Two lines in one phone: which one uses data and which one calls
A travel eSIM does not replace your line, it sits next to it. Your own SIM keeps the number and the text messages; the eSIM carries the data. Setting it up properly takes two minutes, and it is the difference between a cheap trip and a bill that arrives three weeks later.
Estimate how much data I needWhat each line is for
| Your usual line | The travel eSIM | |
|---|---|---|
| Phone number | Yours, unchanged | None: data only |
| Calls and SMS | Yes | No |
| Bank and login codes | Yes, to your number | No |
| Mobile data abroad | Switch it off | This is its only job |
| WhatsApp and Telegram | Your account, as always | Carries the data they use |
Split the jobs in your head before you touch any setting. One line is your identity: your number, your calls, the six-digit code your bank sends when you pay for a hotel. The other line is the pipe: maps, messages, uploads, everything that eats data. They do not overlap, and neither can do the other one’s job.
One eSIM for 33 European countries
Several countries on one trip? Same eSIM, same data, no swapping lines at the border.
Choose your data
For one to two weeks of maps, messaging and the odd video.
Buy up to 180 days before you fly: the plan only starts when the eSIM connects at your destination.
Write the email where we should send the QR code.
We send the QR code and your receipt here. No spam.
QR in your inbox in minutes · Full refund if we cannot issue it · Secure payment with Stripe
Will it work on my phone?
On iPhone: Settings → General → About, and scroll to EID. If there is an EID, your phone takes eSIMs. Every iPhone from the XS (2018) onwards does.
On Android: Settings → About phone → Status, and look for EID. If there is an EID, your phone takes eSIMs. Most Galaxy S20, Pixel 3 and later do.
It also has to be carrier-unlocked. If you bought it outright or your contract is over, it almost certainly is.
And if it turns out yours cannot use it, write to us and you get every cent back.
Discount code
How it works
- 1Choose and payCard, Apple Pay or Google Pay. No account.
- 2Install it at homeThe QR arrives by email. Scan it on wifi in a minute.
- 3Connect when you landTurn on data roaming for the eSIM and you are online.
Switch mobile data off on your usual line
- iPhone: Settings › Mobile Data › tap your usual line › turn Mobile Data off for that line, and check that Data Roaming is off on it too.
- Android: Settings › Network and internet › SIMs › your usual line › Mobile data off, Roaming off. On Samsung, the equivalent is in Settings › Connections › SIM manager and Mobile networks.
- Menu names vary by manufacturer and Android version. If the layout does not match, search for “roaming” in the settings search box.
This is the setting that protects the bill. Your own line stays on and registered, so calls and SMS keep arriving, but it is not allowed to move a single megabyte abroad. Turning off mobile data on that line does not stop text messages: SMS does not travel over data, which is exactly why this split works.
Do not switch the line off completely and do not put it in flight mode. A line that is off does not receive the codes you will need at the airline desk or the hotel.
The iPhone trap: Allow Cellular Data Switching
iPhone has a setting that lets it borrow the other line for data whenever it decides the current one has poor coverage. At home that is helpful. Abroad it is how people end up roaming on their expensive line without a single notification: a weak signal for a few minutes is enough for the phone to switch over, and it does not switch back to announce it.
You will find it in Settings › Mobile Data › Mobile Data (the line selector at the top) › Allow Cellular Data Switching. Some regions and versions call it Allow Mobile Data Switching. Turn it off for the trip, and turn it back on when you get home if you use it.
Android: the default SIM for each job
- Mobile data: Settings › Network and internet › SIMs › Mobile data › the travel eSIM. On Samsung: SIM manager › Preferred SIM card › Mobile data.
- Calls: your usual line. If your phone offers “Ask every time”, that is the safest option while you travel.
- SMS: your usual line, always. This is where the bank codes and the airline messages arrive, and the eSIM cannot receive them.
- Some Android phones have an option to use mobile data from the other SIM when one has no service. It is the Android equivalent of the iPhone trap: switch it off.
Android asks you to nominate a line for each function separately, which is more work up front and clearer afterwards. Set data to the eSIM, leave calls and SMS on your own number, and the phone stops improvising.
Calls, text messages and Wi-Fi calling
Calls made or received on your usual number are billed by your operator at whatever its roaming tariff says. Inside the EU that is your normal allowance under roam like at home; outside it, it can be expensive per minute, and the EU roaming calculator shows where the European rule stops applying. Receiving SMS is normally free anywhere.
Wi-Fi calling lets you call and receive on your own number over any Wi-Fi connection, often at home rates. Whether it works abroad depends on your operator, so test it before you go rather than at the airport. And for everyday calls, the cheap route is a call over the eSIM data through WhatsApp, Telegram or FaceTime, which costs you data and nothing else.
Which plan to put on the second line
| Europe, 33 countries | One country (Spain, as an example) | |
|---|---|---|
| 3 GB | 6,90 € | 4,29 € |
| 10 GB | 15,90 € | 11,29 € |
| 20 GB | 23,90 € | 16,79 € |
- Not sure about the size? The data calculator gives you an estimate from five questions about how you actually use your phone.
- Hotspot works like it does on any data plan, if your phone allows it. A laptop gets through far more than a phone, so pick a bigger size if you plan to work.
- Before you buy anything, make sure the phone takes an eSIM and is not locked to an operator: your model is on the compatibility page.
Two shapes of plan, and the difference only matters if you cross a border. The Europe bundle covers 33 countries and keeps working when you cross, with nothing to change on the phone. A single-country pack stops giving you data the moment you leave that country, which is fine for a week in one place and a problem on a road trip. We have our own eSIM for 33 destinations.
Will my bank still send me the SMS code?
Yes. Codes go to your number, which stays on your usual line. Keep that line switched on with its mobile data off: SMS does not travel over data, so it still arrives and it does not cost you roaming.
Do I have to remove my usual SIM?
No. The point of two lines is to keep it. Turn off its mobile data and its data roaming, and leave the line itself active for calls and messages.
Can I make calls with the travel eSIM?
Not ordinary calls: it is data only and has no number. Calls over WhatsApp, Telegram or FaceTime work fine over its data, and they are the cheap way to call home.
Does my phone need two card slots?
No. An eSIM plus your physical SIM already makes it a dual SIM phone. What it does need is eSIM support and no carrier lock.
Get your eSIM before you fly: the QR arrives by email in minutes and the plan only starts when you connect at your destination.
Estimate how much data I need