Buying an Icelandic SIM card
Update: We just published our brand new post about using a cell phone in Iceland for your 2018 vacation. The post below will still have some great details, but see that post for the latest information!
Updated December 2017 with new cell phone recommendations.
The SIM card is the little thing, sometimes orange, that identifies the phone number of your cell phone. On this iPhone 5, for example, there is a tiny hole you need to push a small paperclip (or a similarly shaped SIM card remover tool) into the hole to pop the card out.
If your phone works like this, make sure to bring a paperclip or a similar SIM card removal tool with you!
Also, while we’re at it, don’t forget to bring the right power adapters for Iceland.
The process and options for getting an Icelandic Sim card are a little bit tricky. Before we dive into it, let’s walk through a step-by-step summary of how to make this work.
Steps to get a Simin or Vodafone SIM card in Iceland
Step 1: Buy a SIM card. There are three main companies that provide mobile phone service in Iceland: Siminn, Vodafone, and Nova. And they are listed in order of both quality and price. That is, Siminn has the best coverage, but also costs the most.
In most cases, we recommend getting a Siminn SIM card at the airport; we’ll cover that down below. But Icelandair will now sell you a nice Vodafone SIM card package on the airplane, which you can order ahead of time: Icelandair Vodafone SIM card. Enter your flight details, and they’ll hand you the SIM card on the flight. Cost: About $27, including 2 GB of data, unlimited calls within Iceland, and 50 minutes of International calling. (If you don’t order ahead of time, you should still be able to buy it from the duty free catalog on board the plane.)
Step 2: Install the SIM card. When you land, insert the SIM card into the unlocked phone you brought with you. If you want a hassle-free unlocked phone, check out the new Moto E4 on Amazon; it’s $100 if you are an Amazon Prime member, and $130 if you are not. There’s a ton more detail down below about unlocking your existing phone, or buying an unlocked phone.
Step 3 (optional): Add more data or minutes. If you want to add more data on Siminn, or a credit for making US calls or texts, open a web browser on your phone and navigate to: www.siminn.is/english. Click on “Top Up.”
That will take you here: https://thjonustuvefur.siminn.is/MittFrelsi/kaupa/siminn.is?locale=en
Here you can buy another Gig of data, or 5 if you never want to think about data again. Or you can buy a 500 or 1000 krona ($4 or $8) credit to make phone calls or texts. (100 minutes and 100 texts to Icelandic numbers are included.)
For Vodafone, top up here: https://vodafone.is/english/topup/
Remember that you will have a new Icelandic phone number, which should be printed on the cardboard envelope the SIM card came in. Because of this, I found it easier to just use data for calls and texts, using something like Skype or Whatsapp. The Icelandic minutes and texts do come in handy for confirming tours, restaurants, etc.
Yes, that was kind of complicated. Why bother? Let’s compare what we just did to some options you can add to your existing phone:
| Extra fee | Talk (per minute) | Megabytes of data | Text (per outgoing text) | Text (per incoming text) | |
| AT&T #2 | $60 | $0.50 | 300 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Verizon #2 | $40 | 100 included | 100 | 100 included | Unlimited |
| Siminn Prepaid Deluxe | $24 | 100 Iceland; $0.20 – $0.60 / US | 1,000 | 100 Iceland; $0.18 US | Unlimited |
(Siminn includes 100 minutes and 100 text messages to numbers in Iceland. Siminn calls are about 20 cents a minute to landlines in the United States, and 60 cents for calls to cell phones in the US. See https://www.siminn.is/english-tourist/international-calls/nanar/item715/ for call prices for the United States, or find your country here: https://www.siminn.is/english-tourist/international-calls/.)
So for less money, you get 3-10X more data, and no risk for exorbitant overage charges. And if you want to add, say, 5,000 MB of data, that will only cost you another $20 or so.
Other Siminn Prepaid SIM cards in Iceland
On the Siminn web site, you can also choose two other packages. See the prepaid SIM card options here: https://www.siminn.is/prepaid/
The first one (Prepaid Data) is data only– you will NOT be able to make phone calls or send text messages, though you should be able to receive them. This can be a good option if you plan to do all of your calling and messaging through Skype or Whatsapp. But it may be nice to have the option to call your rental car company or a tour operator. The last one (Prepaid Deluxe) can be refilled with extra data, minutes, or both.
At the end of 2016 Siminn removed the, the middle package (Prepaid Starter) from both their web site and from Icelandair airplanes. You may still be able to find it in the airport or other retailers, but that’s not guaranteed. This option comes with a credit that can be used for calls or texts to the US, which is nice. But it doesn’t have data. If you want more than 1 GB of data, this is a great package; add 5 GB to it from the top-up page and you’re all set. One tip: if you plan to purchase data, do so BEFORE adding the 2000isk credit to your account. Data will work for a short period of time to allow you to top-up; you don’t want to use any of the credit for the data you use getting to the top-up page.
I’m torn on which card to recommend. If you’re flying Icelandair, the Vodafone package is very well thought out for travelers to Iceland: a good amount of data and some international calling. But if you’re heading to East Iceland, coverage might be spotty in a few places.
If you want the best coverage, buy a Siminn card, and then add the data or minutes you need. Just remember you can’t add voice to the Prepaid Data card. But if you’re flying Icelandair, just go for the Vodafone card and have them hand it to you on the plane.
Nova: The other carrier in Iceland
We haven’t yet touched on the third main carrier in Iceland, Nova. Nova’s web site doesn’t have much English on it, though their rates are a little cheaper: See https://www.nova.is/thjonusta/verdskra/.
If you are flying Wowair, you can buy a Nova SIM card, which also costs 2000isk. Here are the relevant details from their duty free catalog:
https://wowair.us/travel-info/duty-free/
But for 2000 krona you get 1000 right back as a credit for international calls and texts, and you also get 1 GB of data. There’s unlimited calling to other Nova cell phones too, which could be nice if you want to get cards for more than one phone for your family.
Nova coverage map: https://www.nova.is/thjonusta/thjonustusvaedi
Siminn coverage map: https://www.siminn.is/english-tourist/coverage/
But there are many reasons why we’re only highlighting Siminn and Vodafone above:
- Vodafone: You can buy a SIM card and receive it while you’re still on the Icelandair airplane. I think there’s something nice about having the card delivered to you. Thought this isn’t an advantage if you’re flying a different airline. If this card is all you need, buy it and you’re done.
- Siminn: Siminn has the best coverage in Iceland. Nova is fine if you are staying in and around Reykjavik. But ask any Icelander out east what carrier they use, and they’ll tell you that Siminn is worth the few extra dollars.
- Siminn: Siminn customer support has responded to my questions when writing this post. Nova and Vodafone have not.
- Siminn: Siminn’s web site has a fantastic English section. Nova’s web site is in Icelandic, and Vodafone doesn’t list all of the options like Siminn does.
Buying your SIM card in the Keflavik airport in Iceland
There are a few stores in the airport that will sell you a Siminn SIM card (and maybe Vodafone too?) When you arrive, you will end up in the arrivals terminal, which has an Elko store that sells them. See the map of the arrivals area here. Here’s what the store looks like:
But, when I arrived in the airport, it was early, I was tired, and we were just thinking about finding our passports, getting our luggage, and getting out of there. The Elko store is in the secure area, and there’s no going back once you start the process of going through customs and immigration. So if you miss the Elko store, just head to the 10-11 that is on your right once you exit the secured area. Here’s what it looks like:
Just ask at the counter for the Siminn SIM cards, and they will show you the options they have in stock. remember that they may not have all three versions here.
Note that for any of these 3 carriers, you don’t need to worry about the size of Sim card you have. The kits all come with cut-outs around the card. (And this is first hand– we bought one of each!) You just need to match the size you extract to the size your phone needs:
Look carefully at the image above and you can see the “perforations” for at least one of the smaller sizes. I used Vodafone for this example just to be nice, but Siminn works exactly the same way.
Unlocking your cell phone
Of course, before you can put an Icelandic Sim card in your phone, you need a phone you can put it in. That phone needs to be an unlocked phone. You have two options here: Either unlock a phone you already own, or buy an unlocked phone. Let’s start with an unlock discussion for each of the major US carriers:
Unlocking your AT&T phone
AT&T will handle an unlock online for you, provided that the phone is no longer under contract. This can be a phone you are actively using now, or a phone that you stuffed in a drawer once you upgraded. (Do you remember where you put your iPhone 4?) If it is still under contract, you can make a payment to pay off the rest of the cost of the phone. If you just got the phone, this could be $500 or more. But if you’re just a couple of months away from the end of your contract (which can last from 18-24 months), you may be able to pay $100 or less. And that’s money you’ll have to pay anyway; you’re just prepaying it. Start the unlocking process here.
Remember that just because you upgraded to a new phone, the old phone is not automatically unlocked. (I wish this is how it worked!) You shouldn’t have any issue with unlocking it, but you still have to ask.
Unlocking your Sprint phone
Sprint isn’t as good as Verizon, but still offers the thoughtful option of an international unlock. “Sprint customers remaining abroad for an extended period of time may want to try to use their Sprint device with a foreign carrier. As a courtesy for our customers, for certain devices, Sprint may be able to unlock the device SIM slot for a foreign carrier’s SIM card to be inserted.” You must have had the phone for at least 3 months. Sprint claims you can do this online, by choosing the “’Unlock device to use int’l SIM’ option from the ‘Manage this device’ drop-down menu.”
Two thoughts on Sprint. First, as of January 2016, they do offer free 2G (slow) data service in Iceland. I’m not sure how well it works, but anecdotal comments online indicate you may not want to rely on it. Second, like Verizon, Sprint uses a CDMA network, which is not used in Iceland. Many newer phones support both CDMA and GSM, however. See if your phone is one of them at willmyphonework.net.
Unlocking your TMobile phone
With the International roaming plans, TMobile was the original positive exception, offering free 2G (slow) data if you have the right plan. But the general consensus seems to be that Tmobile service in Iceland may be terrible. (Let me know about your TMobile experience in the comments!)
If you do want to unlock your phone and make sure you can use reliable service from an Icelandic carrier, TMobile’s terms are roughly similar to AT&T. For example, if you are on a monthly plan, you must have had the phone for at least 18 months. See the rules here. You’ll need to contact customer service. (Technically there is an Android unlock app, but it’s only meant for use on a single model of phone, and even then it seems to almost never work.)
Unlocking your Verizon phone
With unlocking devices, Verizon is head and shoulders above everyone else. Their unlocking policy page has this nice and clear language: “We do not lock most phones or tablets that are activated with our postpay service, either during or after the term of your service contract or Edge installment sales agreement.” Note that Verizon uses a different network than is used in Iceland (CDMA vs GSM) so you do need to make sure you phone works in Iceland. Verizon’s Trip Planner will answer that question. Or you can check willmyphonework.net. That site is excellent, but I think they are off on recent iPhones. Any iPhone that is a 4S or newer should work, regardless of what willmyphonework says.
Buying an unlocked cell phone
If you typically buy the latest and greatest iPhone or Android phone, buying an unlocked phone might sound crazy. Going out and buying an unlocked iPhone 7 will set you back a minimum of $649.
But there are surprisingly adequate Android phones that cost as little as $60. And for under $150 you can get a phone you might just want to keep using once you return home. If you don’t have a phone to unlock, or your carrier is going to make you pay early to unlock, consider buying a new phone for your trip.
Unlocked cell phone recommendations – December 2017
Take a look at the new phones that Amazon is offering to Prime Members. Before we get into specifics, I should warn you that Amazon is subsidizing these phones; in exchange, they put ads on your lockscreen. But Cnet says: “If you’re on the fence about letting Amazon show you ads in exchange for $50 off your phone, don’t be. You’ll hardly even notice them.”
A fairly new offering, and one we recommend, is the Moto E4; it’s $100 after the Prime discount. The phone has 2 GB of RAM (good enough to play Pokemon Go!) and expandable storage. It will handle the fastest 4G speeds in Iceland. And, since it’s factory unlocked, it will work on any carrier once you get back home. For $100 you don’t have to worry about unlocking your cell phone, and you have a phone that one of your kids can use once you get back. You will need to be logged in to your Prime account to see the discounted price.
For $20 more, you can opt for the next model up: the Moto E4 Plus, with a slightly larger screen, and slightly better camera, and a much better battery. And if you don’t want a phone with the Amazon ads, or if you don’t have prime, keep an eye on this phone. The price without ads fluctuates, but often you can find it for around $135.
Unfortunately, there are fewer options if you want a cheaper phone that may not see much use once you are back home. Amazon used to have a $60 phone from Blu in their Amazon sponsored phones, but not any more. You can take a look at the $50 phones from Blu and Alcatel, but I recommend making sure you buy these directly from Amazon, and not a third party reseller.
When you get home, you can use any of these as a Wifi only device, or get a cheap prepaid plan and use it as a backup phone or a phone for one of the kids. For an extremely inexpensive plan once you’re back home, TMobile has a $3 a month plan that gives you 30 credits good for a minute of talk or a text message. (This is for use in the United States.) If you have another use for it, the $130 phone may seem like a very good deal.
If you are planning to use your own unlocked phone, or purchase a different unlocked phone, here is a very nice site that will tell you what data speed your unlocked phone will provide you on various carriers in Iceland: willmyphonework.net
If you get frustrated with your carrier’s customer support, remember that you can just solve the problem by buying an unlocked phone for $100. I splurged on a Moto 3, which at the time was $179, and it worked beautifully.
Mifi hotspots from Trawire
Renting a portable wifit hotspot seems to be becoming more popular; the company I see mentioned most is Trawire. And this does sound very easy: Show up, pick up your rented device, connect your phones / laptops / tablets to the wifi provided by the device, and that’s it. You don’t need to think about unlocking your phone or which SIM card to get.
But you’re paying for that convenience. The rental costs $10 a day. And, you cannot avoid additional delivery fees. If you’re going to pick it up and drop it off at an N1 gas station, you only pay $15 extra. The pickup and return presents a new set of challenges: Make sure you know how to get to the gas station, since you won’t have wifi data yet. Make sure the gas station is open. Don’t forget to drop the device and its charging cord into a mailbox before you leave.
But the biggest issue I see is price. If you’re staying for 7 days, that’s a total cost of $85. With a little bit more work (and an Amazon Prime membership), you could literally purchase the brand new Blu cell phone above for $60, and a Siminn SIM card for $17. That’s slightly less than the Trawire rental, and you end up with an extra cell phone (for one of your kids, or a backup, or to resell) at the end! Yes, you don’t get unlimited data, so Trawire does look better if you have massive data needs. Just remember that you’re paying for the convenience.
Problems with your SIM card
In all of our phones, the we popped in the SIM cards and they “just worked.” There are some rare reports of phones not updating their settings properly. If this happens, you may need to update your setting manually. For that, check out the APN Settings web site for Iceland. Click through the carrier you’re buying a SIM card from (Siminn, Vodafone, Nova, etc.) and print out the instructions, or save them to your phone. I doubt you’ll need them, though some Verizon users are having problems.
For our trip, we brought old unlocked cell phones, and I bought an unlocked Moto phone. We had no problem buying SIM cards and refilling them; that’s what I recommend.
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So–
When I go to the Siminn website, there appears to be an option to buy a data-only card, aka skip voice/text entirely: https://www.siminn.is/english-tourist/voice-and-data/
From your guide, I know that I can buy the second card listed, add a data package, and then use the 2000 kr towards a voice/text package that I don’t care about. Is is possible to buy the data-only SIM separately, aka buy the SIM ONLY for data (and avoid having this 2000 kr credit)?
Yes! You can buy a “Mobile Broadband” package that includes a Sim card and 1 GB of data for the same 2000 kr. I feel like this isn’t quite as good a deal- you can buy 5 GB of data for 2300 kr. But if you aren’t going to use much of the 2000 kr credit for phone calls or texts, then the 1 GB could be a good option for you.
What a great find this site is for me, Eric, thank you. I’m heading to Iceland w/ my 13-yo daughter in three weeks and just now realizing I should get myself a phone. I plan on buying an unlocked cellphone here in the states, but I’m confused about the SIM card thingy. Can I get the SIM card here? Or should I wait to arrive in Iceland because a U.S. SIM card won’t work there? Thanks for any advice. I look forward to reading more of your site after I return from a lunch break!
Hi Sally,
Maybe we’ll run into you guys once you head over to Iceland- we’re there now! You do need to wait until you are in Iceland to buy the Icelandic Sim cards. Your unlocked cell phone shouldn’t come with a Sim card- just an empty space for one. So buy your card when you get here– either on the Icelandair flight, in the airport duty free store, or in larger N1 gas stations. Siminn or Vodafone should both be fine.
I’m using a Motorola G 3rd generation phone. It’s a little more expensive, and the Moto E should serve you fine, as long as you get the global GSM version.
Good luck, and let me know if you have any more questions!
Thanks for replying so quickly, Eric, with this helpful advice and confirmation. Looks like you and your family are having an adventure wide and long out there, whereas we plan to go slow and easy — we’ll prob stay in the west. I will get an unlocked Blu phone and purchase a Siminn SIM card when we land.
Your site has been fun to read, and I’ll show my daughter your children’s posts. Enjoy your summer, be safe and sound.
Hi again, Eric. I’m hoping you can give me a bit more advice about the SIM card. (No Iceland questions today, just phones, so if you have experience with this I’d so appreciate any feedback.) I’ve got an unlocked phone now, which I’m practicing with, and it has dual-SIM capability. I am using it with an AT&T SIM card in the US now, but I’m not sure how to proceed when I get to Iceland. I’ll buy a Simmin SIM card, but should I keep my AT&T SIM in the first slot and put my Simmin in the second slot? or should I take out the AT&T SIM? Also, when I use the Simmin SIM, will all my stored info (contacts, etc) remain on the phone? Phew.
Hmmm … good question! I don’t have a dual SIM phone, so I’m not positive what the answer is here. I assume it should be fine– you can just make sure roaming is turned off on the AT&T SIM card, and that it uses the Icelandic SIM card when in Iceland.
But I’d be paranoid that it would use the AT&T card in Iceland, and that you would end up with a huge bill for data. Maybe try taking the AT&T SIM out now (leaving you no SIM card at all temporarily) and see if your contacts remain? If they do, then I’d say just remove the AT&T card when you add the Icelandic card. Even if that defeats some of the purpose of dual SIM!
Hi Eric! Thanks for this post. It was SUPER helpful! Most helpful post on SIM cards I’ve found. I was really debating between getting a SIM card or wifi egg. I’m arriving in Iceland at 4am, will those stores at the airport be open during that time for me to purchase a SIM card? I was also wondering if I opt for the 5GB data only plan, will I be able to use Skype to call locally incase I have car troubles? Thank you so much for all the information!
Hi Lilian- Thanks for your kind words. The good news is that the answers to your questions are yes and yes! Here’s the information page for the 10-11 store in the airport:
http://10-11.is/en/inventory/flugstod-leifs-eirikssonar/
If you translate the page, the hours say something like “open around the clock”.
As for a data only plan, we had no trouble making Skype calls on our Siminn data-only sim card. Note that you will need a (small) Skype credit to make phone calls.
Thanks so much Eric!!! I was really worried we wouldn’t find any stores at 4am. For the small Skype credit, will I have to already have credit on my account? Or I can just add it when it is needed. Also, do you if I’ll be able to turn on my personal hotspot so other devices can use the wifi? Sorry for all the questions! I really appreciate all your help. =)
Hi Lilian,
Happy to help! You can add a Skype credit from the phone when you need it, but I think it’s nice to add a few dollars to beforehand. That way you can make a couple of quick phone calls without having to worry about it. I think the credit never expires, as long as you use a few cents of it once every few months?
We were able to use our phones as hotspots so our laptops could have Internet. I did have some issues with my laptop losing the connection every few minutes, but that seems like the fault of the laptop and not the phone.
Hi, I am traveling to Iceland next week and I am needing to know if I can use a phone that is not in service? I just got a new phone but I was wanting to use my Galaxy s4 in Iceland but was not sure if I could us a phone that is not in service. Can you give me any advice on this?
Thank You!!!
Hi Stephanie,
Sorry I missed your comments– they were flagged as spam! Yes, this is a great use for an older phone that you are no longer using. But you will still need to make sure the phone is unlocked, unless you know it came unlocked. Given that you’re no longer using it, it is almost definitely eligible to be unlocked– you’ll just need to follow the procedure for your carrier (AT&T, TMobile, etc.) Good luck!
Eric, very informative article and appreciate the info! I was able to unlock my AT&T phone just by asking AT&T to unlock it. Only caveat is you have to own it, not be under contract etc and they will do it through their website. https://www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/wireless/KM1008728
Question tho, on the pre-paid website to “top up” the prices for 5GB are listed as KR. and 2300 KR = $274 US!! I am hoping that this really means ISK and not Danish KR but wanted to confirm. The 5GB plan will run around $17US? thanks,
Hi Mike,
Yes, the 5GB plan is about $19 or $20 at the current exchange rate. The krona issue can be confusing– if you go to Google and type in “2300 krona in dollars” you’ll get the result in Swedish krona. But all of this is in ISK – Icelandic krona. And it’s about 117 Icelandic krona to 1 US dollar right now.
Glad you were able to unlock your phone!
Hi, Eric,
I have an unlocked Moto G4, and have ordered the Siminn deluxe start pack you mention above for my Icelandair flight. Will I need to activate it when I land? Will I need to edit the APN info on my phone to get the phone to work? Also, I wondered about using Gmail and other apps after I swap sim cards and have a new phone number. In your experience, did putting a new sim card in your phone cause Gmail to lock you out for suspicious activity?
Hi Ann,
Great questions. Before we left for our trip, I used the new phone to log into my Gmail account. (There was no SIM card in the phone– I was just using Wifi.) I received an e-mail from Google: “New sign-in from Motorola Moto G (3rd Gen)”. But then I had no other incidents with the new SIM card in Iceland. I don’t think it was necessarily better that I used the new phone first from a known location, but maybe it can’t hurt?
As for the APN information, we didn’t have to set anything manually. One of our phones did take a few minutes, but then a message popped up that it was receiving new settings (without us doing anything except for waiting.) Siminn does have a page you can go to to send the data if it doesn’t work for you: Go to https://www.siminn.is/adstod/farsimi/stillingar/, click the button and enter your phone number (which is on the outside of the SIM card packaging.) But we never had to do this; it just worked. I would try to restart the phone, and wait a few minutes, before trying anything else.
Have a great trip!
Thanks for your help and the info! I have been using the Moto G4 for a couple of weeks in the U.S. on Cricket, so Gmail already knows the device. Hopefully it’s the device that matters rather than the resident sim card. I appreciate knowing that Siminn pushes out the new APN settings automatically (and where I can get them if that fails). Cricket sent their APN settings to my phone by message (which I unfortunately deleted), but they do have a website with instructions for how to edit them manually if necessary when I return.
Just got back from my trip to Iceland (it was super!) and I wanted to report on my experience with using a Siminn card in my unlocked phone. I got the Deluxe Start Pack on the plane and it worked like a charm after install as you said, no worries with the APN settings. I think the settings may have been stored on the card itself, because I was able to view them on the phone right away. It appeared that they had overwritten my Cricket APN settings, but maybe not, because once I was home, I put my old Cricket sim card back into the phone, fully expecting to have to do a bunch of editing to get the settings back to where they were before, but surprisingly, the Siminn APN settings were gone, and the Cricket ones were back, with no effort on my part. It’s really nice when things “just work”.
Hi Ann,
Happy to hear everything just worked! As long as you have the basics down (unlocked phone that works on the Icelandic GSM band), thing usually go smoothly. And you got the easiest version of all, with the SIM card delivered on the plane.
Glad to hear you had a great trip!
Follow up from my trip. Didn’t get the package on the plane but the 10-11 in airport hooked it up. It was like $20 for a 1gb and voice. Put the sim in my unlocked iPhone. Activated it by texting and all was well. Everything worked normal in terms of apps accounts etc as I used the same phone as my everyday phone. Was super easy and worth the money to have for navigation and research.
Hi
Really really helpful post on SIM cards. I am going to Iceland in 2 weeks’ time.
Would like to ask if you have any tips or recommendations if I need a SIM card that allows me to call my home country (Singapore) at a good rate? Which of the Siminn sim card should I take? I assume the 100min in the Deluxe card do not include international calls?
Thank you!
Regards
Hatta
Hi Hatta,
Right- you can’t use the included minutes for international calls. You can see the price for calls to Singapore on Siminn here:
https://www.siminn.is/english-tourist/international-calls/nanar/item918/
Right now on Siminn’s web site they are only listing two cards– the one that does data only and the one that used to be called deluxe. So you’ll have to buy the deluxe, unless you find the old starter card. Then you can add a top up credit here:
https://thjonustuvefur.siminn.is/MittFrelsi/kaupa/siminn.is?locale=en
Just add cash, which is the option on the far left. Then you can use that money for calls home. I don’t know if the other cell phone companies would offer cheaper rates; the Siminn rates look a little expensive, but not crazy.
Have a great trip!
Hi
Thank you for the information. It is really helpful!
May I ask why do you not recommend NOVA? Is the reception poor? Or the coverage poor? What about the LTE/4G/3G coverage?
Thank you!
Hi Hatta- You’re welcome! The general consensus is that Nova service has much less coverage outside of the Reykjavik area. I used a Nova card once we settled down in Reykjavik at the end of our trip, and had solid 4G service. But if you’re heading around the country, Siminn is considered to have the best coverage, followed by Vodafone, followed by Nova.
And I think that’s also has the prices go to- Siminn is generally the most expensive!
Hello Eric
Can you help me with a question we are traaveling to iceland , Denmark. Amsterdam and munich do you know if i need a new sim for each country of is ther one i can get for all 4 places thank you in Advance Tracey And Gunna
Hi Tracey,
You do have a couple of options for having phone service in each country. There are international SIM cards, but I don’t know much about them. For example, Worldsim will have you service from Nova in Iceland; see a list of all of their local providers here.
Google’s Project Fi will work in many countries, and they just charge you $10 a gigabyte for data. But it only works with a handful of phones, and you’d be switching your phone carrier.
Finally, the Icelandic SIM cards will work in other countries, but they’ll charge you more expensive roaming rates. This could work if you’re spending most of your time in Iceland. If you’re spending a lot of time in each country, you may just have to get a SIM card for each country, even though it’s a pain?
Good luck!
FYI IcelandAir no longer sells Siminn. They now carry Vodaphone. 10-11 after customs still has both Siminn starter packs.
Thanks Chris! I just updated the post.
Hi
Thank you for your advices . Would like to point out that Trawire modems do serve up to 10 persons at once. So it’s not just unlimited data for one. Also the problem of removing the “home” SIM is that you number is offline if anyone would like to each you.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, Trawire does become a better deal if you have several people who would like to share it. And by leaving your regular SIM card in your phone, you can still receive phone calls. You’d just have to make sure you wouldn’t be paying $2+ a minute for those phone calls from your regular carrier, and make sure to disable cellular data and always use the wifi through Trawire.
Hi!
Would you happen to know if icelandair’s Vodafone SIM would work in the Netherlands too? I’m almost positive it would but I’d love to be absolutely sure.
Thank you!
James
Hi James,
The SIM card will work in the Netherlands, but I’m not sure whether you will be able to use the allotted minutes and data as usual, or whether they will charge you roaming rates. The EU recently eliminated roaming fees, and Vodafone got rid of roaming for 40 countries in Europe in April. That’s an article specific to the UK, but Iceland and the Netherlands are both part of the 40 country list.
I’m going to guess that the card will work just as it does in Iceland, given the new regulations. The article above says that even a 30 day SIM only plan will allow roaming. If not, they will charge you roaming rates; you’ll still have service, but you will use up the allotments much faster. I reached out to Vodafone to see if they can clarify.
Great, thank you! If you hear from Vodafone, please let me know. Thanks so much – I really appreciate it!
Hi James,
I didn’t get a response from Vodafone, which is typical. I also reached out to Siminn, because they always respond. Unfortunately, they said the data on their SIM card will not work in Iceland.
Perhaps a Mifi device might work best for you? Here is one that claims to work in both Iceland and the Netherlands. It’s $9 a day. Supposedly, they will deliver it to you in Iceland; you can take it with you to The Netherlands, and then mail it back once you get home. Sounds great, though I don’t know if it’s that easy in practice!
https://www.tepwireless.com/wifi/europe/
Hi Eric,
I am travelling India -> Iceland -> Netherlands -> India. If I buy a simmin sim card in Iceland, will it work in the Netherlands?
Hi Abir! I think the Siminn card may not offer reasonable rates for roaming to EU countries. I’ve heard that Vodafone and Nova do offer roaming to the Netherlands and other EU countries, so hopefully that’s still true. I’d stick with one of those.
Have a great trip!