When planning a trip to South Africa, we cannot deny the importance of staying connected online and having reliable mobile data. Choosing the best eSIM for South Africa can make all the difference, whether you need it for navigation, contacting your next accommodation, staying in contact with loved ones or for doing business.
These days, the single biggest questions on almost any traveller’s lips when visiting South Africa are: Where or how can I get a South African SIM card? What is the best eSim for South Africa? What is the best travel eSIM for digital nomads? Or better yet, what is the single best eSIM for worldwide use?
Or maybe you just want to know what an eSIM even is to begin with, or you want to learn more about the advantages of using a travel data eSIM in South Africa?
This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission on qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you. For further info, please see our Disclosure
Quick answer: Simunye Mobile offers the best eSIM for South Africa. You only need a few minutes to install a single eSIM profile that covers over 200 countries.
5G included at no extra cost, where locally available.
Order your Simunye Mobile eSIM for South Africa now and get 5% off with coupon code: simunye5
Are you planning a safari in Kruger National Park, or a trip down the world famous Garden Route? Are you an international business professional or a digital nomad backpacker? Maybe you’re starting an extended tour of Africa. Simunye Mobile covers most of Africa. Either way, mobile internet for travellers is a big thing. It’s about as necessary as fresh air these days.
Why use mobile data internet in South Africa?
Because WiFi isn't everywhere. On the other hand, almost 90% of South Africa is covered by 4G/LTE. 5G is available in many major towns and cities.
When on vacation in South Africa you may want to share your Cape Town stay or safari travel experiences in real-time with loved ones back home, or like us, you also have a business to run and may not have time to look for WiFi (that works) in order to make an important call or to answer an urgent email.
While local data SIM cards in South Africa are a little cheaper, the biggest catch is you first need to be physically present in the country. Then, you have to find a place that sells them. This of course depends on how you entered the country. Airports might seem like the easiest way, however, several hundred other tourists might also need a SIM at the same time. And so you wait, without a phone connection to tell your friends who are waiting outside why you’re taking so long.
On the other hand, if you're on a multi-country safari through Africa, it could take several hours or even days after you cross a border before you can find a local SIM card.
What is an eSIM card?
Enter eSIM. An absolute game changer.
Basically, an eSIM card isn't a card at all. Instead, it's a subscriber identification module that's embedded on the motherboard of your phone, or tablet. Some laptops may also support eSIM.
So instead of fiddling with these tiny little plastic chips that very easily get lost, you simply download an eSIM profile over the internet and install it on the chip that's already in your phone. This 'profile' consists of the credentials that are otherwise stored on a removable SIM card.
What are the benefits of eSIM?
- Ease of use: What could often take several hours, waiting in line at a busy airport kiosk, or maybe even weeks before you could get an international travel data SIM card delivered to your home now takes less than 10 minutes. From the comfort of your own couch you can just simply download and install a single eSIM profile that can be used all over the world.
- Environmentally friendly: And this is a big one. Instead of mobile providers having to manually provision and distribute their plastic SIM cards by hand, bicycle, road, rail, sea and airfreight all over the world, with eSIM you just download and provision your SIM profile over the internet within minutes. This is a massive environmental benefit. They are small, but over time the amount of plastic waste and environmental damage ads up and those very little things become a very big problem. Every year, millions upon millions of plastic SIM cards and their plastic packaging is used only once, then thrown away in to a landfill site.
What is the best eSIM for South Africa?
Why use a Simunye Mobile eSIM in South Africa?
Simply put? Complete ease of use, and no ID (eKYC) registration required.
Below is a summary of why we know Simunye Mobile is your best option for a travellers data eSIM for South Africa:
- We created Simunye Mobile to do only one thing: connect you to the internet, almost anywhere in the world. It was not built to be used as a sales funnel to try sell you lounge passes and other random things via countless upsell spam emails every other day. We respect your inbox.
- You only need 1 Simunye Mobile eSIM per device for any and all countries in which we offer service.
- Simunye Mobile operates worldwide on the Transatel network who secured the privilege of an international mobile network code (MNC 901-37) which is supported by agreements signed with more than 200 Mobile Network Operators around the world. This in turn allows us to offer near local rates for data.
- You can hot-spot / tether your phone to other devices, with any and all Simunye Mobile data plans. No cap on hot-spot use.
- Simunye Mobile supports 5G, where locally available, for no extra charge.
- You can re-install the same eSIM profile up to 5 times.
- Simunye Mobile now offers unlimited data plans in many destinations with a very clear FUP.
How good is Simunye Mobile coverage in South Africa?
Simunye Mobile operates on either the MTN or Telkom LTE networks in South Africa which cover nearly all inhabited areas of the country, and then some.
Check MTN coverage here.
At the time of writing, MTN was trialing 5G coverage that extends 20km out to sea at Mossel Bay.
With Simunye Mobile you can use MTN 5G in major towns and cities across South Africa, for no extra charge.
How do I know if my phone supports eSIM?
Just look in SIM settings, or Google your exact model. In the case of iPhone, all models from XS and up support eSIM, except any iPhone purchased in China. Such are physical SIM only.
Best eSIM for airline crew and seafarers
Simunye Mobile is also an excellent international data eSIM option for all airline, ship’s and yacht crew, South Africa being a major sea and air travel hub.
In collaboration with ZTE, MTN have pioneered Africa's first 5G ultra-range maritime coverage at Mossel Bay with signal reaching more than 20km off shore and at speeds of around 200Mbps. This extended service is also available to Simunye Mobile eSIM users.
Maybe you're moved to another vessel or scheduled on another flight on short notice and you don't have time to look for and install yet another eSIM. Your home carrier may also not roam where you end up, and even if it does, we all know roaming with regular carriers is horrendously expensive.
Again, this is where Simunye Mobile shines. Upon arrival at your surprise destination you simply toggle on your Simunye Mobile Global eSIM
Simunye Mobile does not operate on satellite based GSM networks. In other words, many planes and especially cruise ships have an onboard GSM cellular network, but such networks are very expensive to use. So, you can only use Simunye Mobile when you are within range of a land based / terrestrial GSM partner network.
Simunye Mobile currently works in 201 countries and territories around in the world.
Can I use my home carrier together with a Simunye Mobile eSIM?
Yes. But, your phone must be network unlocked. Meaning, your home carrier allows you to use another SIM card or eSIM from another operator, even if your phone can support multiple SIMs or eSIM. However, this usually only applies to phones included for ‘free’ with long term contracts.
If you bought your phone for cash from a carrier agnostic shop you shouldn't have this problem. If you ever buy a used device, be sure to first check before you pay for it if it's unlocked and the previous owner has completely signed it out of their Apple or Google ID.
You also need to set your phone to use Simunye Mobile for data. If you don’t, you'll still use your home carrier for data when abroad which will most likely result in a nice roaming bill in the form of a joyful sms reminding you how grateful they are for your business, together with a notice you have just reached $500 data use, in the first 2 days away. Yes, it happens.
Another thing to check with your home carrier is their rates for incoming and outgoing calls while roaming.
In most cases incoming texts are free no matter where you are.
Does Simunye Mobile come with a local phone number?
No, unfortunately not. However, if you'd like to be able to make calls at near local rates, to any country in the world, you can use the VoIP app from KeepCalling.
Also, many establishments in South Africa communicate via Whatsapp these days, so a local number isn't that useful anymore.
