ESims have become a very inexpensive and convenient way to add a sim your phone. There are some things that you need to know:
1. Is my phone or device able to use an ESim? An Esim can be used in many devices that use a regular SIM including IPads, but, they need to be newer devices. Here is a basic list of Apple compatible devices, in a nutshell, IPhone XR or newer: https://cellulardata.ubigi.com/help-center/faq/esim-data-plan/apple-devices-equipped-with-esim/
Here is a list of some Android devices: https://cellulardata.ubigi.com/help-center/faq/esim-data-plan/which-mobile-devices-support-ubigi-esim-android/
2. Your phone needs to be unlocked: If you financed your phone through a wireless carrier there is a chance it is locked. Usually you need to have it paid off and then they will unlock it. Make sure you do this well in advance. https://www.wikihow.com/Find-Out-if-Your-Phone-Is-Unlocked
3. There are two main types of ESims: Fully functional with phone number etc. and DATA only. I have had experience with Airalo and Ubigi with data only ESims and with Bouygues and ATT with fully functional Esims, and will explain the process and the differences.
4. The advantage of an ESim is that you can install and use it almost instantly, the disadvantage is that many of them can not be transferred between devices. So, for example, if you have a prepaid phone number and you want to move it to a new phone, you may not be able to. With a data ESim it is easy enough to just install a new one, so not a problem.
5. Many of the newer cell phones will allow you to use dual Sims at the same time, one physical and one esim. Only really new ones allow use of Dual ESims, whereas for older ones, you will have to have one physical sim and one ESim if you want to use two sims simultaneously. You can always load multiple ESims, but older phones only allow one to be active at a time. Even if you have data turned off for your home sim, be careful of roaming charges!
6. The two companies that I recommend for ESIMs are Airalo and Ubigi. They do work slightly differently, but the basic process is pretty similar. So, first, I would go to their website and decide which has the best prices and terms for your particular situation. If you are just visiting one country a single country sim will be cheaper, if you need one that covers all of Europe, or all of Asia, then a regional one will likely work better. Pay attention to whether or not tethering is allowed as this can be useful. My experience is that it usually is. https://www.airalo.com/. https://www.ubigi.com/
7. Step one is to go to the App Store and download the app for whichever one you have chosen, or you can put both apps on your phone or iPad, they don’t conflict. It is far simpler if you buy the ESim on the device you plan to use it on!! You’ll want to be on WIFI when you do this. You will need to set up an account with Airalo, and the same with Ubigi. For Ubigi, the account will be specific to the device, for Airalo, one account will contain all of your ESims regardless of device.
8. Decide which country(s) and which plan you want, pay attention to how many days. As a heavy data user I usually start with a 10gb plan ($23 on Airalo at writing, $15 at Ubigi for France). you can always top it off.
9. For Airalo, you can buy the plan ahead of time and your data and days will not start until you hook on to one of the networks covered by the plan. They have fairly good instructions on how to do this in the app, but know that it is all found under Settings-Cellular-eSims on an iPhone, and probably a similar menu on Android. One tip, when you do arrive “in country” turn it on and be sure to activate Roaming, It may take 5 minutes or so to connect the first time, but if you have trouble, reboot your phone and make sure that data roaming is turned on for the particular esim. In the Airalo app at the bottom center, you can see your ESims and purchase a top up if needed. Airalo has a separate ESim for each data plan. A note for Airalo: If you haven’t used the eSim for a long time, delete it and buy a new one. I tried to top up one that hadn’t been used in 6 months and it was a fail, delete and start over.
10. For Ubigi, the process is a touch different. You will start by installing an ESIM on your phone, They have a video and it will be quite important to turn off wifi during part of this process, be sure you understand it before attempting. Once an Ubigi ESim is on your phone you can load plans for many different countries onto the sim. (Type in WELCOME10 on first purchase for 10% off). BUT!!! Ubigi plans start when you download them, so, you may want to wait until day of departure to purchase a plan. You can set the whole thing up ahead of time, but be careful of this difference with Airalo. Remember, with Ubigi, all of the data plans use the same ESim, specific to each device.
11. In my experience the majority of ESims are data only, there are ones that come with phone numbers for instance: https://bouygues-telecom.simoptions.com/. This one comes with a French number and will go for 30 days unless you register it. It requires that you activate it in France, but then it will work in other countries. I generally recommend the physical SIM version of this one: https://orange.simoptions.com/ because I find it useful to be able to move the sim as I upgrade phones, something not provided for by these ESims. See Orange Holiday SIM
12. How do I make a Voice phone call with my Data only esim? You can make voice calls using WhatsApp, FaceTime and any number of other apps. If the people you are calling don’t have these and you need to dial a regular phone number, I find that Skype, with a small credit allows me to call any number, install this ahead of time and buy a few dollars of credit. Likewise Viber allows you to call out to any number for a small credit. If you have WiFi Calling, some cell providers do not charge roaming for making calls while on WiFi. Be careful of this, but I found my ATT service did not charge roaming when I turned it on while on wifi.
13. There are a number of other providers, I’ll list them, but I have not used them as they are generally more expensive or have limitations on duration or tethering. Also note that while some of these come with a phone number, it does not always include text messaging (SMS). Why you would want a phone number with no texting is beyond me.
https://www.simoptions.com/esim-offers/
https://www.cellularabroad.com/
If you travel a lot, and are an Android user, you might consider Google Fi. I’ve heard very mixed things about customer service and porting numbers over, so be careful of this. https://fi.google.com/about
T-Mobile has some international roaming for free, but make sure you check what is available. Very, very slow internet is not particularly useful anymore. https://www.t-mobile.com/support/coverage/international-roaming-services
Conclusion: For short trips, or trips where you need lots of data but don’t necessarily need a local phone number, an ESim is an excellent solution. With data, you can still use: WhatsApp. FaceTime, IMessage, Skype, Viber etc. I strongly suggest you put a small credit on your Skype or Viber account so that you can call regular phone numbers if you need to. If you desire a European phone number, the Orange Holiday SIM is the best thing I’ve found, my tips and tricks are here:
https://caminotips.wordpress.com/using-the-orange-holiday-sim-tips-and-tricks/
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