What’s my eSIM data roaming strategy?

In the past, my first order of business after landing at an airport was to hunt for a local SIM card, because overseas data roaming could cost as much as the flight ticket over.

These days, however, I can just switch on my phone while the plane is taxiing and get online immediately, because eSIMs have made roaming data cheap and plentiful. Some plans even cover multiple countries or entire regions, removing the need to get a separate eSIM for each trip.

But with so many options out there, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. In this post, I’ll share about some important considerations when choosing an eSIM, as well as the plans I’m using.

What to consider when choosing an eSIM

When I first started exploring data roaming eSIMs, I always defaulted to the option that offered the lowest cost per GB, with the validity period a secondary consideration. My logic was that data was a homogeneous good, so there was no reason to pay more.

As it turns out, it’s not nearly that simple. While price and validity are no doubt important, just as important are breakout, network partners and network priority. 

Breakout

When you use a data roaming eSIM, your data doesn’t jump straight from your phone to a local website. Instead, it follows a specific architectural path that determines the speed, content localisation, and the websites you can access. This is known as the “breakout”, or the point where your mobile data actually exits to the public internet.

With a local breakout, your traffic leaves the network in the country you’re visiting, giving you a local IP address, low latency, and avoiding issues with geoblocked websites. 

However, cheaper eSIMs may use home or regional routing, where your data is tunnelled to another country before accessing the internet. Not only can this result in slower connection speeds, it can affect the types of websites and apps you can use in the first place. For example, if your eSIM is routed via Hong Kong, you won’t be able to use ChatGPT or TikTok, even if the services would otherwise be available in the country where you’re physically located.

I personally encountered this annoyance at a Safeway supermarket in Seattle, when I wanted to sign up for their member’s club to get discounts on groceries. As it turns out, Safeway’s website applies geoblocking for any IPs outside North America, and because my Eskimo eSIM was routing traffic via Singapore, I couldn’t visit the site at all. It was a bit of an absurd situation, because even though I was physically in the USA, I had to use a VPN to spoof a USA IP address in order to access the website!

Network partners

Local breakouts reduce latency, but don’t guarantee good coverage. That depends on which local networks your eSIM connects to.

For example, if you’re visiting New Zealand, then Spark is generally known for having the best rural coverage. If you’re going to Australia, then Telstra coverage is best outside the major cities. Likewise, when I visited Big Sur in 2019, I made a point of ensuring the roaming SIM I used had AT&T, which offered the best coverage of the area at the time.

Network priority

Even if your roaming eSIM connects to a local network with great coverage, you’re usually not treated the same as that network’s direct customers. Mobile operators usually prioritise their own postpaid subscribers, then prepaid, then premium partners (e.g. if they sell bandwidth to local MVNOs), and last of all, roaming users. 

So in times of congestion — think crowded subway, packed stadium, or as I discovered recently, the entry line to Tokyo Disneyland — your phone might show full 4G/5G signal, but speeds are throttled to the point of unusability.

Unfortunately, network priority is one of the least transparent parts of the roaming experience. While an eSIM provider will likely list its network partners, and perhaps even its breakout point, it will almost never specify how you’re treated on its roaming networks. Priority is determined by wholesale roaming agreements, and those terms are typically confidential.

If data availability is of paramount importance, then it’s still best to buy a prepaid SIM card from a local telco on arrival.

My core plans

Zero1

I need to be on the Singtel network because coverage from other telcos around my home is spotty. Therefore, my main line uses Streamo Freedom by Zero1. For S$15 per month, I get:

• 600GB of local data
• 20GB of roaming data for Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Philippines, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Macau and Vietnam
• An extra 1TB of roaming data specifically for Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand (it’s normally 600GB, but customers received a one-time, 365 day upgrade recently)

These allowances renew each month, so all my Australia, ASEAN and North Asia travel is basically covered.

SIMBA

My second line is a SIMBA SuperRoam10 plan which costs S$10 per month. This offers:

• 500GB of local data (which can also be used in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong)
• 12GB of roaming data to Australia, Bangladesh, China, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam
• 3GB of roaming data to any Group A country
• 500 minutes of IDD calls to Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar (mobile only), New Zealand, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Thailand, USA

SIMBA also allows for rollover of data and talktime for up to six cycles, so I can accumulate it in the months where I’m in Singapore.

What’s great about SIMBA is that it doesn’t just offer roaming data. SIMBA also offers free incoming calls from Singapore when overseas, so I forward my Zero1 number here in order to remain contactable.

Also, if I’m in one of the supported countries, I can use the IDD minutes to make calls to local numbers. This comes in useful when I want to check if a restaurant is taking walk-ins, or if I’m lost and need directions to the hotel (yes, there are VoIP solutions that let you use data to call landlines, but regular calling is generally much more frictionless).

My supplementary plans

Before I talk about supplementary plans, I want to emphasise that if you travel infrequently, or purely within the APAC region, your core plan might be able to cover all your data roaming needs.

In my case, I’m often on the road in different countries, making heavy use of my mobile hotspot. Therefore I need to supplement my core plans with some additional options.

Eskimo

Sign up here

Use code XUAN35726 to get 500MB of free data immediately upon sign-up

I purchased an Eskimo global data pack some time ago, which covers pretty much the entire planet (160+ countries).

With prices starting from US$3 (~S$3.80) per GB, it’s not necessarily the cheapest option. But that’s offset by the longer validity — data purchased is valid for two years, and every time you buy a new data plan, all existing data gets extended by a further two years. This means less wastage, compared to buying plans which may be cheaper per GB but expire sooner. 

I switch to this plan when I’m outside of the regions supported by my core plans, or if I need additional data (which is only really an issue outside of APAC).

Airalo

Sign up here

Use code AARON4165 to get S$4 off first purchase

In some countries, having a local number makes things a lot more convenient. When I’m travelling in the USA, for instance:

• Some stores offer instant discounts to customers who sign up for their mailing list via text message
• Some parking and EV charging apps which will not send authentication codes to non-US phone numbers
• Many restaurants will require you to provide a local number when adding your name to a waitlist, or ordering food for pick-up
• I was sick and needed to see a doctor; the online booking system wouldn’t let me register without a local number

Airalo sells eSIMs for certain countries that come with a local number (tap on the data/calls/texts tab).

Remember to take advantage of the Mastercard discount codes:

• 20% off for World Legend/World Elite Mastercard: MASTERCARD20
• 15% off for all other Mastercards: MASTERCARD15

Before you buy through Airalo, however, it’s worth doing some comparison shopping on eSIMDB to see if cheaper options with voice calling exist (you can toggle the filter to remove data only plans).

Rebtel

Sign up here

Get S$10 credits once you spend at least S$5

This isn’t a data option per se, but I thought it’s still worth mentioning.

With the demise of Skype, I need an alternative VoIP solution for making international calls in countries where SIMBA IDD minutes aren’t valid.

Rebtel performs that task very well, with monthly subscription plans and reasonably-priced pay-per-use starting at 1 cent per minute (until recently, they even offered free calling in the USA).

Calls can be placed via Wi-Fi or data, but what I appreciate is that there’s even the option of calling a local number (though obviously this requires that your eSIM have local calling minutes), which is useful in areas of data congestion, or where the signal is only strong enough for voice calls.

Free options

Pelago eSIM

Pelago free eSIM

Singapore Airlines or Scoot passengers can enjoy a complimentary Frewie 2GB global roaming eSIM, with a 3-day validity. This normally retails for S$8, and a limited number of redemptions are available each month.

1. After booking your flight, log in to Pelago with your KrisFlyer account
2. Visit this page
3. Select the Singapore Airlines Exclusive: 2GB for 3 Days option and enter the code PELESIMJAN (note: replace the last three letters with the current calendar month as needed e.g. PELESIMFEB/PELESIMMAR)
4. The eSIM will be sent to your email.

Additional data top-ups can be purchased here.

FlexiRoam (Mastercard)

Benefit Details

World Elite Mastercards, CIMB Founders Card and OCBC 90°N Mastercard enjoy a complimentary FlexiRoam data package, redeemable once per calendar year.

• World Elite Mastercard: 3GB FlexiRoam data package, valid for 15 days
• CIMB Founders Card: 1GB FlexiRoam data package, valid for 5 days
• OCBC 90°N Mastercard: 3x 1GB FlexiRoam data package, valid for 5 days

More details can be found in the post below. 

Guide: Mastercard’s free FlexiRoam global data roaming benefit

Gigsky (Visa)

Benefit Details

Visa credit and debit cardholders worldwide can redeem complimentary GigSky eSIM data plans that offer unlimited data for:

• Visa Infinite: 7 days
• All other Visa cards: 3 days

Each Visa card receives a total of five data plans (more may be added in the future), covering the following regions and countries. 

For the avoidance of doubt, you don’t have to choose just one. You will receive all the plans above, once per card.

Read more about this benefit below.

Free GigSky eSIM data roaming now available to Visa cardholders worldwide

Travelgoogoo (Visa)

Travelgoogoo x Visa

Visa Infinite, Visa Signature and Visa Platinum cards issued in Asia Pacific  can now redeem complimentary Travelgoogoo data roaming plans, according to the table below.

Card	Travelgoogoo 365 Annual Plan	Data Plans
Visa Infinite	✅	1GB Global 1GB APAC
Visa Signature	✅	1GB Global
Visa Platinum	50% off	1GB Global

Cardholders are limited to one redemption per eligible Visa card number, per mobile, per year, and up to two redemptions until 30 November 2027.

1GB is not a lot of data, but what’s interesting is the Travelgoogoo 365 Annual Plan offers unlimited messaging on the following platforms:

• iMessage
• LINE
• Telegram
• Viber
• WeChat
• WhatsApp
• Zalo

Unlike those “free messaging” plans you might have used onboard airplanes, which support text-only messaging, this also includes data calling and photos.

With coverage for 123 countries, it should be a useful fallback option in emergencies where you’ve run out of data on all your other plans, and don’t have Wi-Fi handy. 

Read more about this benefit below.

Visa offering free Travelgoogoo eSIM data and messaging plans

Conclusion

With so many eSIMs and data roaming plans to choose from, I make no claims that my setup is the most optimal one. Depending on your individual travel schedule, data usage patterns and regular mobile plan in Singapore, there could be other setups worth exploring too (and feel free to share yours in the comments). 

If you choose to get a supplementary data roaming plan, do remember that it’s not as simple as finding the lowest cost per GB. Try and look for those with local breakouts, or which partner with the networks that are strongest in the area you’re visiting. There’s really no point having cheap data if it turns out to be unusable!