How to Avoid Roaming Charges in 2025

Nothing ruins a vacation faster than coming home to a €500 phone bill. Roaming charges are one of the most common — and most avoidable — travel expenses. Here are five proven ways to keep your phone bill under control while traveling in 2025.

1. Get a travel eSIM (best option)

An eSIM gives you a local data plan without the hassle of physical SIM cards. You buy a plan online, scan a QR code, and you're connected. It's the fastest and most affordable way to get data abroad.

• Plans start at a few euros for generous data allowances
• Works in 15+ countries including France, Japan, and USA
• No contracts, no hidden fees — prepaid means you control costs
• Your home SIM stays active for calls and texts

2. Turn off data roaming before you travel

The simplest way to avoid accidental charges is to disable data roaming on your home SIM before departure. This prevents your phone from connecting to foreign networks and racking up charges.

On iPhone: Settings → Cellular → Cellular Data Options → Data Roaming → Off. On Android: Settings → Connections → Mobile Networks → Data Roaming → Off.

With an eSIM installed, you'll enable roaming only on the eSIM line (which is prepaid), while keeping it off on your home line.

3. Use Wi-Fi whenever possible

Free Wi-Fi is widely available in hotels, cafes, airports, and restaurants across most countries. Download maps, update social media, and make video calls when you're on Wi-Fi to conserve your mobile data.

• Download Google Maps areas for offline navigation before your trip
• Pre-download Netflix/Spotify content for flights and transit
• Use hotel Wi-Fi for data-heavy tasks like uploading photos
• Avoid public Wi-Fi for banking or sensitive logins (use a VPN if needed)

4. Check your carrier's travel add-ons

Some carriers offer international day passes or travel data packs. These are usually more expensive than an eSIM but might make sense for very short trips (1-2 days) where convenience outweighs cost.

Be careful with carrier add-ons that charge per day — a week-long trip at $10/day adds up to $70, which is significantly more than an eSIM plan with more data.

5. Use messaging apps over data instead of SMS

International SMS can cost €0.30-1.00 per message. Instead, use WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram, or Signal — they work over data (or Wi-Fi) and are free. Same goes for calls: use WhatsApp calls, FaceTime, or Skype instead of regular phone calls abroad.

What do roaming charges actually cost?

Here's what you might pay without any protection:

• EU to EU — Free for EU residents (but not for visitors from outside the EU)
• US carrier in Europe — $2-5 per MB, or $10-15/day for travel passes
• European carrier in Japan — €10-25 per MB
• Any carrier in Switzerland — €10-18 per MB (not covered by EU roaming)
• Background app data — Your phone can use 100MB+ per day just from email, cloud sync, and app updates

At these rates, a single day of normal phone use could cost €50-200 without a data plan.

The bottom line

The easiest way to avoid roaming charges is to get a travel eSIM before your trip. It takes 5 minutes to set up, costs a fraction of roaming, and gives you the freedom to use your phone normally while abroad.

Check out our plans for Europe, USA, Japan, Thailand, and more. No BS, no surprises — just affordable data abroad.