- Lowest price$3.99
- Avg. cost per GB$2.69
- Providers here6
The short answer
For most trips to South Africa, Airalo 50 GB for 30 days at $49.00 is the one to take — it works out at $0.98 per GB, better than anything else here. If you only need maps and messaging, Saily at $3.99 is the cheapest way in.
Our picks for South Africa
Chosen by the numbers below, not by who pays us. Every pick states why it won.
- Best valueAiralo50 GB · 30 days$49.00$0.98 / GB
$0.98 per GB — 4.1× better value than the entry plan.
See this plan - Cheapest way inSaily1 GB · 7 days$3.99$3.99 / GB
The lowest price for South Africa. Enough for maps and messaging on a short trip.
See this plan
What data costs in South Africa
The cheapest plan on this page is a starter nobody wants, and the best value per GB is a bundle nobody needs. This is the question in between: pick the amount of data you want and see who is cheapest for it.
| Data | Cheapest | Next best | You could overpay |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GB or more | $3.99Saily | $4Airalo | +$16.01 |
| 3 GB or more | $8Airalo | $8Nomad | +$12 |
| 5 GB or more | $11Nomad | $11.50Airalo | +$19 |
| 10 GB or more | $18Nomad | $18Ubigi | +$29 |
| 20 GB or more | $29Nomad | $35Airalo | +$10 |
| 50 GB or more | $49Airalo | $55Ubigi | +$6 |
All 58 plans
The full list, with every field each provider publishes. Sort or filter it to your trip.
Showing 58 of 58 plans
| Compare | Provider | Data | Validity | Price | Per GB | 5G | Top-up | Network | View plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saily | 1 GBBest price | 7 days | $3.99 | $3.99 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 1 GB | 3 days | $4.00 | $4.00 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Nomad | 1 GB | 7 days | $4.00 | $4.00 | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Simify | Unlimited | 1 days | $4.00 | — | ✓ | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 1 GB | 3 days | $4.50 | $4.50 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 1 GB | 30 days | $5.00 | $5.00 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 3 GB | 3 days | $8.00 | $2.67 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Nomad | 3 GB | 30 days | $8.00 | $2.67 | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 3 GB | 3 days | $9.00 | $3.00 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Airalo | 3 GB | 7 days | $9.00 | $3.00 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 3 GB | 15 days | $9.00 | $3.00 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Saily | 3 GB | 30 days | $9.99 | $3.33 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 3 GB | 7 days | $10.00 | $3.33 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Nomad | 5 GB | 30 days | $11.00 | $2.20 | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 7 days | $11.50 | $2.30 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 15 days | $12.00 | $2.40 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 7 days | $12.50 | $2.50 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 30 days | $12.50 | $2.50 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Saily | 5 GB | 30 days | $12.99 | $2.60 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 15 days | $13.00 | $2.60 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Airalo | 5 GB | 30 days | $13.50 | $2.70 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Nomad | 10 GB | 30 days | $18.00 | $1.80 | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 10 GB | 7 days | $18.00 | $1.80 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 3 days | $19.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 7 days | $19.00 | $1.90 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Nomad | 2 GB* | 5 days | $19.00 | — | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 15 days | $20.00 | $2.00 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Amigo eSIM | 3 GB | 14 days | $20.00 | $6.67 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 10 GB | 30 days | $20.00 | $2.00 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 7 days | $20.50 | $2.05 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 15 days | $22.00 | $2.20 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 30 days | $22.00 | $2.20 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Saily | 10 GB | 30 days | $22.99 | $2.30 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 10 GB | 30 days | $24.00 | $2.40 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 5 days | $27.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 5 days | $28.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Nomad | 20 GB | 30 days | $29.00 | $1.45 | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Amigo eSIM | 5 GB | 30 days | $30.00 | $6.00 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 20 GB | 15 days | $35.00 | $1.75 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 7 days | $36.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Saily | 20 GB | 30 days | $36.99 | $1.85 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 20 GB | 30 days | $37.00 | $1.85 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Nomad | 2 GB* | 10 days | $37.00 | — | ✗ | ✓ | Cell C, Vodacom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 20 GB | 15 days | $38.00 | $1.90 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 25 GB | 30 days | $39.00 | $1.56 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 20 GB | 30 days | $40.00 | $2.00 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 10 days | $44.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 10 days | $45.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Amigo eSIM | 10 GB | 30 days | $47.00 | $4.70 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | 50 GBBest value | 30 days | $49.00 | $0.98 | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom South Africa | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 15 days | $51.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Airalo | 50 GB | 30 days | $55.00 | $1.10 | ✗ | ✓ | RSA CellC | View plan | |
| Ubigi | 50 GB | 30 days | $55.00 | $1.10 | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 15 days | $59.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 20 days | $76.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 25 days | $94.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan | |
| Airalo | Unlimited | 30 days | $99.00 | — | ✓ | ✓ | Vodacom, MTN, Cell C, Telkom | View plan | |
| Saily | Unlimited | 30 days | $109.99 | — | — | — | — | View plan |
A dash means the provider does not publish this, not that the feature is missing.
“Unlimited” plans are capped by a daily fair-use limit. The allowance shown is the provider's stated ceiling, not a speed guarantee.
Brand by brand in South Africa
What each brand sells here, and what it will say about it. A dash means the brand does not publish that — which is worth knowing before you buy, not after.
Frequently asked about eSIMs for South Africa
What is the cheapest eSIM for South Africa?
Saily at $3.99 for 1 GB over 7 days. That is the lowest price of the 58 plans tracked here. It is not the best value per gigabyte — small packages rarely are — so check the price-per-GB column before buying if you expect to use more than a couple of gigabytes.
Which eSIM gives the best value per GB in South Africa?
Airalo: 50 GB for 30 days at $49.00, which works out at $0.98 per gigabyte. Value per gigabyte matters more than headline price on any trip longer than a weekend.
Are there unlimited eSIM plans for South Africa?
Yes — 15 of the plans tracked here are sold as unlimited, from $4.00. Read them carefully: unlimited means full speed up to a daily allowance, then throttling for the rest of the day, and some carry a total ceiling as well. The provider's own wording is shown on every plan.
Which mobile networks do these eSIMs use in South Africa?
The providers that publish it list Cell C, MTN, RSA CellC, Telkom, Telkom South Africa, Vodacom. Not every provider discloses its network partner, and where one does not, this site shows a dash rather than guessing.
How current are these prices?
They were last read from each provider's own page on 11/2/2026. Prices are re-checked every day and the per-plan date is shown on every row; if a provider cannot be read, its plans keep their previous figures and are marked as carried over.
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes the prices shown or the order of the results.
Regional plans that also cover South Africa
One plan across a group of countries, useful when the trip crosses a border. Which countries a regional plan reaches is stated by the brand selling it, not worked out here.
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SwitzerlandWhat readers say about eSIMs in South Africa
Nothing yet. We do not write reviews ourselves and we do not buy them, so this stays empty until someone who has actually used eSIMs in South Africa sends one. If that is you, the form below takes a minute.