Direct answer
MTN *170# is the USSD front door to MTN Mobile Money in Ghana. Dial it from the MTN SIM that owns the wallet. It is not the airtime meter and it is not the data shop. Ranked #1 in our top 5 Ghana shortcodes because it is the code people use several times a day — transfers, agent cash-out, and merchant prompts.
Three MTN codes people mix up
*170# — MoMo wallet (this page).
*124# — airtime / call credit. *138# — data bundles and remaining GB.
USSD option numbers move when a company ships a new menu. Trust the on-screen label (Send money, Pay bill, Check balance), not a screenshot from 2023. If a path in this guide does not match what you see, follow the live menu.
What *170# is for (and what it is not)
| Task | Use | Do not use |
|---|---|---|
| See MoMo float | *170# → wallet / my account → check balance | *124# (that is airtime) |
| Send to a Ghana number’s MoMo | *170# → transfer → Mobile Money user | A vendor’s “let me dial it for you” |
| Send to a bank account | *170# → transfer → bank | Guessing the bank sort code — pick the bank name on the menu |
| Cash out at an agent | *170# → withdraw → agent (agent has their own confirm) | Giving the agent your PIN |
| Pay a shop / till | Merchant prompt, or *170# MoMoPay / pay bill | A handwritten “merchant code” from Telegram |
| Buy MTN data for this SIM | *138# (or Ewale if you prefer MoMo checkout) | *170# as if it were the bundle catalogue |
| Buy Telecel or AT data from this MTN wallet | Ewale *714*22# → Data |
*138# — that menu only vends MTN |
Typical *170# tree (labels, not frozen numbers)
MTN rearranges the home screen. In 2026 you should still find these buckets. If the number beside the label has changed, the label is still the contract.
- Transfer money — MoMo user, bank, other wallets where listed.
- MoMoPay / pay bill / merchant — till numbers, some utilities, some schools.
- Airtime and bundles — shortcuts onto MTN products; for mixed-network gifting, skip this and use Ewale.
- Financial services — loans, savings, insurance partners when offered. Read the fee line. This is not “free MoMo.”
- My wallet / my account — balance, statement, PIN change, name enquiry, limits.
- Withdraw — agent cash-out. The agent initiates or confirms on their side; you approve on yours.
Name enquiry before you send: if the menu shows the recipient name, stop when it is wrong. A “please send, I will refund” story after a wrong name is how people lose the float.
IDs, PIN, and what an agent is allowed to do
- PIN length — MTN MoMo PIN is a secret you type only on your handset. Reset flows ask for ID at an authorised channel; they never require you to read the PIN aloud.
- Registered name — the wallet is tied to the Ghana Card / SIM registration. Sending to “Kwame” when the prompt says a different legal name is your warning.
- Agents — they process cash-in and cash-out. They do not need your PIN to receive a transfer you send to their till. If they ask for PIN, walk.
- Approvals — a hanging USSD session is not a reason to dial again. Open *170# → statement, or wait for the debit SMS. Double-pay is a self-inflicted loss.
Limits and fees — how to read them without a stale table
MTN, the Bank of Ghana, and wallet KYC tier change send/receive caps. Publishing a GH₵ figure here would be wrong the week after a circular. Do this instead:
- Dial
*170#→ my account / limits (wording varies) and screenshot today’s cap. - On a send, the confirmation screen prints the fee before PIN. That line is the fee. A blog from last year is not.
- Unregistered or low-KYC wallets hit walls earlier. If a send fails with a limit error, it is often the recipient’s tier, not your airtime.
Bank-to-MoMo and MoMo-to-bank are separate products with their own fees. GCB customers who prefer the bank menu use *422# for the bank-side link.
*170# vs *110# vs Ewale
| MTN *170# | Telecel / AT *110# | Ewale *714*22# | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whose money | MTN MoMo wallet | Telecel Cash or AT Money | Debits whichever MoMo you approve |
| Send to a person | Yes | Yes | No — not a P2P wallet |
| ECG / water / DSTV | Via pay-bill tree | Via pay-bill tree | Direct utility / TV menus |
| Data for another network | Awkward or blocked | Awkward or blocked | Yes — pick recipient network |
Related: short MTN MoMo primer · all-network MoMo codes · *110# guide.
Fraud patterns that specifically abuse *170#
- Wrong-number reversal theatre. Someone “accidentally” sends you money, then asks you to reverse to a different number. Reverse only through official MTN channels; do not forward the float.
- Job / lottery / gold PIN harvest. Any script that needs your *170# PIN is theft.
- Fake ECG or WAEC merchant. Confirm the biller name on the prompt. For tokens and checkers, Ewale names itself on checkout; a private MoMo name is not ECG.
- SIM swap. If you lose signal and start getting PIN-reset SMS you did not request, call 100 and treat it as urgent. NCA SIM-fraud: 419.
Longer playbook: MoMo fraud protection · wrong transfer recovery.
When *170# fails
- “Invalid MMI / connection problem.” Not airplane mode, has GSM signal, try again. If only *170# fails but *124# works, it is a MoMo platform blip — wait; do not spray the same transfer.
- Menu in another language. Account settings usually include language. Accidental Asante Twi / French is not a new wallet.
- Ported 024 that is no longer MTN. *170# will not open MTN MoMo on a Telecel SIM. Dial *110# or check the network on Ewale lookup.
- New SIM, empty wallet. Registration and agent cash-in first. You cannot pull money from a wallet that was never created.
Buy airtime or data from the same wallet
Scratch cards still load with *134*PIN# (NCA-harmonised recharge). Digital is faster: dial Ewale *714*22# → Airtime or Data, enter the 10-digit destination, confirm the network, PIN. That is how an MTN wallet loads a Telecel student SIM at 6am without a kiosk.
Web: airtime · data. ECG tokens: electricity.
FAQ — MTN *170#
Is *170# only for MTN?
Yes. It is MTN MoMo. Telecel Cash and AT Money use *110# on their own SIMs.
Does *170# show my data balance?
No. Use *138# (or *567*4# for Mashup). *170# is cedis in the wallet.
Can I check *170# balance without a PIN?
Some views ask for PIN, some show a masked balance first. Treat any PIN prompt as sensitive. Never dictate it.
What is the difference between *170# and *171#?
*171# appears in older MTN docs as a related MoMo/merchant path. If it still opens on your SIM, follow labels. For everyday send/balance/cash-out, *170# is the code Ghana searches and dials.