Nomad alternativesfive travel eSIMs and who each suits

Reviewed by Itamar Bareket (CTO, MobiMatter) · Last reviewed

Short answer

The main Nomad alternatives are Airalo, Holafly, Maya Mobile, MobiMatter and Saily. Nomad sells its own plans in each country from one partner network set, most of them valid 30 days, with a free 1 GB trial for new users. Airalo and Saily are single-brand apps much like Nomad: Airalo has loyalty tiers, Saily an ad blocker built in. Holafly and Maya Mobile sell unlimited data, so you never pick an amount. MobiMatter sells plans on several vetted carriers and of different lengths in many countries, so you can choose the network. The table below prices one week with 6 GB at every brand.

Live right now, MobiMatter plans run on au (KDDI), NTT docomo, Rakuten, and SoftBank in Japan; AT&T, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon in the US; Türk Telekom, Turkcell, and Vodafone in Turkey; Bouygues Telecom, Free, Orange, and SFR in France.

The alternatives and who each suits

  • AiraloOne familiar brand with loyalty tiers
  • HolaflyUnlimited data at one price per day
  • Maya MobileSeveral countries on one unlimited plan
  • MobiMatterChoosing your network and plan length, from plans ranked on quality and value
  • SailyOne reusable eSIM with an ad blocker built in

Nomad is in the price table for reference.

MobiMatter is rated 4.3/5 on Trustpilot from 57,137 reviews, 4.8/5 on the App Store and 4.9/5 on Google Play.

Why travelers look beyond Nomad

  • Nomad chooses the network: each country has Nomad plans from one partner network set, so choosing a carrier means choosing another brand.[1]
  • Its unlimited plans give 2 GB a day at high speed, then slow down until the daily reset: 1 Mbps on its plan pages, 512 kbps in its fair-use document.[2]
  • Nomad Points don't apply to unlimited plans.[3]

The same trip at every brand: 1 week: 6 GB, 7 days

Each brand's cheapest plan that covers the trip, at the list price on its own site in US dollars, without sale prices or promo codes. The lowest like-for-like price in each column is highlighted in green and bold; an unlimited plan whose full-speed allowance isn't published is shown but not counted. Captured October 11, 2026. MobiMatter prices and networks: live catalog, checked October 12, 2026.

The same trip at every brand: 1 week: 6 GB, 7 days
BrandJapanUnited StatesTurkeyFrance
Airalo$17.00[7]$21.50[8]$14.50[9]$16.00[10]
Holafly$27.50unlimited plan[11]$27.50unlimited plan[12]$27.50unlimited plan[13]$27.50unlimited plan[14]
Maya Mobile$19.99unlimited plan[19]$19.99unlimited plan[20]$19.99unlimited plan[21]$19.99unlimited plan[22]
MobiMatter$7.99 (Lower price)$8.49 (Lower price)$7.99 (Lower price)$7.99 (Lower price)
Saily$17.99[15]$22.99[16]$15.99[17]$16.99[18]
Nomad$18.00[1]$15.00[4]$15.00[5]$14.00[6]

The alternatives and who each suits

Brands are listed in alphabetical order, here and in the table, with Nomad last for reference.

  • Airalo

    Good fit for: One familiar brand with loyalty tiers

    Airalo sells its own plan line in each country on the networks it has chosen, with a Global plan for 168 countries and Airmoney cashback of 5% to 10% by tier. Its unlimited plans slow down after 3 GB a day (5 GB in the US).

    Unlimited data and fair use
    Yes: Unlimited plans: 3 GB a day at high speed (5 GB in the US), then 1 Mbps until the daily reset[23]
    Hotspot / tethering
    Yes: Allowed[24]
    Multi-country plans
    10 regional plans and 1 Global plan (168 countries); fixed data and unlimited[25]
    Longest validity
    Up to 365 days (Global Discover 20 GB)[25]
    MobiMatter vs Airalo: full comparison

  • Holafly

    Good fit for: Unlimited data at one price per day

    Holafly sells unlimited-data eSIMs priced by the number of days, so you never pick a data amount. Hotspot sharing is limited to 1 GB a day, and its Japan, US, Turkey and France pages sell no fixed-data plans.

    Unlimited data and fair use
    Yes: Every plan is unlimited, no fixed daily cap stated; operators may slow speeds under fair use for up to one day[12]
    Hotspot / tethering
    Limited: Allowed, up to 1 GB per day[11]
    Multi-country plans
    21 multi-country plans incl. Global (142 countries); unlimited data only[26]
    Longest validity
    Up to 90 days (plans priced by the day, 1 to 90)[26]
    MobiMatter vs Holafly: full comparison

  • Maya Mobile

    Good fit for: Several countries on one unlimited plan

    Maya Mobile sells one global unlimited eSIM at the same price in every country, for up to 30 days. Maya picks the network, and its daily high-speed quota is not published.

    Unlimited data and fair use
    Yes: Every plan is unlimited with a daily high-speed quota, then standard speed; quota size not published[22]
    Hotspot / tethering
    Yes: Included[19]
    Multi-country plans
    One global unlimited plan for 165+ countries[19]
    Longest validity
    Up to 30 days (unlimited plans of 3 to 30 days)[19]
    MobiMatter vs Maya Mobile: full comparison

  • MobiMatter

    Good fit for: Choosing your network and plan length, from plans ranked on quality and value

    In many countries MobiMatter sells plans on several vetted carriers and ranks them on quality and value, so you choose by network, data and validity rather than take one partner network set. Every eSIM sits in one MobiMatter account and app, with 24/7 support and rewards on each purchase.

    Unlimited data and fair use
    Yes: Offered in many destinations; the daily high-speed allowance and fair use depend on the plan and are stated on its page
    Hotspot / tethering
    Yes: Included on every plan
    Multi-country plans
    175 multi-country plans for these four destinations, up to 185 countries in one plan
    Longest validity
    15 plans valid 90 days or more for these four destinations, up to 365 days

  • Saily

    Good fit for: One reusable eSIM with an ad blocker built in

    Saily sells its own plans per country on one eSIM you install once and reuse, with an ad blocker and virtual location in the app. It names its network on some country pages only.

    Unlimited data and fair use
    Yes: Unlimited plans (5 to 30 days): 5 GB a day at full speed, then up to 1 Mbps until the daily reset[27]
    Hotspot / tethering
    Yes: Allowed, no limit stated[16]
    Multi-country plans
    10 regional plans; Global covers 121 countries; fixed data[28]
    Longest validity
    Up to 365 days (Global 20 GB and 50 GB)[29]
    MobiMatter vs Saily: full comparison

How we chose and priced them

The alternatives are the travel eSIM brands MobiMatter has full comparison pages for. Every fact about a brand comes from its own public pages and is linked to its source with the date it was read; each card shows the same four facts for every brand.

Prices follow the method of those pages: for one week with 6 GB in Japan, the United States, Turkey and France, each brand's cheapest plan that covers the trip (a bigger plan counts), at its list price in US dollars. When no plan with a set amount of data covers the trip, the cheapest unlimited plan that lasts long enough counts if its published full-speed allowance covers the trip. MobiMatter prices are read live from the plans on sale.

Disclosure: MobiMatter publishes this page and sells travel eSIMs, so it has a commercial interest in the comparison. MobiMatter also sells plans from some other eSIM brands, including Airalo.

Reviewed by Itamar Bareket (CTO, MobiMatter) · Last reviewed

Questions

What is a good alternative to Nomad eSIM?

It depends on what you want to change. To choose your network, MobiMatter sells plans on several vetted carriers in many countries, ranked on quality and value. For one familiar brand with loyalty tiers, Airalo. For unlimited data without picking an amount, Holafly or Maya Mobile. For one reusable eSIM with an ad blocker, Saily. The table above prices one week with 6 GB at each.

Is Nomad or Airalo better?

Both are single-brand apps that choose the network for you in each country. Nomad gives new users a free 1 GB trial; Airalo has a Global plan for 168 countries and loyalty cashback of 5% to 10%. Their prices for one week with 6 GB are side by side in the table above. If you want to choose the network yourself, MobiMatter sells plans on several vetted carriers in many countries, Airalo plans among them.

When does a Nomad eSIM start its validity?

On first network connection, or automatically 60 days after purchase, according to its plan pages. Every MobiMatter plan states its own activation policy before you buy.

Source[1]

Sources

  1. [1]Nomad: Model; Prices for the same trips: Japan; Questions: When does a Nomad eSIM start its validity?nomadesim.com/japan-esim · captured October 10, 2026
  2. [2]Nomad: Unlimited data and fair usenomadesim.com/documents/data-plan-detail-unlimited · captured October 9, 2026
  3. [3]Nomad: Rewardsnomadesim.com/documents/nomad-esim-reward · captured October 9, 2026
  4. [4]Nomad: Prices for the same trips: United Statesnomadesim.com/united-states-esim · captured October 9, 2026
  5. [5]Nomad: Prices for the same trips: Turkeynomadesim.com/turkey-esim · captured October 9, 2026
  6. [6]Nomad: Prices for the same trips: Francenomadesim.com/france-esim · captured October 9, 2026
  7. [7]Airalo: Prices for the same trips: Japanairalo.com/japan-esim?currency=USD · captured October 11, 2026
  8. [8]Airalo: Prices for the same trips: United Statesairalo.com/united-states-esim?currency=USD · captured October 11, 2026
  9. [9]Airalo: Prices for the same trips: Turkeyairalo.com/turkey-esim?currency=USD · captured October 11, 2026
  10. [10]Airalo: Prices for the same trips: Franceairalo.com/france-esim?currency=USD · captured October 11, 2026
  11. [11]Holafly: Prices for the same trips: Japan; Hotspot / tetheringesim.holafly.com/esim-japan/ · captured October 11, 2026
  12. [12]Holafly: Prices for the same trips: United States; Unlimited data and fair useesim.holafly.com/esim-usa/ · captured October 11, 2026
  13. [13]Holafly: Prices for the same trips: Turkeyesim.holafly.com/esim-turkey/ · captured October 11, 2026
  14. [14]Holafly: Prices for the same trips: Franceesim.holafly.com/esim-france/ · captured October 11, 2026
  15. [15]Saily: Prices for the same trips: Japansaily.com/esim-japan/ · captured October 9, 2026
  16. [16]Saily: Prices for the same trips: United States; Hotspot / tetheringsaily.com/esim-united-states/ · captured October 9, 2026
  17. [17]Saily: Prices for the same trips: Turkeysaily.com/esim-turkey/ · captured October 9, 2026
  18. [18]Saily: Prices for the same trips: Francesaily.com/esim-france/ · captured October 9, 2026
  19. [19]Maya Mobile: Prices for the same trips: Japan; Hotspot / tethering; Multi-country plans; Longest validitymaya.net/esim/japan · captured October 11, 2026
  20. [20]Maya Mobile: Prices for the same trips: United Statesmaya.net/plans/usa · captured October 11, 2026
  21. [21]Maya Mobile: Prices for the same trips: Turkeymaya.net/esim/turkey · captured October 11, 2026
  22. [22]Maya Mobile: Prices for the same trips: France; Unlimited data and fair usemaya.net/legal · captured October 11, 2026
  23. [23]Airalo: Unlimited data and fair useairalo.com/unlimited-packages · captured October 9, 2026
  24. [24]Airalo: Hotspot / tetheringairalo.com/help/using-managing-esims/ZSEEHBT5HW6F/can-i-use-tethering-personal-hotspot/5XTAX1X7HR0B · captured October 9, 2026
  25. [25]Airalo: Multi-country plans; Longest validityairalo.com/discover-esim · captured October 9, 2026
  26. [26]Holafly: Multi-country plans; Longest validityesim.holafly.com/esim-global/ · captured October 9, 2026
  27. [27]Saily: Unlimited data and fair usesaily.com/legal/terms-of-service/ · captured October 9, 2026
  28. [28]Saily: Multi-country planssaily.com/all-destinations/ · captured October 9, 2026
  29. [29]Saily: Longest validitysaily.com/esim-global/ · captured October 9, 2026

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