Aussie company looks to simplify data roaming when you travel

It was literally 12 hours ago I was discussing with my wife the roaming needs for all five of us as we get ready for a family holiday overseas. Turns out, we’re not alone – questions about how to keep in contact when travelling are among the most common questions we get on the EFTM podcast.

Today, I received news of an Aussie service with cracking eSIM deals across the globe.

With travel now getting well back to and surpassing pre-pandemic levels there’s never been a more important time to talk about this topic!

According to the ABS 11.6 million Aussies took overseas trips in 2024! Thankfully, those days of bill-shock are well behind us, and we’re now really left considering do I connect on mobile at all and maybe just use WiFi, do I use my normal telco and take their daily roaming charges, or do I get a local SIM.

Since the creation of eSIMs it’s really never been easier to get a SIM card for your travel needs.

What is an eSIM?

Well that little plastic card you put into your phone when you get it, that is a SIM card, it tells your phone what phone network to connect to and what your number should be.

An eSIM is an electronic version of that little plastic card. All you need to do is scan a QR code, or activate an eSIM directly on your phone. Basically, you can “download” an eSIM onto your phone in seconds!

Simify co-founder Aidan Butler says “eSIMs are a game-changer for travellers, offering the best of both worlds,”

“Rather than switching phone numbers, you can use a travel eSIM for unlimited roaming data from the likes of Simify, all while keeping your home number active for things like receiving verification codes from your bank.”

Aidan’s business used to be called SimsDirect and has rebranded to Simify, with customers able to simply purchase an eSIM directly from their website.

I did it this morning, took less than 5 minutes.

Choose the country I’m travelling to, pick a plan and pay.

Once you pay, you tap a few buttons and your phone just starts the installation process!

For the USA I saw plans for 7 days, two weeks, a month, or even 90 days. The longer you’re away the cheaper it gets per day or per GB.

Personally, I don’t want to be topping up data plans while I travel, so the 15 day option works out at .60 per day, less than Vodafone’s popular roaming plans.

Now it should be noted these are DATA plans, with Simify suggesting you keep your local SIM working in your phone, but with Data Roaming off to allow for verification text messages to still work, as well as keeping your home phone number working on apps like WhatsApp or iMessage.

As a Vodafone customer, I’d stick with Vodafone roaming to get it all in one go, but for my wife and kids who are with Boost and Kogan, rather than adding roaming packs, which in some ways might be more cost efficient, but also more restrictive (data limits), and might require top ups while we’re away – I think this is a great solution.

Worth a try for your next overseas trip – just head to the Simify website to find a plan and activate on your phone!