Nairobi - Post Report Question and Answers
Is high-speed home Internet access available? How long does it typically take to install it after arrival?
answer - Mar 2024
Internet will likely be set up for you by your social sponsor before you arrive. There are frequent outages, but overall it works well. People successfully work from home. - Mar 2024
Internet options are limited and expensive. We paid $200 a month for spotty internet from Zuku. Customer service from them was basically nonexistent. - Aug 2023
Yes, within a day. - Mar 2022
Yes, it's available. Our service was great and rivalled any western nation in terms of speed and reliability. Getting installed was a pain, which is pretty much the same experience anywhere. - Aug 2021
Yes, it's quite good and I don't remember waiting long for installation. Customer service is MUCH better than in the US! We paid about $60/month. - Apr 2021
Fast and generally works well. - Nov 2020
Surprisingly good. We get the "top of the line" package at $100/month and it is fast. We can stream movies and skype with no problem at all. Occasional outages are rare and don't last too long. - Dec 2018
Yes, high-speed fiber internet is available. At least on our compound it is. We use Zuku. For Africa, the service is very good. Compared to the States, I'd say it's slightly above average. We were able to stream movies on multiple devices at the same time and all, but service would randomly go out for no apparent reason, and at the most inopportune times. From what my wife told me, set-up was pretty quick. - Dec 2018
Yes! Usually within a couple days. - Jun 2018
Internet is available and relatively quickly installed (within a week or two), though many technicians will try for a bribe to hurry along the process.
Because of the unreliability of power here it is best to have a few UPS units in the house and a generator to avoid interruptions. - Jul 2016
yes. expensive. US$50 per month. At home I used to pay US$10. - Sep 2015
Yes, we pay for a 3G service with Orange and it is US$30 a month. It works pretty well and we can stream movies most of the time. - Aug 2015
High (comparable to U.S.), and with spotty service. Zuku is cheapest (cable TV and internet) but the service is very fragile, goes down often, and customer service is bad. This is especially irritating the more things you cloud, because you often can't download your book or music. Video streaming is next to impossible. - Jul 2015
Yes, faster than the states and cheaper. 10-50 Mbs ( US$40-60) - May 2015
Yes, US$50 for good home connection. - Dec 2014
Yes, about US$60 monthly. - Jun 2014
Yes, $60 per month is what we pay and it is fine for us. - Jun 2014
Yes, for relatively reasonable prices. The quality varies, and you will definitely want a UPC as the power goes off and on constantly. - Mar 2014
Yes, again the telecom sector here is growing. The customer service is lacking but the product isn't bad. We pay US$115 a month for unlimited. - Jul 2013
About $100 per month for decent service with JTL. Some places just have a horrible connection. Depends on your house's location. - Jun 2013
Up to 8MB, but it really only operates up to 2MB. Service can be very spotty during peak hours, but is otherwise good enough for video Skype. - Dec 2012
Widely available, costs $50 to $150. Reliability can be an issue. - Aug 2012
We have ResNet and it's good when it works - $60/month - Dec 2011
We have service through AccessKenya. It’s adequate, slow during the day and decent speed after 6pm. We cannot stream anything, and it is very frustrating. If you telecommute, it is not a good option. I’ve heard rumors of good, high-speed internet, but not sure of the company. We paid about $200 for installation and $60/mo for service. We use an extra wireless router to “bounce” the signal throughout the house. Most houses are concrete block, and so wireless doesn’t go far. - Dec 2011
Yes but can be pricey and not always high speed. - Sep 2011
Yup- it varies. American compounds have fast access. Off-compound, AccessKenya is pretty fest. - Dec 2010
Yes, there are many ways to get internet. But this is Africa, and service is sporadic or non-existent. It is never strong enough to upload photos as attachments to emails, for example. - Dec 2009
Rosslyn Ridge just hooked up Internet and it's pretty good, by Kenyan standards. - Jul 2009
It's here but it costs anywhere from US$100-$250 depending if you go wireless etc. - Jun 2008
Quality = ha, ha. Well, it is available in different forms and guises. In addition to dial-up, there are a number of services that market “wireless” Internet, in which the Internet signal is transmitted through towers, much in the same way that mobile phones operate. You then pick up the signal with a phone or wireless modem. This service is relatively new and fairly experimental, with the downside that it tends to be flaky and VERY slow sometimes (but better than speeds at work surprisingly!).Costs aren’t cheap either: figure $100/month for this. When they get it right, it could be pretty cool indeed, but right now, we’re sort of in the Middle Ages. Broadband is also available but at great cost. - Feb 2008
