From days exploring Mayan ruins, to beach time and adventurous road trips, these Mexico eSIMs will keep you connected on the go.
We’ve just returned from a three-week road trip around Mexico. It was the kind of adventure you’d put high on your bucket list, filled with beach days, ancient ruins, cultural experiences and all the tacos you could dream of! It rained for about one hour in three weeks, the rest of the time we enjoyed sunny days and blue skies. Even better, we turned our back on the dreary February weather in the UK!
Before we left, we setup our Sim Local eSIMs. This is a company I’ve used time and time again on my travels. Their eSIMs have always been easy to set up, reliable and offered great connectivity. I hoped this would also be the case in Mexico. Spoiler alert: it was!
If you’re planning a trip to Mexico soon, you’ll want 24/7 access to speedy data so you can plan routes, find restaurants, book activities and keep in touch with friends and family. Coming up, I’ll share how I found the best eSIM deal for Mexico, how I set it up and what the service was like during my holiday. Plus, I’ve got a great discount, so you can save your Mexican pesos for lots of tasty street tacos!
What is the best eSIM for Mexico travel?
What is an eSIM and how does it work?
If you’re new to the world of eSIMs, let me start from the beginning. ESIM stands for embedded SIM. Rather than buying a physical SIM card and putting it in your phone, you buy an eSIM online and install it digitally. It can be activated remotely, so you’ll be connected as soon as it’s installed
How does an eSIM work?
ESIMs allow you to connect to a local mobile network. You activate the eSIM profile through your phone settings. It’s easy to switch on and off, so you can move between data plans easily, or a physical SIM and an eSIM.
Depending on the provider you choose, you’ll have access to some of the strongest local networks in your destination, meaning you’ll always be able to use your phone as normal. For my holiday in Mexico I selected an eSIM on the Orange network. I was really impressed with the strong coverage and fast data speeds.
A quick introduction to Sim Local
As mentioned, I’ve used Sim Local’s eSIMs on countless trips around the world now. The website is very user friendly and the sims are easy to set up. They offer coverage in more than 200 destinations. That’s everywhere from Mexico and Thailand, to Spain and Australia. If you’re travelling somewhere soon, there will be an eSIM available for your trip!
For this trip, I picked a 20GB Orange eSIM, which works globally in over 150 countries. Unlike some eSIMs which only offer data, I liked the fact this one also included SMS messages and some international minutes in the plan. It’s a particularly good option if you’re visiting multiple countries. I like the way the eSIMS connect to local network providers, so the speeds are as good as if you bought a local sim card.
It’s worth noting that Sim Local’s unlimited plans offer 10GB of high-speed data per day, while many other companies cap it at 3GB per day.
Do you need an eSIM for travelling in Mexico?
While you might have a really good contract at home, most likely it’ll cost you a lot to use it in Mexico. Mine was going to charge me £5 per day I was on holiday, and even more if I wanted to make or receive calls. We would have really struggled in Mexico without constant access to data. We used it for absolutely everything!
We used Waze to navigate for our road trip, which required data. In restaurants, I used the translate function a lot, as well as a currency conversion app. I was constantly checking my online banks, plus sharing photos on my social media. Plus, we used data every single day to look up places to visit, where the best food spots were and to organise our accommodation. We even booked taxis using Uber and ordered take aways with our data! We’d have been utterly lost without it.
I was really impressed by the data speeds in Mexico. We pretty much always had 4G, and occasionally 5G. I loved that even on a long car journey I could stream videos or Whatsapp video call my mum back in England.
What are the best eSIM plans for Mexico?
The best Mexico eSIM plans offer flexible data options, reliable coverage and easy installation before you travel.
These plans are perfect, whether you’re visiting Cancun, Mexico City or planning trips to places that are off the beaten track. You’ll be able to use your phone as a hotspot, so you can connect to multiple devices (or allow others to use your data). Plans vary, from a few GB of data, to unlimited data. I love that as you pay upfront before you travel, you won’t be faced with any scary bills after the trip!
I’ve had a search and these are my top choices for Mexico right now.
20GB Global eSIM
This plan runs on the Orange network and includes 20GB of data over 31 days. It’s the plan we picked as we were away for so long. It comes with a French phone number, 50 text messages and 15 International minutes. It works in over 150 countries too, so is ideal if you’re visiting more than one country on your trip.
18GB eSIM
This plan runs on the Three network and includes 18GB of data over 30 days. Unlike the Orange plan, this one is data only, so you won’t have a phone number for calls or texts. It works in over 70 countries, so is a good option for multi-destination trips.
Unlimited eSIM – Mexico
If you’re a really high data user, perhaps planning to use your phone for streaming, gaming, navigation and a hotspot, then an unlimited plan might suit you best. This plan runs on the Smartroam network and offers unlimited data over 15 days.
5GB eSIM – Mexico
If you’re a low data user or only planning a short holiday in Mexico, you might find 5GB of data is enough to cover your trip. This plan is very reasonable and will offer good connectivity in built up areas.
It’s worth knowing that while you’ll have excellent coverage in major cities such as Cancun or Mexico City, you might find signal a little patchy in remote areas. We noticed this on our longer days road tripping from Cancun to Isla Holbox and Campeche towards Bacalar. We weren’t out of service for too long, but there will always be the odd black spot!
Ready to stay connected in Mexico? Use my exclusive code WANDERLUST15 for 15% off your Sim Local eSIM. Click this link and apply the code at checkout to get your discount, and skip buying a local SIM card when you arrive.
Who is a Sim Local eSIM best for?
Pretty much everyone! We all rely so heavily on data when we travel, it’s hard to survive without the internet.
Solo travellers – If you’re backpacking around Mexico and Central America for several months, you’ll want an eSIM for your trip.
Digital nomads – We saw lots of digital nomads in Mexico especially around Tulum. ESIMs provide lots of data, strong connections and they can be used as a hotspot for days when you’re at your laptop.
Families – Even if you’ll be spending a lot of time in a resort in Mexico, I still think it’s important to have a strong data connection. You’ll want it from the moment you land, as you organise transport to and from the airport. Now that I travel with my two little kids, I can’t bear to be disconnected. It’s essential for safety.
How to install and activate a Mexico eSIM
I set up my Sim Local eSIM two days before travelling. It was a very quick and easy process. I decided which one I wanted, paid for the eSIM, then received a confirmation email explaining how to activate my plan. It was really easy to follow and just took a few moments to install.
As my eSIM was also usable in the UK, I let it connect to the network briefly which confirmed it was working. Before we took off, I toggled my usual sim card to off, and then when I landed in Cancun, I toggled the Sim Local eSIM on. It connected to a local network immediately. Despite using my phone a lot over our three-week trip, I didn’t get close to using up 20GB of data.
Are there any important things to know about setting up an eSIM?
You must enable data roaming on your eSIM settings after you install the plan.
You can only download the eSIM to a device once and should not delete it until you’ve completed your trip.
Are Sim Local eSIMs good value for money?
I’ve tried several different operators, but Sim Local offer some of the cheapest eSIMS in Mexico.
As a quick comparison, Sim Local offers 30-day plans from as low as £8.50, while Holafly’s 30-day plan is £60! Airolo’s cheapest plan for 30-days is £10.50.
Overall, Sim Local offers some of the cheapest eSIM plans for Mexico, with flexible data options and excellent coverage across the country.
Use my code WANDERLUST15 at the checkout to get 15% off your Sim Local eSIM and skip the hassle of buying a SIM card at the airport.
I hope you’ve found this guide to the best eSIMs in Mexico helpful. I’ll be sharing more blogs soon about the best places to visit in the Yucatan Peninsula, how to plan a family trip and sharing lots of my favourite spots.