Traviva’s pick for the USA is Ubigi: 10GB for 30 days at US$14, the cheapest verified plan, with hotspot sharing allowed and coverage that includes Hawaii but not Alaska. Nomad is a close second at US$15, and heavy users can now get Ubigi’s 30-day unlimited plan for US$62 (60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps). It suits travellers with an unlocked, eSIM-capable phone that supports US LTE bands; if you need a phone number for SMS codes, look at Airalo’s Data, Voice & Text packages or Saily’s number add-on instead, because Ubigi is data-only.
Updated · Prices in US dollars unless marked A$; figures marked “checked October 2026” were read off each provider’s own site on 7–8 October 2026.
USA eSIMs at a glance
The 10GB, 30-day plan from each provider, or its unlimited plan where it sells no fixed data. Hotspot rules come from each provider’s own terms.
| Provider | Plan / data | Validity | Price | Hotspot | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubigi | 10GB | 30 days | US$14 | Yes | Data only. Covers Hawaii, not Alaska. Unlimited: US$62 for 30 days (60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps). Price checked October 2026. |
| Nomad | 10GB | 30 days | US$15 | Yes | Network not disclosed. Price checked October 2026. |
| Airalo | 10GB | 30 days | US$22.50 | Yes | T-Mobile plus one other partner. With a number: 10GB + 100 SMS + 100 minutes for 30 days, US$30. Price checked October 2026. |
| Saily | 10GB | 30 days | US$22.99 | Yes | Network not disclosed. Unlimited: US$45.99 for 15 days. Price checked October 2026. |
| Holafly | Unlimited | 30 days | US$73.90 | 1GB a day | AT&T and T-Mobile. No fixed-data plans. Price checked October 2026. |
| Maya Mobile | Unlimited | 30 days | US$49.99 | Allowed, with guidance | T-Mobile and Verizon. Price checked October 2026. |
| Simify | 10GB | 30 days | A$49 | Allowed | Billed in Australian dollars. Price checked October 2026. |
Nobody can tell you how fast a US eSIM will be, and T-Mobile says so in writing
American networks publish detailed policies on how they manage congestion and whose traffic gets deprioritised. Every one of those policies describes their own customers. None describes you.
T-Mobile’s network management disclosure is explicit about the limit of what it covers: “This page does not describe the practices, characteristics, or terms that apply when using roaming partner networks.” Verizon’s disclosure says nothing about roaming at all. AT&T documents how its customers are treated when they roam away from AT&T.
So when a comparison site tells you that one US network deprioritises travel eSIM users and another does not, it is not getting that from the carriers, because the carriers do not publish it. We could not establish whether inbound roamers are admitted to 5G or held to LTE either. That is a real gap in what anyone can know, and we would rather show it to you than fill it.
There is one AT&T sentence that circulates widely and is routinely misread — a warning that speeds on other carriers’ networks may be reduced to 2G speeds. Read in context, that is AT&T telling its own subscribers what happens when they roam off-net. It is not about visitors roaming onto AT&T.
What does decide it: whether your handset supports VoLTE
All three big US networks finished retiring 3G in 2022 — AT&T from February, T-Mobile through the middle of the year, Verizon by 31 December. The regulator’s own consumer guidance warns this affects 3G phones “and certain older 4G mobile phones that do not support Voice over LTE”.
For a data-only travel eSIM the sharper question is LTE band support rather than voice capability — but an older handset that struggles in the US will struggle on every provider on this page, because the problem is the phone, not the plan.
And one story to ignore: headlines since May 2026 have claimed the US communications regulator wants to see your ID before issuing a phone number. We read the actual proposal. It concerns obligations on providers and number resellers, contains no consumer identity requirement, and could not touch a foreign-issued roaming eSIM in any case.
What a 10GB month costs in USA
Same plan, same duration, five sellers. Prices in US dollars, checked 7 October 2026.
Holafly sells no fixed-data plans anywhere — its 30-day unlimited plan is $73.90, which is a different product and so is not plotted on the same scale.
Ubigi
Ubigi wins the US on price — $14 for 10GB over 30 days, with Nomad now close behind at $15 and Airalo ($22.50) and Saily ($22.99) well back. Heavy users have a new option too: Ubigi now sells a 30-day unlimited US plan at $62, with 60GB at full speed before it drops to 2 Mbps. Prices re-checked 7 October 2026.
See Ubigi USA plans →Every verified plan
Prices in US dollars, read off each provider’s own page. Where we could not confirm a price, we say so rather than estimate.
| Provider | Fixed data plans | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|
| Saily | 1GB/7d $3.99 · 3GB/30d $8.99 · 5GB/30d $13.99 · 10GB/30d $22.99 · 20GB/30d $36.99 | 15d $45.99 |
| Airalo | 1GB/3d $4 · 3GB/7d $9 · 5GB/30d $13.50 · 10GB/30d $22.50 · 20GB/30d $36.50 · 50GB/30d $42 | 3d $11.50 · 5d $18.50 · 7d $25 · 10d $34 · 15d $46 · 30d $68 |
| Nomad | 1GB/7d $5 · 3GB/30d $6† · 5GB/30d $10† · 10GB/30d $15† · 20GB/30d $25† · 50GB/30d $30† · 75GB/180d $89† · 100GB/365d $120† The 20GB and 50GB prices were sale prices when re-checked (normally $38 and $60). | 3d $11 · 5d $16 · 7d $23 Nomad’s 10, 15 and 20-day US unlimited plans were no longer listed on 7 October 2026. |
| Ubigi | 500MB/1d $2.90 · 10GB/7d $12 · 10GB/30d $14 · 25GB/30d $32† · 50GB/30d $42† Ubigi also sells recurring monthly US plans: 5GB at $6/month, 20GB at $15/month. | 30d $62† 60GB at full speed, then 2 Mbps. New since 31 August. |
| Holafly | No fixed-data plans — unlimited only | 3d $11.90 · 5d $20.50 · 7d $27.50 · 10d $36.50 · 15d $50.50 · 30d $73.90 |
| Maya Mobile | No fixed-data plans — unlimited only Maya sells no fixed-data plans anywhere; its product is one global unlimited plan. | 3d $9.99 · 7d $19.99 · 14d $27.99 · 30d $49.99 The same four prices apply in every country Maya covers. |
| Simify | 5GB/7d A$29 · 10GB/30d A$49 · 20GB/30d A$75 · 30GB/30d A$99 · 45GB/45d A$135 · 60GB/60d A$159 · 100GB/90d A$219 | A$2.29 per day, any length up to 180 days Simify prices unlimited by the day rather than in fixed blocks. |
Provider names link to their own site. Some of those links earn us a commission — the disclosure page says exactly which, and it plays no part in which plan we call cheapest.
Every price on this page is in US dollars except Simify’s, which are in Australian dollars because it bills in A$. An Australian card adds a foreign transaction fee of around 3% to the rest, which none of them mention at checkout — what that actually costs you →
Before you choose on price
All seven providers selling in the USA now offer an unlimited plan, and none of those is unlimited. Saily gives you 5GB a day before dropping to 1 Mbps; Airalo gives you 3GB a day before dropping to 1 Mbps; Nomad gives you 2GB a day before dropping to 512 kbps; Holafly publishes no figure at all, though third-party analysis puts it near 2–3GB a day; Maya Mobile gives you 3GB a day before dropping to 10 Mbps, then 1 Mbps; Simify publishes no firm figure at all — only an approximate 1–1.5GB, and only in a troubleshooting article rather than on any plan page. Ubigi’s 30-day unlimited plan gives you 60GB at full speed before dropping to 2 Mbps.
The cap matters less than what happens after it, and it decides whether a cheaper fixed-data plan would serve you better. Every provider’s daily cap and throttled speed, in one table →
Which network you actually roam onto
An eSIM is a roaming agreement with a local carrier. In USA, that means:
| Provider | Local network |
|---|---|
| Holafly | AT&T and T-Mobile |
| Airalo | T-Mobile, plus one unnamed partner |
| Saily | Not disclosed |
| Nomad | Not disclosed |
| Ubigi | Not disclosed |
| Maya Mobile | T-Mobile and Verizon |
| Simify | Not disclosed |
When Australians go to USA
The USA is in sustained decline for Australian travellers — down 4% year-on-year in June 2026 and down 16% in April, the steepest fall of any top-six destination.
USA eSIM questions travellers ask
What is the cheapest eSIM for the USA?
Ubigi’s 10GB for 30 days at US$14, checked in October 2026. For the same allowance Nomad is US$15, Airalo US$22.50 and Saily US$22.99.
Which US network will my travel eSIM use?
Holafly uses AT&T and T-Mobile, Airalo uses T-Mobile plus one other partner, and Maya Mobile uses T-Mobile and Verizon. Saily, Nomad, Ubigi and Simify do not disclose their US network.
Will a travel eSIM be slower than a local US plan?
Nobody can say for certain. US carriers publish network-management policies for their own customers, and T-Mobile states that its disclosure does not describe the terms that apply on roaming partner networks. We could not confirm whether visiting roamers get 5G or are held to LTE.
Will my phone work in the USA?
All three big US networks retired 3G in 2022, so you need a 4G phone that supports US LTE bands. The FCC warns that some older 4G phones without Voice over LTE are also affected.
Can I use my US eSIM as a hotspot?
Yes with Ubigi, Saily, Airalo and Nomad, which all allow tethering. Holafly caps hotspot sharing at 1GB a day.
Do US travel eSIMs come with a phone number?
Most do not. Ubigi and Holafly do not include one. Airalo sells US Data, Voice & Text packages, such as 10GB with 100 SMS and 100 minutes for 30 days at US$30, and Saily sells a US phone number as an optional add-on.
Does a US eSIM cover Hawaii and Alaska?
Check the plan before you buy. Ubigi’s USA plans cover Hawaii but not Alaska (checked October 2026); other providers set their own coverage maps.
Related
- Ubigi is cheapest in the USA, but Airalo is the name most people search for — what you get for the premium →
- Airalo and Holafly both sell the USA plans and are the two most-searched eSIM brands, but they work in completely different ways — we put them side by side →