Say goodbye to the hassle of local SIM cards and those annoying roaming charges! One of the best travel hacks we’ve discovered is using an eSIM. As soon as we land somewhere new, we just activate it, and we’re connected; no more airport SIM card queues. Whether you’re a digital nomad, a backpacker, or on a well-deserved vacation, you’ll find an eSIM option that suits your needs. Discover our list of the best eSIMs for international travel!
Best eSIM for Traveling Abroad
We always travel using an eSIM as it’s much more convenient and often cheaper! These are our top 3:
- ZenSim (Best eSIM for International Travel)
- Ubigi (Best eSIM for Digital Nomads)
- Saily (Best eSIM for Security)
And below you can read more about our favorite providers.
1. ZenSim (Best eSIM for International Travel)
ZenSim is a great all-around option for international travel. During our trip to Sri Lanka, we switched from Saily to ZenSim after experiencing inconsistent coverage. ZenSim worked perfectly for us! We noticed it uses multiple network providers, which likely contributes to its strong, reliable performance.
Get your ZenSim here – Use ZENSALTHAIR for a 10% discount!
Why Choose ZenSim?
- Multi-country top-ups: You can add new countries to your existing eSIM without reinstalling anything. For example, traveling to Asia with a stopover in Dubai? Just add a Dubai top-up, and it will automatically activate when you land.
- Affordable: Very competitively priced, with plans ranging from 5GB to 20GB, and unlimited data options.
- Reliable: We had no issues with ZenSim, and online reviews consistently mention stable connections across multiple countries.
- Unlimited hotspotting: Perfect if you want to use your phone as a hotspot to share data with your laptop or travel partner.
- Clear & transparent: Openly communicate fair-use limits (like 3GB/day of high-speed data), which isn’t always the case with competitors.
- Easy-to-use app: We tracked our usage and topped up our eSIM directly in the ZenSim app.
- Great customer service: Friendly, responsive support (also via WhatsApp, which we found really useful). We also liked the non-corporate vibes; it felt like a small, friendly team that actually wants to help.
Extra savings: Returning customers get 10% off future purchases and top-ups.
Note: Zensim offers only data plans, so you won’t be able to make calls while abroad unless data is activated (e.g., via WhatsApp).
2. Ubigi (Best eSIM for Digital Nomads)
Ubigi eSIM is a popular choice for travelers and businesses. When we visited Japan, we tried Ubigi. What makes it especially great for digital nomads is that it allows unrestricted hotspotting (tethering), meaning you can easily connect your laptop to your phone and work from anywhere.
Why Choose Ubigi eSIM?
- Flexible plans: Select by country or continent for more than 200 destinations. It’s possible to choose the data package you want (including unlimited plans in 75+ destinations) and for how many days, from one day all the way up to a year.
- Fast speeds: 5G is available in 65+ destinations, which is great if you rely on fast internet while working remotely.
- Easy to top up: Run out of data? Top up quickly from the app — even if you don’t have data or wifi!
- Activation on landing: The plan automatically starts on arrival at your destination, meaning you can buy up to 6 months before your trip.
- Smart IP feature: Choose either a destination IP or your home country IP, so you can browse as if you never left (useful for things like banking or streaming).
- Unlimited hotspotting: Tethering is unrestricted, making it a great option if you’re working on your laptop or traveling with multiple devices.
- Improved customer support: Now offers 24/7 support with a multilingual AI chatbot plus real agents available in multiple languages.
3. Saily (Best eSIM for Security)
Developed by the company behind NordVPN, this eSIM is known for its affordability and easy activation. You can get reliable coverage in over 200 destinations! making it a solid option for most trips.
Note: On our recent trip to Sri Lanka, we struggled to get reliable coverage with Saily. It’s worked perfectly in other destinations, so we still recommend it — just maybe not for Sri Lanka. 😉
Why Choose Saily eSIM?
- Easy to use: Saily has a fantastic app you can download to your phone, which lets you activate the eSIM quickly.
- 24/7 live chat support: Unlike many eSIMs on the market, Saily offers 24/7 support through its app. This gives travelers peace of mind should they encounter any problems or need help — particularly comforting for the activation process in a foreign destination.
- Secure and safe: From the company behind NordVPN, it’s no surprise that Saily is one of the only eSIMs with built-in security features, including web protection, an ad blocker, and a virtual location you can change in seconds.
- Flexible plans: Depending on your needs, you can choose short or long-term data plans.
- Affordable: Saily eSIMs start at 1.99 USD, depending on your chosen country.
- Activation on landing: A convenient feature that automatically activates your eSIM when you arrive at your destination (saving you from wasting data unnecessarily!).
Get your Saily eSIM here – Use SALT5 for a 5% discount
Other eSIM Options
Airhub: Unlike most eSIMs, Airhub lets you add phone calls to your package. But check the T&Cs, as some plans activate on the day of purchase rather than when you land. Click here to explore Airhub eSIM plans now
Holafly: We used Holafly during our trip to Egypt and had no problems at all! All packages come with unlimited data, so you only pay for the number of days you need, not the GB. Because of this, it’s on the more expensive end of the eSIMs we’ve used.
Airalo: Definitely one of the most budget-friendly sims, and you can easily top up data in the app (with immediate effect). However, there’s no live chat service, so customer service can be slow.
SimOptions: This is a multi-SIM platform, so you can choose the SIM that suits you (great for price comparison!). Once you buy, any issues will be sorted directly with that provider rather than with SimOptions, so make sure to check reviews before purchase. Browse all SimOptions
EasySim: Great for people traveling for work, as it supports hotspotting and expense management. Plus, they provide a travel guide for your destination. Note that users have reported some connectivity issues in certain countries.
What is an eSIM?
An eSIM is a digital alternative to a traditional SIM card. Rather than purchasing a physical card (that you insert into your phone), you can simply activate your eSIM online.
- Activate immediately: The process will differ depending on your chosen provider. Some eSIMs will activate through an app, while others might ask you to scan a QR code. The process usually takes minutes, meaning you’ll have data the moment you land at your destination.
- More secure: No more losing that little card! The SIM is built into the device, so you can switch between SIMs as you need.
- Accessible: Most phones support eSIMs, though you should always check if your phone is locked to one provider. You can check this in your SIM settings for both Android and iPhone (look for the option to ‘add eSIM’)
- Cheaper: More affordable for those planning to travel across multiple countries, since you only need to download one SIM rather than purchase multiple cards.
Note: To activate your eSIM, you’ll need a stable Wi-Fi connection, so we recommend activating it before your flight, as airport wifi can be shaky.
There is no one ‘best’ provider for eSIM; it’s really more about your travel plans, data requirements, and your budget. Consider each provider according to your needs (we hope this guide will help!).
100%! We have found eSIMs to be an absolute game-changer for our travels abroad. We can access data as soon as we land, saving us the hassle of finding a SIM provider at the airport. It ensures instant connectivity, so we can go straight through immigration and immediately use Google Maps to search for our route to the hotel or to send a message to friends or family to let them know we’ve arrived.
This depends on your provider; some will allow you to activate your sim before you travel, while others only permit you to activate your eSIM once at your destination. In general, your plan starts from the moment you activate your eSIM, so in most cases, it’s best to wait until you’ve arrived so you don’t waste data before you’ve taken off!
The first thing you should do is check if your phone is eSIM-compatible. After that, you can buy your eSIM (best done before your trip). Just ensure you don’t activate it until you land, so you don’t eat into your data plan unnecessarily. If you forget to buy an eSIM before your trip, don’t worry! In the past, we joined the airport or cafe wifi on arrival and bought and downloaded an eSIM within a few minutes. It’s super easy!
Absolutely! In most situations, especially when traveling internationally, an eSIM is better than roaming. Data roaming is usually costly, with most providers charging high rates even if you just want to check your messages. There are often many hidden charges, too, meaning you might get a nasty surprise when you receive your bill after your trip!
Unfortunately, most eSIM providers don’t allow traditional phone calls, although you can find the occasional gem! Usually, this doesn’t matter, though, as you can make calls through your data plan, for example, through Whatsapp or Facetime audio.
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