日本 eSIM

Wi-Fi is not enough once you are moving. It exists at airports, stations, convenience stores and many cafés, usually after a short sign-in and only in that exact spot. On the platform, during a transfer, hunting for the right station exit, you have nothing – that is what the eSIM is for.

The eSIM, unless you want to carry a second device. A pocket Wi-Fi is a rental: collect it, charge it every night, hand it back or post it at the end. The eSIM is already in your phone, has no battery of its own and never has to go back. Travelling as a group, you can still share it through the hotspot.

Yes, NTT Docomo is one of the two networks in this plan, the other is SoftBank. The eSIM connects to whichever has the better signal, with 5G where your phone supports it. KDDI/au and Rakuten Mobile are not included.

You can buy and install it calmly at home; the validity only starts when the eSIM first connects to a network in Japan. So you lose no days by setting it up a week before departure, and at the airport there is nothing left to do.

You can choose between 1 and 50 GB, or an unlimited plan, with 7 to 180 days of validity. Maps, trains, translation and messengers use very little; streaming on the Shinkansen and uploading videos use a lot more. If it runs short, you can top up at any time without installing a new eSIM.

No. Since 1 April 2026 Japan requires ID for SIM and eSIM contracts signed inside the country. You buy this eSIM online before your trip, from outside Japan, and you are a guest on the Japanese networks – nothing to upload, nothing to show.

No. This is a data-only plan without a number. Calls and SMS over the mobile network are not included, and SMS verification codes will not reach it.

Through anything that runs on data: WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, FaceTime, LINE. You can keep your home number active in the phone at the same time, so calls and texts still come in – just leave data roaming switched off for that line.

Yes, in the Tokyo and Osaka subways and on large parts of the Shinkansen line between Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka. In long tunnels and in the mountains the connection can drop briefly; in cities like Fukuoka, Sapporo or Hiroshima coverage is a non-issue.

Yes. You can use your phone as a hotspot and bring your partner, your kids, a laptop or a camera online with you.

Uber exists, but it only dispatches regular licensed taxis, and outside central Tokyo the waits are long. The app people in Japan actually use is called GO – sign up before your trip, because it asks for an SMS code that a data plan cannot receive.

It depends on the data size and how many days you stay — the price table above on this page lists every Japan plan in your own currency. A week of maps, translation apps, train times and messaging runs on only a few gigabytes; video streaming and hotspot use need a bigger bundle.

You buy it here on this page: choose a data size, pay, and the QR code plus installation link land in your inbox within minutes. Scan it over Wi-Fi before you fly and switch the line on after landing at Narita, Haneda or Kansai. No shop, no queue, no paperwork.

Yes — Japanese networks run 4G and 5G with full eSIM support, from central Tokyo to rural prefectures. Any eSIM-capable, carrier-unlocked phone works with it. You don't need a Japanese address or a local contract to use a travel eSIM; the profile connects to a partner network automatically when you arrive.

Look at coverage, data and how long you stay. Almost everywhere you travel in Japan is covered, so the deciding factors are usually how much data you take and how long the plan stays valid; both are in the table on this page. This plan uses NTT Docomo and SoftBank including 5G, while KDDI/au and Rakuten are not part of it. Data only, no Japanese number.