Compare roaming charges against a local SIM or eSIM for a trip.
Roaming is cheaper for very light use because a local SIM has a fixed cost, but the crossover comes quickly. At typical usage a two-week trip almost always favours a local plan. eSIMs removed the practical friction that used to justify paying roaming rates, which has moved the break-even point substantially in favour of local plans.
Roaming Data
Roaming cost = data volume × cost per GB + daily access fee × days
Roaming cost = data volume × cost per GB + daily access fee × days Roaming is cheaper for very light use because a local SIM has a fixed cost, but the crossover comes quickly. At typical usage a two-week trip almost always favours a local plan.
eSIMs removed the practical friction that used to justify paying roaming rates, which has moved the break-even point substantially in favour of local plans.
This calculator takes 5 inputs: Trip length, Daily data use, Roaming cost per GB, Daily roaming access fee, Local SIM or eSIM cost. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.