HelloRoam sells travel data in 185 destinations, and its Japan profiles ride KDDI/au, NTT docomo, Rakuten Mobile and SoftBank, all 5G. Ubigi prices Japan by trip length and lists $14.00 for 10 GB over 7 days. Holafly sells no per-GB size at all and bills unlimited data by the day.
A travel eSIM is a data profile your phone downloads, and the chip that holds it never comes out
An eSIM is a small chip fixed inside the phone at the factory. It stores a carrier profile the way a plastic SIM does, but the profile arrives as a download rather than in an envelope.
You buy a plan, scan a QR code, and the profile appears in settings beside the SIM already in the phone. The home number stays live for calls and texts while the travel profile carries data.
A handset that shows an EID number is ready for a travel profile, unless a carrier lock blocks it
Every phone that supports the feature carries an EID, a long identifier printed into the chip. Open Settings, then About, and look for it. A handset without one will never take a travel profile.
One other thing blocks otherwise ready phones. A handset still tied to a contract can be carrier locked, which stops a second profile installing. Ask the original network to unlock it before departure, because that can take several working days.
Six e-SIM sellers list the same 10 GB, 30-day plan, and one does not sell data by size
Japan makes a clean test case. Seven sellers publish a price for the same country, and six sell data by size. Validity is held at 30 days on every fixed row, so the prices compare.
Price is reported in each row, but it cannot set the order here. The six fixed rows sit inside a $2.01 band, and the two cheapest are a cent apart, HelloRoam at $15.99 and Nomad at $16.00. So the rows run by what each shelf is built for, which the last column names.
The HelloRoam Travel Data Price Index, August 2026: Japan, 10 GB
| Rank | Provider | Plan and price | Host network | Best for |
| 1 | HelloRoam | $15.99 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au, NTT docomo, Rakuten Mobile and SoftBank, all 5G | Names all four Japanese host carriers and takes a mid-trip top-up |
| 2 | Ubigi | $16.50 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Also sells the same 10 GB on a shorter 7-day window |
| 3 | Nomad | $16.00 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Matches the top price in this table to within one cent |
| 4 | Airalo | $18.00 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Prices 5 GB and 10 GB at three validity windows each |
| 5 | Saily | $17.99 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Every fixed size runs 30 days apart from a 1 GB starter |
| 6 | aloSIM | $18.00 for 10 GB over 30 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Sells a 2 GB, 15-day size the rest of this table skips |
| 7 | Holafly | $27.50 for unlimited data over 7 days | KDDI/au and NTT docomo | Bills unlimited data by the day, so no per-GB row applies |
Method: published rates for a 10 GB Japan plan, taken from each seller’s own price list and sampled 1 August 2026. Holafly’s row is a 7-day unlimited plan priced per trip, not per gigabyte.
Six sellers price 10 GB in Japan for 30 days inside a $2.01 band, from $15.99 to $18.00, so the size costs roughly the same wherever it is bought.
Each row names the network behind the plan rather than the brand on the invoice. HelloRoam pairs its plan list with a primer titled what is an eSIM, which covers that groundwork before the 10 GB prices are compared.
One gap is worth naming before the rows begin. Ubigi’s Japanese ladder tops out at $55.00 for 50 GB over 30 days, which is $20.00 above the $35.00 Nomad charges for that same size and window.
1. HelloRoam: four named Japanese host carriers and a mid-trip top-up, at $15.99 for 10 GB over 30 days
HelloRoam lists four Japanese host carriers against its Japan plans, and all four run 5G. Its Japan list starts with $3.49 for 1 GB over 7 days, and the largest size sold is $30.60 for 50 GB over 30 days. A plan running low takes a top-up mid-trip. The catch is validity. Every fixed size above 1 GB runs 30 days, so a three-day visitor pays for a month.
2. Ubigi: the same 10 GB on a seven-day window, at $14.00 for 10 GB over 7 days
Ubigi builds around trip length rather than plan size. It lists 10 GB over 7 days at $14.00 and the same 10 GB over 30 days at $16.50, so the shorter window costs less rather than more. Heavy users fare worse. Its 50 GB plan is the dearest of the three sellers here that list one, at $55.00 for 30 days.
3. Nomad: a cent off the cheapest row here, at $16.00 for 10 GB over 30 days
Nomad lands within a cent of the top of this table, at $16.00 for 10 GB over 30 days. It also runs unlimited windows from 3 to 21 days, which suits trips the fixed sizes handle awkwardly. Those windows are priced steeply. Unlimited for 3 days costs $11.00, more than its own 3 GB plan for a full month at $7.00.
4. Airalo: three validity windows each at 5 GB and 10 GB, at $18.00 for 10 GB over 30 days
Airalo prices one size at several lengths, so 10 GB costs $17.00 over 7 days, $17.50 over 15 days and $18.00 over 30 days. A short trip can skip validity it will never use. At $18.00 for 30 days it is the joint dearest fixed plan here, level with aloSIM.
5. Saily: one 30-day window at nearly every Japanese size, at $17.99 for 10 GB over 30 days
Saily holds a single window across almost its whole Japanese range. Only the starter runs shorter, at $3.99 for 1 GB over 7 days. Its middle rung, $10.99 for 5 GB over 30 days, sits above the $10.00 Nomad asks for that same size and window.
6. aloSIM: a 2 GB Japanese size nobody else stocks, at $6.50 for 2 GB over 15 days
No other seller in this table breaks the step between 1 GB and 3 GB. aloSIM does, listing $6.50 for 2 GB over 15 days, which is two weeks of directions and group chat. Its month-long rung is another matter, level with Airalo at the dear end of the fixed rows.
7. Holafly: unlimited Japanese days with no size to pick, at $27.50 for unlimited data over 7 days
Holafly sells no Japanese plan by the gigabyte, only by the day. A week runs $27.50 for unlimited data over 7 days, and a fortnight runs $50.50 for unlimited data over 15 days. There is no allowance to run down, and no smaller step to drop to when a trip turns quiet.
Every travel profile borrows a local network, and in Japan that means NTT docomo, KDDI or SoftBank
No travel eSIM seller owns towers. Each one buys wholesale access from carriers in the destination and resells it, which is why the network column repeats itself. Six of the seven sellers above ride KDDI/au and NTT docomo in Japan, and HelloRoam adds Rakuten Mobile and SoftBank.
Nobody in this market leads on coverage, because the signal comes from the same Japanese carriers whichever brand takes the payment. What changes between sellers is price, validity and whether a plan can be topped up. Ask which carrier a plan rides before buying.
Whether the phone shows 5G is set by the host carrier, not by the brand on the plan
The 5G badge in the status bar comes from the host network. Japan’s carriers run 5G, so a travel profile there can show 5G on a handset that supports it.
Many markets have no 5G operator at all, and a plan sold there runs on 4G however it is marketed. A seller promising 5G everywhere is describing its marketing, not the towers your phone will find.
The profile loads over home wifi, because installing one needs internet you do not have on arrival
Installing a profile is a download, and a phone with no working data cannot download anything. That is the trap waiting at the arrivals gate.
Buy the plan at home and open the emailed QR code on a second screen. Scan it in the phone’s mobile data settings, then leave the profile switched off until you land. Keep the home line set to calls and texts so the number still works.
Video calls and photo uploads decide the plan size, while maps and messaging barely move it
Plan size is settled by a few habits. Video calls, streaming and photo uploads move gigabytes. Maps, messaging, boarding passes and email move very little, and two weeks on those alone rarely passes 3 GB.
That is why the middle sizes sell. Japan’s 5 GB plan runs $9.49 over 30 days and covers navigation and light browsing. Add a daily video call home and 10 GB is the safer buy. A top-up beats buying a second profile, and it runs on all but five of the 1,132 plans HelloRoam sells.
Ubigi builds its Japan plans around a seven-day window, and a short trip fits that better
Ubigi publishes a 10 GB Japan plan at $14.00 over 7 days, which undercuts HelloRoam’s $15.99 10 GB plan for anyone whose trip only runs a week. HelloRoam sells 10 GB over 30 days and nothing shorter, so a five-day visitor pays for validity that expires unused. A week in Tokyo on 10 GB is the case Ubigi has designed for.
Six sticking points, from handset support to refunds on an unused e sim plan
How does an eSIM work?
An eSIM works by loading a carrier profile onto a chip already fixed inside the phone. The profile holds the same credentials a plastic SIM holds, so the network sees an ordinary subscriber. Delivery is the real difference, because the profile arrives as a QR code.
Is e-sim or airport Wi-Fi the better option?
A travel eSIM is the better option, because it works from the moment the plane lands. Airport Wi-Fi stops at the terminal door, and it often asks for a login sent by SMS to a number you cannot receive yet.
Which phones support an e-SIM?
Anything from an iPhone XS onward carries the chip, along with most recent Pixel and Galaxy models. HelloRoam’s which phones take an eSIM list is the fastest way to check one specific model. A carrier-locked handset can still refuse a profile even when the hardware supports it.
What is a fair price for an e SIM?
A fair price depends on the destination, not on the brand. HelloRoam lists 10 GB over 30 days at $9.97 in Thailand, $15.99 in Japan and $16.41 in the United States. The same size differs by nearly two thirds between markets.
Can visitors use an eSIM?
Visitors can use an eSIM anywhere a seller holds wholesale access, and no local address, contract or in-person registration is needed. HelloRoam sells travel plans across 185 destinations. The plan is prepaid, so it runs to its own expiry date with nothing to cancel.
Can I cancel an unused e SIM plan?
An unused plan can be refunded. HelloRoam carries a 180-day money-back guarantee, six months from the date of purchase, so a cancelled trip does not strand the money. Terms differ by seller, so read the refund window before paying.
