Parking in Yerevan: Zones, SMS and Why Visitors Get It Wrong
24 September 2026
Yerevan’s paid parking system works well for anyone with an Armenian phone number, and works against everyone else at exactly the moment they need it to work. Park inside the red-marked bays, know which of the two zones you are in, and understand before you arrive that the standard payment method is an SMS that only an Armenian SIM can send.
Zone A and Zone B
Yerevan’s paid parking runs on two zones — Zone A in the centre and Zone B further out — managed by the municipal operator Yerevan Parking Service, at pcs.am. Paid bays are marked with red road markings on the tarmac. Park inside them; a car parked outside the marked lines is not considered to be using the paid system correctly, whatever the intention.
What it costs, at the time of writing
| Zone A | Zone B | |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1 hour | 300 AMD | 200 AMD |
| All day | 2,000 AMD | 1,000 AMD |
| Monthly | 18,000 AMD | 4,000 AMD |
| Yearly | 160,000 AMD | 24,000 AMD |
A caveat worth stating plainly: those tariffs come from a non-government aggregator, because the only official tariff page we could retrieve dates from 2013 and is clearly out of date. Treat the table as accurate at the time of writing rather than as a quote from a current municipal source, and check the posted signage or the pcs.am site for anything that has changed since.
When parking is actually free
Yerevan Parking Service’s own published rules give two free windows, and both are worth knowing. The first fifteen minutes are free from the moment you park, which covers a quick errand without triggering a charge. And after an hour of paid parking, the next hour carries its own fifteen-minute free period — the free window resets rather than applying only once at the very start.
Parking is free citywide between midnight and 09:00, provided the car is parked inside the marked lines. Fully electric vehicles have additional privileges under a municipal resolution passed in December 2023.
The SMS trap, and why visitors get it wrong
This is the single biggest friction point for a tourist, and it is worth understanding before you are standing next to your car trying to work it out. The standard way to pay is by SMS: send the plate number, in Latin letters, to 1045 for Zone A or 5045 for Zone B. That requires an Armenian SIM card, which almost no visitor has on their first day in the country.
Cash collection by parking attendants is not permitted. If someone offers to “mind your space” for 200 to 500 AMD, that is an informal arrangement the municipality explicitly discourages, not an official service, and paying it does not register your parking with the system.
The working alternatives, none of which require an Armenian SIM specifically: Telcell and EasyPay cash payment terminals, found widely around the city; the Idram and MobiDram digital wallets; card payment online through ArCA or Mastercard channels linked to the system; and the Yerevan Parking app, which some visitors find the most straightforward option once installed.
A local prepaid SIM solves the SMS payment method directly and is genuinely useful for the rest of the trip too — offline maps, navigation, and staying reachable. Buying one requires your passport, and Viva-MTS is the operator with the widest rural coverage if you are also planning to drive beyond Yerevan.
What happens if you get it wrong
Not paying carries a 5,000 AMD fine. Blocking other vehicles is 10,000 AMD, plus 0.5 penalty points on the driver’s record. Towing costs 20,000 AMD, also with 0.5 points attached. We cannot tell you where a towed car ends up, how to retrieve one, or what storage fees apply — no reliable source covers that procedure, so the honest advice is simply not to find out.
New paid zones were added from 2024 onward, including Zakyan Street, Pushkin Street, the Abovyan–Nalbandyan block, the Abgar Park area and Tpaghrichneri Street — so a street that was free on a previous visit may not be now. Outside Yerevan, parking is informal and generally free.
Parking in Yerevan, in short
- Two zonesA (centre), B (outer)
- Look forRed road markings — park inside them
- Free windowsFirst 15 min; midnight–09:00 citywide
- Standard paymentSMS to 1045 / 5045 — needs an Armenian SIM
- No-SIM alternativesTelcell, EasyPay, Idram, MobiDram, the Yerevan Parking app
- Non-payment fine5,000 AMD
The rest of Armenia’s driving rules, including speed limits and fines, are covered in our guide to driving in Armenia.
One less thing to work out on arrival
Ask us about local SIMs and parking when you collect your Goyerevan.am car, and we will point you to what actually works.
Questions people actually ask
How do I pay for parking in Yerevan without an Armenian phone number?
Use Telcell or EasyPay cash terminals, the Idram or MobiDram wallets, card payment through the linked online channels, or the Yerevan Parking app. The default SMS method, to 1045 or 5045, needs an Armenian SIM.
Is parking free at night in Yerevan?
Yes, citywide, between midnight and 09:00, as long as the car is parked inside the marked lines.
What happens if I don’t pay for parking in Yerevan?
A 5,000 AMD fine for non-payment. Blocking other vehicles is 10,000 AMD with penalty points attached, and towing costs 20,000 AMD, also with points. We do not have reliable information on the retrieval process for a towed car, so it is best avoided rather than tested.
Can I pay for parking in cash in Yerevan?
Not directly to an attendant — that is no longer permitted. Telcell and EasyPay cash terminals let you pay with cash into the official system instead.
How much does parking cost in Yerevan?
At the time of writing, around 300 AMD an hour in the central Zone A and 200 AMD in the outer Zone B, with 2,000 and 1,000 AMD respectively for a full day. Confirm current rates against posted signage or the pcs.am site, since the only fully official tariff page we could find was several years out of date.
Do electric cars get free parking in Yerevan?
Fully electric vehicles have parking privileges under a municipal resolution passed in December 2023. If you are driving an EV, check the current terms of that resolution before assuming free parking applies in every zone.
Last verified 25 September 2026. Zone tariffs are sourced from a non-government aggregator (repatarmenia.org); the only retrievable official tariff page dates from 2013 and is superseded. Free-parking windows, SMS short codes and payment channels are from the operator’s own published FAQ at pcs.am. Fine amounts for non-payment, blocking and towing are from the same fine schedule used across our site. Confirm current tariffs against posted signage, since this is an area with limited recent official publication.