5 mobile money habits that cost you money

Most of us lose money on mobile money without noticing. Each transfer pays a provider fee, and person-to-person transfers also pay the government levy. We checked the official MTN MoMo and Airtel Money price lists for 2026. These five changes save you money. MTN and Airtel charge the same for most of these examples.

1. Cash out once, not five times

Each withdrawal has its own fee. Five withdrawals of K20 cost K12.50. One withdrawal of K100 costs K2.50. On K20, the fee is 12.5% of your money. On K1,000, it is 2%.

2. Send the full amount at once

Each transfer pays a fee and the levy. Three transfers of K50 cost K2.22. One transfer of K150 costs K0.74.

3. Send K500, not K501

Fees go up in steps. Sending K500 costs K1.60, and sending K501 costs K3.00. One more kwacha almost doubles the cost. Watch these limits: K150, K300, K500, K1,000, K3,000 and K5,000.

4. Send on the same network

Sending K1,000 on the same network costs K3. Sending it to another network costs K17 at MTN and K16.50 at Airtel. Ask which network the other person uses.

5. Send to a wallet, not a voucher

A voucher lets a person without a wallet collect cash, but it costs much more. At MTN, K500 costs K1.60 to a wallet and K21.10 as a voucher. Opening a wallet is free.

Try it with your own amount

Quick fee check

Send, same network K1.60
Send, other network K8.80
Withdraw cash K10

Fee and levy together. From K1 to K10,000.

Know your rights

By law, MTN, Airtel and Zamtel cannot charge you to:

deposit money into your wallet
check your balance or get your monthly e-statement
open or reactivate a wallet
reset your PIN
do a transaction that failed

If they charge you, ask for a refund. If they do not fix it, tell the Bank of Zambia.

Prices as at October 2026, levy included. Zamtel is not included because its latest public price list is from 2025. Fees change, so check your app before you send.