China · exit countries documented · prices checked August 2026
Best eSIM for China
Every other decision on this page is normal shopping. This one is different: your provider decides whether you get the global internet or the Chinese one.
Why a travel eSIM sees a different internet the mechanism
A travel eSIM does not connect you to the Chinese internet. It connects you to a Chinese radio network and then carries your data out of the country before releasing it.
Your phone attaches to China Mobile, Unicom or Telecom for signal. The data itself is tunnelled back to your provider's home gateway, in the Netherlands for Airalo or the United States for GigSky, and it enters the public internet there. Filtering is applied at China's border to traffic that exits inside China. Yours does not, so it is not filtered.
This is why Gmail, Google Maps, WhatsApp, Instagram and Signal work normally on a travel eSIM while the hotel wifi next to you cannot load any of them.
| Provider | Traffic exits in | Chinese networks it may use | Firewall |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airalo | Netherlands | China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom | Bypassed |
| GigSky | United States | China Unicom | Bypassed |
| Yesim¹ | Poland | China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom | Bypassed |
| Jetpac (unlinked) | France, Netherlands, Singapore or US | not published | Bypassed |
| Ubigi (unlinked) | Brazil, France, Korea, Singapore or US | China Telecom | Bypassed |
| Saily | not published | not published | Marketed as bypassed, undocumented |
| Nomad (unlinked) | not published | China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom | Undocumented |
¹ Yesim is the cheapest China plan we can link and Trustpilot suspended its score during a fake-review cleanup, checked August 2026. Exit countries recorded 2026-08-31. A provider that will not tell you where its traffic exits is asking you to take the most important claim about a China eSIM on trust.
The picks for China network breadth, then exit country
Airalo
Best combination of coverage and exit $26.50 10GB / 30 days, Chinacom- Permitted on all three Chinese networks: China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom
- Traffic exits in the Netherlands, so the firewall never touches it
- Cheap entry sizes for a short trip: $4 for 1GB, $10.50 for 3GB
Watch out: Not cheap. A Dutch IP also means Chinese services like Didi and some ticketing sites treat you as a foreign visitor, which occasionally means extra verification.
Trustpilot 4.1/5 · 41,238 reviews
See Airalo China plansYesim
Cheapest China data we can link $21.61 10GB / 30 days- All three Chinese networks, same as Airalo
- Undercuts everyone at every size: $12.78 for 5GB, $34.62 for 20GB
- Exits in Poland, so the firewall bypass works the same way
Watch out: Trustpilot suspended Yesim's score while removing fake reviews. The plans are real; the reputation signal is not available. You should know that before you save $5.
⚠ no reliable rating
See Yesim China plansGigSky
For US banking and US streaming $36.49 10GB / 30 days- Exits in the United States, which keeps US banks and US streaming libraries happy
- Unlimited option with a published 3.5GB per day cap
- Free 100MB trial to prove the setup before you fly
Watch out: China Unicom only, and the most expensive 10GB on this page by a wide margin.
Trustpilot 4.3/5 · 6,084 reviews
See GigSky China plansEvery China plan we can verify including the ones we cannot link
| Provider | 1GB | 3GB | 5GB | 10GB | 20GB | Unlimited (real cap) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airalo | $4 /3d | $10.50 /7d | $15.50 /30d | $26.50 /30d | $40 /30d | from $11.50 · 3GB/day |
| Yesim | $3.25 /30d | $8.13 /30d | $12.78 /30d | $21.61 /30d | $34.62 /30d | not sold here |
| Saily | $4.49 /7d | $10.99 /30d | $15.99 /30d | $26.99 /30d | $45.99 /30d | from $18.99 · 5GB/day |
| GigSky | $5.99 /7d | $15.99 /15d | $23.99 /30d | $36.49 /30d | $69.99 /90d | from $17.99 · 3.5GB/day |
| Nomad | $4 /7d | $9 /30d | $13.50 /30d | $17 /30d | $25 /30d | from $12 · 2GB/day |
| Jetpac | $7 /4d | $8 /7d | $12 /30d | $16 /30d | $35 /30d | from $12.99 · 3GB/day |
Nomad at $17 and Jetpac at $16 are the cheapest 10GB plans for China that exist, and we earn nothing from either. Neither publishes an exit country, which for China specifically is the fact you most need. That is the trade you would be making.
The three Chinese networks and who gets which
| Provider | Chinese networks it may use |
|---|---|
| Airalo | China Mobile + China Telecom + China Unicom |
| Yesim | China Mobile + China Telecom + China Unicom |
| Nomad | China Mobile + China Telecom + China Unicom |
| GigSky | China Unicom |
| Ubigi | China Telecom |
| Saily | not published |
| Jetpac | not published |
Permissions from each provider's published China coverage record, 2026-08-31.
Our pick for China is Airalo on China Mobile and China Telecom and China Unicom, 10GB for $26.50 over 30 days.
See Airalo China plans Back to the picksChina Mobile
The biggest footprintRoughly a billion subscribers and the deepest rural and high-speed-rail coverage. Airalo, Yesim and Nomad can use it.
China Telecom
Strong in the south and westGood across Sichuan, Yunnan and the southern cities. Ubigi rides it exclusively.
China Unicom
City network, foreigner favouriteThe one most international roaming deals land on, strong in Beijing, Shanghai and the coastal cities, thinner in the far west. GigSky is Unicom only.
On a Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai itinerary all three are fine. Multi-network access earns its keep on the trains and out west, where a single-network plan can leave you dark for an hour at a time.
"Unlimited" in China caps and the premium
| "Unlimited" plan | Real daily high-speed cap | After the cap |
|---|---|---|
| Saily China Unlimited (from $18.99, 5 days) | 5GB / day | throttled until midnight |
| GigSky China Unlimited (from $17.99, 3 days) | 3.5GB / day | reduced speed for the rest of the day |
| Airalo Chinacom Unlimited (from $11.50, 3 days) | 3GB / day | throttled, messaging still usable |
| Nomad China Unlimited (unlinked, from $12) | 2GB / day | throttled |
| Yesim unlimited days | not published | unspecified reduction after heavy use |
China is the one country where unlimited is tempting for a normal tourist, because everything you do runs through a tunnel out of the country and video calls home are how you use it. Even so, $26.50 of fixed data covers ten days of ordinary use.
The largest cap you can read before buying in China is Saily's 5GB a day, from $18.99 for 5 days.
See Saily unlimited How every cap comparesWhy not just buy a Chinese SIM? two hard reasons
A China Unicom or China Mobile tourist SIM is cheap and easy to buy at Beijing or Shanghai airport with your passport. It also puts you fully inside the Great Firewall. Google, WhatsApp, Instagram, Gmail and most western news sites will not load, and the VPN you meant to install is harder to obtain once you are already there.
The second reason is registration. Every Chinese SIM requires real-name registration against your passport, and some counters now include a photo. It is not difficult, it is simply slower and more traceable than roaming in under a foreign contract.
Buy the local SIM only if you need a Chinese mobile number for domestic apps, and pair it with a travel eSIM for the internet you actually recognise. Two lines on one phone is exactly what eSIMs are good at.
China questions the ones people actually search
Does an eSIM bypass the Great Firewall in China?
Yes, if the provider routes your traffic out of the country before releasing it to the internet, which the ones on this page do. Airalo exits in the Netherlands, GigSky in the United States, Yesim in Poland. Because the filtering happens at China's border on traffic that exits inside China, roaming traffic is not subject to it. Google, WhatsApp and Instagram load normally.
Which eSIM is best for China in 2026?
Airalo Chinacom at $26.50 for 10GB: all three Chinese networks and a Dutch exit. Yesim at $21.61 is cheaper and comes with a Trustpilot caveat. GigSky at $36.49 costs more but exits in the US, which keeps American banking apps calm. Checked August 2026.
Do I still need a VPN in China with an eSIM?
Usually not. The exception is anything that checks your location rather than your IP, and Chinese domestic services that want a Chinese IP. Install a VPN before you travel anyway: it costs nothing to have, and buying one inside China is genuinely difficult.
Will WeChat and Alipay work on a travel eSIM?
Yes, both work over any data connection. What they may ask for separately is a Chinese phone number for verification, which no travel eSIM provides since these plans are data-only. Set both up at home, before you travel, while you can still receive verification codes normally.
Is an eSIM legal in China?
Roaming on a foreign eSIM is ordinary international roaming and is entirely normal. What China restricts is domestic eSIM service for local subscribers, which is why Chinese-market iPhones have no eSIM. Your foreign-bought phone with a foreign travel eSIM is not affected.
How much data do I need for two weeks in China?
Around 8 to 10GB for maps, messaging, translation apps and photo uploads. Translation with the camera is the one China-specific drain, roughly 20MB per menu or sign you point at, and you will point at many. Video calls home push it toward 15GB.
China · 10GB · $26.50
All three Chinese networks, traffic out through the Netherlands, no VPN needed. Install it before you fly.
Get Airalo for ChinaSources & freshness: China plan prices and validity from provider feeds via esimdb, 2026-08-31, in USD. Network permissions and internet exit countries from each provider's published coverage records, 2026-08-31. The firewall mechanism described here is how international roaming works, not a claim we have tested against every blocked service; we have not run our own tests inside China and will say so until we have. Back to the Asia eSIM comparison.