Japan Travel Sim Cards. Which Is The Best One as of 2024?

thekow on 20/01/2024 - 20:43

Hey there

I have looked through some old posts and deals and wondering what is the best travel sim for japan now, most of the posts are 2018-2022? I am pretty sure both our phones dont have e-sim so will need a physical card. Last time i just got a card from the airport
but i was thinking of grabbing one here before we go if thats the better option.

Just need reliable internet for google maps and some facebook updates nothing fancy. If the airport cards are better let us know.
10gb / 20gb would be enough for the 12 days we are there. I think we will have most of the time with maps.

Suggestions would be great guys!
Thanks.

Travel Asia Japan Travel SIM Card

Comments

  • Benoffie on 20/01/2024 - 20:48
    +1

    I used these last month. Easy, network no issues, good range of plan options (especially if you have GB greedy teens)

    https://www.mobal.com/japan-esims/?t=st&/

    • thekow on 20/01/2024 - 20:49

      Thanks i will check it.

  • pantsparty on 20/01/2024 - 21:06

    I’ve heard good things about Ubigi esims. Ubigi is owned by NTT Docomo, one of Japan’s largest networks. A 10gb card is a little under $30.

    Edit - sorry, just saw you can’t use esims, my mistake! What model phones do you have?

  • eutama on 20/01/2024 - 21:11
    -2

    Roaming are also pretty cheap these days, if thats something you want to consider. $5/ day and you dont need to spend time at the airport looking / queuing for simmcards. Even cheaper if you are on belong/amaysim/boost.
    Also, since this is ozbargain, fyi, japan has plenty of free and fast wifi too. Even at train/subway or train station. Download your map before you go if needed.

    • Devastator0 on 20/01/2024 - 21:35

      I'm with Belong and their Intl Roaming pack is $30 for 3GB only. Doesn't seem quite that cheap for what you get.

      • eutama on 21/01/2024 - 00:17

        It's all about perspective i guess. You pay $30 for 3GB but you dont have to make an effort of buying other sim cards / swap sim cards / still being able to call oz for free. Sure, it aint the cheapest, but belong has the cheapest roaming after telstra prepaid, $25 for 14 days and 4gb.

        • StaticzAvenger on 25/01/2024 - 11:39
          +1

          You can pay $30-$40 for a 4G eSIM with around 30gb lol.

  • deeevan on 20/01/2024 - 21:44
    +3

    I bought a physical SIM on ebay, thanks eBay Plus $5 voucher. This ended up being better value than the eSIMs (besides the Mastercard free one of course).
    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/295100711850

    • thekow on 21/01/2024 - 09:45

      Looks good, I am pretty sure we had a docomo last time we went and it was fairly good all over.

  • Ryansta on 22/01/2024 - 13:11

    I used https://www.airalo.com/japan-esim
    Worked well everywhere. We got 20GB 30 days for around AUD$35
    The only issue we had was we had to select the network in SIM settings when we arrived, it didn't just work

    • thekow on 22/01/2024 - 18:32

      Thanks. Phone doesnt have e-sim unfortunetly. But this looks good for people with it.

  • killabob on 25/01/2024 - 17:26
    +1

    Not that I think I'll need it but noticed these aren't 5g.

  • scixxor on 05/02/2024 - 00:33
    +4

    airalo is on sale now 10gb for 9USD

    • morse on 19/02/2024 - 12:01
      +2

      Have been on this for the past two weeks in Japan and it’s been working well. Still have over 5gb left and only here for a few more days.

  • DevlicK on 05/02/2024 - 17:56

    I'm in a similar boat to OP but also looking for sims that could be used in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan as well.

    Currently looking at Travelkon (https://www.travelkon.com.au/product/asia-explorer-esim-save…) but wondering if there are better/cheaper alternatives.

  • haz on 12/02/2024 - 10:55

    Just sharing my experience with SimsDirect (or Simify). There were many offers last year on Ozbargain. They sell e-Sims or physical sims for Japan. I have tried the South East Asia eSIM (6 Countries) which advertises as 4G and used it in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. It never connected to 4G and was on LTE only. Had multiple e-sims on different phones and same result. The speed was quite slow as a result.

    • thekow on 14/02/2024 - 10:45

      Thanks for that.

      I ended up with travelsimspecilist cards. I havent used it yet hopefully they are OK they are docomo backend it seems.
      The sims have "billion connect , japan welcome sim" on it. I might also grab a sim in japan. But hopefully these work.

    • fowl on 01/06/2024 - 14:52
      +2

      LTE is 4G!

  • McBeardy on 17/02/2024 - 19:16

    @thekow I'll been keen to know your post-trip verdict.

    • thekow on 18/02/2024 - 12:54

      I'll let you know. I can just grab one from bic camera if the sims are trash or i can spend $45 on a international pack from boost lol.

    • thekow on 12/03/2024 - 10:50

      @McBeardy

      POST TRIP: Worked well i think only one spot in the whole of japan it was a little iffy but the whole time was good.

  • Jstar on 03/03/2024 - 12:22
    +1

    Just got back from two and half weeks in Hokkaido with the Airalo eSIM and it worked fine. No problems with activation or coverage. I didn't really do any speed tests but didn't notice any issues and in one place it was definitely faster than the hotel WiFi. No issues with coverage around Sapporo, Niseko, Rusutsu and Asahikawa. I was impressed there was even coverage in some rural locations outside of Asahikawa where we had literally pulled over on the side of the road for some back country skiing.

    A friend used https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/304638143698 from travelsimcardspecialist, as they didn't have a eSIM phone. That worked fine as well. Just note that travelsimcardspecialist don't send out the SIM card straight away as they ask you some questions about your phone and activation date. Keep that mind if you're ordering last minute like I did.

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