestic messaging apps at one-third, Iran International reported. Both companies cited higher costs for equipment, network maintenance and infrastructure.

The increase was smaller than the industry asked for. Hamid Fattahi, head of Iran’s Communications Regulatory Authority, said on Oct. 18 that operators had requested a 100% rise, according to IranWire. Communications Minister Sattar Hashemi had earlier said tariff changes were “seriously” on the agenda. IranWire noted that this follows an earlier internet price hike in March 2026.

Irancell’s published price list gives a sense of the scale. A 30-day, 5-gigabyte SIM data package went from 40,410 toman to 56,570 toman, and a 30-day, 50-gigabyte package went from 383,500 toman to 536,900 toman, according to Iran International’s Persian service. A toman equals 10 rials.

The higher prices apply to a heavily restricted network. Freedom House’s 2026 report scored Iran 9 out of 100 for internet freedom, down from 13, Iran International reported. Major global platforms including X, Telegram, Instagram and YouTube are blocked in Iran, and VOA noted that authorities nearly shut down internet access nationwide for 20 days after protests in January 2026.

Rial near record lows as inflation runs near 89%

The open-market dollar sold for 269,500 toman, or about 2.695 million rials, on Wednesday afternoon, according to the tracking site Bonbast (update at 14:28 UTC, Oct. 28). About a year ago the dollar traded for roughly 1.1 million rials, Iran International reported, meaning the currency has lost more than half its value.

On Wednesday, the Statistical Center of Iran said consumer prices in the Iranian month of Mehr (Sept. 23 to Oct. 22) were 88.7% higher than a year earlier, with monthly inflation of 4.4% and a 12-month average of 76.8%, according to Iran International. Year-on-year inflation was 107% in rural areas and 85.5% in cities. Transport prices were up 128% from a year earlier, and education costs rose 23.5% in a single month.

The central bank began selling up to $2 billion through state banks in early October to support the currency, state television said, according to a Reuters report carried by Arab News. Reuters said a U.S. naval blockade and sanctions are cutting into oil exports, the government’s main source of hard currency. Mehdi Darabi, an aide to the central bank governor, told state TV the rial’s fall was “temporary” and blamed what he called false U.S. predictions of economic collapse.

The strain reaches household budgets directly. Iran’s official minimum wage is about 166.3 million rials a month, roughly $62 at the open-market rate, Iran International reported. Readers who wrote to the outlet described a weekly 4-gigabyte package rising from 330,000 to 450,000 rials. For more on the pressure campaign, see The Boston Report’s Economic Warfare hub and the Iran war tracker.

Junqan mayor shot dead

Esmail Eslami Babaheydari, mayor of Junqan in Farsan County, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, was shot and killed early Wednesday, Oct. 28, according to Iran International. Abdolali Arzhang, the province’s deputy governor for political and security affairs, confirmed the death to Fars news agency Claim by Fars (IRGC-affiliated); confirmed by Iran International and said initial assessments indicated the attack was “not security-related.”

Authorities have not identified the attacker or attackers or released further details, and no group has claimed responsibility. Some reports have described the mayor as a supporter of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Boston Report could not confirm that description in any independent source and is not reporting it as fact.

What to watch

Officials have not said whether more telecom price changes are planned. Parliament member Behnam Rezvani said on Oct. 20 that tariff increases should not exceed 30% to 40% and should match what people can afford, according to Iran International’s Persian service. The next monthly inflation figures from the Statistical Center are due in late November. Shipping pressure in the Gulf also continues, including the recent tanker attack near the Strait of Hormuz.

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