Nomad eSIM Review 2026: Prices from $0.74/GB
Nomad hits $0.74/GB on its cheapest routes, making it the price leader for budget trips. Watch the fine print: the so-called unlimited add-on throttles to 1 Mbps after 2 GB each day.
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Nomad wins on raw price for SE Asia and a handful of other budget routes. Thailand 5 GB costs $6.99. Email-only support and a thin app mean you trade convenience for savings. Right for solo budget travelers; wrong for trips where you need fast help.
Nomad ratings
Pros
- From $0.74/GB on cheapest routes
- Thailand 5 GB at $6.99, Vietnam 3 GB at $7.49
- Fast QR delivery, no account required to buy
- Full refund within 30 days if unused
Cons
- Unlimited plan caps at 2 GB/day full speed, then 1 Mbps
- Support by email only, 1-2 day reply
- 200 countries listed but thin plan selection outside SE Asia
- App lacks real-time data meter
Full Nomad review
Coverage
Price per GB drops to $0.74 on Nomad's cheapest routes, making it the lowest-cost option we track. Outside budget-friendly destinations, the trade-off shifts: 200 countries are listed, but plan counts thin out fast in Africa and South America. If your trip stays in Europe or Southeast Asia, the coverage-to-price ratio is hard to beat.
Speed
Nomad partners with SoftBank in Japan, TRUE in Thailand, and Telkomsel in Indonesia. Day-to-day speeds cover maps, messaging, and video calls at 4G LTE. The advertised unlimited add-on drops to 1 Mbps once you hit 2 GB in a single day, which is a real limit for video streaming.
App experience
The app handles buying a plan, scanning the QR code, and checking remaining gigabytes. That covers the basics and nothing more. There is no live data usage graph, no carrier-level speed test, and no VPN toggle. iOS ratings land at 4.2 and Android at 4.0 on the Play Store.
Pricing
Thailand 5 GB costs $6.99. Vietnam 3 GB costs $7.49. Those are the headline numbers that put Nomad at the top of any cheapest-first sort for SE Asia. Rates outside that region climb toward $3-5/GB, where Airalo often matches or undercuts. Always check the per-GB column before buying.
Support
Email is the only channel. Tickets typically close within 24-48 hours. That delay is manageable for a connectivity hiccup at home but painful when your eSIM fails at the airport. Budget your tolerance accordingly.
Our verdict
Book Nomad for a single-country SE Asia trip where saving $5-10 on data matters. For a multi-country tour, or any destination outside Nomad's cheap-route map, compare per-GB prices on Airalo first.
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Nomad quick facts
2020
Santa Clara, CA
200+
4.2
Email only
30-day refund
$0.74/GB
Best Budget