How Much Does Telegram Premium Cost? Prices by Platform and Country

Telegram Premium has no single worldwide price. What you pay depends on the country linked to your account and payment method, on whether you buy through Apple, Google or Telegram's own @PremiumBot, on the plan length and on local taxes. The only reliable way to know your price is to open the Premium screen in your Telegram app, which shows the amount for your situation before you pay.

This guide explains each factor that changes the price, shows how to check your own price on every platform, compares the ways of paying, and covers gifts, giveaways, renewals and refunds. We deliberately do not print a price list: prices differ by country, change over time, and a figure copied from a website is often wrong for you.

Why there is no single price

Telegram uses regional pricing. Telegram's Premium FAQ explains the main rules, and each one moves the number you see.

Factor 1: your country

Telegram sets prices by country, aiming to make Premium affordable in places where incomes are lower. That means two people buying the same plan on the same day can see very different amounts.

Which country counts depends on how you pay:

• Through @PremiumBot, Telegram says the currency and price of your first payment are based on the country code of the phone number on your Telegram account. Later payments are based on the country of your payment method.
• Through Apple or Google, the price follows the country of your App Store or Google Play account.

Telegram's FAQ adds a condition for local pricing: the payment card must be issued by a bank in that country and have a billing address there. A card from another country gets that country's price instead.

Factor 2: where you buy

There are three main ways to pay:

• In the iPhone or iPad app, through the App Store.
• In the Android app from Google Play, through Google Play billing.
• Through @PremiumBot, Telegram's official bot, which accepts payment cards through payment providers.

Apple and Google charge app makers a fee on in-app purchases, and that is reflected in what users pay there. Telegram's FAQ says buying through @PremiumBot is cheaper for this reason: those payments are not subject to app store fees. The trade-off is convenience, which is covered below.

Factor 3: plan length

Telegram offers monthly and longer plans. Telegram says yearly subscriptions come at a significant discount compared with paying monthly. Which plans you see can differ by platform. Gift subscriptions are offered in several fixed lengths.

Factor 4: taxes and fees

The price shown may include local taxes such as VAT or sales tax, and app store or payment fees. Telegram's FAQ notes that these are outside its control. Your bank may also add a foreign transaction fee if the charge is in a different currency from your card, which you will see on your statement rather than in Telegram.

Factor 5: time

Telegram's terms allow it to change prices, with changes applying when a subscription renews. So a price you saw last year, or one quoted on a website, may no longer apply. Always trust the amount on your own Premium screen.

How to see your Premium price

The price you see in the app is calculated for your account, country and platform, so it is the one that matters. Checking it is free and does not commit you to anything.

On Android

1. Open Telegram and tap the menu, then Settings.
2. Tap Telegram Premium.
3. Scroll to the subscribe button and the plan options. The price is shown in your Google Play currency.
4. If the button does not appear, your version of the app may not support in-app purchase. Apps installed from outside Google Play may send you to @PremiumBot instead.

On iPhone and iPad

1. Open Telegram and tap Settings.
2. Tap Telegram Premium.
3. The plans and prices appear, in your App Store currency.
4. Before tapping subscribe, read the plan length. Apple confirms the purchase with Face ID, Touch ID or your password.

On Telegram Desktop and the Mac app

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Telegram Premium.
3. Depending on the version, the app shows the price and takes you to a payment form, or opens @PremiumBot.

On Telegram Web

Telegram Web can show Premium information, but payment typically happens through @PremiumBot or on a phone. Use one of the other methods if you do not see a payment option.

Through @PremiumBot

1. Search for @PremiumBot and check that it is Telegram's official bot. Look for the exact username; copies with similar names exist.
2. Start the bot.
3. It offers the available plans with prices for your account.
4. Payment is made through a card payment form inside Telegram.

If the prices differ between your phone's Premium screen and @PremiumBot, that is expected: they are different routes with different fees.

Comparing the ways to pay

Each route has advantages beyond the price.

Paying through the App Store or Google Play

• Pros: quick, uses the payment method already on your phone, subscriptions are managed alongside your other app subscriptions, and the store's own policies apply to billing problems.
• Cons: usually more expensive because of store fees; the price follows your store country, which may not match where you live.

Paying through @PremiumBot

• Pros: usually cheaper; works from any device, including computers; the price follows your phone number's country for the first payment.
• Cons: you manage the subscription inside the bot, not in your phone's subscription list; you need a card that the payment provider accepts; local pricing requires a local card.

What does not change between routes

Whichever way you pay, you get the same Premium features, linked to your Telegram account rather than to a device. If you log in on another phone or computer, Premium is there.

A worked example of comparing plans

This example uses made-up amounts to show the arithmetic. Your actual prices will be different.

Suppose your Premium screen shows a monthly plan at 6 units of your currency and a yearly plan at 48 units.

1. Twelve months on the monthly plan would cost 6 times 12, which is 72 units.
2. The yearly plan costs 48 units for the same period.
3. The yearly plan therefore saves 24 units, provided you keep Premium all year.
4. If you are only trying Premium and might stop after two months, the monthly plan costs 12 units, far less than paying for a year up front.

The decision is not just about the lowest price per month. It is about how sure you are that you will keep using Premium. A yearly plan is a good deal only if you would otherwise pay for most of the year.

Now suppose @PremiumBot shows the yearly plan at a lower price than the App Store. The difference is the store fee. If you do not mind managing the subscription inside the bot, the bot is the cheaper route.

Country pricing: what you can and cannot do

Regional pricing raises an obvious question: can you pay a cheaper country's price? Telegram's rules are designed to stop that.

• Your phone number decides the first @PremiumBot payment, and your card's country decides the rest.
• Local prices need a local card with a local billing address.
• App store prices follow your store account's country, which Apple and Google only let you change under their own rules.

Changing your VPN location does not change any of these, because none of them depend on your internet address. Misrepresenting your country to get a lower price can break the store's or Telegram's terms and may lead to a cancelled subscription. The legitimate way to pay less is choosing the right route and plan length, which the sections above cover.

If you move to another country, your price may change at the next renewal once your payment method is from the new country. That is normal.

Gifting Premium

You can buy Premium for someone else, and gifts work differently from buying for yourself.

How gift prices work

Telegram's FAQ says gift subscriptions use a global price rather than regional pricing, so that a gift can be sent between any two countries. That means a gift may cost more than buying the same period for yourself in a country with lower prices, or less than buying for yourself in a country with higher ones.

Paying for gifts with Stars

Telegram has added the option to pay for Premium gifts with Telegram Stars, its in-app currency, as well as with money. If you already hold Stars, for example from selling something in a bot or receiving them as gifts, this can be a convenient way to give Premium. Our guide to Telegram Stars explains what Stars are, and how to pay with Stars or crypto on Telegram shows how payments with them work.

How to send a gift

The general steps are to open the person's profile, use the option to send a gift, and choose a Premium period. Our detailed guide on how to gift Telegram Premium covers each platform and what the recipient sees.

Getting Premium without paying yourself

There are a few legitimate ways to receive Premium.

Gifts from friends or family

Anyone can gift Premium to you, as above. A gift does not renew automatically, so there is nothing to cancel when it ends.

Channel giveaways

Channel owners can run Premium giveaways for their subscribers. The channel pays for a number of Premium subscriptions, and Telegram picks winners among eligible subscribers at the end. Winners receive a gift code that activates Premium. Our guide to running a Telegram giveaway explains how these work from the owner's side, which also tells you what a genuine one looks like.

Gift codes

A Premium gift code is a link that activates Premium for a set period. Genuine codes come from Telegram's official accounts or from a giveaway inside a channel you follow. They never ask you to log in on a website or share a code sent by Telegram.

"Free Premium" scams

Because Premium has real value and prices differ by country, it attracts scams. Watch for these patterns:

• "Cheap Premium" sellers who ask for your phone number and the login code Telegram sends you, claiming they need it to "activate" Premium. Anyone with that code can take over your account. Telegram and genuine sellers never need it. Our guide to never sharing your Telegram login code explains why.
• Fake gift links that open a website asking you to log in with Telegram. Real gift codes open inside the Telegram app.
• "Premium for life" offers for a one-off payment to a stranger. There is no such official product.
• Bots imitating @PremiumBot with a slightly different username. Check the exact name before paying.

If you are unsure whether something is genuine, our guide to spotting Telegram scams lists the warning signs.

Renewal, price changes and cancelling

Subscriptions renew automatically until you cancel. How you cancel depends on how you paid. Telegram's FAQ says to cancel through the same provider you used to buy.

Cancelling on iPhone

1. Open the iPhone Settings app.
2. Tap your name, then Subscriptions.
3. Choose Telegram Premium and cancel.

Cancelling on Android

1. Open the Google Play app.
2. Tap your profile picture, then Payments and subscriptions, then Subscriptions.
3. Choose Telegram Premium and cancel.

Cancelling through @PremiumBot

1. Open @PremiumBot.
2. Send it the stop command, as Telegram's FAQ describes, or follow the bot's menu to manage your subscription.
3. Check for a confirmation message.

Finding your renewal date

Knowing when the next charge is due lets you decide in time.

1. On iPhone, the Subscriptions list in the Settings app shows the renewal date under Telegram Premium.
2. On Android, the Google Play subscriptions list shows the next billing date.
3. For @PremiumBot, the bot's messages and your payment receipts show when you paid; the next charge follows one plan period later.
4. The Telegram Premium screen in the app may also show when your current Premium period ends.

Set a reminder a few days before, especially for a yearly plan, where a forgotten renewal is a larger charge.

What happens after you cancel

Telegram's FAQ says Premium stays active until the end of the period you have already paid for. After that, Premium features switch off. Your messages and chats remain; only extras such as larger limits stop. Any content that depended on Premium, like extra pinned chats beyond the free limit, may be reduced to what free accounts allow.

Deleting the app does not cancel

Uninstalling Telegram does not stop a subscription. Telegram's FAQ notes that deleting your Telegram account does end @PremiumBot recurring payments, but subscriptions made through Apple or Google must be cancelled in their stores.

Refunds

Telegram's terms say charges are generally non-refundable, and cancelling part-way through a period does not return the unused part. For purchases made through the App Store or Google Play, the store's own refund process may apply, and you can request a refund there. Do not count on getting one.

When payment or activation goes wrong

Most purchases go through without a hitch. When they do not, the cause is usually one of the following.

Cause 1: the card is declined

How to recognise it: the payment form returns an error, or your bank app shows a declined attempt.

1. Check that your card allows online and international payments. Some banks block them by default.
2. Complete any security check your bank asks for, such as a confirmation in its app.
3. Try a different card, or switch route: if @PremiumBot fails, try the app store, and the other way round.

If that does not work: call your bank and ask why the payment was blocked. Some banks reject payments to certain merchant categories.

Cause 2: you paid but Premium is not showing

How to recognise it: you have a receipt or a store confirmation, but Telegram shows no Premium badge.

1. Fully close and reopen Telegram. Activation can take a short while to appear.
2. Check which Telegram account is open. If you use more than one account in the app, Premium belongs to the account that was active when you paid, not to all of them.
3. On iPhone or Android, use the restore purchases option on the Premium screen if one is shown.
4. Make sure the app is up to date.

If that does not work: contact Telegram support from within the app's settings, with the date and the receipt. For store purchases, the store's purchase history shows whether the charge succeeded.

Cause 3: you are being charged twice

How to recognise it: two charges for Premium arrive in the same period.

This usually means two active subscriptions: one through a store and one through @PremiumBot, or one on each of two Telegram accounts.

1. Check your iPhone or Google Play subscription list.
2. Check @PremiumBot for an active subscription.
3. Cancel the one you do not want. Each continues until the end of its paid period.

If that does not work: ask the store about a refund for the duplicate, explaining that you subscribed twice by mistake. Store policies decide whether it is granted.

Cause 4: the price on the payment screen differs from what you saw

How to recognise it: the total at checkout is higher than the plan price.

Taxes, currency conversion and store fees can be added at the final step, and your bank may add a foreign transaction fee afterwards. Read the final amount before confirming. If a card from another country is used, the price may switch to that country's level.

Premium and multiple accounts

Premium is tied to one Telegram account, not to a phone or to your app store login. If you run several Telegram accounts in the same app, each one needs its own subscription to get Premium features. Premium does raise some limits that matter to people with several accounts, so check the current Premium feature list if that is your reason for buying. Our guide to using multiple Telegram accounts explains how accounts are switched and kept apart.

Premium also unlocks Telegram's business tools, such as opening hours, location, quick replies and away messages on your profile. If those are your main reason for subscribing, our guide to Telegram Business features explains what each one does.

Before you buy: a short checklist

1. Make sure the right Telegram account is active.
2. Compare the price on your Premium screen with @PremiumBot.
3. Decide how long you are likely to keep Premium, then compare monthly and yearly costs per month.
4. Check that your card works for international online payments if using the bot.
5. Note the renewal date so you are not surprised by the next charge.
6. If you are buying for someone else, use the gift option, not your own subscription.

"Telegram Premium is not available in your region"

Some users see a message that Premium is unavailable where they are. This usually relates to payment availability in that country or store.

1. Check whether you can pay through @PremiumBot instead of the app store, or the other way round.
2. Make sure your app is up to date.
3. Ask a friend to send Premium as a gift. Gifts are priced globally and can be received across countries.
4. If none of this works, Premium may not currently be offered for your region. Check again later, as availability can change.

Other things on Telegram that cost money

People searching for the cost of Premium are sometimes looking at a different purchase. Telegram has several paid products, and none of them is included in Premium.

• Telegram Stars are an in-app currency for paying bots, Mini Apps, paid posts and gifts. Buying Stars does not give you Premium, though Stars can pay for Premium gifts.
• Gifts are collectible items you send to other users, bought with Stars. Our guide to Telegram gifts explains them.
• Collectible usernames and anonymous numbers are sold on Fragment, Telegram's marketplace. They are one-off purchases, separate from any subscription. Our guide to Fragment usernames covers buying one.
• Paid channels and paid posts are set up by channel owners, who set their own prices in Stars. Premium does not unlock them. Our article on paid Telegram channels covers how they work.
• Telegram Ads are bought by advertisers to show sponsored messages. Premium users do not see these ads, but Premium is not a way to advertise.

If a seller bundles any of these with "Premium" at a single price, be cautious: official Premium is only sold through the app, the app stores and @PremiumBot, or received as a gift.

Is the price worth it?

That depends on what you use Telegram for. Premium adds features such as larger upload limits, faster downloads, more chats and folders, voice-to-text, no sponsored messages in channels, extra customisation and more. For heavy users and channel owners these can be worth a lot; for occasional users, the free version is complete.

We cover this decision in two neighbouring guides: Telegram Premium vs free compares the features, and is Telegram Premium worth it for channel owners looks at it from a creator's point of view.

Worked examples

These are example situations to show how the rules apply. The people are illustrative.

Example: buying on iPhone, then finding the bot

Ana subscribes to the monthly plan in her iPhone app. A week later she sees @PremiumBot offering a lower price. She cancels the App Store subscription, which keeps Premium running until the month ends, and subscribes through the bot when it expires. She now manages her subscription inside the bot instead of in her iPhone settings, and she notes the new renewal date in her calendar so she knows where to cancel if she ever wants to.

Example: a student abroad

Kenji studies abroad but kept his home country's phone number on Telegram. His first @PremiumBot payment uses his home country's price, but his card is from his new country, so renewals switch to that country's price. Nothing is wrong; the rules follow the payment method after the first payment.

Example: a gift that cost more than expected

Sofia wants to gift Premium to a friend in a country where Premium is cheap. The gift price is higher than what her friend would pay locally, because gifts use a global price. She decides to send Stars instead, which her friend can use as they like.

Example: the "cheap Premium" seller

Marco finds a seller offering Premium for a fraction of the in-app price. The seller asks for his number and "the code you just got". Marco recognises the login-code scam, stops replying and reports the account.

Common mistakes

• Trusting a price quoted on a website. Prices differ by country, platform and time. Check your own Premium screen.
• Comparing a yearly price with a monthly one directly. Work out the cost per month and how long you will really use it.
• Assuming a VPN changes your price. It does not; phone number, card country and store country do.
• Forgetting to cancel in the store. Deleting the app does not stop App Store or Google Play billing.
• Expecting a refund after cancelling. You keep Premium until the end of the paid period instead.
• Buying from unofficial sellers. Never share a login code or log in through a link to get Premium.
• Subscribing twice by accident. If you switch from the store to the bot, cancel the first subscription so you are not billed twice.

FAQ

Why is Telegram Premium cheaper in some countries?

Telegram uses regional pricing so that Premium is affordable in places where incomes and living costs differ. The price you get depends on your phone number's country for the first @PremiumBot payment, then on your payment card's country, or on your App Store or Google Play country.

Is @PremiumBot cheaper than buying in the app?

Usually, yes. Telegram says payments through @PremiumBot avoid app store fees, so it offers a lower price there. In exchange, you manage the subscription in the bot rather than in your phone's subscription settings.

Can I pay for Premium with Telegram Stars?

You can use Stars to pay for Premium gifts. Whether you can pay for your own subscription with Stars depends on the options your app shows at the time. Check the Premium screen and the gift options in your app.

Does Telegram Premium renew automatically?

Yes, subscriptions renew until you cancel. Cancel through the same route you used to buy: your iPhone settings, Google Play, or @PremiumBot. Gift subscriptions do not renew.

Will the price change at renewal?

It can. Telegram's terms allow price changes, which apply when a subscription renews. Moving country or changing your payment card can also change the price for later payments.

What happens to my chats if Premium ends?

Nothing is deleted. Premium features switch off and your account returns to free limits, so extras such as additional pinned chats or larger uploads stop working, but your messages stay.

Summary

Telegram Premium does not have one price. It depends on your country, your payment route, the plan length, taxes and the time you buy. @PremiumBot is usually cheaper than the App Store or Google Play because it avoids store fees, and yearly plans cost less per month if you keep Premium all year. Gifts use a global price and can be paid with Stars. To see what you would pay, open Telegram Premium in your app's settings or start @PremiumBot, and never buy Premium from anyone who asks for your login code.