Travel Intelligence · eSIM comparisons 2026
By Richard J. · written from Valencia7 providers · 3 published testsVerified 5 October 2026
For a phone number on a trip to Europe, Orange Travel is the best choice: every plan includes a French number with unlimited calls and texts within Europe, from $9.99 for 7 days, with Bouygues Telecom cheaper for a fortnight at €19.90; outside Europe, Roamless sells its own numbers and calls from $0.01 a minute, Saily offers a US number for $0.99 a month, Yesim sells UK, US, Dutch and Canadian numbers from $3.60 a month, and aloSIM bundles a free US or Canadian number. Most travel eSIMs are data only, which is why this question is asked so often. This page compares the seven that are not, on what each publishes.
Verified 5 October 2026 · Orange Travel, Roamless and Jetpac on their own pages · Bouygues from eSIMDB and Selectra · Saily, Yesim and aloSIM from our September comparison
Seven do in some form: Orange Travel and Bouygues include a French number in the plan; Roamless, Saily and Yesim sell a number as an extra; aloSIM bundles one free; and Jetpac sells outgoing calls without a number.
| Provider | Best for | Number | Calls and texts | Cheapest route | Read |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orange Travel | Calls on a trip to Europe | French, included | Unlimited within Europe | $9.99 for 7 days, with 4 GB | Orange's site, 5 October 2026 |
| Bouygues Telecom | The cheapest fortnight with a number | French, included from Basic+ | Unlimited in France and Europe | €19.90 for 15 days, with 20 GB | eSIMDB and Selectra |
| Roamless | Calls outside Europe; frequent travellers | Roamless Numbers, for calls and SMS | In-app calls from $0.01 a minute | Paid from credit that never expires; number price shown in the app | Roamless's site, 5 October 2026 |
| Saily | A low-cost US number | US number, optional | Not detailed in our September reading | $0.99 a month | Saily, September 2026 |
| Yesim | A choice of country | Virtual UK, US, Dutch or Canadian number | Not detailed in our September reading | From $3.60 a month | Yesim, September 2026 |
| aloSIM | A free number | Hushed US or Canadian number | Through the Hushed app | Free with eligible plans | aloSIM, September 2026 |
| Jetpac | The occasional outgoing call | None | Outgoing calls to 50+ countries; no SMS | From $1.99 for 5 minutes | Jetpac's site, 5 October 2026 |
Cheapest route to a phone number · USD
The seven fall into two groups. Orange and Bouygues are mobile operators selling a full line: data, a real French number and calls. The others are apps that add a number or calling to a data plan. The first group is the better buy for Europe; the second is the only option elsewhere.
Orange Travel and Bouygues Telecom: both include a French number with unlimited calls and texts within Europe, Orange from $9.99 for 7 days and Bouygues from €19.90 for 15 days. A French number works for ringing a restaurant in Rome or a hotel in Lisbon, because calls within Europe are included. The two are compared in full, with Vodafone's data-only alternative, in Orange Travel vs Bouygues vs Vodafone Travel.
| Trip | Pick | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| One week | Orange Travel | $9.99 | 4 GB, a French number, unlimited European calls and texts |
| Two weeks | Bouygues Basic+ | €19.90 | 20 GB over 15 days, a French number, unlimited European calls and texts |
| One month | Bouygues 30 GB | €29.90 | 30 GB over 30 days with the same calls |
| One month, heavy data | Orange Travel | $57.99 | 100 GB over 30 days with the same calls |
Two cautions. Calls to numbers outside Europe are not part of the unlimited allowance. And Bouygues's cheapest plan, Travel Basic at €14.90, is data only, so check the plan name before paying. The app-based data plans for the same trip are in the Europe eSIM guide.
Saily for a US number at $0.99 a month, aloSIM for a free US or Canadian number with eligible plans, and Yesim for a UK, US, Dutch or Canadian number from $3.60 a month. These are virtual numbers that sit beside a data plan, as read in September 2026. They suit a traveller who needs a number in a particular country to give to a contact, a delivery service or a booking site.
| Provider | Countries | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saily | USA | $0.99 a month | Optional extra beside a data plan |
| aloSIM | USA or Canada | Free with eligible plans | Supplied through Hushed, a separate app |
| Yesim | UK, USA, Netherlands, Canada | From $3.60 a month | The widest choice of country of the three |
| Roamless | Shown in the app | Shown in the app | Calls and SMS paid from credit that never expires |
A virtual number is not a substitute for the number your bank holds. Some services do not send sign-up texts to virtual numbers, so test it before you rely on it. Keeping your number and WhatsApp with an eSIM explains what stays on your home SIM.
Within Europe, a carrier plan with unlimited calls (Bouygues €19.90 for 15 days, Orange Travel from $9.99 for 7 days); anywhere else, Roamless at from $0.01 a minute; for the odd call, Jetpac at $1.99 for 5 minutes. Roamless charges by the destination you call, not by where you are, and pays for calls from the same credit as data.
| Provider | Price of a call | Works from | Number shown to the person you call |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orange Travel | Included, within Europe | 40+ European countries | Your French number |
| Bouygues Telecom | Included, in France and Europe | France and 34 other European countries | Your French number |
| Roamless | From $0.01 a minute | Anywhere you have data | A Roamless Number, if you have one |
| Jetpac | From $1.99 for 5 minutes | Anywhere you have data | Not stated on the page read |
If the people you call use WhatsApp, FaceTime or Signal, none of this is needed: any data plan carries those calls. Paid calling matters for landlines, businesses and people who do not use messaging apps. Whether to buy a travel eSIM at all, or use your own operator's pass, is the subject of eSIM vs roaming.
Your bank's codes go to your home number, not your travel number. A travel eSIM, with or without a number, does not change where your bank, your email provider or your government sends verification texts. Keep the home SIM switched on for calls and SMS, switch its data roaming off, and set the travel eSIM as the data line. Recent phones run both at once; multiple eSIMs on one phone shows how.
French number included · Unlimited calls and texts within Europe · From $9.99 for 7 days
Orange Travel, formerly Orange Holiday Europe, lists every Europe plan as data, calls and SMS: 4 GB for 7 days at $9.99, 20 GB for 14 days at $29.99, 50 GB for 30 days at $53.99 and 100 GB at $57.99. The weak point is price at the small end, where Bouygues is cheaper for two weeks. Source: Orange Travel's Europe pricing, read 5 October 2026.
French number from Basic+ · 20 GB for 15 days: €19.90 · 30 GB for 30 days: €29.90
Bouygues includes unlimited calls and texts in France and Europe on three of its four tourist plans. The weak points are that it works in Europe only and that its entry plan carries no calls. Prices are from eSIMDB's listing and Selectra; we could not read Bouygues's own page for this article.
Roamless Numbers for calls and SMS · In-app calls from $0.01 a minute · Credit never expires
Roamless puts data, numbers, calls and SMS in one app and one balance, across more than 200 destinations, and the balance carries over from trip to trip. The weak point is that the price of a number is shown in the app, not on the page we read. Source: Roamless's site, read 5 October 2026.
US number: $0.99 a month · Owned by Nord Security · 77 of 100 in September
Saily adds an optional US number to its data plans for $0.99 a month, the lowest paid price here. The weak point is choice: one country. Source: Saily, read September 2026; full profile in our seven-provider comparison.
UK, US, Dutch and Canadian numbers · From $3.60 a month · 71 of 100 in September
Yesim sells virtual numbers in four countries, the widest choice of the apps here. The weak point is its unlimited data plans, which publish no full-speed allowance. Source: Yesim, read September 2026; more in Is Yesim worth it?.
Free Hushed US or Canadian number · With eligible plans · 61 of 100 in September
aloSIM bundles a Hushed number at no charge with eligible data plans. The weak points are that the number runs in a second app and that aloSIM's data prices were the highest of the seven in September ($36 for 10 GB in Europe). Source: aloSIM, read September 2026.
No number · Voice packs from $1.99 for 5 minutes · Calls to 50+ countries
Jetpac sells voice packs for outgoing calls from its app and states that its data plans carry no SMS. It suits a traveller who needs to ring a landline once or twice. The weak point is that nobody can call you back on it. Source: Jetpac's Europe plan page, read 5 October 2026.
1 · Work out who needs to reach you, and how. If everyone you speak to uses a messaging app, buy data only. A number matters for businesses, landlines and bookings.
2 · In Europe, buy the number and the data together. Orange Travel and Bouygues cost less than a data plan plus a separate virtual number, and the calls are unlimited within Europe.
3 · Never move your bank's codes to a travel number. Leave them on your home SIM. What happens to your number with an eSIM sets out the safe arrangement.
Orange renamed Orange Holiday Europe as Orange Travel and kept calls and SMS on every Europe plan. Roamless's site on 5 October 2026 lists its own numbers and SMS beside data and calls, in one balance. Jetpac's plan page on 5 October 2026 prices voice packs from $1.99 for 5 minutes. Yesim, which sells numbers in four countries, became a GSMA member in August 2026, as recorded in our September comparison.
Orange Travel and Bouygues Telecom's My European eSIM include a French number with unlimited calls and texts within Europe. Roamless sells its own numbers for calls and SMS, paid from credit that never expires. Saily offers a US number for $0.99 a month, Yesim sells virtual UK, US, Dutch and Canadian numbers from $3.60 a month, and aloSIM bundles a free Hushed US or Canadian number with eligible plans. Most other travel eSIMs are data only.
Most do not. A typical travel eSIM from an app is a data plan, and you call through WhatsApp or a similar app. The exceptions are carrier eSIMs such as Orange Travel and Bouygues, which include a French number, and apps that sell a number as an extra: Roamless, Saily, Yesim and aloSIM.
Orange Travel for most visitors: every Europe plan listed on its site on 5 October 2026 includes a French number with unlimited calls and texts within Europe, from $9.99 for 7 days with 4 GB. Bouygues Telecom is cheaper for a fortnight, at €19.90 for 20 GB over 15 days with unlimited European calls and texts.
Only on one that has a number, and only for services that send to that number. Your bank sends codes to the number it holds for you, which is your home number, so keep your home SIM active in the phone and use the travel eSIM for data. A French number from Orange Travel or a virtual number from Yesim or Saily can receive texts sent to it, but it does not replace your registered number.
Saily offers a US number for $0.99 a month, and aloSIM bundles a free Hushed US or Canadian number with eligible plans, on the figures read in September 2026. Yesim sells virtual US, UK, Dutch and Canadian numbers from $3.60 a month. Roamless sells its own numbers for calls and SMS; the price is shown in its app.
Inside Europe, a carrier eSIM with unlimited calls: Bouygues at €19.90 for 15 days or Orange Travel from $9.99 for 7 days. Elsewhere, Roamless's in-app calls start at $0.01 a minute, charged by the destination called. Jetpac's voice packs cost from $1.99 for 5 minutes, about $0.40 a minute, for outgoing calls to more than 50 countries.
In our September 2026 comparison of seven providers, only Saily and Yesim sold phone numbers and aloSIM bundled one; Airalo's plans compared there were data plans. For a number with calls in Europe, Orange Travel or Bouygues is the direct route.
No. WhatsApp stays tied to the number you registered it with, whichever SIM supplies the data. Add the travel eSIM as the data line, keep your home SIM active for calls and codes, and WhatsApp carries on unchanged.
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Richard J. · Uncompromised Travel · written from Valencia · first published 5 October 2026 · facts verified 5 October 2026
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