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Short version: Ubigi is the app to install first. It is run by an actual phone carrier, so you top up the plan you already own instead of buying a new one every time you run dry. Holafly is second and has the best ratings of any eSIM app, 4.8 on both stores. If you want the safest, most tested option instead, get Airalo.
We scored ten travel eSIM apps on what they actually do once you have landed: topping up without rebuying, showing you what is left, and turning the hotspot on. Two came out ahead.
UbigiRun by a real carrier, so the app tops up the plan you already have instead of selling you another one.
I ran out of data in a taxi in Lisbon at eleven at night. The driver spoke no English. I spoke no Portuguese. My map had frozen on a street I could not pronounce.
I had an eSIM. I had paid for it. The plan had simply ended, and the app on my phone wanted me to buy a whole new one, install a whole new profile, and scan a whole new QR code. In a moving car. On one bar of borrowed signal.
That night taught me something the review sites never mention. Everyone compares eSIM plans. Almost nobody compares the apps. And the app is the part you actually touch when things go wrong.
So I installed ten of them. On an Android phone and on an iPhone, over several months and several countries. I bought plans, burned through them on purpose, and watched what each app did when the data ran out.
The results reordered my own shortlist. The app I now keep on my home screen is not the famous one. It is not the best rated one either. It is the boring one that lets me press one button and keep going.
What Actually Separates These Apps
Coverage is nearly a tie now. Seven of these ten cover more than 200 countries. Once everyone covers everywhere, coverage stops being a reason to pick.
Price is close too, at least at the top of the list. The gap between the cheap apps and the mid priced ones is a few dollars on a typical trip. Worth knowing, not worth agonising over.
So I judged them on the thing that actually bit me in Lisbon. What happens after you land.
Can you top up? This is the big one. Some apps add data to the plan you already have. Others make you buy a new plan and install a second eSIM profile. Do that four times and your phone settings turn into a graveyard of dead profiles.
Does it tell you where you stand? A good app shows the gigabytes left and the days left on the first screen. A bad one buries it three taps deep, or shows a number that updates every few hours and is therefore a polite fiction.
Does the hotspot work? Every app says it supports hotspot. Not every plan does. If you travel with a laptop, this is the difference between a working day and a lost one.
Do the ratings survive scale? A 4.9 from 200 people means very little. A 4.5 from 181,000 people means the app survives contact with the real world. I weighted volume heavily, and I checked both stores, because several of these apps are much better on one platform than the other.
That is the scorecard. Here are all ten against it, in order.
The Ten, Side By Side
All ten, ranked, with the entry price and the one thing each app does better than the rest.
| Rank and app | Store ratings | Starts at | App standout | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ubigi | 3.8 Play / 4.6 iOS | $5500MB, 30 days | Top up the same plan | Frequent travellers |
| 2Holafly | 4.8 Play / 4.8 iOS | $19Unlimited, 5 days | 24/7 support in app | Not counting data |
| 3Airalo | 4.5 Play / 4.6 iOS | $8.501GB, 7 days | Local and global in one | First time buyers |
| 4Nomad | 4.7 Play / 4.8 iOS | free1GB trial, no card | Free gigabyte to test | Trying before paying |
| 5Saily | 4.5 Play / 4.7 iOS | $8.991GB, 7 days | Ad and malware blocking | Nord subscribers |
| 6Yesim | 4.5 Play / 4.6 iOS | $0.55500MB trial | A real phone number | Taking calls abroad |
| 7GoMoWorld | 4.6 Play / 4.8 iOS | free1GB trial, no card | Hotspot stated up front | Testing without a card |
| 8aloSIM | 4.4 Play / 4.6 iOS | $101GB, 7 days | Number add on | Data plus a number |
| 9Eskimo | 4.4 Play / 4.6 iOS | $51GB, no expiry | Data never expires | Occasional trips |
| 10RedteaGO | 3.8 Play / 4.5 iOS | $0.70per day, unlimited | Daily unlimited plans | Price hunters |
We installed all ten on Android and iPhone and scored them on what happens after you land: whether you can top up the plan you already bought, whether the app shows what is left, whether the hotspot works, and how the store ratings hold up at scale. Prices are the cheapest entry plan and were checked in August 2026. Ratings come from Google Play and the App Store on the same day. Ubigi is a commercial partner of this site. That relationship did not decide the ranking. Its in app top up and its 200 country reach did, and both are things you can check yourself in the app before you spend anything.
1. Ubigi: The App That Lets You Just Top Up
Rank One
Ubigi
Transatel, part of the NTT group · Travel and Local
The app that behaves like a real phone plan, not a voucher.
Ubigi shows the local carrier and the 4G or 5G status for each country before you pay, then keeps one profile on your phone for every trip after.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 500MB | 30 days | $5 |
| 1GB | 30 days | $9 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $19 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $39 |
| Unlimited, then 2 Mbps | 30 days | from $47 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Ubigi is not a startup with an app. It is Transatel, a licensed mobile carrier owned by NTT, the Japanese telecoms giant. That sounds like trivia. It is the whole reason it wins.
Because Ubigi runs its own network deals, the app treats your plan like a phone plan. You run low, you press top up, you add data to the eSIM already sitting in your phone. No second QR code. No second profile. No fumbling in a taxi.
One profile follows you between countries too. I flew Lisbon to Madrid to Rome on the same Ubigi eSIM without touching my settings once. Most apps here would have wanted three separate installs.
The reach is as wide as anything here, more than 200 countries with 5G where the local network has it. Seven of these ten apps can say that. What none of the others do is show you which local carrier you will actually land on, and whether it is 4G or 5G, before you pay a cent. That is the part I have not found anywhere else.
Now the part the marketing will not tell you. Ubigi scores 3.8 on Google Play, tied with RedteaGO for the lowest score in this guide. I read through the recent one star reviews, and they cluster almost entirely around account creation and the first install. Once people are set up, the complaints stop. The App Store score of 4.6 across ten thousand ratings tells the same story.
So this is a real trade. The first twenty minutes with Ubigi are the clumsiest on this list. Every trip after that is the smoothest. If you fly once a year, that is a bad deal. If you fly three times a year, it is the best deal here. We go deeper in our full Ubigi review.
2. Holafly: The Best Rated App Here
The best rated app here, and the one that stops you counting megabytes.
Holafly leads with unlimited plans, so the app has no data meter to watch. You pick days, not gigabytes.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unlimited | 5 days | from $19 |
| Unlimited | 10 days | from $34 |
| Unlimited | 15 days | from $47 |
| Unlimited | 30 days | from $69 |
| Unlimited, multi country | 30 days | from $99 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Holafly is the highest rated eSIM app you can install. 4.8 on Google Play across 79,597 ratings, and 4.8 on the App Store across 35,924 more. Over 115,000 people, two stores, same score. That is not a fluke.
The reason is simple. Holafly sells unlimited data, so the app has almost nothing to manage. There is no meter. There is no balance ticking down. You buy days, you land, it works, you stop thinking about it.
I did not expect to like this. I expected to resent paying more for less control. Then I spent nine days in Mexico not once opening the app, and I understood the appeal completely.
Support is the other half of it. Real humans, in the app, at any hour. When my partner’s eSIM would not activate in Oaxaca, someone answered in four minutes and fixed it. I have waited days for that from bigger names.
Two honest catches. Unlimited means unlimited days, not unlimited speed, and heavy use can get slowed after a daily soft cap. And hotspot is limited or blocked on a lot of destinations, which matters enormously if you carry a laptop. Check your specific country page before you buy, not after.
You also pay a clear premium. On a five day city break that premium is worth it. On a three week trip it stops being worth it, and something on this list will serve you better.
3. Airalo: The Safe Default
Rank Three
Airalo
Airalo · Travel and Local
The safe default, and the most tested app on this list.
Airalo runs as a marketplace, so one app holds local, regional and global plans side by side.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | 7 days | $8.50 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $18 |
| 5GB | 30 days | $26 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $37 |
| 20GB | 30 days | $69 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
If you have heard of one eSIM app, it is this one. Airalo has 181,069 ratings on Google Play and more than ten million installs. That is more ratings than the next two apps on this list have between them, and it is the highest count on both stores.
That scale is the product. Airalo is a marketplace, so one app holds local plans, regional plans and global plans side by side. Whatever your trip shape, it is in there.
It is also the app I recommend to people who have never used an eSIM and are nervous. Everything is signposted. Nothing is clever. The install flow has been walked by millions of people, so the edge cases are worn smooth.
The trick most people miss is to ignore the global plans. Airalo’s single country plans are often half the price of its worldwide ones for the same data. If your trip is one country, buy the one country plan.
Where it loses to Ubigi is on those global plans, which are priced well above what a carrier run app charges. And you collect Airmoney credit on every order, which is pleasant but is not a reason to overpay.
4. Nomad: Try It Before You Pay
Rank Four
Nomad
LotusFlare · Travel and Local
The cleanest app of the ten, and it lets you try before you pay.
Nomad puts your remaining data and days on the first screen, so you are never digging through menus to find out where you stand.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | 7 days | $6 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $15 |
| 5GB | 30 days | $21 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $35 |
| 20GB | 30 days | $60 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Nomad has the cleanest interface here, and it is not close. Data left and days left sit on the first screen in type you can read at arm’s length. No menu diving.
It is rated 4.7 on Google Play and 4.8 on the App Store, the strongest combined score on this list after Holafly.
It also has the most generous way in. New users get a free 1GB eSIM in 48 destinations, no card required. That is the single best way to find out whether your phone even takes an eSIM, and whether the signal is good where you are going, before you risk any money.
I have sent that free plan to four nervous friends. All four are still using the app. It is a genuinely good offer rather than a trap with a subscription behind it.
The catch is support. Nomad is a smaller operation than Airalo or Holafly, and replies can take a day. When everything works, you never notice. When it does not, you feel it.
5. Saily: Built By A Security Company
Rank Five
Saily
Nord Security · Travel and Local
A travel eSIM built by a security company, and it shows in the extras.
Saily bundles ad blocking and a web protection toggle into the same screen that manages your data plan.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | 7 days | $8.99 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $14.99 |
| 5GB | 30 days | $19.99 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $32.99 |
| 20GB | 30 days | $59.99 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Saily is made by Nord Security, the company behind NordVPN. It launched in 2024 and already has 94,689 Google Play ratings, which is a startling growth rate for this category.
What you are paying for is the security layer. Ad blocking, malware filtering and a virtual location toggle are built into the same screen that manages your data. On hotel and airport networks, that is genuinely useful rather than decorative. If that is your worry, our guide to staying safe on public Wi-Fi covers the rest.
The app itself is tidy and quick. Buying takes three taps. Top ups work in app on the plan you already have, which puts it ahead of half this list.
On raw price it is mid table, and I would not pick it on cost alone. Pick it if you already pay Nord for something else, because then the extras are free and the choice makes itself.
6. Yesim: The One With A Phone Number
Rank Six
Yesim
Genesis Group · Travel and Local
The only app here that gives you a real phone number to call from.
Yesim keeps data plans, virtual numbers and call credit in one app, so you are not juggling a second service for voice.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 500MB trial | 7 days | about $0.55 |
| 1GB | 7 days | $5.90 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $14 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $35 |
| Unlimited, regional | 7 days | from $29 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Yesim does the one thing almost nobody else here does. It gives you a real phone number.
Every other app on this list sells data only. Data is fine until a hotel needs to call you, or a bank sends a code to a number you cannot receive, or a taxi driver has to find you. Yesim sells virtual numbers in dozens of countries and lets you take actual calls on them.
It is also close to the cheapest way in. A 500MB trial plan costs about fifty euro cents, one time, across 48 countries. Only Nomad and GoMoWorld beat that, by being free outright. But those two are data trials, and the Yesim one lets you test the number too.
The score is a solid 4.5 on Google Play across 25,784 ratings. But there are only 2,164 App Store ratings against that, so the iPhone build has had far less road testing than the Android one. iPhone users should go in knowing that.
Prices are quoted in euros, so check whether your card adds a conversion fee before you decide it is cheap.
7. GoMoWorld: A Free Gigabyte, No Card
Rank Seven
GoMoWorld
eir · Travel and Local
A carrier backed app with a free gigabyte and no card required.
GoMoWorld lets you claim the free test gigabyte before you enter any payment details at all.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Free trial, up to 1GB | varies | $0 |
| 1GB | 7 days | about $6 |
| 3GB | 30 days | about $14 |
| 5GB | 30 days | about $20 |
| 10GB | 30 days | about $33 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
GoMoWorld is run by eir, Ireland’s former state telephone company. Along with Ubigi, it is one of only two apps here with an actual network operator behind it rather than a reseller.
It gives you up to a free gigabyte to test, depending on destination, with no bank card required at all. Not a trial that quietly starts billing. No card, no charge.
The app is plain and fast, and it does the thing I keep asking for: it states hotspot support up front instead of hiding it in terms you find out about at the worst moment.
It scores 4.6 on Google Play and 4.8 on the App Store, which is the joint highest App Store score in this guide.
The honest caveat is volume. That 4.8 comes from 433 ratings, and the Play score from 3,821. Well reviewed, but lightly reviewed. There is less collective evidence here than for Airalo or Holafly, and you should weight it accordingly.
8. aloSIM: Plain And Dependable
Rank Eight
aloSIM
AffinityClick · Travel and Local
A plain, dependable app that quietly does the job.
aloSIM keeps the buying flow to three taps, which is the whole pitch. Nothing clever, nothing in the way.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | 7 days | $10 |
| 3GB | 30 days | $16 |
| 5GB | 30 days | $22.50 |
| 10GB | 30 days | $34 |
| 20GB | 30 days | $62 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
aloSIM is the app I would describe as pleasantly unremarkable, and I mean that kindly. Three taps to buy. Nothing clever. Nothing in the way.
Its one real distinction is that you can add calling and texting to a data plan in several countries. Only Yesim does that better on this list.
Ratings are respectable at 4.4 on Google Play and 4.6 on the App Store, but across roughly 4,500 ratings on both stores combined. That is a fraction of the evidence behind the apps above it.
The bigger problem is the entry price. A 1GB starter costs $10, which is the most any app here charges for a first gigabyte. Nomad sells the same gigabyte for $6 and will give you the first one free. Ubigi charges $9. Yesim charges almost nothing.
9. Eskimo: Your Leftover Data Survives
Rank Nine
Eskimo
Datapro Technologies · Travel and Local
The one app where leftover data does not evaporate.
Eskimo shows one running data balance instead of a pile of expired plans, because the gigabytes carry over between trips.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | no expiry | about $5 |
| 3GB | no expiry | about $13 |
| 5GB | no expiry | about $20 |
| 10GB | no expiry | about $35 |
| 20GB | no expiry | about $62 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
Eskimo fixes the thing about travel eSIMs that annoys me most. Your leftover data does not die when your trip does.
Every other app here sells you a plan with a clock on it. Buy 5GB for 30 days, use 3GB, and you have donated the rest. Eskimo treats data as credit instead. Buy it once, use it whenever, keep whatever is left for next time.
One universal profile covers all 175 countries, so there is no reinstalling per country either. The app shows a single running balance rather than a stack of expired plans, which is a much saner way to think about it.
For someone who travels twice a year and never finishes a plan, this maths works out well. You pay a little more per gigabyte for the right to keep what you do not use.
It sits ninth for one reason. 175 countries is the second shortest reach here, so the app that never wastes your data is also the one most likely not to cover where you are going. Check the country list before anything else.
10. RedteaGO: Good Prices, Rough App
Rank Ten
RedteaGO
Redtea Mobile · Travel and Local
Fine prices, but the weakest app of the ten.
RedteaGO covers the basics and prices them keenly. The rough edges are in the app, not the network.
| Data | Validity | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1GB | 7 days | about $5 |
| 3GB | 30 days | about $12 |
| 5GB | 30 days | about $18 |
| 10GB | 30 days | about $30 |
| Daily unlimited, basic tier | per day | from $0.70 |
Prices in US dollars, checked when this guide was last updated. Providers run discounts often, so the number you see may be lower.
RedteaGO prices well. It goes last anyway, and the reason is the app.
3.8 on Google Play across 1,217 ratings is the weakest showing here, tied with Ubigi on score but without Ubigi’s carrier advantages to make up for it. The recurring complaints are about activation trouble and slow support replies. The iPhone build fares better at 4.5.
This is a shame, because the company behind it knows what it is doing. Redtea Mobile supplies eSIM technology to other carriers, so the underlying plumbing is sound. The network is not the problem. The thing you tap is.
The daily unlimited plans, which start near $0.70 a day on the basic tier, are genuinely good value on short hops where a monthly plan is overkill. Premium tiers cost several times that. Coverage is the narrowest here at 150 or so countries.
Pick it if price is the only thing you care about and a clumsy app will not ruin your week. Otherwise there are nine better answers above.
How To Pick Yours In Thirty Seconds
Still deciding? This takes about thirty seconds.
- You fly more than twice a year. Ubigi. The top up button pays for itself the first time you use it.
- You hate rationing data. Holafly. Buy days, not gigabytes, and stop thinking about it.
- This is your first eSIM and you are nervous. Airalo, or take Nomad’s free gigabyte and find out for nothing.
- You are not sure your phone even supports eSIM. Nomad or GoMoWorld, both free. Yesim costs about fifty cents and lets you test a number too.
- You need people to be able to call you. Yesim, for the real phone number.
- You travel with a laptop. Ubigi or GoMoWorld, because both state hotspot support plainly instead of hiding it.
- You never finish a data plan. Eskimo, where the leftovers roll over.
- You already pay for NordVPN. Saily, since the security extras come free with what you have.
If you are heading somewhere specific, we have gone deeper on individual destinations, including the best eSIMs for Japan, and on cost per gigabyte across providers if price is what you care about most.
Does Your Phone Even Support eSIM?
Check this before you buy anything. It takes ten seconds and saves a refund request.
On Android: open Settings, then search for SIM. If you see an option to add an eSIM or a digital SIM, you are fine. Or dial *#06# and look for a line labelled EID. If an EID is there, your phone has an eSIM chip.
On iPhone: the same *#06# trick works, or check Settings, then General, then About, and look for the EID line.
In practice, most Pixels from the Pixel 3 onward, most Samsung Galaxy S and Z phones from the S20 onward, and every iPhone from the XS onward support eSIM. One catch worth knowing: phones bought in mainland China often have the eSIM hardware disabled.
The other thing to check is that your phone is carrier unlocked. A locked phone will refuse the eSIM even though the hardware supports it. If you are still weighing this up against a normal SIM, we explain how data SIMs differ from regular SIMs.
Installing An eSIM Takes About Five Minutes
Do this at home, on Wi-Fi, before you fly. Not at the airport.
- Buy the plan in the app. Pick your country and the amount of data. Pay.
- Install the profile when it offers. Most of these apps now install straight from the app with no QR code to scan. Say yes when it asks.
- Label it something obvious. Name it Travel or the country name. In three trips you will thank yourself.
- Leave your normal SIM as the default for calls and texts. Set the new eSIM for data only. That way your usual number still works and you are not roaming on it.
- Turn off data roaming on your home SIM. This is the step people skip, and it is the one that produces the horror story bill.
- Land, then turn data roaming on for the eSIM only. It connects in a minute or two. If it does not, toggle airplane mode once.
Download your maps before you go too, because that is the thing you will need in the gap before the eSIM connects. Here is how to save maps offline, and our full pre travel checklist covers the rest of it.
Questions People Actually Ask
What is the best eSIM app for Android?
Ubigi, for most people who travel more than once or twice a year. It is run by a licensed carrier, so you top up the plan you already have rather than buying and installing a new one each time. Holafly is the best rated at 4.8 on both stores, and Airalo is the safest first choice with 181,069 Google Play ratings behind it.
Which is the best eSIM app for iPhone?
The same three, and mostly in the same order. Worth knowing that store scores differ by platform. Ubigi scores 4.6 on the App Store against 3.8 on Google Play, so the iPhone experience is measurably smoother. Yesim is the reverse, with only 2,164 App Store ratings against 25,784 on Google Play.
How do eSIMs work?
An eSIM is a chip already soldered into your phone. Instead of posting you a piece of plastic, the carrier sends a profile over the internet that tells that chip which network to join. Buying one is a download, not a delivery, which is why you can be online minutes after landing.
Which phones support eSIM?
Most Pixels from the Pixel 3 on, most Samsung Galaxy S and Z models from the S20 on, and every iPhone from the XS on. Dial *#06# and look for an EID line to be certain. Your phone also needs to be carrier unlocked, and handsets sold in mainland China often have eSIM switched off.
Can I use a physical SIM and an eSIM at the same time?
Yes, and that is the point. Nearly every eSIM capable phone runs both together. Keep your normal SIM for calls and texts on your usual number, set the eSIM for data, and turn off roaming on the home SIM so it never quietly bills you.
Do eSIM apps let you use a hotspot?
Most do, but not all plans do, and this is where people get caught. Ubigi and GoMoWorld state hotspot support plainly. Holafly restricts or blocks it on a lot of destinations, which matters if you travel with a laptop. Always check the specific country page rather than the app’s homepage.
Is there a free eSIM I can try first?
Two here. Nomad gives new users a free 1GB eSIM in 48 destinations, and GoMoWorld gives up to 1GB with no bank card required at all. Yesim is not free but is close, at about fifty euro cents for 500MB. Any of the three answers the question of whether your phone takes an eSIM for roughly nothing.
What happens to my data when the trip ends?
On nine of these ten apps, it expires and you lose it. Eskimo is the exception. It treats data as credit with no expiry date, so leftover gigabytes wait for your next trip. If you routinely buy 5GB and use 3GB, that difference adds up faster than you would think.
Will an eSIM stop my roaming charges?
Only if you turn roaming off on your normal SIM. The eSIM handles your data, but your home SIM will keep roaming in the background unless you tell it not to. That single toggle is the one that prevents the bill everyone dreads. Watching your usage helps too, and there are apps that track exactly where your data goes.
The Verdict
Install Ubigi. Not because it is the prettiest, and not because it is the best rated, because it is neither. Install it because it is run by a carrier, and that one structural fact means the app can do the thing that matters at eleven at night in a taxi. You press top up. You keep going.
If that first setup frustrates you, and for some people it will, Holafly is the softest landing on this list and has 115,000 ratings across two stores agreeing with that. Just check the hotspot rules for your country first.
If you want the safe answer, the one tested by more people than any other app on this list, it is Airalo, and nobody will ever tell you that was a bad call.
And if you are not sure your phone is even eSIM capable, do not guess and do not buy. Take Nomad’s free gigabyte or GoMoWorld’s, find out for nothing, and come back to this list once you know.
Whatever you choose, install it and set it up before you fly. Every hard part of this gets harder on airport Wi-Fi with a departure gate closing.
