Holafly vs SimsDirect: Which eSIM is better?

There’s no shortage of available eSIMs to choose from in Australia. What’s more, the choices show no signs of slowing down, with the Australian eSIM market expected to almost double by 2030. But with so many companies in the eSIM space, how can you know which is best for you?

Our Holafly vs. SimsDirect comparison helps you answer the question above by discussing two of Australia’s well-known eSIM providers’ main features, pricing, coverage, ease of use, and mobile apps. Using real user reviews, we determine which is the best to choose for your next international trip.

Feature comparison

Before jumping into the details for each one of these providers, here’s a sneak peek at their main features.

Holafly

Let’s start with Holafly, a company that has sold over one million eSIMs and covers over 200 destinations worldwide. Holafly has quickly become a favorite option for getting mobile data when traveling abroad while avoiding excessive data roaming fees.

While Holafly is a standout option for travelers worldwide, it’s time to find out the main features that make it among the best available eSIM providers.

Pricing

Let’s start with pricing. Holafly focuses on unlimited data plans. These will either range from a certain number of days, or you can choose the exact number for your eSIM to determine the final price.

For the unlimited data plans, Holafly pricing starts at $9 AUD/day ($6.90 USD), but it gets lower the more days you purchase. For example, a one day plan in the United Kingdom is $9 AUD ($6.90 USD), while 90 days cost $2.11 AUD/day (~$1.55 USD).

The same pricing structure goes for many destinations worldwide, including Spain, Italy, the USA, Indonesia, and Thailand.

Coverage

With Holafly, you gain access to local networks and 3G/4G/LTE/5G speeds in more than 200 destinations worldwide. Whether cities, countries, regions, or even a global plan, Holafly’s unlimited data is on hand to support any type of vacation. 

Some of the most important destinations include:

• Europe: The UK, Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Russia, and many others. Plus, there’s an eSIM for Europe with coverage in 40 destinations.
• North America: Mexico, Canada, and the United States. The eSIM for North America includes all three! 
• Latin America: Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Costa Rica, and others. The eSIM for Latin America includes coverage in 14 countries throughout South and Central America.
• Asia: Japan, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, South Korea, Vietnam, and other destinations. There are 11 countries included in the eSIM for Asia.
• Africa: South Africa, Egypt, Cameroon, Uganda, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mauritius, and many others. The eSIM for Africa includes 28 countries in total.
• Caribbean: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Aruba, Jamaica, Dominica, Bermuda, and others. The eSIM for the Caribbean includes 17 countries in total.
• Middle East: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Iraq, Palestine, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and others. The eSIM for the Middle East includes 14 destinations.

This is an overall view of some available destinations, but there are many more in Oceania, Europe, and other countries worldwide.

Ease of use

Customers often refer to Holafly as one of the easiest eSIMs to use. Let’s examine what makes this service so hassle-free.

• Installation process: On Android phones, a QR code is enough to install and activate your eSIM. For iOS users, the Holafly app offers an automatic activation feature. This customer mentions on Trustpilot how easy it is to activate a Holafly eSIM.
• Choosing an eSIM: It’s easy for travelers to choose an eSIM using the Holafly website or mobile app. But there are some details to consider. On the app, you’ll only find data packages, while on the website, there are customizable days to make things easier. One Holafly customer mentions how good the service was for 12 days on a Trustpilot review.
• Customer support: Holafly has top-notch customer support. Available in 19 different languages 24/7 through different channels, if you have a question about your eSIM, they’ll help you, as mentioned on Trustpilot by one Holafly customer.
• Top-up: Holafly eSIMs are easy to top up. Whether you need more data or to add more days to your eSIM, this process is easy to complete using the app or website.

Overall, the Holafly eSIM service is easy to use from start to finish, which is a huge advantage when traveling.

App

As mentioned before, Holafly has an available app for iOS and Android. Holafly’s ratings on the App store are 4.6/5 from over one million downloads. With the app, users can:

• Purchase and manage their eSIMs
• Watch guides on how to install and activate their eSIMs
• Create and manage their accounts
• Access customer 24/7 customer support
• eSIM automatic activation feature for iOS devices

With features like installation guides, the Holafly App is easy-to-use for first-time buyers. Meanwhile, a customer area to manage your eSIMs makes it a top choice for consistent travelers.

Pros and cons

As with any product, there are both drawbacks and benefits for different types of customers. The pros and cons of Holafly are as follows:

• Pros:
  • Limited and unlimited data plans available
  • Customizable days feature available for in-website purchases
  • Variety of payment methods
  • Data plans for up to 90 days
  • Easy activation on Android with a QR code 
  • Automatic installation on iOS using the Holafly App
  • Data sharing ranging from 500 MB to 1 GB, depending on your destination
  • No need to change your WhatsApp number 
  • Ensures the best connectivity using 4G/LTE/5G networks
• Cons:
  • Lacks of phone calls, but this is easily solved using the unlimited data plans with VoIP apps – plus you get to keep your number on WhatsApp!

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SimsDirect

SimsDirect is the Australian division of Simify. Having started by selling physical SIMs to Aussies in 2019, the company now operates in both the Australian eSIM and SIM market for travellers.

SimsDirect offers coverage in over 150 destinations around the world to Australian buyers, delivering a range of different data plans and packages. Let’s discuss the pricing, coverage, ease of use, the app, and the pros and cons of SimsDirect.

Pricing

All purchases in SimsDirect are completed using $AUD. If you plan to buy from the United States or Europe, you’ll have to visit the Simify website. If you want to use a foreign currency while paying for a SimsDirect product, there might be extra charges and exchange rate fees.

Pricing on SimsDirect varies depending on whether you use an eSIM or SIM card. For our comparison, we’ll focus on the eSIM service with unlimited and limited data plans.

For destinations with unlimited data packages, such as Asia or Europe, eSIM pricing starts from $44 AUD (~$28.43 USD) for 7-day packages and reaches $249 AUD (~$160.90 USD) for 90 days. However, as a customer review on Trustpilot states, these packages have a 1.5 GB daily usage limit.

Limited data pricing depends on the destination and the amount of data you choose. For example, 1 GB costs $19 AUD (~$12.36 USD) for South America and $25 AUD (~$16.16 USD) for 7 days with 5 GB in Japan as basic plans, to up to $239 AUD (~$155.41 USD) for 90 days with 100 GB as their most complete option for New Zealand.

Coverage

SimsDirect is available in over 150 destinations worldwide, which is roughly 50 less than Holafly. These destinations are either available on a regional or country-focused eSIM.

SimsDirect’s regional plans are available in Latin America, North America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

For countries, SimsDirect is available on destinations such as China, Japan, the UK, the USA, Brazil, Thailand, and others.

It’s worth noting that SimsDirect doesn’t offer eSIMs for specific cities, such as Bali or New York, should you be looking to stay connected in a specific single location.

Ease of use

Considering what SimsDirect offers with their eSIMs and SIM cards, here’s what makes their service easy to use:

• Clear information: The information for every eSIM is pretty clear on its product pages. Before purchasing, you can find information related to data speed, coverage, compatibility, and other similar features, as mentioned in a customer Trustpilot review.
• Easy installation: SimsDirect has an easy activation and installation process. But there’s no option for automatic activation; everything has to be completed manually using a QR code.
• Customer support: Customer support is good and quickly solves doubts regarding eSIM usage, but this is unavailable 24/7 as it only works from 10 AM to 5 PM AEDT. You’ll have to wait for a while if you have doubts from late Friday to Sunday, as mentioned in this customer Trustpilot review.
• Add-ons: Some selected eSIMs, mostly from Europe, include phone calls and text messages that work to contact EU and UK phone numbers.

App

One downside of SimsDirect is that everything has to be directly managed from their website.

There’s no official app to download for iOS and Android devices, which makes it harder for users to get quick access to manage and purchase an eSIM for traveling.

Plus, the website’s browsing section works well on desktop, but using it on mobile feels clunky.

Pros and cons

• Pros:
  • Variety of limited and unlimited data plans available
  • Variety of payment methods
  • Some eSIMs include a phone number, including SMS and phone calls
• Cons:
  • No mobile app to manage or purchase eSIMs
  • Customer support service is limited from Monday to Friday
  • Only a handful of destinations include phone calls and text messages
  • Lacks a good browsing feature for mobile phones

Holafly vs. SimsDirect: The verdict

Now that we’ve reviewed both companies’ main features, it’s time to decide which is better for travelers.

Holafly offers cost-effective unlimited data plans to destinations across the globe. With an easy-to-use app, activation and installation process, multi-lingual support and various payment methods available, Holafly’s benefits far outweigh any potential disadvantages. 

While SimsDirect’s solution is good, there are some limitations. The lack of a mobile app and 24/7 customer service are game-changers when choosing a service to get mobile internet abroad.

That’s why Holafly is the clear winner in this comparison. It’s a service that will provide you peace of mind and avoid high roaming charges while travelling.

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Julio Osuna

English Content Writer

I first started my content creation journey as a freelancer in 2019, before connecting with Holafly in 2021. At Holafly, my travel and tech interests come together in one place as I craft high-quality articles about the eSIM and related markets. My content aims to help travelers stay connected, wherever they are.

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