The best eSIM for India
Data in India currently starts at $1.83 a gigabyte — that's 20GB for $36.5, valid 15 days. Below is what each provider actually charges, and the fine print that decides whether the cheap one stays cheap.
Airalo pricing refreshed automatically — last updated 2026-07-20.
Why India is different
India is the strongest case for a travel eSIM anywhere. Local SIMs require in-person identity verification with a physical address, and tourists routinely lose an afternoon to it or give up entirely. A travel eSIM bypasses the process completely — it is a roaming product, so the local registration rules do not apply to it.
You will use more data here than you expect, because almost everything runs through the phone: ride-hailing, rail bookings, UPI-adjacent payment flows and endless navigation. Buy generously. Coverage is strong in cities and along the main rail corridors, patchier in the hills.
What 10GB costs in India
Normalised to cost per gigabyte, because bundle sizes differ between providers and headline prices are not comparable. Airalo's figure recalculates daily from its live catalogue; the others were read by hand on 20 July 2026.
| Provider | Best value plan | Per GB | Throttled after |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airalo live pricing | 20GB · 15 days · $36.5 | $1.83 | 3 GB/day, then 1 Mbps |
| Holafly | Unlimited · 30 days · $73.9 | n/a — sold by day, not by GB | Not published; hotspot capped at 1 GB/day |
Currencies are as each provider quoted them and are not converted — Yesim and Saily geo-detect, so you may be shown a different one. Full fine print for every provider is on the main comparison.
Cheapest plans for India right now
Affiliate links — we earn a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. The order is purely cost per gigabyte, and Airalo pays us less than any other eSIM partner we work with.
Before you buy
Don't activate it until you land
Most plans start counting down when the eSIM first connects to a network at your destination, but some activate on installation regardless of where you are. Install the profile before you fly by all means — just leave the line switched off until you arrive, or you can lose days off a short trip before it starts.
Your bank texts won't arrive on it
These are data-only plans with no phone number, so SMS one-time codes from your bank or airline will not reach them. Move two-factor codes to an authenticator app before you travel, keep your home SIM active for texts with data roaming switched off, and turn on Wi-Fi calling.
Buy smaller and top up
Every provider here forfeits unused data at expiry — there is no rollover and no refund. Buying a modest allowance and topping up beats over-buying, though check top-ups are supported first: Airalo only offers them on plans marked rechargeable, and Holafly has withdrawn them entirely.
Check your phone is eSIM-capable and carrier-unlocked before buying. A locked handset will not accept the profile, and that is the single most common reason these fail on arrival.
Going to India?
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