Best prepaid SIM Cards for U.S. travelers and tourists 2024

The best prepaid sim cards for U.S. travelers and tourists allow anyone visiting the United States to stay connected at all times. Whether you're coming to the country for a few days or moving here permanently, you have dozens of wireless service providers offering hundreds of plans to choose from. Although it's great to have so many options, it makes picking the right SIM card for your needs a bit overwhelming. But don't fret, as we've done all the hard work and curated the best picks for you!

Whether you want to stick with a mainstream carrier like Verizon or prefer a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) such as Mint Mobile, getting a SIM card these days is often as easy as walking into a retailer's store or placing an order online. All you need is an Android phone (or even an iPhone) that's unlocked and compatible with the wireless service provider of your choice, and you're good to go. And while you're at it, make sure to also check out the best MVNO deals that can help you save a lot of cash.

Patrick Farmer

Patrick is an experienced deal hunter with a particular interest in helping people save money on their phone bills. Whether you're switching to an affordable MVNO or upgrading to one of the Big Three, utilizing Patrick's years of experience in the eCommerce space can help you cut through the noise and find the carrier that works for you. 

At a glance

Best overall

Mint Mobile is among the best MVNO carriers available today and uses T-Mobile's (its parent company) 4G LTE and 5G network infrastructure, and that makes it a solid prepaid SIM card to get if you plan on staying in the U.S. for at least three months. As we found in our Mint Mobile review, the carrier's 5G connectivity is strong, and its phone compatibility is one of the best in the country.

With Mint Mobile, you need to purchase at least three months of service in advance. After that, the best deals are available when you sign up for either six or 12 months. For three months on the unlimited plan, you'll pay $90 and enjoy unlimited talk, text, and data, 10GB of mobile hotspot, and even free calls to Mexico and Canada. Calling to other international locations is available at a per-minute rate but if you use an app (e.g., WhatsApp, Line) to call your friends, you'll only need data.

Joining Mint Mobile is easy, and you can even sign up for a trial online to get a free Mint Mobile SIM card. It's even simpler if your phone is compatible with an eSIM as you can then activate the eSIM straight from your phone, and then later continue the service if you like it. You can also purchase a Mint Mobile SIM card from Target, Best Buy, Walmart, or Amazon.

Note: As part of a limited-time promotion, you can get any one of Mint Mobile's plans at a reduced price of $15 per month, provided you buy three months of service in advance as a new customer.

Best for short stays

Ultra Mobile is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) using T-Mobile's network, meaning that you'll get great T-Mobile coverage at a lower price. Our Ultra Mobile review showed strong coverage and speeds. Although the carrier offers its own set of prepaid plans, the Ultra Mobile 3GB plan is a perfect fit for anyone visiting the U.S. for a month or less. That said, if you avail the service for a longer duration, you can get some good discounts.

With the 3GB plan, you get a more regular SIM and after 30 days, the plan's validity will end, which makes it great for users who just want simple talk and text to a wide range of destinations and don't need a lot of data during their travels. For a monthly cost of $19 (before taxes and fees) with the SIM kit included, you'll get unlimited talk and text to more than 90 countries worldwide, plus free Wi-Fi calling and up to 3GB of 5G/4G LTE data, so you should have no issue staying connected with friends and family back home. The plan also comes with $1.50 of international calling credit per month and a one-time $5 international roaming credit.

Best budget

Lycamobile is unique because it's a global MVNO, and in the U.S., it's an MVNO using T-Mobile's network. To check whether your phone is compatible, the easiest thing to do is type in your IMEI number on Lycamobile's website, but most of the unlocked GSM devices should work without any issues.

Lycamobile offers several plans to pick from and primarily caters to those who need unlimited nationwide talk and text, as well as international calling and texting to over 100 countries. Each plan includes these features at no additional charge, making this the perfect plan if you want to be able to call abroad whenever you want.

When it comes to data, you have multiple options starting at just 500MB and going up to 60GB. The cheapest 500MB plan costs $15 per month, while the unlimited plan with 60GB of data can be availed at an effective price of $39 per month if you pay for three months. Each plan includes slightly different bonus features, so you'll have to pick what makes the most sense for you.

Fortunately, Lycamobile SIM cards are easy to get a hold of. They are sold online on Lycamobile's website and Amazon, but you can also get them at several retailers like 7-Eleven, pharmacies, and local convenience stores. If you have any doubts, you can also use the online store locator to find the nearest retailer near you.

Best non-MVNO

Known for its amazing coverage, AT&T is also an excellent carrier to consider getting a SIM card from when visiting the U.S. and as such, it offers one of the best prepaid phone plans. It tends to have better coverage in rural areas than other carriers, so it's also a great option if you plan to be on the road a lot. For $30 a month (taxes and fees extra), AT&T Prepaid will get you 5GB of high-speed data, which is then throttled to 128Kbps after you've utilized the data allotment. As always, you should check your device's compatibility with AT&T online before signing up for the plan.

On this plan, you're able to use your mobile hotspot, and you can text to more than 230 countries around the world. And if you think you'll need more than 5GB of data, you can always upgrade to the 15GB prepaid plan for just $40 a month, which also includes data usage in/between the United States, Mexico and Canada. Also, both of these plans offer rollover data, which means any unused data gets added to the next month's data allotment.

Best prepaid data plan

T-Mobile not only offers some of the best cell phone plans you could get today, but it also has an excellent prepaid service that will suit the needs of most travelers and tourists when they're visiting the United States. As T-Mobile's network has improved vastly over the past few years and its 5G network has some of the most widespread coverage and fastest speeds in the nation, you'll get excellent service when traveling to major cities during your stay in the country.

There are four T-Mobile prepaid plans to pick from, but the most ideal plan for most visitors will be T-Mobile's 10GB prepaid plan that costs $40 per month, before taxes and fees. It includes unlimited domestic talk and text, up to 10GB of high-speed data, free mobile hotspot data, and a nifty 'Music Unlimited' feature which means that any music you stream won't eat up your data. If you want to add international calling, it can be done for an extra $15 per month, or if you're traveling to Mexico or Canada for a few days, you can add talk, text, and 5GB of data to use over there for an extra $5 per month.

Best data-only plan

If you don't think you'll need minutes during your stay in the United States and really just want data, you could consider a data-only plan from Cricket Wireless, which is an MVNO that uses (and is owned by) AT&T. For $35, you'll be getting 20GB of data to use for a full month, while spending $55 will give you 100GB of data for a month. If you need even more, you can get 150GB of data for $90 per month.

Again, this plan doesn't come with any talk time minutes, so you'll have to make sure you're fine using messaging apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, or Skype to connect with family or friends back home. It does include text and picture messages across the U.S., as well as usage in Mexico and Canada if you plan on visiting those countries. It's the ideal plan for anyone who'll be spending a lot of time on the road and wants to be able to stream, download, and do some high-speed browsing.

You can get a Cricket Wireless SIM card by just walking into a Cricket Wireless retailer store, which you can locate with the carrier's online store locator tool. Other popular retailers such as Amazon, Target, Best Buy, and Walmart also sell Universal SIM card activation kits for Cricket Wireless. The good news is that if you do end up wanting minutes, you can always switch to another one of the carrier's plans using the same SIM card.

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How to choose

Evaluate your needs before getting a prepaid SIM card

Thanks to constantly improving network infrastructure and a wide variety of plans, you really can't go wrong with any wireless service provider—be it a mainstream carrier or an MVNO—these days. As such, selecting the right prepaid SIM card largely depends on your individual requirements. If you're only going to be staying for a couple of days, we suggest Ultra Mobile's 3GB plan. It offers unlimited talk and text, Wi-Fi calling, and even a monthly international calling credit.

Conversely, if you'll be staying for a few months, any one of Mint Mobile's plans will be perfect for you. Owned by T-Mobile, it offers excellent network coverage, and benefits such as mobile hotspot functionality, and free calling to Mexico and Canada. You can even avail a free trial and if you like the service, sign up for multiple months for great savings.

Going with a big carrier like AT&T is also an option. Although you'll be paying a little more, you'll get much better coverage and speeds, which can be beneficial if you plan on traveling a lot.

Should you get an international add-on with your current service provider?

Almost every mobile operator in the world has partnerships with service providers in other countries. This option makes a lot of sense if you want to keep things simple, as you can activate a suitable international add-on on your existing SIM card before coming to the country, and even have service when you're waiting for a connecting flight. However, it's worth noting that these add-ons often tend to be a bit expensive, and coverage might not be as good as it would be with a carrier in the United States.

How about eSIM platforms?

If your smartphone supports eSIM functionality, you can simply go for one of the many eSIM apps/platforms to quickly buy and activate a wireless service plan. This saves you the hassle of ordering a physical SIM card and waiting for it to arrive so you can put it in your device and start using it.

One such platform is Airalo, which lets you get an eSIM with as little as 1GB of data and a one-week validity. T-Mobile also has its own app (available for both iOS and Android) that allows you to order and activate your eSIM with little to no effort.

• MVNO deals: Mint Mobile | Visible | Boost Mobile | Tello | Cricket Wireless