Prepaid Data SIM Card Wiki
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Here's what this wiki is about:
This wiki collects information about prepaid mobile phone plans from all over the world. Not just any plans though, they must include decent data rates, perfect for iPhone, iPad and Android smart phone travellers, as well as mifi users.

Prepaid providers with data by country (A-Z)


Prepaid

Prepaid, also known as Pay as you go allows a customer to get mobile access without signing up for a long term plan. This makes it perfect for a person who is only visiting a country for a short time. To complicate matters a bit, the popularity of smartphones has led to another requirement on the prepaid plans: data. In order to be able to use the phones as intended, with internet access, you need to get a plan with decent data rates. To recharge prepaid mobiles worldwide, the user has at his disposal several channels available.

More information

SIM card

When you purchase a prepaid plan you are likely to be given a SIM card to suit your mobile phone.

The standard (mini) size was once the most common, but beyond the introduction of iPhone 4 and GALAXY S III, the Micro-SIM size has become prevalent. The nano-SIM size was introduced with iPhone 5, and phones like the Nokia Lumia 930 also use this size SIM card.

It's possible to cut a mini SIM into a micro SIM, using special punches for this purpose. The nano-SIM format is 15% thinner than the others, so cutting down to this standard is problematic.

The simplest and easiest option is to ask your provider for an appropriately sized SIM card. Most providers are happy to provide this free-of-charge.

Phones Network Support

To check if your phone supports the network of a provider, you can look here: Network Compatibility of common phones

Phone SIM lock

It is not uncommon that a phone purchased together with a plan is SIM locked to that particular provider. This means that when you go abroad and try to use a foreign SIM card it will not work. We will not provide information on how to unlock your phone in this wiki, there are other resources out there that already tell you how.

Roaming

Roaming is when you keep using your plan from your country of origin abroad. It is usually VERY expensive to do so, cases where users come home to a bill that eat up a month's salary or more is not uncommon. The cure is to use a local prepaid SIM card instead.

Can't find a good data rate?

Some destinations have exorbitant prepaid data rates. So, you might end up relying on WiFi hotspots but still want a local number for making and receiving voice calls. PrePaidGSM lists prepaid sims for almost every country in the World.

What network settings do I need to enter?

Unfortunately, sometimes it won't be enough to simply put the SIM card in your device and expect it to work: it needs to log in to the network. You will need three pieces of information: APN, username, and password.  In many cases, username and password can be left blank.It should be ideally on the operator description page in this wiki, but if it's not try finding in here and if it works, copy it to operator description page in this wiki.

Tethering

Tethering is the internet connection of a mobile phone or tablet sharing the internet with other devices like laptops through WIFI, Bluetooth or (USB) cable. Thus, the device connected to the internet acts as a router building a "mobile hotspot". Some operators like to restrict tethering in their T&Cs, but this is very hard to maintain technically, so most operators nowadays allow it. Only some Apple devices like the iPhone need a special profile for tethering released by the provider. This limitation does not apply to Android- or Windows-based phones, tablets, routers or modems and should not be generalized.

General troubleshooting

iPhone says "You Are Not Subscribed to a Cellular Data Service"

The only known reason for this are incorrect APN/username/password. See "What network settings do I need to enter?" above for instructions on how to fix it.

Contributing to the wiki

A couple of simple guidelines to editing the wiki.

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