A data + calls eSIM includes mobile data together with call minutes and SMS, for travellers who need to call or text without using their own SIM. Spidot does not sell data + calls plans yet.
How data + calls works
Choose a plan with data, minutes and SMS.
Install the eSIM from the QR code we email you, before you fly.
Use data, make calls and send texts on the Spidot line.
Data + calls plans
Not available yet
We do not sell data + calls plans at the moment, so there are no plans to show here. Fixed data plans are available for 160 countries and Europe.
Which plan type fits your trip?
| PLAN TYPE | WHAT YOU GET | GOOD FOR | WHERE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed data | A set amount of data for a set number of days | One trip with known dates | 160 countries and Europe |
| Unlimited | Unlimited data by the day; speed may slow after heavy use | Heavy use for a few days | 36 countries |
| No-expiry | Data that stays until you use it | Several trips a year | Not available yet |
| Data + calls | Data with call minutes and SMS | Trips where you need to call | Not available yet |
Questions about data + calls
Do I need data + calls?
Can I keep my own SIM?
Where does it work?
Will people see my usual number when I call on the Spidot line?
Can I make app calls on a data + calls plan?
Can I choose which line to call from?
Do incoming calls to my usual number still reach me?
Which numbers can I call?
Is a data + calls plan worth it for a short city break?
A practical guide to data + calls eSIM plans
Most Spidot plans are data only: your own SIM stays in your phone for calls and texts, and the eSIM provides mobile data. A data + calls plan adds call minutes and SMS to that data, so the eSIM line can make ordinary phone calls and send text messages as well as connect to the internet.
That sounds like an obvious upgrade, but many travellers do not need it. This guide explains how a data + calls plan works alongside your own SIM, the situations where it genuinely helps, how to estimate the data and minutes you need, and how it compares with data-only plans, roaming and local SIMs. Data + calls plans are not offered for every destination and availability can change, so the plan list on this page, the destinations page and the prices page show what you can buy at the moment.
How a data + calls plan works
A data + calls plan bundles three things on one eSIM: mobile data, call minutes and SMS. You install it in the same way as any other Spidot eSIM, and it appears on your phone as a separate line next to your own SIM.
Calls and texts that you make on the Spidot line go out from that line, not from your usual number. Your own SIM can stay active, so people who call or text your usual number can still reach you, charged by your home operator at its roaming rates. Our guide on keeping your own number explains how the two lines work together.
The amount of data, the minutes and SMS included and the validity period can differ between plans and destinations, so read the plan details carefully before you buy, including any limits on which numbers you can call.
Choosing which line to use
Phones with two lines let you pick a default line for calls, texts and mobile data, and most let you choose the line for each call as you dial. A common set-up with a data + calls plan is to use the Spidot line for mobile data and for calls you make locally, while keeping your own SIM switched on for incoming calls and texts to your usual number. You can change these settings at any time.
Do you actually need calls and SMS?
For many trips, the honest answer is no. Messaging and calling apps work over mobile data, so a data-only plan lets you message, make voice calls and video calls to anyone who uses the same app. Many hotels, restaurants and tour operators also take bookings by message or online.
A data + calls plan becomes useful when you need to reach people or services that do not use an app, or when a phone call is simply the expected way to get things done. Before you choose it, think about who you will need to call and how you would reach them otherwise.
Situations where data + calls helps
These are the kinds of trips where travellers tend to find calls and SMS worth having:
- Calling local businesses: restaurants, small hotels, guesthouses, garages and medical practices that take bookings or answer questions by phone.
- Car hire and road trips: contacting the rental company, a breakdown service or a car park operator, often from a road with patchy data.
- Getting collected: taxi firms, drivers and hosts who expect a phone call or an SMS when you arrive.
- Work trips: calling clients, suppliers or venues who do not use the same messaging app as you.
- Longer stays: arranging deliveries, viewings or appointments where a phone call is the usual way to confirm.
- Codes sent by SMS: some local services send booking confirmations or one-time codes by text message. Whether a given service accepts the number on your plan is up to that service.
- A fallback: when an app call keeps dropping on a weak connection, an ordinary call can sometimes get through more easily.
Who data + calls suits
In short, a data + calls plan suits travellers who expect to make ordinary phone calls or send text messages during the trip and would rather not do it on their own number at roaming rates. If you mainly message friends and family through apps, a data-only plan is likely to be simpler and cheaper.
It can also suit travellers whose home operator charges heavily for calls abroad, and people who want a clear separation between personal and travel calls. As always, compare what your own operator offers before deciding.
Estimating the data and minutes you need
With a data + calls plan you are sizing two things. The data side works like any other plan; the call side depends on how many ordinary calls you expect to make. The figures below are rough approximations and vary with the app, the video quality, the network and your settings.
- Maps and navigation: often tens of megabytes per hour of active use.
- Browsing and social media: roughly 50–200 MB per hour, more with autoplaying video.
- App voice calls: in the region of 0.5–1 MB per minute of data.
- Video calls: often several hundred megabytes per hour.
- Video streaming: from under 1 GB per hour at standard quality to several GB per hour in high definition.
Estimating minutes
Most practical calls while travelling are short: confirming a table, asking a driver where they are, checking an opening time. As a loose guide, a handful of such calls a day at two or three minutes each adds up to perhaps 10–15 minutes a day. Calls to arrange car hire, repairs or appointments can take longer. Remember that app calls to friends and family use data, not minutes.
A rough example
As an illustration only: a traveller on a ten-day road trip who navigates every day, books accommodation and restaurants by phone and makes a few calls to the car hire company might use a few gigabytes of data and somewhere around an hour or two of calls over the trip. Your own pattern may be very different, so check your phone's usage history if you can.
Data + calls compared with the other plan types
Data + calls or fixed data
A fixed data plan gives you a set amount of data for a set number of days, with no minutes or SMS. If you can handle your calls through apps or on your own number, fixed data is usually the simpler choice. Choose data + calls if ordinary calls and texts are part of your plan for the trip.
Data + calls or unlimited
An unlimited plan is about heavy data use over a short period, priced by the day; speed may slow after heavy daily use. It does not include minutes or SMS. If you need lots of data and a few calls, you could compare an unlimited plan for data with calls on your own number, against a data + calls plan.
Data + calls or no-expiry
A no-expiry plan is data that stays on your eSIM until you use it, suited to frequent travellers with light to moderate use. It is data only. If calls are what you need, data + calls is the type to look at.
Data + calls compared with roaming and local SIMs
Roaming on your own SIM is the easiest way to make calls abroad, and your contacts see your usual number. Whether it is affordable depends on your operator. Many people with EU SIM cards can call, text and use data across the EU under the "Roam like at Home" rules, but these rules do not apply to everyone, and many non-EU operators charge per minute or per day abroad.
A local SIM card usually comes with a local number, data and calls, and can be good value for long stays. You typically need to find a shop on arrival, may need identification, and have to remove your own SIM unless your phone takes two. A data + calls eSIM can be bought and installed at home before you fly, and your own SIM can stay in the phone.
Setting up before you travel and on arrival
Install the eSIM while you still have Wi-Fi at home. First check your phone: it must support eSIM and be carrier-unlocked. Then follow the install guide for iPhone, Samsung or Pixel.
Label the new line clearly, for example Travel, so it is obvious which line you are calling from. Choose the Spidot line for mobile data, and decide which line should be the default for calls and texts. Keep data roaming off for your own SIM so your home operator does not charge you for data.
When you arrive, turn on data roaming for the Spidot line; the data roaming guide shows where to find it. Make a short test call or send a text early on, so you know everything works before you rely on it.
Keeping track of data and minutes
Check your balance from time to time in My eSIMs. If you are running low on data, you can add more data to the same eSIM where top-ups are offered for your destination. Your phone's own counters are only a rough guide; see how much data is left for why they can differ.
To make minutes last, use app calls for long conversations with people who have the same app, and keep ordinary calls for businesses and services that need them.
Checking availability
Data + calls plans are offered for some destinations and not others, and the selection may change over time. If there is no data + calls plan for your destination, a fixed data plan combined with app calls and your own number for anything urgent covers most needs. For trips across several countries, look at the Europe plan, and see the destinations page and prices page for what is on offer at the moment.