Philippines · 7 providers compared · prices checked August 2026
Best eSIM for the Philippines
Two networks, seven thousand islands and one regional plan that quietly leaves the country out. Here is what each provider actually sells you.
The picks for the Philippines two networks decide everything
Airalo
Best for island-hopping $19.00 10GB / 30 days, Alpas Mobile- Permitted on Globe and Smart, the only two networks that matter here
- Small sizes for short trips: $8 for 3GB, $12 for 5GB over 30 days
- Unlimited option with a published 3GB per day cap
Watch out: Not the cheapest, and its unlimited cap is smaller than Saily's.
Trustpilot 4.1/5 · 41,238 reviews
See Airalo Philippines plansYesim
Cheapest, on one network $17.43 10GB / 30 days- Lowest linkable price at 10GB and 20GB ($28.11)
- Runs on Globe, which is strong in Manila, Cebu and most resort areas
- Cheap entry sizes: $7.67 for 3GB over 30 days
Watch out: Globe only, so there is no fallback where Smart is the stronger signal, and Trustpilot suspended Yesim's score during a fake-review cleanup.
⚠ no reliable rating
See Yesim Philippines plansSaily
For hotspots and long stays $18.99 10GB / 30 days- Unlimited with a published 5GB per day cap
- Trustpilot 4.7 across 30,000 reviews, the best trust record here
- 20GB at $29.99 for a month of heavier use
Watch out: Saily publishes nothing about which Philippine networks it uses, and in an archipelago that is the difference between a working ferry crossing and a dead phone.
Trustpilot 4.7/5 · 30,290 reviews
See Saily Philippines plansEvery Philippines plan we can verify including the outlier
| Provider | 1GB | 3GB | 5GB | 10GB | 20GB | Unlimited (real cap) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yesim | $4.41 /30d | $7.67 /30d | $12.78 /30d | $17.43 /30d | $28.11 /30d | not sold here |
| Saily | $3.99 /7d | $7.99 /30d | $11.99 /30d | $18.99 /30d | $29.99 /30d | from $18.99 · 5GB/day |
| Airalo | $4 /3d | $8 /7d | $12 /30d | $19 /30d | $30 /30d | from $11.50 · 3GB/day |
| Nomad | $4 /7d | $7 /30d | $11 /30d | $17 /30d | $27 /45d | from $18 · 2GB/day |
| GigSky | $11.49 /7d | $29.99 /15d | $48.49 /30d | $96.99 /30d | — | not sold here |
| Jetpac | $7 /4d | $7 /1d | $11.50 /1d | $14 /1d | $55 /30d | from $11 · 3GB/day |
Globe or Smart the only network question here
Smart, part of PLDT, generally has the wider reach into the smaller islands and the mountain provinces, and it is what many local boat and tour operators carry. Globe is strong in Metro Manila, Cebu, Boracay and the main resort corridors and is often faster where it is present. DITO, the third network, is growing in the cities and is barely resold to travel eSIMs.
A plan permitted on both is worth a couple of dollars. Between Coron and El Nido, or on the ferries out of Batangas, having a second network to fall back on is the difference between a working map and a guess.
| Provider | Philippine networks it may use |
|---|---|
| Airalo | Globe + Smart |
| Nomad | Globe + Smart |
| GigSky | Globe + Smart |
| Ubigi | DITO + Smart |
| Yesim | Globe |
| Saily | not published |
| Jetpac | not published |
Permissions from each provider's published Philippines coverage record, 2026-08-31. Typhoon season affects every network equally: after a storm, power to the cell sites is the limiting factor, not your plan.
Our pick for the Philippines is Airalo on Globe and Smart, 10GB for $19 over 30 days.
See Airalo Philippines plans Back to the picksThe regional plan that skips the Philippines check before you buy
If your trip crosses borders, a regional Asia eSIM is usually the right call. One exception matters here: GigSky's Asia Pacific plan does not include the Philippines, and it is the cheapest regional plan on the market, so it is the one people buy.
Airalo Asialink, Saily Asia & Oceania, Yesim Asia Pacific, Nomad Regional APAC and Jetpac APAC all do cover the country. If Manila or Cebu is on your route, buy one of those. The full coverage table is here.
"Unlimited" in the Philippines the caps
| "Unlimited" plan | Real daily high-speed cap | After the cap |
|---|---|---|
| Saily Philippines Unlimited (from $18.99, 5 days) | 5GB / day | throttled until midnight |
| Airalo Alpas Unlimited (from $11.50, 3 days) | 3GB / day | throttled, messaging still usable |
| Jetpac Philippines Unlimited (unlinked, from $11) | 3GB / day | throttled |
| Nomad Philippines Unlimited (unlinked, from $18) | 2GB / day | throttled |
| Yesim unlimited days | not published | unspecified reduction after heavy use |
GigSky sells no unlimited plan for the Philippines at all. For a beach trip where the resort has wifi, a 5GB or 10GB fixed pack is almost always the cheaper answer.
The largest cap you can read before buying in the Philippines is Saily's 5GB a day, from $18.99 for 5 days.
See Saily unlimited How every cap comparesLocal SIM, and the registration law what changed in 2022
Globe and Smart both sell tourist SIMs at Manila and Cebu airports for roughly ₱300 to ₱1,000 (about $5 to $18) with generous data and a Philippine number. The data is cheap and the coverage is native rather than roaming.
Since the SIM Registration Act took effect in 2022, every Philippine SIM has to be registered against ID before it works. Tourist SIMs sold at the airport are registered at the counter with your passport, so it is a queue rather than a problem, but it is a step and it takes time.
A travel eSIM roams in under a foreign contract, so none of that applies. Buy local if you want a Philippine number for Grab, Lalamove or a domestic booking; buy an eSIM if you want to leave the terminal with a working map.
Philippines questions the ones people actually search
Which eSIM is best for the Philippines?
Airalo Alpas Mobile at $19 for 10GB, because it is permitted on both Globe and Smart. Yesim at $17.43 is cheaper on Globe alone. Saily for hotspotting, with a 5GB per day published cap. Avoid GigSky here at $96.99. Checked August 2026.
Do I need to register my eSIM under the SIM Registration Act?
No. The law covers SIMs issued by Philippine operators. A travel eSIM connects as a foreign roaming subscriber, so there is nothing to register and no ID to present. If you buy a local Globe or Smart SIM instead, the counter registers it with your passport at purchase.
Will an eSIM work on Siargao, Coron and El Nido?
Yes, in the towns and most resort areas, on both Globe and Smart. Once you are out on a boat or on the back roads, coverage becomes patchy on any network and a plan permitted on both gives you a second chance. Download offline maps before island transfers.
How much data do I need for two weeks in the Philippines?
Around 6 to 10GB. Resorts and cafes have wifi, but it is the least reliable of any country on this site, so your eSIM does more work here than in Japan or Taiwan. If you are working remotely, take an unlimited plan and read the caps above.
Is Globe or Smart better for travellers?
Smart tends to reach further into the small islands and the mountain provinces; Globe is often faster in Manila, Cebu and the big resort areas. Neither is a clear winner, which is the argument for a plan that can use both.
Philippines · 10GB · $19
Globe and Smart on one plan, 30 days, installed before you fly. The one to take island-hopping.
Get Airalo for the PhilippinesSources & freshness: Philippines plan prices and validity from provider feeds via esimdb, 2026-08-31, in USD. Network permissions from each provider's published Philippines coverage record, same date. Local SIM prices from 2026 Globe and Smart tourist packs, converted at roughly ₱57 to the dollar. SIM Registration Act requirements as applied to locally issued SIMs. No speed tests of our own in the Philippines yet. Back to the Asia eSIM comparison.