One of the biggest eSIM providers in the world at the moment is Holafly, and if you’re wondering if it’s the right choice for your next trip, you’ve come to the right place. To give you the full picture, we put together a detailed Holafly review where we'll evaluate just how good this service is by taking a close look at its features, pricing, and overall reliability. Most importantly, we’ll see how it stacks against main competitors.
Ready?
| Website | esim.holafly.com |
| Pricing | Starts at around $6 per day for local plans |
| Platform compatibility | Android and iOS |
| Supported mobile networks | 3G, 4G, 5G, LTE |
| Phone calls | No |
| Mobile hotspot support | Yes |
Key takeaways from testing Holafly eSIM
- Holafly’s eSIM offers unlimited data plans, making it a top choice for travelers who want to browse the web without the fear of running out of data.
- The service provides extensive coverage in over 200 destinations by partnering with local cellular providers.
- Holafly is praised for its excellent customer service 24/7 assistance and a favorable refund policy.
- Check out the best Holafly deals and discounts to stay connected on the go.
What is Holafly?
Holafly is an eSIM provider that connects travelers with unlimited prepaid data plans that don’t require physical SIM cards. As one of the pioneers in the eSIM industry and with a 4.6 rating on Trustpilot, Holafly is a trustworthy company you can consistently rely on when traveling.
Regardless of where you’re traveling to, there’s a high possibility that Holafly will provide coverage with its network consisting of over 200 destinations.
Why use an eSIM?
Simply put, eSIM is the most convenient way to connect to the internet when traveling. For starters, you’ll avoid the hassle of purchasing a physical SIM when you arrive at your destination country. In case your trip covers multiple countries, you can also buy a regional plan that covers several countries to ensure truly uninterrupted online access.
Since you can activate an eSIM remotely, you also get to connect to the internet as soon as you land — invaluable, especially if you rely on services like Google Maps.
If you care about your carbon footprint, you’ll also sleep easier by opting for an eSIM. Because it’s a purely digital solution, there’s no waste involved — perfect if you want to stay green.
Pros and cons of Holafly eSIM
Holafly stands out with its unlimited data plans, offering a liberating experience for travelers who don’t want to worry about running out of data. The download speeds are generally good, and the connection is reliable. However, occasional hiccups and dead zones can occur, especially in remote areas, as Holafly depends on local cellular carriers like most eSIM providers.
Holafly is also super easy to set up (it can be done in under five minutes), even for users who aren’t tech-savvy. This extends to the general ease of use. Holafly’s app is sleek and easy to navigate, as every action can be done with just a few swipes and taps.
Holafly is generally amazing, but we must mention a few negative things.
Let’s start with the fact that this service only offers unlimited plans. Yes, unlimited data is an advantage, but the fact that ALL plans are unlimited makes Holafly lose flexibility. In other words, users who don’t require too many gigabytes will find it hard to justify the noticeably higher price compared to some competitors.
Plus, while the plan you get is technically unlimited, it doesn’t spare you from data throttling. Unfortunately, the majority of local cellular providers keep users in check by throttling their speed when they hit a certain threshold. Since Holafly relies on these companies, you’ll eventually have to contend with a slower connection.
Another annoying limit you’ll have to deal with is the one on tethering or hotspots. Although you can share your data with other devices (or other users), the amount is limited to 1GB per day.
We also have a bone to pick with Holafly’s customer support. While the chatbot proved to be effective in resolving common issues, we never managed to connect to a live agent – a true definition of the word unresponsive.
+ Pros
- 200+ destinations
- Unlimited data
- Flexible plan durations
- Easy to use
- Supports voice calls
- 24/7 customer support
– Cons
- Pricier than most competitors
- Possible data throttling
- Tethering data limits
- Unlimited data only
Holafly's eSIM plans and pricing
Holafly provides a multitude of data plans to cater to different needs. All plans are unlimited, but you can at least fully customize their duration — from as little as one day to as many as 90 days (or more in some regions).
Coverage by country and region
If your trip is limited to a single destination, a country plan will suffice. Thankfully, for those traveling across multiple countries (or the entire world), there are nifty regional plans that ensure uninterrupted coverage across borders and a global plan that includes all the destinations in the Holafly network.
Pricing
Just as with other eSIM providers, the prices of data plans will vary between regions and countries. As this service allows you to choose the exact duration of the plan, we decided to only cover the pricing for 5-day, 15-day, and 30-day plans, in this Holafly review.
Since there are also too many regions and countries to choose from, we’ll keep it simple by covering the popular regional plan for Europe. In addition to a breakdown of the rates for global plans, you’ll also see below the prices for one dedicated country plan – the United States.
Here’s how much you can expect to pay for this service:
| Region | Data amount | Duration | Price |
| Global | Unlimited | 5 days | $37.90 |
| Global | Unlimited | 15 days | $97.90 |
| Global | Unlimited | 30 days | $162.90 |
| Europe | Unlimited | 5 days | $20.90 |
| Europe | Unlimited | 15 days | $50.90 |
| Europe | Unlimited | 30 days | $74.90 |
| USA | Unlimited | 5 days | $20.90 |
| USA | Unlimited | 15 days | $50.90 |
| USA | Unlimited | 30 days | $74.90 |
Device compatibility with Holafly eSIM
To use Holafly, your phone needs to support eSIM technology. Most new models have this capability, including iPhones (11 series and up), as well as newer Apple devices like iPads, and Samsung Galaxy (A50, S20 and up). Google Pixel users are not excluded either, since Google Pixel 3a and newer models all support eSIMs.
But what about less popular manufacturers?
No problem — newer phones from Xiaomi, Huawei, and Vivo also come with eSIM support.
To be on the safe side, either look for an eSIM option in your mobile data settings or google your exact model online. That way, you can avoid any unpleasant situations.
How to set up and activate Holafly's eSIM
Your Holafly journey starts once you create an account and purchase a plan. Since you get to choose the exact duration of the plan when shopping through the website, we recommend doing that before downloading and installing the app.
Once that’s in order, log in to your account using the Holafly app and navigate to the ‘My eSIMs’ section. There, you’ll see your plan.
Tap on ‘Install and activate’ to proceed further. Holafly will inform you that you received a QR code via email, which you can use to quickly install an eSIM (the email that contains the code is titled ‘Holafly eSIMs’).
Next, navigate to your ‘Network & internet’ settings (might be named differently depending on the device), and find the SIMs section. Click on the plus icon to add a new eSIM. After a few seconds, you'll be prompted to scan the QR code. So, open that email you received earlier on another device (or take a screenshot of the code and import the image) and your Holafly eSIM will install automatically.
To activate your data plan, you’ll have to wait until you arrive at your destination so that the device can connect to the local cellular network.
Either way, this part is pretty straightforward and involves choosing Holafly in the SIMs section in your Network & internet settings. Select ‘Use eSIM’, turn on data roaming and mobile data, and that’s pretty much it.
User experience and performance
It’s no surprise Holafly is one of the most popular providers out there — the majority of users have had overwhelmingly positive experiences. Many user reviews mention impressive connections that can easily be used for streaming content, making video calls, and general social media usage. During writing this Holafly review, our experience was similar to a lot of what was written in user feedback.
We tested the speed, and this is what we got:
Do note that the connection quality ultimately depends on the local network infrastructure, so this result is roughly what you can expect to get out of the local providers in the area where we conducted the speed test.
It’s important to stay realistic about the overall performance. Since eSIM providers rely on local networks, it means that you may experience download speed drops in remote areas or urban areas during busy hours. Moreover, some local carriers may also throttle your connection speed if they determine you’re using too much data.
Still, the performance was solid and we experienced no connection drops whatsoever.
Also, props to Holafly for creating an app that oozes quality.
Granted, since the provider is only focused on unlimited plans, you don’t really require functions for data top-ups or tracking data expenditure, but it’s an impressive app nonetheless.
Customer support and service quality
Unfortunately, not everything is rosy. Although customer support is easy to contact through the app and the chatbot seems to be effective, that’s all you can expect to get out of Holafly.
After requesting to speak to a live agent, the chatbot “promised” it would connect us through a human being, but we ended up calling it a day after about an hour. We never had this happen during any of our eSIM reviews, but it seems there’s a first time for everything, as they say.
The chatbot will probably help you resolve most of your issues, but the fact remains that even when dealing with the customer support of questionable eSIM providers, we always managed to get to a live agent eventually.
Our expectations were pretty high since Holafly is generally a top-tier service, so we can describe this entire episode with the phrase ‘’not angry, just disappointed.”
Refund policy and guarantees
Holafly is pretty generous with its refund policy. If your trip is canceled or you change your mind about the service at any point, you can receive a full refund within six months of the purchase. Naturally, this applies if you haven’t activated or used the service.
But what if you activated your eSIM and used it for a while before realizing it’s not meeting your expectations?
In that case, you can receive a partial refund where the amount will depend on how much data you used. Either way, these guarantees are a testament to how much Holafly is committed to customer satisfaction.
Comparing Holafly with other eSIM providers
At first glance, eSIM providers seem similar, and while Holafly stands out as a top option, its edge could partly stem from its strong marketing and industry experience. That said, while Holafly exudes quality, it might not suit every traveler.
| Provider | Voice call support | Extra features | Price |
| Holafly | No | Unlimited data | $6.90 per day for unlimited data |
| Saily | No | Ad blocker, VPN, web protection | $1.99 for 1GB |
| Airalo | Global plan only | Loyalty and referral program | $4.50 for 1GB |
| Jetpac | No | SmartDelay lounge access and Fast Track boarding pass | $1 for 1GB |
| AloSIM | Yes | / | $4.50 for 1GB |
| Nomad | No | Discount for bundle purchases | $4.50 for 1GB |
There are plenty of alternatives to Holafly. For starters, there's aloSIM, an eSIM provider that supports traditional voice calls at an affordable price – as you can read in our aloSIM review.
If you don't require phone calls, there are plenty of data-only services to chose from, including Nomad, Airalo (which has an exciting loyalty program), and Jetpac (known for its low prices and perks like SmartDelay lounge access).
However, Saily offers the most value as it also provides you with full VPN functionality, as well as an ad blocker, and threat protection, free of charge. Sounds good? Make sure to check out our comprehensive Saily review.
Summary — A reliable eSIM with unlimited data
Although Holafly is pricey and comes with a few drawbacks like limited tethering, it’s impossible to deny that it may be the most “serious” option on the eSIM market.
With a network consisting of over 200 locations, unlimited data plans, and excellent customer support, Holafly is a solid choice (if not the best) in case you plan on doing bandwidth-intensive tasks when traveling.
Its reputation alone (combined with the fact you’ll never run out of data) is enough to provide you with peace of mind, which is something that’s worth the extra few dollars when adventuring in a foreign place.
Other eSIM guides:
- Saily Review
- Airalo Review
- Jetpac Review
- Nomad Review
- aloSIM Review
- Ubigi eSIM Review
- Best eSIM Providers
- Best eSIM for Europe
- Best eSIM for Japan
- Best eSIM for USA
- Best eSIM for International Travel
Holafly FAQ
How do I know if my phone is compatible with Holafly’s eSIM?
To make sure your phone is compatible with Holafly’s eSIM, google your exact model. Alternatively, you can check if you have the eSIM option in your phone’s mobile data settings.
Can I share my unlimited data plan with other devices?
While you can share your plan with others by firing up a hotspot, tethering data is capped at 500MB or 1GB per day, depending on your plan.
How quickly can I get connected after purchasing Holafly’s eSIM?
You can get connected almost immediately after purchasing Holafly’s eSIM by simply scanning the QR code you receive via email. It's that easy!
What if I have issues with my eSIM while traveling?
If you run into problems while traveling, reach out to Holafly's 24/7 responsive, knowledgeable, and multilingual customer support.
What is Holafly’s refund policy?
Holafly provides a full refund for unused products within 14 days of purchase, and you can also get a full refund within six months if the eSIM hasn't been activated.
This Holafly review was last updated on March 27, 2025.
I’ve used Holafly for several trips to Europe, and have been very happy with the service until now. Two weeks ago, I purchased a top-up to an active eSIM. I was assured that it would start automatically when my active eSIM expired. For a week or so, it did. Then one day, it just stopped working. Once I’d realized, I contacted Holafly customer service. I spent an hour with them Friday, trying to get mobile data before a trip to the coast (I’m in Italy). Then two hours Saturday morning – one of which was simply spent waiting. Still no mobile data for the trip. When we returned this afternoon, I tried again. I’ve now been waiting for someone in their technical team for over four hours with nothing but a chatbot.