Airtel & Jio Recharge Price Hike Soon! Complete Details
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You might need to pay more for your next mobile recharge, thanks to the supposed & expected tariff hike on Airtel and Jio recharges. Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio tariff hike in 2026 is expected to take place in the next 3 to 4 months. While we have already seen a price hike on Airtel recharge and Jio mobile recharges in the past, the mobile recharge prices of Jio & Airtel are again expected to be hiked by upto 15%. Here’s everything we know so far about the supposed, upcoming Airtel and Jio recharge price hike in 2026.
Get ready for the next Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel tariff hike in 2026, likely in Q3 of FY27 between October to December as per the Centrum Institutional Research Q1FY27 telecom and internet sector preview report.
Earlier this year in April 2026, Airtel hiked the price of its Rs.859 prepaid plan to Rs.899 and silently removed cheaper plans like Rs.799, Rs.249 and others. Reliance Jio on the other hand also started the year by increasing JioHotstar plans prices in January of 2026.
While Jio has not majorly hiked existing mobile recharge prices yet in 2026, the telco has been introducing newer plans to target a higher ARPU. Be it the Jio OTT Pack worth ₹200 or the ₹459 plan with 2gb per day data + 5gb extra data and 28 days validity or the Jio ₹500 Mega Content Plan or the ₹103 Flexi OTT plan.
Here are the complete details we know so far about Airtel recharge price hike and Jio recharge hike in 2026:
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Credits: Reliance Jio
Reliance Jio hiked recharge plan prices by 12% to 25% in early July 2024 (Q2 of FY25) and in last year, the telco was rumoured to hike recharge prices by 15% by December 2025. However, that didn’t happen. This further hint towards a possible price hike soon in 2026.
While Reliance Jio in its Q2 FY26 call stated “no immediate plans” for a formal price hike, the telco did admit to nudging existing Jio subscribers to higher plans or bundled plans in an effort to boost the ARPU.
As of July 2026, Reliance Jio has not officially announced a price hike on Jio recharges. But the likelihood of it is quite evident. Centrum said in its report “with only 3+1 players, the environment for price hikes has improved, and we expect another 12-15% tariff hike in the next three to four month”
Currently, Reliance Jio is preparing itself for its upcoming Reliance Jio IPO and while the telco did not disclose the size of the issue, reports claim that the company plans to use Rs.27,500 crore of the total net proceeds to prepay, either fully or partially, debt taken by its subsidiary Reliance Jio Infocomm.
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Credits: Meta Design
Similar to Reliance Jio, the global telco company Bharti Airtel is expected to bring a price hike in Q3 FY27. We have already seen Airtel hike the price of select recharge plan(s) and remove certain cheaper recharge packs. As per reports, Airtel plans to add 5 million subscribers QOQ and is planning to increase its ARPU ₹257 per month to ₹300 per month approximately. Moreover, we have seen it time and again that when one giant telco introduces a price hike, the other follows the same. Thus, it’s highly likely that Airtel recharge price hike will take place around the same time as the Jio tariff hike.
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As of July 2026, the cheapest 28-days Jio recharge plan is the Rs.189 pack which offers 2gb total data, 28-days validity and unlimited voice. Airtel offers the same benefits at slightly more price of Rs.199.
Jio customers can find the Rs.189 plan in the Value Plans section. This could be a good option for those who need unlimited voice calling but do not have high data usage requirements. After the Jio or Airtel recharge price hike, there’s a good chance the Rs.189 Jio plan and Rs.199 Airtel plan prices might be hiked to Rs.249 or around that price.
So make sure you get your Jio or Airtel recharge done before the price hike. Many customers might not know but you can do advance recharge for Jio and Airtel and Vi
As per the Centrum report, all of the three major telcos are expected to report a 1% to 1.5% QOQ increase in ARPU in the June quarter mainly from 2G subscribers migrating to 4G and 5G networks, gaining postpaid customers and a higher number of days in the quarter. Centrum said Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio are expected to continue gaining subscriber market share at the expense of Vodafone Idea.
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FAQs
1. Is Airtel increasing recharge prices again in 2026?
Nothing is official yet, but another Airtel recharge price hike is widely expected in the next few months. Reports suggest tariffs could increase by around 12 to 15%, so if you have a recharge due soon, it may be worth doing it before the hike.
2. Is Jio also planning a recharge price hike?
Yes, a Reliance Jio recharge price hike is also being expected around the same time as Airtel. Jio has not officially announced new prices yet, but analysts believe another tariff hike could happen later in 2026.
3. When will the Airtel and Jio recharge price hike happen?
Based on current reports, the Airtel and Jio tariff hike is expected sometime between October and December 2026. The exact date is still unknown, so keep an eye on official announcements from both telecom companies.
4. Should I recharge before the Airtel and Jio tariff hike?
If your current plan is about to expire, it can be a smart idea to recharge before the expected price hike. Airtel and Jio both allow advance recharge, so you can lock in the current price before new tariffs come into effect.
5. Can I do an advance recharge before prices go up?
Yes. Both Airtel and Jio let you queue an advance recharge. It's one of the easiest ways to avoid paying higher prices if a tariff hike is announced.
Already Hiked multiple times from July 2024 till now.
Airtel 799 plan now became 899
249 plan became 299.
Data packs revised multiple times.
Now looks like we have to shift to bsnl for calling and local affordable wifi for internet.
Already we are paying almost 400 rupees per month.
6
Listen Vi provides 429 for 84 days or 149 for 28 days ,just calling and little network,swift to it atleast better than bsnl
9
4
As always, chortel will be first. Jio will not hike before ipo afaig
11
1
Ask In trading section.
3599 recharge available around 3000
They hiked the prices in 2024, so I bought a 1+1 year recharge that expires in September 2026. Now, I think I need to recharge again before the prices go up again.
Yes recharge for another years
every month Airtel is hiking the rates also it overlaps the existing plan when you recharge before existing plan is over. Airtel is a fraud company like Jio and both have horrible network. The Government too is not bothered.. Just remember the IDEA network which the BJP messed up.. Need a proper opposition which can fight this corporate party..
Only Monopoly... Nothing elese
So they keep increasing tarriff every year from now onwards and provide weak ass shit signals and weak ass connectivity.
Those who oppose this are anti national btw.
Crude oil price crumbled yet we must pay the premium for this shitty petrol if you don't pay then you are anti national.
How can a common people do recharge??
Need to shift to bsnl or have to stop using mobile
The government will cry again..
"that India is the only country with lowest data pricing" (and we will match it with global pricing very soon)..
Same goes for fuel/LPG as well..
#bitter_truth
Silently they have increased prices by 10-15 % since last hike , and now this one ...from cheapest telecom to becoming unaffordable slowly and steadily
After the July 2024 tariff hikes of around 10–25% by Jio, Airtel and Vodafone Idea, another 10-15% increase could further raise household telecom costs. With India having over 1.1 billion mobile subscribers, even a small recharge increase affects a large voter base. Rising telecom bills, combined with inflation in other essentials, could increase public dissatisfaction and become a political issue.
Postpaid also gets Hiked along with prepaid
As always, chortel will be first. Jio will not hike before ipo afaig
Airtel already started.
299 plan removed from selected states and 799 plan Hiked to 899
If you are on the web version, this should help:
postpaid?
Listen Vi provides 429 for 84 days or 149 for 28 days ,just calling and little network,swift to it atleast better than bsnl
Already Hiked multiple times from July 2024 till now.
Airtel 799 plan now became 899
249 plan became 299.
Data packs revised multiple times.
Now looks like we have to shift to bsnl for calling and local affordable wifi for internet.
Already we are paying almost 400 rupees per month.
True, we need some more value plans like the 189 one. There are very few choices available when it comes to cheaper plans like that. Not everyone needs 1.5gb per day data from their mobile network operator. The yearly value plans (only calling) exist but what if a consumer doesn't wish to get stuck with their operator for 1 entire year? Then the choices left are like peanuts.