How to top up Telkom Kenya line

Continuing with the Telkom KE series, today I am going to show you how to top up your Telkom Kenya line.

The fastest way to up your line is to buy buy a Telkom scratch from a shop near you and load the airtime using the *130*PIN# shortcode just like Airtel Kenya subscribers do.

Below, find five different ways to top up your line whenever you are running low on credit.

 Note: This post may contain affiliate links. When you click on something I recommend and purchase it, I will receive a commission for the sale – at no extra cost to you. 

Use a scratch card to top up your Telkom Kenya line

  • Buy a scratch card from a retail outlet near you…could be a Kenya Shillings 20 card. Or a KSh 50 card. Or a 100 Shillings card.
  • Scratch the card to reveal the PIN.
  • Then there are two methods of input. You can either use a shortcode or load the airtime via your Telkom / Orange Kenya SIM toolkit menu.

To use the shortcodes do the following

  • Dial *130*PIN# or,
  • Dial *100#.
  • Select option 2: Top-up.
  • Select option 1: Top up via Scratch card.
  • You can then either select Top up my number or Top up other number.
  • You’ll then see this on your screen ‘Your number is 0773******. To top up please enter your scratch card number and press “send” or “OK”‘.
  • Type in the PIN and press Ok / Send.
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Using the Telkom SIM toolkit, here’s what you need to do

  • Go to the toolkit menu.
  • Next, go to Telkom / Orange Services.
  • Select Services.
  • Select Top-up.
  • Then enter the 12 digit PIN on your scratch card.
  • Press OK.

Top up Telkom Kenya line via M-PESA

Use Telkom Kenya M-PESA business number 777711 to buy airtime for your Telkom Kenya line

  • Go to M-PESA.
  • Lipa na M-PESA.
  • Pay bill. Enter business no. (which is 777711).
  • Enter account number (which is your Telkom Kenya phone number).
  • Enter amount (e.g. 20).
  • Enter your M-PESA PIN.

You can also buy Telkom airtime from Safaricom M-PESA using Pesapal paybill number 220220

  • Go to M-PESA.
  • Lipa na M-PESA.
  • Paybill (enter 220220).
  • Account no. (enter your phone no.).
  • Amount (e.g. 20).
  • Your M-PESA PIN.
  • Press Ok.

The minimum amount of airtime you can purchase via this M-PESA paybill number is KSh 10.

Pesapal may charge a certain amount for buying airtime through their service. For example, if you buy KSh 100 airtime via the paybill number 220220, you’ll be charged 2 Shillings for the service. So, KSh 102 in total – with the Sh 2 being the cost of the transaction.

Use PEWA Advanced airtime service by Telkom to top up your line

This is a service similar to Safaricom Okoa Jahazi but for Telkom Kenya subscribers.

You can use the service to borrow airtime or data bundles whenever you are running low. I wrote a post about it here – showing you how you can use it to borrow airtime / data bundles on the Telkom network.

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To top up your line with borrowed airtime, dial *133#. For more details, read this article.

Buy Telkom Kenya airtime online via credit card or debit card

  • Open your web browser.
  • Go to TelkomAirtime.com. You can also reach the website by going to Google / Bing and searching for ‘buy Telkom Kenya airtime online‘ and then clicking on the link with the address that matches the one I have mentioned.

Now, to buy airtime using your debit or credit card, obviously the card must have money in it. I, for example, use a KCB Pepea MasterCard debit card which I top up via M-PESA (using the paybill no. 522522).

Yours might be different. It could be a VISA card, Discover or AMEX. The thing that matters is that your card should be active (and be able to be used to do online shopping).

Once on the telkomairtime.com site, enter your name, your email address, your phone number, the Telkom line / number you want to top up (yours or somebody else’s), the amount (at least KSh 10), then proceed to the next page.

Select your form of payment (here’s where you choose whether you want to pay via VISA or MasterCard). Proceed to the next page (and enter your card details).

That’s it.

Use Equitel to top up your Telkom Kenya line

If you have an Equity Bank Kenya account already linked to your Equitel line (and your bank account has money in it), enter the Equitel SIM in your device.

  • Look for the Equitel SIM toolkit icon in your device’s main menu. Select that option.
  • Select the My Money option
  • Select Buy Airtime/Bundles option
  • Select your Equity Bank account number (the one you’ve linked to your Equitel SIM)
  • Select Buy Airtime
  • Select Other number
  • Select Telkom
  • Enter your phone number
  • Enter amount (e.g. 20)
  • Tap OK when you see ‘Do you want to buy KShs 20 of airtime for line 0773******
  • Enter your PIN
  • You’ll see this on your screen: ‘254773****** – Telkom will receive KSh 20. Charge KSh 0.00. To cancel, send any number or letter withing 25 seconds
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Note that Equitel / Equity doesn’t charge you to buy airtime for your Telkom line from your account, unlike the M-PESA service mentioned previously.

You can also access the same Equitel / Equity menu as the one above from a Safaricom or Airtel line by dialing the Eazzy 247 shortcode *247#.

Note that Safaricom and Airtel may charge you a fee to access the menu (e.g. from your Safaricom airtime balance), but Equity won’t charge you anything for buying credit for your Telkom line via their mobile money / mobile banking service.

If you don’t have an Equity 247 account and want one, just visit an agent location near you to register for free. Take KSh 100 – KSh 200 with you to load on your account once registration is complete.

Use Telkom Kenya T-Kash mobile money service to top up your SIM card

I haven’t used this method to load airtime on my Telkom line but it is an option available to subscribers who have already registered for Telkom’s mobile money wallet, T-Kash.

I assume it is like M-PESA’s, with a top up your own line / other number option listed somewhere in the menu. I will likely update this post to show you (step-by-step) how to use T-Kash to top up a Telkom line.

Note that there are other services you can use that I think I should bring to your attention:

  • WorldRemit
  • Chura airtime top up service in Kenya
  • Most mobile banking services in Kenya (accessible via USSD shortcodes or online)
  • Most banking apps in Kenya (in Google Play Store, Microsoft App Store and Apple App Store)

Have anything you’d like to add? Let me know in the comments section below.

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