ESIMS yes or no??

Are you traveling out of the country soon? Do you have a carrier like Verizon or AT&T that charges $10 a day for not so good internet when you travel internationally?? 

Well… if your iPhone is an 11 or newer or a Samsung Galaxy 21 or newer, getting an ESIM might be the right choice for you on your next international adventure! 

So on to what's important. The unfiltered truth with my experience using an ESIM.

I just got back from a trip to Denmark and Sweden (Wooho!!). These countries are a wee expensive so I was trying to save money everywhere I could. I looked into ESIMS and I couldn’t find a lot of info about people’s honest experiences with them so here’s mine! 

PROS:

ESIMS can vary in price. Meaning that you can get a plan with a foreign carrier that fits your needs. I went on a 10 Day trip so I got a 14 day plan with 12GBs that was $20! I could have gotten a 5 day plan with more data if that's what I wanted or a month plan with less. There are so many options for all your needs.

Most have unlimited text and data. This is really awesome for texting friends and using GPS.

The Internet is faster. I had 5g my entire trip! When I have used the Verizon international plan I had 5g for a little bit and then my phone would switch to 3G (and be very slow!) 

Price point.  I will let the numbers speak for themselves: $20 for 10 days or $100 for 10 days. 

Another small benefit is that when I was in Europe I had a European phone number! One of the hostels I stayed at had wash machines that could only be activated with a European phone number. 

CONS:

ESIMS change your phone number. So this was the most confusing thing for me. I purchased an ESIM with a French carrier so I ended up with a new French phone number. This meant that when I texted friends and group chats a new number appeared for the people on the receiving end. Additionally, if someone wanted to text me they had to text my new number. But everything stayed the same one my end when I had the new number and when I switched back.

30 mins of call. This con is not that bad to be fair. I had enough call time incase I needed to call a museum/restaurant or someone in an emergency. But when calling family I just used Snapchat. I could not use WhatsApp because I would have had to reset WhatsApp with my new number. Snapchat worked great!

Phone Verification: If you are trying to set up an app with phone verification it’s near impossible. Meaning if you want to set up local transit apps I would do it before you go, or just pay with cash!

ALTERNATE OPTION: Just buying data with an ESIM

There is also a third option that is even cheaper. Just buying data allows you to keep your same phone number, but you can't call or text on messages, you can only use apps like WhatsApp. This option is even cheaper than an ESIM with a phone plan so that's a pro. I didn’t opt for this because I wanted access to emergency numbers. 

CONCLUSION:

Winner ESIM - for me the price point is worth dealing with minor inconveniences and when I say minor I mean it. Fast data and cheap whats better!

Helpful tips:

Snapchat calling feature - this is a great way to call friends who don't have WhatsApp

Setting up before plane ride - I would opt into adding the new phone plan before your trip and right before you get on the plane turn your phone to airplane mode and switch to your secondary number (your international phone plan). 

You have to manually change settings before you can use a text message.

Do you research before picking a phone carrier - different countries have different carriers that work best

Nyhavn, Copenhagen

What I used for my most recent trip:

For my most recent trip I used Orange and I had no problems and the price was great. This carrier is French and works well in Europe.