Saily or Airalo: which travel eSIM should you choose in 2026?

Saily or Airalo: what are the differences in a table?

Out of thirteen criteria, Saily wins on seven, Airalo on three, and three are a tie. The table summarizes the essentials of this Saily vs Airalo comparison: the details follow in each section.

Data collected on October 15, 2026, from saily.com, airalo.com and Trustpilot.

What is Saily and what eSIMs does it offer?

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 / 5

eSIMrat rating

• ✓Data plans (1 to 20 GB per country) or unlimited
• ✓Unlimited: 5 GB/day at full speed, then 1 Mbit/s
• ✓More than 200 destinations
• ✓Hotspot sharing with no quota
• ✓Chat 24/7

%code “ESIMRAT” (-10%)

From

2€99

1 GB, 3 days, Japan

See offers

Saily is the travel eSIM from Nord Security, the company behind NordVPN, NordPass and Incogni. The service covers more than 200 destinations, with plans per country, regional plans (Europe with 35 countries, Asia and Oceania with 22 countries, and more) and a global plan covering 121 countries.

Saily sells two families of plans. Data plans range from 1 to 20 GB per country, valid for 3 to 30 days. Unlimited plans are sold in tiers of 5, 7, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 days in the most in-demand countries. In Japan, the full price list looks like this:

A single Saily eSIM works for all your trips: for the next one, you add a plan to the eSIM already installed, without a new QR code. Each purchase gives you back 3% of its amount in Saily credits. The plan activates by itself when you arrive, within 180 days of purchase. Our full Saily review covers the rest of its catalog.

Saily's Japan price grid, with prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on saily.com/fr, in euros.

What is Airalo and what eSIMs does it offer?

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 / 5

eSIMrat rating

• ✓Data plans (1 to 50 GB per country) or unlimited
• ✓Unlimited: 3 GB/day at full speed, then 1 Mbit/s
• ✓More than 200 destinations
• ✓Plans with calls and SMS in the United States and worldwide
• ✓Chat 24/7, app in 53 languages

%code “ESIMRAT” (-15%)

From

4€00

1 GB, 3 days, Japan

See offers

Airalo is a travel eSIM brand that claims more than 30 million users, more than 200 destinations and an app translated into 53 languages. Its catalog follows the same logic as Saily: plans per country, regional plans (Europe, Asia, and more) and a global plan called Discover, which covers 168 countries and networks.

The difference lies in the price list. Airalo splits its data plans into tiers of 3, 7, 15 and 30 days, goes up to 50 GB per country, and sells unlimited from 3 days. In Japan:

On paper, Airalo has a more generous loyalty program than Saily: Airmoney, from 5% to 10% of each purchase depending on your level. But it does not apply when you use a promo code. The plan's validity starts when the eSIM connects to the country's network, and you have 365 days to start it on the Japan plan. Our detailed Airalo review goes through its entire offer.

Airalo's unlimited plans for Japan, with prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on airalo.com/fr, Standard and Unlimited tabs, in euros.

Saily or Airalo: which eSIM is the cheapest?

On data plans, Saily is cheaper than Airalo on 22 of the 23 identical plans recorded in Japan, the United States and Thailand. The gap is large on small plans and narrow from 5 GB up.

The only exception is the 20 GB plan for 30 days in Thailand, at €17.00 at Airalo compared to €17.99. In the United States, the gap is almost zero on the 5 GB plan: €12.49 compared to €12.50. In other words, on a mid-sized plan, price alone is not enough to decide between the two brands; on a very small plan, Saily is clearly cheaper.

The price lists don't always overlap. Airalo sells formats that Saily doesn't have: very short plans (3 GB for 3 days) and, above all, 50 GB for 30 days, at €39.00 in the United States and €25.50 in Thailand. That is the lowest price per GB in either catalog, €0.51 in Thailand. Saily, for its part, sells 3 GB for 15 or 30 days in Japan and the United States, which Airalo doesn't offer.

The complete ranking for each country, across all providers, is on our Japan eSIM page and its equivalents for other destinations.

Prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on saily.com and airalo.com, in euros, for identical volume and duration. Gap rounded to the nearest percent.

Saily or Airalo: which unlimited plan should you choose?

On unlimited data, Saily is cheaper in 13 cases out of 15 and offers a higher cap. This is the criterion that separates the two brands most clearly for a heavy user.

The price gaps remain small, from 1% to 6%. The two exceptions are in Japan: Airalo is slightly cheaper for 5 days and for 30 days. The durations also differ: only Airalo sells 3-day unlimited (€11.00 in Japan, €9.00 in Thailand), and only Saily sells the 20- and 25-day tiers.

The real gap is in the cap. With both, unlimited is not unlimited at full speed. Saily states it on every country page: 5 GB per day with no speed limit, then 1 Mbit/s. Airalo states it in its fair usage policy: 3 GB per day at full speed, then 1 Mbit/s, with the counter resetting every 24 hours. Saily therefore gives you 67% more daily high-speed data for a comparable price. Our fact sheet on the fair usage policy explains how this works.

The rat's advice: 3 GB per day is enough for maps, social media and video calls. If you watch shows in high definition or work on a computer, those extra 2 GB per day matter: at 1 Mbit/s, HD video no longer plays.

Prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on saily.com and airalo.com, in euros, unlimited plans.

How does hotspot sharing work with Saily and Airalo?

Hotspot sharing is allowed with no quota by both brands. This is an important point in common, because other providers, such as Holafly, limit it to 1 GB per day.

Saily advertises “unlimited hotspot sharing” in the technical details of its plans. Airalo allows sharing with no limit on volume or number of devices, according to its fair usage policy, the only ban being reselling the connection. In both cases, sharing draws from the phone's counter: your plan's data volume, or the daily cap of the unlimited plan.

This is where the cap makes the difference again. If you share your connection with a computer, a system update can swallow 3 GB in one afternoon: with Airalo, you then drop to 1 Mbit/s until the counter resets, 24 hours after activation; with Saily, you still have 2 GB left. To turn on the hotspot, the setting is the same everywhere: Settings, then Personal Hotspot on iPhone, or Mobile Hotspot on Android. Our fact sheet on hotspot sharing details the steps.

What is the speed of Saily and Airalo?

The speed of a travel eSIM depends mainly on the local operator used, then on your phone's 4G or 5G compatibility and on the unlimited data cap. Neither Saily nor Airalo owns any antennas: they are virtual operators that resell the capacity of local networks.

In Japan, Saily uses KDDI and SoftBank, on 4G, and on 5G in big cities, according to its spec sheet. Airalo uses SoftBank, shown as 5G, and a second network, across the whole country, including Okinawa and Hokkaido. The two therefore share at least one operator, which in principle gives comparable speeds in areas covered by SoftBank.

Before buying, check the operator's name in the plan details, with either brand: it is the best indication of the network quality you will get on site. The tests published by Travel eSIM Expert (updated September 24, 2026) show no decisive gap: a best of 753 Mbit/s for Saily in South Korea and 567 Mbit/s for Airalo in France, across 17 and 13 countries tested respectively. Once there, a speed test (Speedtest by Ookla, for example) will tell you whether you are on the right network. If the speed stays stuck around 1 Mbit/s early in the day, the cap is not to blame: manually choose another network in the eSIM settings.

For a trip to Europe, Saily or Airalo?

For Europe, the winner depends on the volume: Saily is cheaper for unlimited and up to 5 GB, Airalo is much cheaper for 10 GB.

On the 10 GB plan for 7 days, Airalo costs 23% less. Airalo also sells 20 GB and 50 GB plans for 30 days in Europe, which Saily doesn't. For a short trip with little data, or for unlimited, Saily keeps the advantage, by €0.50 to €1.50.

One point before buying: if your mobile plan is from a European Union country, roaming there is usually already included, and a Europe eSIM is of no use to you. It becomes useful with a non-European plan, for Switzerland, the United Kingdom or the Balkans depending on your carrier, or if your data allowance abroad is too small. Our Europe eSIM page compares all the regional plans.

Prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on saily.com/fr/esim-europe and airalo.com/fr/europe-esim, in euros.

Which eSIM for traveling in Asia or around the world?

To travel in Asia across several countries, Airalo is cheaper wherever a comparison is possible. For the whole world, it's Saily, by a small margin.

The gap ranges from 6% on the 10-day unlimited plan (€32.50 vs €34.49 at Saily) to 28% on the 10 GB plan for 30 days. Saily, on the other hand, covers a wider area, including Oceania. Before buying a regional plan, check that all your countries are on the list: for a single country, the national plan is almost always cheaper, as our ranking of the best eSIM for Japan shows.

On a round-the-world trip, Saily is cheaper on all five identical global plans, but Airalo covers more countries and sells a global unlimited plan (from €22.50 for 3 days), which Saily doesn't offer. For a long trip, Saily also sells 50 GB valid for one year at €115.99.

Prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on saily.com and airalo.com (Asia, Asia and Oceania, Global and Discover pages), in euros.

Installation, app and customer service: which one is the simplest?

Regarding installation, Saily and Airalo are equally good: you buy the plan, the app installs the eSIM in a few minutes, and the plan generally starts when you arrive in the country. Install it before departure, on a Wi-Fi connection.

With Saily, the app is the entry point: it installs the eSIM, shows your remaining data, and lets you add a plan to the same eSIM for your next trip. Remember to turn on data roaming for the Saily line, otherwise nothing works. With Airalo, installation is done from the app or with a QR code, and you can top up as soon as your data or validity runs out.

In both cases, you need an eSIM-compatible phone that is unlocked. Your primary SIM stays in the phone: WhatsApp and iMessage keep working with your usual number.

Regarding customer service, both advertise 24/7 assistance. Saily responds via live chat in the app and on its website. Airalo responds via chat in the app, on its website and on WhatsApp, in several languages. The Travel eSIM Expert website measured a 1-minute reply in Saily's chat, compared with 9 minutes on Airalo's WhatsApp.

Calls, security, loyalty, refunds: what else do they offer?

The extra features reflect each brand's DNA. Saily comes from a VPN provider: its app blocks malicious URLs, cuts out some ads and trackers, and lets you change your virtual location. Airalo has no equivalent.

Regarding calls, neither provides a local number with its data plans. Saily sells an optional American number linked to a calling and SMS plan. Airalo sells data, calls and SMS plans in the United States (for example 10 GB, 100 minutes and 100 SMS for 7 days at €26.00) and on its global plan.

On paper, loyalty leans towards Airalo: 5% to 10% in Airmoney per purchase depending on your level, compared to 3% in Saily credits (8% with the Ultra subscription). But Airmoney does not apply if you use a promo code.

Refunds come down to the details. Saily offers a full refund within 30 days if the eSIM has not been installed or the plan has not been activated, then on a case-by-case basis, according to its refund policy. Airalo applies a 14-day right of withdrawal as long as the eSIM is not activated, and gives you 30 days to report a malfunction; if you bought the wrong plan, it refunds in Airmoney, not to your card.

Finally, Saily sells a monthly subscription, Saily Ultra: €35.49 per month for 10 GB of high-speed data in 121 destinations, with a phone number and, depending on the plan, travel perks (airport lounges, skip-the-line). Airalo only sells prepaid plans.

What are the downsides of Saily and Airalo?

Neither is perfect. Here are the downsides found in their price lists and terms.

❌ Saily: no plan above 20 GB per country, an Asia plan more expensive than Airalo's, the 10 GB Europe plan 29% more expensive for 7 days, no global unlimited plan, and a mandatory app to install the eSIM.

❌ Airalo: a lower unlimited cap (3 GB per day), more expensive small plans (€4.00 for 1 GB compared to €2.99), refunds in Airmoney if you buy the wrong plan, a lower Trustpilot rating (4.1 out of 5), and prices that have gone up since September: the 15-day unlimited plan in Japan went from €43.00 on September 23 to €44.50 on October 15, 2026.

None of these limitations is a deal-breaker: each one has a traveler profile for whom it is the right choice, detailed below.

Are Saily and Airalo reliable?

Yes, both are established players, without the usual warning signs: prices you can't find, hidden terms, no support. Saily is backed by Nord Security, the publisher of NordVPN, and Airalo claims more than 30 million users.

In terms of reviews, Saily is rated higher. On October 15, 2026, it shows 4.7 out of 5 on Trustpilot for 32,319 reviews. Airalo shows 4.1 out of 5 for 47,376 reviews. On the app stores, the ratings are closer: 4.7 for Saily, 4.7 on iOS and 4.6 on Android for Airalo, according to their websites.

On their eSIMrat fact sheets, our score gives Saily 4.5 out of 5 and Airalo 4.4 out of 5: the gap comes from pricing and the unlimited data cap; the quality of service is comparable. Be wary of comparisons that name a winner without checking prices: the well-ranked pages for this search include a comparison published by Saily itself and another by Surfshark, a sister brand.

Saily or Airalo: which is the best eSIM in 2026?

This Saily vs Airalo duel is decided by traveler profile.

Our verdict, across all criteria: Saily is the better eSIM of the two for most travelers in 2026, especially for a stay in a single country: it is cheaper, its unlimited plan is more generous, and it is rated higher. Airalo remains the best choice for multi-country trips in Asia and for large data volumes, on price per GB.

Saily or Airalo, which one to choose?

Saily or Airalo? Ask yourself three questions, in this order: how many countries am I traveling through, how much data do I use, and do I need real call minutes.

A single country: go for Saily, a data plan if you use less than 1 GB per day, unlimited otherwise. Several countries in Asia: compare the regional plan, Airalo is cheaper there. A big data need without unlimited, or a 3-day stay with unlimited data: Airalo has the formats Saily lacks. Need call minutes in the United States: Airalo sells plans with calls and SMS.

The rat's advice: check your mobile usage from the last thirty days in your phone settings before paying for unlimited data. Under 1 GB per day over two weeks, 20 GB for 30 days is enough: €21.99 in Japan at Saily, compared to €43.49 for 15 days of unlimited.

Once you've made your choice, visit our Saily promo code or Airalo pages for the code ESIMRAT: −10% at Saily, tested at checkout, and −15% on the first order at Airalo, with the discount capped at $10.

Cheaper alternatives to Saily and Airalo

If your main criterion is budget, Saily and Airalo are not the cheapest eSIMs on every plan. On 10 GB valid for 30 days, other providers are cheaper alternatives in some countries.

voilà eSIM belongs to the same group as this comparator, and we treat it like the others: it is the cheapest of the three in Japan and the United States, but not in Thailand, where Saily comes out ahead by 21 cents. What sets it apart, in addition to this value for money: an eSIM that is simple to install, an app that is easy to use, and human customer support, reachable 24/7. Its limitation: it does not sell unlimited data, so it does not meet the needs of heavy users. If you are also considering Holafly, our Saily vs Holafly and Airalo vs Holafly duels compare the other heavyweights.

These prices change often, which is why the collection date is listed under each table. Our destination pages compare offers from more than 25 providers, sorted by price per GB, with the promo codes we have tested.

Prices recorded on October 15, 2026, on the voilà eSIM public API, saily.com and airalo.com, in euros.