Traviva’s pick for Europe is Ubigi: 10GB for 30 days at US$15, covering 38 countries including the UK and Switzerland.
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Prices checked (26 October 2026) · Prices in US dollars, subject to change. Prices we could not re-verify on that day are marked “check site”. Traviva may earn a commission from some links; affiliate disclosure.
Europe SIM card and eSIM plans at a glance
The 10GB, 30-day plan from each provider, or its unlimited plan where it sells no fixed data. Hotspot rules come from each provider’s own terms.
| Provider | Plan / data | Validity | Price | Hotspot | Notes | Deal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubigi Our pick | 10GB | 30 days | US$15 | Yes | 38 countries, incl. UK and Switzerland. Unlimited: US$62 for 30 days (60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps). Europe Extended covers 56 countries. Price checked 26 October 2026, subject to change. | See US$15 plan → |
| Nomad | 10GB | 30 days | US$23 | Yes | 35 countries, incl. UK and Switzerland. 50GB for 30 days is US$35 on sale (normally US$48). Price checked 26 October 2026, subject to change. | See US$23 plan → |
| Airalo | 10GB | 30 days | US$31 | Yes | 41 countries. Unlimited for 30 days: US$71 (checked 26 October 2026, subject to change). 10GB price checked 29 October 2026, subject to change. | US$31 · 15% off → |
| Holafly | Unlimited | 30 days | US$76.50 | 1GB a day | 33 countries, the fewest here. No fixed-data plans. Price checked 26 October 2026, subject to change. | See US$76.50 plan → |
| Saily | 10GB | 30 days | US$35.99 | Yes | 35 countries. Unlimited: US$49.99 for 15 days (5GB a day at full speed, then 1 Mbps). Price checked 26 October 2026, subject to change. | See US$35.99 plan → |
| Maya Mobile | Unlimited | 30 days | Check site | Allowed, with guidance | One global plan. Not re-verified on 26 October 2026; check the provider’s site. | Check price → |
| Simify | 10GB | 30 days | Check site | Allowed | Billed in Australian dollars. Not re-verified on 26 October 2026; check the provider’s site. | Check price → |
We may earn a commission if you buy through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we’re paid.
Prices checked 26 October 2026 on each provider’s own site and subject to change; confirm before you buy. “Check site” means we could not verify that price on 26 October. Traviva earns a commission on some of these providers, at no extra cost to you, and it does not change the table: affiliate disclosure.
“The EU abolished roaming charges” is true, and it has nothing to do with you
Every article about European eSIMs leans on Roam Like At Home. Read the regulation and it protects a specific person — a customer of a European operator. An Australian buying a Europe eSIM is not that person.
Regulation (EU) 2022/612 is the law that ended roaming surcharges. Its protections attach to a “roaming customer”, which it defines as a customer of a roaming provider whose retail contract “permits Union-wide roaming”, supplied by a “domestic provider” — an operator providing that customer’s home mobile service inside the EU.
The regulation knows perfectly well that other people roam in Europe too. It separately names “non-regulated roaming services in third countries” and gives that category transparency rules only — no price protection. An Australian travel eSIM sits on that side of the line.
So what governs the data cap on your Europe eSIM? Ordinary contract terms, the same as anywhere else. This cuts both ways and we are not going to pretend otherwise: it does not mean you are overcharged, and European roaming is genuinely cheap. It means the EU rule is not the reason, and it is not a protection you can appeal to if a plan throttles you.
There is a useful number buried in this. BEREC, the European regulators’ body, publishes what operators actually charge people roaming in from outside the EEA. In its benchmark report the rest-of-world retail data rate was €5.16 per GB for the third quarter of 2024, down from €6.34 a year earlier. That is the thing a Europe eSIM is competing against — and on those numbers most of the plans on this page win comfortably.
“Europe” is a shorter list than you think, and two big countries are off it
The roaming area named by the European Parliament is the EEA: the 27 EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Neither that list nor EFTA’s names Switzerland.
The UK is explicitly out. The House of Commons Library states that since the end of the Brexit transition period on 1 January 2021 there has been no obligation on UK operators to provide surcharge-free roaming across the EEA.
None of this binds the eSIM sellers — they draw their own country lists, which is exactly why those lists differ so much. Check the UK and Switzerland against your itinerary before you buy, because a bundle called “Europe” may cover neither.
One more assumption worth dropping: that every European country keeps 2G running as a safety net while retiring 3G, the way Deutsche Telekom did when it closed 3G in June 2021. Orange in France is doing the reverse — its own network page says 2G is switched off for good between 22 September and 20 October 2026, while 3G runs until 2028. There is no single European pattern to rely on.
Three things to set before you fly
Keep your Australian SIM switched on for SMS and 2FA. Bank and login codes still arrive by text to your Australian number; the eSIM handles your data. How phone numbers work with a travel eSIM →
Turn off data roaming on the Australian line. In your phone’s settings, set the travel eSIM as the mobile data line and switch roaming off for your Australian SIM, so you are not billed roaming charges.
“Unlimited” plans have fair-use limits. Every unlimited plan here slows down after a daily or monthly cap. Each provider’s cap and throttled speed →
What a 10GB month costs in Europe
Same plan, same duration, prices verified on 26 October 2026 only, in US dollars. “Check site” means we could not verify that price on the day.
Holafly sells no fixed-data plans anywhere — its 30-day unlimited plan is $76.50 (checked 26 October 2026), which is a different product and so is not plotted on the same scale.
Ubigi
Ubigi's 10GB for 30 days at $15 undercuts Nomad ($23) and Saily ($35.99), and its 38-country footprint beats Holafly's 33. For a long multi-country trip, Nomad's 50GB at $35 (on sale) is the standout. If you want unlimited, Ubigi's 30 days at $62 (60GB at full speed) is cheaper than Airalo ($71) and Holafly ($76.50); Saily's 15 days at $49.99 suits shorter trips. Prices checked 26 October 2026, in US dollars, subject to change.
See Ubigi Europe plans →Every verified plan
Prices in US dollars, read off each provider’s own page. Where we could not confirm a price, we say so rather than estimate.
| Provider | Fixed data plans | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|
| Saily | 10GB/30d $35.99 · other sizes: Check site | 15d $49.99 · other lengths: Check site |
| Airalo | Check site | 30d $71 · other lengths: Check site |
| Nomad | 10GB/30d $23 · 50GB/30d $35 (sale) · other sizes: Check site | Check site |
| Ubigi | 10GB/30d $15 · other sizes: Check site | 30d $62 60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps. |
| Holafly | No fixed-data plans — unlimited only | 30d $76.50 · other lengths: Check site |
| Maya Mobile | No fixed-data plans — unlimited only | Check site |
| Simify | Check site | Check site |
Provider names link to their own site. Some of those links earn us a commission — the disclosure page says exactly which, and it plays no part in which plan we call cheapest.
Every price on this page is in US dollars except Simify’s, which are in Australian dollars because it bills in A$. An Australian card adds a foreign transaction fee of around 3% to the rest, which none of them mention at checkout — what that actually costs you →
Before you choose on price
All seven providers selling in Europe now offer an unlimited plan, and none of those is unlimited. Saily gives you 5GB a day before dropping to 1 Mbps; Airalo gives you 3GB a day before dropping to 1 Mbps; Nomad gives you 2GB a day before dropping to 512 kbps; Holafly publishes no figure at all, though third-party analysis puts it near 2–3GB a day; Maya Mobile gives you 3GB a day before dropping to 10 Mbps, then 1 Mbps; Simify publishes no firm figure at all — only an approximate 1–1.5GB, and only in a troubleshooting article rather than on any plan page. Ubigi’s 30-day unlimited plan gives you 60GB at full speed before dropping to 2 Mbps.
The cap matters less than what happens after it, and it decides whether a cheaper fixed-data plan would serve you better. Every provider’s daily cap and throttled speed, in one table →
Which network you actually roam onto
An eSIM is a roaming agreement with a local carrier. In Europe, that means:
| Provider | Local network |
|---|---|
| Ubigi | Orange, Vodafone and Telia |
| Airalo | Not disclosed |
| Saily | Not disclosed |
| Nomad | Not disclosed |
| Holafly | Not disclosed |
| Maya Mobile | Not disclosed |
| Simify | Not disclosed |
How many countries does “Europe” mean?
Not the same number to each provider. Check your itinerary against the list before you buy.
| Provider | Countries covered |
|---|---|
| Airalo | 41 countries |
| Saily | 35 countries |
| Nomad | 35 countries |
| Ubigi | 38 countries, or 56 on Europe Extended |
| Holafly | 33 countries — the fewest here |
Europe country by country
One Europe eSIM is simplest for multi-country trips. If you’re staying in one country, a country plan can be cheaper; compare its price with the Europe plans above. Country prices below are Airalo’s 10GB, 30-day plan in each country, checked on Airalo’s own site on 30 October 2026, in US dollars.
| Country | Local networks | Airalo country plan uses | Airalo 10GB / 30 days | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, Free Mobile | Airalo’s France plan doesn’t name its partner network | US$17 | Paris and the TGV lines are well covered; the Alps and rural Provence less so. Orange is switching off 2G in 2026, which only matters for very old phones. |
| Germany | Telekom, Vodafone, O2 | O2 | US$16 | Expect dead spots on regional trains and in the countryside. 3G has been switched off, so you need a 4G phone. |
| Spain | Movistar, Vodafone, Orange, Digi | Orange | US$14 | The Canary Islands are sometimes listed separately from mainland Spain on regional plans, so check the list. |
| Greece | Cosmote, Vodafone, Nova | Nova and Vodafone | US$20 | Signal can drop on ferries and smaller islands; download tickets and maps before you sail. |
| Turkey | Turkcell, Vodafone TR, Türk Telekom | Türk Telekom | US$15.50 | Outside the EU, and not every Europe plan lists it. Airalo’s 41-country Europe plan does (checked 30 October 2026); check any other provider’s list. |
| Portugal | MEO, Vodafone, NOS | NOS and MEO | US$11 | The Azores and Madeira are sometimes listed separately from mainland Portugal on regional plans, so check the list. |
| Croatia | Hrvatski Telekom, A1, Telemach | Telemach and A1 | US$17 | An EU member that uses the euro. Signal is good along the Dalmatian coast but can drop between islands. |
| Ireland | Vodafone, Three, Eir | Three | US$17 | Northern Ireland is in the UK, so if you cross the border, choose a plan that lists both Ireland and the United Kingdom. |
Turkey and Switzerland are the two to double-check. Neither is in the EU, and each seller draws its own “Europe” list. Airalo’s Europe plan listed both Turkey and Switzerland on 30 October 2026. For Ubigi, Nomad, Saily and Holafly, check the provider’s own country list for Turkey before you buy — we haven’t yet confirmed theirs.
Single-country guides: France · Germany · Spain · Greece · Turkey · Ireland · Switzerland · Italy · United Kingdom
Stopping over in Dubai on the way? Europe plans don’t usually cover the UAE — Airalo’s doesn’t. Dubai eSIM guide →
When Australians go to Europe
Strictly a northern-summer destination for Australians. The UK peaks at 87,690 trips in July and bottoms at 36,850 in May; Italy peaks in September. Building a European trip around February is unusual.
Only going to Italy? Italy-only eSIM plans and networks → Only visiting one country? See France, Germany, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Ireland or Switzerland.
Europe SIM card and eSIM questions travellers ask
What is the best eSIM for Europe?
On price, Ubigi: 10GB for 30 days at US$15 across 38 countries, checked 26 October 2026. Nomad is US$23 and Saily US$35.99 for the same allowance, and Nomad’s 50GB for 30 days at US$35 (on sale) suits long trips. Prices are subject to change.
Does a Europe eSIM cover the UK and Switzerland?
Not always. Neither is part of the EU roaming area, and each seller draws its own country list. Ubigi, Nomad and Saily list both on their Europe plans (checked October 2026), but check your itinerary against the list before you buy.
Does a Europe eSIM cover Turkey?
Not always. Turkey is outside the EU and each seller draws its own Europe list. Airalo’s 41-country Europe plan included Turkey on 30 October 2026; for other providers, check the country list before you buy, or use a Turkey-only plan.
Does the EU’s Roam Like at Home rule apply to Australians?
No. Regulation (EU) 2022/612 protects customers of European operators. An Australian buying a Europe eSIM is roaming from outside the EU, so the data cap and price are set by the eSIM’s own contract terms.
How many countries does a Europe eSIM cover?
It depends on the seller: Airalo 41 countries, Ubigi 38 (or 56 on Europe Extended), Saily 35, Nomad 35, and Holafly 33.
Can I use my Europe eSIM as a hotspot?
Yes with Ubigi, Saily, Airalo and Nomad, which all allow tethering. Holafly caps hotspot sharing at 1GB a day.
Is an unlimited Europe eSIM really unlimited?
No. Saily slows to 1 Mbps after 5GB a day, Airalo after 3GB a day, and Nomad drops to 512 kbps after 2GB a day. Ubigi’s 30-day unlimited plan gives you 60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps.
Will my phone work in Europe?
A 4G phone with eSIM support will work in most places, but do not rely on older networks. Deutsche Telekom closed 3G in Germany in June 2021, and Orange is switching off 2G in France between 22 September and 20 October 2026.
Do I need a SIM card for Europe?
Not a physical one if your phone supports eSIM. A travel eSIM gives you data in Europe without swapping your Australian SIM card out. If your phone has no eSIM support, buy a physical travel SIM card before you leave or at the airport instead.
Travel SIM card or eSIM?
An eSIM if your phone supports it: you install it before you fly, keep your Australian SIM in the phone for calls and SMS, and nothing can get lost. A physical travel SIM card is the fallback for phones without eSIM (older or carrier-locked handsets), but you have to remove your Australian SIM to use it, so you lose SMS codes while it is in.
Should I keep my Australian SIM on?
Yes, for SMS and two-factor codes, but turn data roaming off on the Australian line so you are not charged roaming fees. Let the eSIM handle all mobile data.
Do Europe plans include the UK?
It differs by provider. On 26 October 2026 Ubigi’s Europe plan and Nomad’s Europe plan both listed the United Kingdom. The UK is outside the EU roaming area, so check the provider’s own country list before you buy, especially for Airalo, Holafly and Saily, whose lists we did not re-check that day.
We may earn a commission if you buy through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we’re paid.
Related
- Ubigi is cheapest in Europe, but Airalo is the name most people search for — what you get for the premium →
- Airalo and Holafly both sell Europe plans and are the two most-searched eSIM brands, but they work in completely different ways — we put them side by side →
- Planning to tether a laptop in Europe? Every provider’s hotspot rules, which are not the same as its data rules →
- Only visiting the UK? The best eSIM for the UK, compared →
- One country only? France, Germany, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Ireland, Switzerland and Italy eSIM guides →