Saily vs Airalo: Which eSIM provider is better?
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One of the biggest downsides to traveling is having to rely on WiFi hotspots. Let’s face it, roaming on your mobile data plan is far too expensive. But that’s where Saily and Airalo step in. These two leading eSIM providers are some of the best on the market, but how do they compare?
Read our comprehensive guide below to discover in which areas each eSIM provider excels, and decide for yourself which one is the right service for you.
Saily vs Airalo: Overall comparison
Saily and Airalo offer easy-to-setup eSIMs for local and regional use. Their network coverage is extensive worldwide, and they offer access to popular cellular networks such as 5G. Take a look at the table below for a quick comparison between the two providers.
| Saily | Airalo | |
| Rating: | ||
| Overall rank: | #1 | #2 |
| Price: | $1.89 (1GB for 7 days) - Region dependant | $4.50 (1GB for 7 days) - Region dependant |
| Countries: | 150+ | 200+ |
| Cellular networks: | 3G, 4G, 5G | 5G, 4G, 3G and LTE |
| Allow phone calls: | No | Yes (Discover+ Global plan) |
| Support mobile hotspots: | Yes | Yes |
| Customer Support: | 24/7 live chat, email, FAQs | Email and WhatsApp |
Plan variety
Saily and Airalo have different eSIM plans. Saily has a more consistent setup across different countries and regions, whereas Airalo’s plans vary depending on the country and region you’re in. This might sound confusing for now, but we’ll explain more about it below.
Saily is quite straightforward. You can buy a data plan according to the following parameters for any of the available countries:
- 1 GB 7 days
- 3 GB 30 days
- 5 GB 30 days
- 10 GB 30 days
- 20 GB 30 days
What varies from country to country is the pricing for each of these plans. The most affordable option for Saily is $3.99 (1GB/7 days) for several countries, such as Turkey and Australia. The most expensive option is $5.99 (1GB/7 days) for Mexico. Each country and region has a unique pricing structure.
Take a look at the list of all countries supported on Saily and the pricing for each.
Airalo, on the other hand, has a range of plans according to different countries and regions. For example: the local US plan goes up to 20GB for 30 days, while the regional European plan can go up to 100GB for 180 days.
Airalo also provides global eSIM solutions, offering you up to 20GB for 365 days. Like Saily, the price of Airalo data packages differs from one country to another, but Airalo has less variance in its pricing.
The lowest Airalo pricing is $4.50 (1GB/7 days) in the USA, Japan, Italy, and a few other countries. The most expensive one is currently in Mexico, which is $6.00 (1GB/7 days).
Based on the information above, Saily has the most affordable pricing plans.
Speed
When choosing an eSIM provider, one of the most important aspects you need to consider is speed availability. The average speed of your eSIM depends on the local carrier and the type of network it supports.
The speed of your eSIM has a huge impact on your overall experience with the provider. If lag, buffering, and slow loading speeds get your blood boiling, this should be at the top of your priority list.
Luckily, during our Airalo vs Saily comparison we discovered that both of these eSIMs offer up to 5G, so there should be no concerns here regarding speed. That’s why they’re the leading eSIM providers in the market, after all.
Coverage (countries and regions)
Our Saily review revealed that the provider is currently available in just over 150 countries around the world. The provider covers the most popular countries that people travel to, but there are some that aren’t on the list.
However, it’s important to remember that Saily is still new on the market, so they’re likely to be adding more countries to their coverage list in the future. In comparison, Airalo is available in more than 200 countries worldwide.
Moreover, they offer local, regional, and global SIMs — making their platform more versatile and adaptable. Airalo also allows users to make calls and send SMS messages, which is a feature that’s lacking on Saily.
Since Airalo offers more coverage worldwide and the option to make phone calls and send texts, it takes the win in this category.
Pricing
Now that we’ve covered the speed and coverage of these two eSIM platforms, let’s take a look at how much you need to fork out for them.
The cost of an eSIM platform is an important factor for most users. In some cases, the pricing might even trump the performance element we covered above.
Below is a comparison of the basic plans for Airalo and Saily in a few popular countries:
| Local eSIMs plans for 7 days | Airalo | Saily |
| USA | $4.50 | $3.99 |
| Japan | $4.50 | $3.99 |
| UK | $5.00 | $4.49 |
| Italy | $4.50 | $3.99 |
| Mexico | $6.00 | $5.99 |
| France | $4.50 | $3.99 |
| Spain | $4.50 | $3.99 |
Based on the comparison table above, you can see that Saily offers some of the best data-only eSIM plans, and at the most affordable prices. Although we only compared the 1GB/7 days plans, the same theme carries throughout the rest of their plans. Saily is the cheaper option across all the available plans.
In terms of payment methods, both platforms feature credit and debit cards and Google Pay. However. Airalo has a couple of additional options Saily does not offer, including AliPay, PayPal, Apple Pay, and the handy in-app reward currency known as AirMoney. The table below shows you the payment methods available for each provider.
| Payment methods | Airalo | Saily |
| Credit or debit cards | ✅ Yes | ✅Yes |
| PayPal | ✅ Yes | ❌No |
| Apple Pay | ✅ Yes | ❌No |
| Google Pay | ✅ Yes | ✅Yes |
| Alipay | ✅ Yes (only via the mobile app) | ❌No |
| AirMoney | ✅ Yes (Airalo in-app reward currency) | ❌No |
Ease of use and additional features
Saily and Airalo are both straightforward and easy to use. The interface is clear and easy to navigate on both platforms, making them nearly inseparable in this category.
Below you can see the main interface for Saily. The minimalist design is great, removing distractions and sending you exactly where you need to go:
- Shop: To buy an eSIM for a new country
- eSIMS: To view your current SIMs
- Profile: Where you can control the app’s settings
Now, let’s take a look at the Airalo interface. It looks very similar to Saily’s platform, with the same tabs running across the bottom of the screen. At the top of the screen, Saily added the option to switch between local, regional, and global eSIMs.
Both providers make it easy to install your eSIM and get going with the application. However, we did like the fact that Saily gives detailed step-by-step instructions on how to properly setup your eSIM. You can see some of these instructions in the screenshot below.
We did like Saily’s simple design a bit more and also appreciated that it gives detailed instructions on how to setup the eSIM. Hence, we prefer Saily regarding the appearance and user-friendliness of the app.
Additional features
Saily lacks additional features, which is understandable since it’s still a very young platform. The only feature currently available is the ability to create a mobile hotspot. We’re expecting the developers to add some more features in the future. But for now, if it’s add-ons you’re after, here’s what Airalo has to offer.
- Rechargeable eSIM - top it up in the Airalo app
- Make calls and send text messages with Global eSIM plans
- Friend referral - earn $3 Airmoney for every successful referral
- Dark mode on iPhone
- Offline mode, which allows you to open the app and read step-by-step instructions to access
- your eSIM data with no internet connection
Customer support
As always, customer support is important. The last thing you want is to be stuck abroad with an eSIM that isn’t working and no way to get the problem resolved. During our Airalo vs Saily comparison, we discovered that both have great customer service and multiple methods you can use to get in touch with their team.
Let’s start with Saily. They have 24/7 customer support with live chat availability. They also have a help center with FAQs, troubleshooting, and more tabs to explore potential issues. During our testing, live chat support answered within one to two minutes. We were very impressed with their service, too — the agent was knowledgeable and able to answer every question we asked.
Our Airalo review revealed that the eSIM provider offers three different ways to contact customer support: email, chatbot, and WhatsApp.
We tested the chatbot feature on the Airalo app, and it was fast (as expected). The bot was quite helpful, making relevant suggestions and offering to bring in an agent to do any heavy lifting when it came to resolving problems.
Saily, however, had a more comprehensive customer support section, in our opinion. Hence, we prefer it over Airalo.
Conclusion: Which eSIM is better?
After our extensive research and testing, we choose Saily as the best eSIM provider. It is more affordable, has an extensive customer support section, offers a step-by-step guide on how to install the eSIM, and provides good speeds. Even though it lacks some additional features, we expect it will also excel in that in the future.
However, if you want a provider that has wider worldwide coverage and a few extra features, you should consider Airalo.
FAQ
Is Saily better than Airalo?
Saily is still new in the eSIM market. As such, the platform is lacking in some features and coverage. However, it offers cheaper plans than Airalo, which makes it a great option for budget-conscious travelers.
Can Airalo be trusted?
Airalo has been on the market for several years. As one of the world’s leading eSIM providers, all of your data is guaranteed to be safe with the platform.
Is Saily worth it?
Saily is one of the best eSIM providers in terms of paying for what you get, so it is worth it. It’s one of the cheapest platforms on the market, but it comes with some restrictions in coverage and features for now.
What are the disadvantages of Airalo?
Airalo is one of the best eSIM providers you can find. However, it is slightly more expensive than other platforms.
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