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This post is continuously updated; the last update was in July 2024. The latest update: AT&T raises the price of TravelPass, more eSim details.
For the last few years, I have been recommending visitors to Iceland purchase an Icelandic SIM card, even if it meant you had to purchase a new unlocked cell phone. In 2023, that’s becoming a less enticing option for visiting Iceland or other countries:
- eSIMs are a great option if you have an unlocked phone. This is a virtual SIM that you can install on your phone. See more details below, and be absolutely sure your phone is unlocked!
- Physical SIM card slots are being phased out. If you purchased in iPhone 14 in the United States, there’s no SIM card slot, so don’t buy a physical Icelandic SIM card.
- All major US carriers now have options for service that are somewhat reasonably priced, and Sprint and T-Mobile now have totally free choices. (But be careful—if you’re on AT&T or Verizon, you’ll need to do a little bit of work to make sure you don’t get charged what I consider to be exorbitant data rates.) And the option of renting a mobile hotspot has gotten less expensive and more convenient. We’ll walk through all of the details below to help you decide whether a cell phone from an Icelandic company like Siminn, Vodafone, or Nova makes sense for you.
Before we dive in, let me note that this information is mostly for people from the United States. But if you live in Canada, the options are very similar to AT&T and Verizon: expansive roaming rates. If you’re in the EU, you can stop reading: The new “Roam like Home” law implemented in June of 2017 allows you to use your plan in any EU country just as if you’re still at home. But with the UK leaving the EU, UK residents are starting to see roaming charges again. At first, these were in the £2 per day range, and at those levels, your best bet its to grudging pay the new fees. If it’s £5 or more, read on to see what some other options are.)
Or check out our detailed post about preparing for your Iceland trip! And don’t forget that you’ll need a power adapter to charge your phone.
The four options for using your cell phone in Iceland
If you are from the United States and visiting Iceland, you have several options for cell phone service; let’s look at the major four.
Option 1: Becoming a Wifi nomad
First, you could disable roaming and just use your phone when you have Wifi; most hotels and restaurants will have free Wifi, though it will be harder to find when you’re driving. There are mapping programs that store all data on the phone (like Maps.me) you could use for navigation. Google Maps will also save portions of the Icelandic map for offline use. But you might have to pay a dollar or two a minute to send or receive phone calls, unless you call over Wifi, or use a service like Skype. Texts might also be expensive. And unless you know you have free international data on your current plan, turn off cellular data on your phone just to be safe. (iPhone: Settings–> Cellular. Android: Settings–> Data Usage) Your AT&T and Verizon plans won’t have free data; T-Mobile and Sprint often do. See below for more carrier-specific information.
Option 2: Adding an International Data Plan
The second option is to pay for an International plan with your cellular provider, or use one is included with your current plan (Sprint and T-Mobile only.) Do not just start using data when you arrive in Iceland. For example, AT&T will charge you $2.05 per megabyte of data you use while roaming internationally, unless you have an international data plan. How much is $2.05 per megabyte? Well, the homepage at icelandwithkids.com is about a quarter of a megabyte, so it would cost you 50 cents to load. Our article about planning your trip would cost about $1.50. If you’re browsing a lot of web sites and maybe doing some video chat with people back home, it would be easy to burn through a gigabyte of data in a week. Cost: over $2,000. Verizon charges the exact same rate.
On the other hand, if you have Sprint or TMobile as your carrier, international data might be free (depending on which plan you have) though at slow speeds. But that’s much better than an expensive bill. We’ll cover all of the specifics for each of the major carriers below.
Option 3: Buying an Icelandic SIM card
The third option is to buy a SIM card from an Icelandic company. This will give you lots of high speed data for less money than just about any international plan (well, except for the free but slow ones.) The downsides: You need to have an unlocked phone, and you’ll have an Icelandic phone number instead of your own.
This option no longer works on new phones that don’t have physical SIM card slots. The iPhone 14 doesn’t have one; expect this to become more common in the years to come.
You used to have to worry if your phone would work in Iceland. Iceland uses the GSM network protocol, which and all modern phones can now use. If you want to use a really really old phone in Iceland (Like an iPhone 4S or something) check on willmyphonework.net to make sure.
If you won’t have an unlocked phone that will work in Iceland, you can sometimes find a cheap one for around $100. This is getting harder in 2023, but you can see what you can find in the list of Amazon Prime phones. Moto phones are usually good options, such as the $149 Moto Play When you get back home, use it as a Wifi device to play music or listen to podcasts, or try a low cost plan like this one from Ultra Mobile as an emergency phone for the kids.
Buying an Icelandic SIM card was much harder during Covid restrictions, with the airport convenience store 10/11 closed. But as of 2023 this is no loner an issue- the store is back open!
Option 4: Renting a Wifi hotspot
This is probably the simplest option you have. You can pay a daily fee to rent a Mifi device from a company like Trawire; some rental car companies offer this as an add-on, or you can arrange for a rental yourself. Here you are paying for convenience. Your phone just sees the device as a Wifi hotspot, so you don’t need to unlock your phone, swap SIM cards, or sign up for international plans. (Phone calls and texts would still use your home cell phone plan, though.) And multiple people in the same family or group can share a single hotspot.
Trawire, the company we recommend for Wifi hotspots, has improved their service in recent months, and I can now recommend it. The device is now $10 a day (with a minimum of 5 days), though check the little chatbox to see if there’s a discount code. And post Covid restrictions, you can once again pick up the device in the 10/11 store in the Keflavik airport when you arrive in Iceland. They will provide you with a return postage paid envelope; just drop the device in the mail on your way out of the country. There is a mailbox by the oversized luggage area in the airport before security; there is also one by the main food hall past security. Here’s a map that shows the “odd sized” luggage area, and here’s a different map of the airport where the mailbox past security is labeled. (Edit September 2018: That second map link now points to archive.org; I am not sure why the original map is no longer there. Someone from isavia.is has confirmed that there is a mailbox past security, though they didn’t know where it is!)
Trawire offers service from Siminn, the best carrier in Iceland. And you can share the service with everyone in your family– up to 10 devices. You do all have to be in the same place, though. Still, for a family with many devices, this can be a real bargain. Just make sure you’re always connected to the Wifi device, and not using data through your carrier’s plan! Turn off cellular data on your phone just to be safe. (iPhone: Settings–> Cellular. Android: Settings–> Data Usage)
Option 5: Introducing eSIM options for Iceland
eSIM is a new technology built into maybe of the newest cell phones. It allows you to add a virtual SIM card to your existing phone. Here is a list of phones that support eSIM technology; the list includes the last 5 generations of iPhones (X, 11, 12, 13, and 14.)
There are a couple of downsides here. First, you need to have an unlocked phone. Since only newer phones support eSIM technology, it’s less likely that you’ll have a phone that is both unlocked and supports eSIM.
But if you have a phone that will work, this is looking like an amazing option. I tried to use this eSIM for Iceland from Airalo. At the time, I didn’t realize I needed to have an unlocked phone. Airalo support was steller; they responded in just a few minutes, helped me troubleshoot, and then offered me a full refund once we figured out the issue was with my locked phone.
I was recently in Iceland for 9 days. I paid T-Mobile a total of $35 for high speed data (1 week for $25 plus 2 extra days for $5 each.) Had I brought an unlocked phone that can handle eSIMS, I could have paid just $13 for 5 GB of data, good for 30 days. For a shorter trip, you could pay as little as $4.50.
Airalo just introduced an easier way to install the eSIM on iPhones. The company seems great, and the price seems right. My guess is this will move up the list and become the default option for many people in a year or two. Let us know in the comments how it worked for you!
Update December 2023: We tried out an Iceland eSIM service on our trip in October 2023. Here’s a detailed guide to choosing and using an eSIM in Iceland.
Options 3 and 4 might have you at the 10/11 convenience store in the Keflavik airport, which is open 24/7. It’s past security and to your right as you leave the secured area. Find it on the map here; it’s the yellow #2 circle. Here’s what it looks like:
When I visited in the summer of 2019, the convenience store had SIM cards from all 3 Icelandic providers: Siminn, Vodafone, and Nova.
Update March 2022: The 10-11 store is back open for your to pick up your Trawire device, or buy an Icelandic SIM card!
Duty Free has always stayed open in the airport, and you should be able to find a Nova SIM card there. Most gas stations should have SIM cards, or is a Siminn store and a Vodafone store in Reykjavik, a bit outside of the walkable downtown area.
If you buy a Nova SIM card and need to top up online (if you need more data) be sure to not select a monthly top up! This has happened to some people, and they end up paying a monthly fee to Nova long after their Iceland vacation.
The best option depends on your current cell provider
Below you’ll find information specific to each of the 4 major carriers in the US: AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and TMobile. After that, we’ll cover the details of purchasing an Icelandic SIM card, should you decide to go with that option. On our recent trip, we chose to purchase Icelandic SIM cards so we didn’t have to worry about data usage.
AT&T in Iceland
How much will I pay without a plan? A lot. $2.00 a minute for calls, $0.50 for each text sent, and $2.05 for each megabyte used.
International plans: You have two options to add an international plan and avoid the outrageous data fee. First, you can pay for a Passport plan for a month. $70 gets you 2 Gig of data, or $140 gets you 6 GB. (Both the prices and the amount of data have increased since 2020.) Calls would cost 35 cents a minute, and texts are free. You can make a one-time purchase of a Passport plan, which will be good for a 30 day period of your choosing; no need to worry about your billing cycle.
Second, you can purchase an international day pass. For $12 a day ($6 a day for each additional line,) you can use your existing plan as if you never left home. So if you have a good data plan and a trip that isn’t several weeks, this can be a good option.
Unlocking your phone: If you purchased your phone from AT&T, it is almost certainly locked. That means you can’t use the phone with another carrier until AT&T unlocks it. AT&T won’t unlock a phone until you have finished paying for it; your monthly bill may include an installment payment for the phone itself, separate from the cellular service charges. Once the phone is paid off you can request an unlock.
If you have a prepaid plan and purchased the phone from AT&T, you can unlock the phone after 6 months of usage on AT&T.
Recommendation: Unlock your phone if you can, or buy an inexpensive unlocked Android phone, and use an Icelandic SIM card. Or pay the $10 a day to AT&T and keep your current plan. Just remember that any text or phone call you receive will abroad, even if it’s junk, will mean you pay $10 for that day!
Sprint in Iceland
(Sprint has merged with T-Mobile, but for now we’re keeping our coverage separate. If the links below stop working, head to the T-Mobile section for information for your plan.)
How much will I pay without a plan? Almost nothing! Calls are $0.25 a minute, and texts and (slow) data is free. Sprint is clear that “all sprint plans include” Global Data, so this should work on a prepaid plan as well.
Update June 2023: Sprint ONE and SPRINT MAX plans come with 5 GB of high speed data for free. After the 5 GB allotment, you’ll be downgraded to very slow data, though it’s still free. (5 GB is usually plenty as long as you don’t stream videos!)
So what’s the catch? The speed is 2G; given that 5G is (maybe?) going to become more common in 2021, 2G is several generations behind. The speeds may be as slow as 64 kbps. Not only is that not fast, it’s probably about 15 times slower than something you would consider fast. I’ve seen mixed reviews from people who tried it; it’s probably enough to send and receive e-mails (and texting should be great), but it might be frustrating for web browsing. It’s tolerable, but you’ll definitely find yourself using your phone less. Maybe that’s a good thing?
You may consider trying it for yourself, and then purchasing a fast data roaming plan if you find it unbearable. That’s what I did.
Paid international data plan:
Sprint should send you a text when you first turn on your phone in Iceland. It will provide instructions for how to activate high speed data. (They assume you’ll hate the free plan, and will pay to upgrade!) But the price is very reasonable: Pay $5 a day, or $25 a week for unlimited high speed data. This is the best option you’ll find among the major carriers. Pay $25 for a week for unlimited data and texts; calls are 20 cents a minute. That’s even better than an Icelandic SIM card, and you get to keep your phone number.
Unlocking your phone: You can of course still consider an Icelandic SIM card. Sprint has a baffling page describing their phone unlock policy, and a separate page listing the unlock requirements. That second page boils down to “We’ll automatically unlock your phone once it’s paid off.” Unfortunately, the special option for customers traveling internationally is now gone. The unlock policy used to say “For Sprint customers traveling abroad for a short period of time, often their Sprint service can be provisioned to allow for international roaming.” but that language was removed in August of 2017. You can always call and ask if they can “provision” your phone to allow you to use an international SIM card, but that doesn’t appear to be an official option any more. Let me know what happens if you call and ask, though!
Recommendation: Try the free slower speed option, and pay Sprint the $25 for high speed data if it’s not good enough.
T-Mobile in Iceland
How much will I pay without a plan? It depends. All current include free texting and $0.25 per minute calls. (Older plans like ONE, Simple Choice, New Classic or Select Choice plan should also have this benefit, but you should check!)
The new Go5G and Go5G plans include 5 GB of international high speed data for free. If you have a T-Mobile Magenta or Magenta Plus plan, calls are $0.25 a minute, and texts and (slow) data are free. On any other plan, you’ll still pay $0.25 a minute for calls. But outgoing texts are $0.50 each, and data is $15 per megabyte if you’re not on a Magenta or Magenta Plus plan. That data rate is so high that in my opinion, it should be illegal. Make sure you check which plan you have!
Free High Speed International Data Plan: 5 GB of high speed data is included with the new Go5G and Go5G plans. After the 5 GB allotment, you’ll be downgraded to very slow data, though it’s still free. (5 GB is usually plenty as long as you don’t stream videos!)
Free Low Speed International Data Plan: Included ONLY with T-Mobile Magenta plans. If you have one of those, you get free slow data, though at 128kbps (256 kbps for Magenta Plus,) it’s not as slow as Sprint’s free offering. Otherwise, you pay the absolutely outrageous cost of $15 per megabyte. Make sure you are absolutely certain you have the right plan!
Paid international data plan: You have several options for speed boosts, ranging from modest to dramatic. For $15 a month (or $10 a month or less if you upgrade more than one line), you can pay for T-Mobile Magenta Plus. One of the features included boosts your international service to 256 kbps. Let’s not call that fast, but rather less-slow. You’ll have to add this to your plan and then remove it once you get home.
And as of June of 2019, T-Mobile has introduced new International passes. These are the first high speed options T-Mobile has offered that work in Iceland. For $35, you get 5 GB of high-speed data to use over 10 days, plus free phone calls. Or for $50 you get 15 GB to use over 30 days, plus free phone calls. See the details here.
Unlocking your phone: In general, a device you bought from T-Mobile is probably locked. Once your phone is paid off (or after 18 months of service under some plans) T-Mobile will unlock it for you. You’ll have to contact support.
Recommendation: If you’re not a heavy data user, and just want e-mail and occasional web browsing, try the 128 kbps data for free and see what you think. Otherwise, you can pay the $35 for a generous allotment of high-speed data. With the new International Passes, there seems to be little reason to opt for an Icelandic SIM card.
Verizon in Iceland
How much will I pay without a plan? A lot. Calls are $1.79 a minute, sending a text costs $0.50, receiving a text costs $0.05, and data costs $2.05 per megabyte. $2.05 a megabyte is offensive and should be illegal.
International plans: Just like AT&T, if you don’t sign up for a plan, you’ll pay an offensive $2.05 per megabyte used. And (again just like AT&T) you have two options here. First, you can add an International Plan. A steep $70 a month gets you 100 minutes, 100 outgoing texts (incoming are all free) and 500 MB of data. Or a steeper $130 a month gets you 250 minutes of calling, 1000 outgoing texts, and 2 GB of data. And you can’t prorate these prices, so you pay $70 or $130 even for a shorter trip.
A second option seems better to me. You can pay $10 a day for a TravelPass, and use your data allotments from your regular plan. The first 512 MB per day will be at 4G speeds. You’ll be downgraded to 2G after that. But 512 MB is a lot of data per day, unless you’re streaming lots of video.
You need to activate TravelPass on your account; log in online or use the Verizon app. You’ll only pay for days you use data in another country. It might be best to just leave it active on your phone to avoid the possibility of a huge data charge in the future.
Unlocking your phone: Some good news for Verizon customers: Your phone is probably already unlocked. Which means you can pop a SIM card in it once you are in Iceland it will work. Verizon generally doesn’t lock devices. If you have an older Verizon phone and you are prompted for an unlock code, it’s either 000000 or 123456. If you have prepaid service, you need to call Verizon after 12 months and they can unlock your phone.
Recommendation: Buy an Icelandic SIM card, since your phone is likely unlocked. Check to make sure it handles GSM by looking at willmyphonework.net. Or pay $10 a day for TravelPass.
A quick interruption: Enjoying this post? You may want to take a look at our new book, Iceland With Kids. It’s full of more detailed advice for your trip. And it will help you whether you’re going to Iceland with kids or not! Or consider our new Driving in Iceland video course if you’re renting a car in Iceland!
Okay, back to cell phones.
Icelandic SIM Cards
Let’s take a look at the logistics if you’ve chosen to use an Icelandic SIM card in your unlocked phone. This is the option we chose for our 2016 trip, and we didn’t have any issues. Make sure you know how to remove and reinsert a SIM card into your phone. Most iPhones require a small paperclip (or SIM card removal tool, which is just a thin metal rod, like a paperclip) to be inserted in order to pop out the SIM card slot.
Consider purchasing a cheap SIM card storage pouch to put your existing SIM cards into. They also come with a SIM card removal tool, so no paperclips necessary.
The three main Icelandic carriers, sorted from best coverage to worst, are: Siminn, Vodafone, and Nova. Of course, that’s also sorted from price, highest to lowest.
If you are flying to Iceland on Icelandair, I think the choice is easy. Buy the Vodafone Starter Pack from sagashop.is. (Covid-19 update: Icelandair has stopped offering products for sale on board the aircraft to minimize contact.) You can order it ahead of time—give them your flight number and they’ll bring it to you on the plane. For 21 Euros ($24 or so, and 2 Euros cheaper than last year!) you’ll get “2 GB of data, unlimited Talk&Text domestically and 50 minutes for overseas calls.“ It also includes unlimited calling and texting within Iceland. It’s a good deal, and you can install it in your phone while you’re still on the plane. Once you land, you’ll be good to go.
All SIM cards kits from all companies here can be adjusted for the size your phone needs. So don’t worry if you need a micro or nano-sized SIM card. The cards in the kits are perforated so you can “punch out” the size you need. Take the card out of your phone to see what size you need; then be careful to create that same size with the Icelandic SIM card.
If you’re not flying Icelandair, then you can buy a Siminn SIM card from the 10/11 store in the Keflavik airport. (Update July 2019: The 10/11 store has 2 SIM card types from Siminn, 1 from Vodafone, and 1 from Nova.) You should also be able to get them in the Duty Free store, but they only had Nova cards there.
Note that there is an Elko electronics store the secure area, but they do not carry SIM cards, as this store is meant for departing passengers only. It’s easier to buy at the 10/11 anyway; it’s outside of the secure area. I didn’t even think about buying a SIM card until we had already passed through security and customs.
There should be two Siminn options there, though check that link to see the latest offerings. The main card is the Prepaid Starter Pack. For 2900 krona (around $29) you get 5 GB of data, 50 minutes of calling and 50 texts. The calling and texts are good for Iceland or International calling to 54 countries. That should be plenty of data for most trips, though you can always add more.
The other option is a Siminn Prepaid Data card, which gives you 10 GB for the same price. But you don’t get voice minutes or texting options, and there is no way to add them. This could be a valuable option for some travelers, but it’s a whole lot of data. You could use it as a hotspot and stream video to use up some data! (If this is the only card you can find, you can use Skype to make calls and other apps such as Whatsapp to fill in for texts.)
Don’t forget that paperclip if your phone needs one!
Problems with your Icelandic SIM card
When you put in an Icelandic SIM card, your phone should just work. If your phone doesn’t connect, you may need to update your settings manually. 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. It’s unlikely you’ll need to do this, though anecdotal evidence suggests Verizon users are more likely to have an issue.
Summary
A few years ago, getting the Icelandic SIM card was the best choice in many cases. And you still can’t go wrong with any of the Icelandic SIM card options, should you choose that option. But all of the major US carriers have improved their offerings for international travel. On Sprint in particular, I think I would pay the $25 for high speed data. If keeping your phone number during your vacation is important, you now have options. And Trawire has improved their offering as well, and it’s now a viable option that doesn’t involve messing with your phone.
Let me know what you think in the comments! Do you have a different cell phone provider? Do you agree with our recommendations?
Other posts you may enjoy:
This post was extremely helpful to us… Without your information, we would have never known to buy at 10/11 in the airport (not displayed but easily obtainable by asking the cashier). We went with the Trawire WiFi as it was winter and with kids in tow, we wanted access to help if needed. It was incredibly helpful with navigation! It was also great for the kids to Facetime their grandparents back home as we were driving along and share their experience.
Thanks Alexandra! I’m glad everything worked out for you. Did you mail the Trawire device back from the airport?
THANK YOU! The Verizon Travel Pass was PERFECT. I felt badly for my wife on T-Mobile One, we forgot to upgrade hers to One Plus and it was painfully painfully slow. Like technically she was online, but almost not at all… I also purchased the icelandair Vodafone sim chip for my iPad, and the mid-flight pickup worked great (although I had to ask the flight attendant for it, they didn’t have a ‘deliver this sim these ppl list.’ Honestly, my Verizon Travel Pass was so good & with WiFi everywhere else, I didn’t even use the Vodafone SIM chip! I’ll mail it to you as thanks for this great post. Just let me know via email where to send it.
Thanks Dan! The SIM card would be great– I can give it away to a lucky web site or book reader. I’ll send you a message.
Glad Verizon worked for you. Sorry about T-Mobile for your wife– I know that must be frustrating. I’m wondering if the free T-Mobile tier is actually even slower than 128kbps in reality. And 128kbps is already awfully slow. I’ll see what others are saying.
Thanks again!
Yes, there was a post box near the oversized luggage check-in area near Icelandic air counters. We were glad we dropped there because once we started going through security, immigration, etc, it seemed that we were running through the airport to catch our flight. However, I know I saw another post box near the food court area. Honestly, we needed the Trawire until we got to the airport as we took a scenic detour and would have been lost trying to get to the airport if we had mailed it in earlier.
Glad I saw this but I have a few more questions. First of all do they have prepaid phones in Iceland the way we do in the U.S.? Whenever I try to look them up, it only shows SIM cards. Also is a prepaid World Phone from the U.S. a viable option? I am a major planner and have 3 months before my trip, but I get frustrated when I find no info or too much info. I will be in Iceland for three weeks and have an android tablet that is not set up with a data package. Will I be okay to use it still in free WiFi areas or do I need to get something for it as well? We of course have WiFi set up in our house, which is what I am use too. I will not be totally helpless as I will be staying with friends and can use some of their devices as necessary. Any answers would be appreciated.
Hi! I think the answer is yes to all of your questions. But as you’ve found out, it’s all more complicated than it should be!
You can rent a prepaid phone from a few places. Here is one from a camping supply rental company. This will only give you calling and texting, though, and not data.
World Phones should also work, as long as they say they will work in Iceland. I think both of these options will end up being more expensive for a 3 week trip, though? For a three week trip, your best bet is probably to buy an unlocked phone (or unlock one of your old phones) and buy a SIM card. Though I guess if you just need voice and text, your other options (a world phone rental or a local Icelandic phone rental) would also be fine.
And yes, your Android tablet will work fine connecting to Wifi, when you are in an area with Wifi.
Hi –
Thanks for this post. My carrier wanted 60$ in the us for international plan and this post made me take the step of buying an unlocked phone and try the sim card route. Went with the Icelandair deal to have the sim delivered. I figure I travel enough so the cost of the phone will end up being less than all these expensive international plans. Thanks for the advice. Fingers crossed it all works out!
Thanks! That’s a great summary. For the same or less money, you can end up with a new unlocked phone to use after your trip is over. It’s a little bit of extra hassle, but I think it’s often worth it. Hope everything goes well and you have a great time in Iceland!
Well I have pulled the trigger so to speak and shopped heavily to buy an unlocked phone for my trip. I am trying a sim card through MintSim here to see if it will work out for my regular phone once I return. I think my biggest issue is that I am use to really good service with Verizon and the carrier that works with my sim card is through T-mobile which is nowhere near as good. Of course I am also use to a basic phone and the one I purchased has all the bells and whistles. Anyway will try and let you know when I return from my trip how things turned out.
Thank you for providing the detailed information. I am not interested in text or voice. I want only the data to use for navigation. Are there data only SIM for phones? Thanx
Hi, yes, there are data only cards! Siminn has 2 options: 5 gigabytes plus some voice and text, or 10 gigabytes of just data. Both are the same price, so you do get a lot more data if you don’t want the voice or text. (On the other hand, 10 GB is a lot of data for a week trip!)
You should be able to get either of them at the 10/11 store in the Keflavik airport.
https://www.siminn.is/en/prepaid
Hi. I’m traveling to Iceland at the end of August, 2018. My stay will be 10 days. I have an unlocked iPhone 5. I’m considering buying only a data SIM for the phone so that I can tether an iPad so that both devices will have continuous access to the web, iMaps, FaceTime, iMessage, etc. Will the carriers allow tethering and will FaceTime, iMessage, iMaps work with the data only card? Thank you for your help.
Hi! All of that should work just fine– we had no problem tethering to a phone with a local SIM card in it. I guess we did have a minor problem, in that our unlocked Android phone couldn’t always handle all of the devices we connected to it– you might stress your iPhone 5 if lots of people try to connect and use it at once? But two devices should work fine I think.
All of the apps should work fine. You probably know this, but texting would only work to other Apple devices using iMessage– since you wouldn’t have a cellular connection for anything other than data, texting wouldn’t work to Android devices.
Have fun!
Thanks, Eric. Did you use a particular cel provider’s SIM that allowed the tethering? I’ve noticed that many explicitly state no tethering is allowed.
I think we tethered with Siminn and Nova? Maybe Vodafone as well. I know lots of US carriers restrict tethering, but I don’t think I’ve seen limitations from Icelandic carriers. Have you seen any that prohibit tethering?
Great and informative! Do know of any SIM cards that would work in both Iceland and Sweden? Preferably one that I could order and have delivered before I leave the States. I saw a few on eBay and Amazon, but a recommended one is always preferred, or is the Vodaphone starter pack also good for Sweden?
Hi Jill,
I’ve asked both Siminn and Vodafone about this. And strangely, Siminn gave me a clear “no” and Vodafone gave me a clear “yes.” Siminn says: “Unfortunately our prepaid simcards do not work as a Roam like Home card abroad.” And Vodafone says: “Yes: a prepaid SIM-card from us, purchased in Iceland, will work in Sweden, and “roam like home” certainly applies.”
So the Vodafone starter pack would be a good option, especially if you’re flying Icelandair.
Thanks so much!!! That’s what we’ll do. Appreciate the advice and the work you put into it
I have a galaxy sky from tracfone. We will be given a sim car when we get to the rental car company.
Tracfones do not have service in Iceland.
How will I know if the tracfone will work with the SIM card I’m given in Iceland?
Hi Flora,
Do you know the model number for the Galaxy Sky? You can check on willmyphonework.net, but I think your phone is CDMA only, which means it will not work in Iceland.
If I’m wrong and it will work on GSM, you’d need to contact Tracfone and get it unlocked. But it looks like you may be out of luck with that phone. Sorry!
We bought the Vodafone SIM started kit through Iceland Air, and yes it was delivered to our seat…. And it didn’t work. We tried everything, even did a factory reset on the phone, a few times. Finally walked over to the nearest Vodafone store, at the mall, which isn’t in the downtown area, and the employee says that about half the SIM cards from Iceland Air are probably expired, and won’t work. He replaced it for free, and we decided to buy a second one for my husband’s phone, for about $10 less.
So, maybe instead of buying from IA’s online Saga store, anyone one who is looking for getting a SIM card vs Trawire can just pick one up at duty-free at the airport
Oh no! I’m sorry you had that experience. I’ve reached out to Icelandair for comment.
Was the card you purchased in the store the exact same product, with 2 GB of data?
Thanks so much for your comment. Yes, I may have to update my advice to buy the Icelandair card.
Hi Eric! If I remember, the one through Iceland Air was 4gigs, which was waayyyyy more than we needed for two weeks, and the one we bought in the store for about $17 was 3, and we had leftover data there too. If I were to do it again I’d just get the 4 and hotspot my phone. Everyone’s situation is different of course, and we had little use for texting or calling, just data
Hi Jill,
Thanks again for pointing this out. I received a response from Vodafone today. They said they will do a sweep and remove any problematic SIM cards. Here’s their response:
https://twitter.com/vodafoneis/status/1061960267540717568
I have a Total Wireless plan with a iphone 5s. I am assuming that I cannot use this phone in Iceland nor is there anything I can do to this phone to make it work in Iceland. Any advise?
Thank you
Jeannine
Hi Jeannine,
Usually the so-called “virtual carriers” like Total Wireless don’t offer international options. (I call it virtual because they use the networks of one or more of the main carriers. Total Wireless uses Verizon, for example.)
So then you’re only option would be to try to get your phone unlocked if it isn’t already. Did you buy it directly from Total Wireless? If so, they won’t unlock it until it’s paid off I don’t think. Unlocking terms are at the bottom of this page.
If you can get them to unlock your phone, it should work fine with an Icelandic SIM card. If not, you’ll have to either rent a MiFI device or buy a cheap unlocked phone to use.
Good luck!
Hi Eric!
Nice job, quite a lot of infos for me, although I’m from EU, thx. Especially, It was interesting for me to read as I consider to take a trip to this magic place 🙂
My question is why should I rent router/modem? Are there any problems on Customs in case if I’ll travel with my own pocket device? Or it simply should not be in a cabin luggage?
Thx in advance.
Chris
Ps. Btw, what was astonishing for me is that providers in US still lock the phones, etc. I thought that it is song from the past. I almost forgot it, it was at the very beginning of 21 cent. when providers stopped doing this.
Hi Chris,
Yes, here in the United States locked phones are still very much an issue!
If you have your own device, either a cell phone or a Mifi device, then there really is no reason to rent anything. As long as those devices can roam in Iceland or take an Icelandic SIM card that you purchase in Iceland, you should be good to go!
Thanks Eric. Great article extremely well written and helpfull. I never used a SiM Card in the past but my phone is unlocked so there should be no problem using one. Does the SiM Card comes with a new phone number or does it essentially allow you to keep your phone number. Nobody will phone us while travelling in Iceland as my phone number is not public. Only my husband know my phone number and he will be with me 🙂 However, I left my cell phone number with the various hotels where we will stay in case they need to contact us. Are they going to be able to reach using the cell phone number I provided them at the time of reservation? Thanks and again, great posting.
Chantal
Victoria, BC
Hello Chantal,
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the post. Good question about the phone number. The SIM card comes with a new Icelandic phone number; it’s usually printed somewhere on the packaging. (You’ll have to add the +354 country code if you share it with people outside of Iceland.)
So any call to your regular phone number will go to that voicemail account. You could check that voicemail from your new phone number; look up your current carrier’s instructions for how to do that. Typically you call your own number, press * or #, and then enter your voicemail PIN. (A PIN you’ll probably have to look up!)
There are other options that get more confusing, like forwarding all calls from your primary cell number to a Google Voice number? And then you could have Google Voice forward the voicemails to your e-mail address.
Maybe someone else has better ideas? Good luck!
Hi Eric,
Very helpful post. I have a Cricket plan, and they don’t do international roaming. The phone is GSM though, so I stopped by the store to ask whether or not it was unlocked. For some unfathomable reason, this information is not accessible on my phone itself, so the store guy called Cricket tech help. They texted me an unlocking code and said I just needed to produce that when I buy the new (Icelandic) SIM card. But I’m concerned. Why can’t my phone just BE unlocked? What if the code doesn’t work when I get there? Thoughts?
And if I don’t (or can’t) go the SIM card route, will my phone still work with WiFi so I can get e-mail?
Thanks in advance.
Hi Elizabeth,
Great question, and one I should probably add in the post! I think this is typical for most non-iPhones: You need to put in a non-Cricket SIM card in order to go through the unlock process. But, you should be able to put in ANY other SIM card to enter the unlock code. Find an old SIM card in your junk drawer, or stick in a card from a trusted friend. Then you can make sure the unlock works before you get to Iceland.
Still a pain, but less stress at least!
Thanks for the very prompt response! Really helpful! (I’m also benefiting from your clothing and weather posts, BTW.) I’ll let you know how it goes. 🙂
Trawire. Took a long time to enter all the data they needed on the screen before one could be purchased. And then after purchase, even more tedious entry of obscure data such as SSID before it worked. Not the sort of thing that anyone has any patience for, after a long international flight.
Hi,
As of February 2020:
Regarding Verizon–according to VZ store, if you have an unlimited data plan and opt into travel pass at $10/day you are good in Iceland, no additional fees.
Any one have different or contradictory information?
Cheers,
Tom Graefe
Hi Tom! Yes, that’s right. High-speed data is limited to 512 MB a day, as the fine print says here. A local SIM card is cheaper for a trip of longer than a few days, but the Travelpass lets you keep your current phone number.
Hello there. Thank you for this article, it was very helpful. I do have a question. After lots of reading I’ve found that Siminn is the provider that has the most coverage in Iceland. However we have been thinking about buying a SIM card online through Orange Holiday Zen, as it is supposed to be a European sim card that works in Iceland as well. My question is, would the Orange Holiday Zen get the same coverage as Siminn? I’m going with some family members and we are each going to do our own tours for one day while in Reykjavik. I want to make sure we will be able to communicate that day. We also want to be able to access emergency numbers while we are hiking if needed. Thanks for your help!
Hello Lu!
I don’t know what networks Orange uses. Every international SIM card connects to one of the Icelandic networks (Siminn, Vodafone, or Nova.) Sometimes the carriers say who their partners are, but I can’t find any information for Orange. You can ask if you have a contact; if they use Siminn, you’ll get the same service as if you were using a Siminn SIM card.
Who is your current carrier?
We have AT&T! We have decided to buy a sim card at the airport instead, as it is more costly to order the sim card online. Thank you for responding!
Hi Eric did you travel yet and use the digital data option with Airalo? I am considering using it for our trip July 14th. T mobile is offering 50 dollars for 15 Gigs but we are 3 people in the family and that is per line. Our phones are compatible with this digital option. I am between the hotspot option or this digital version which is 13 dollars for 5 Gigs seems like a great price.
Hi Andrea! I leave in 3 days, so I’m a few days ahead of you. I’ll try to update you before you leave! As long as the setup goes well, I think it’s going to be a really good option. They say it “operates on the Nova and Landssiminn networks.” Landssiminn is the old name for Siminn, which is the best network in Iceland. So yes, the $13 option seems like the best option for high speed data!
Hi Andrea,
I tried to use the Airalo eSim. But my phone is still locked with TMobile, and so I was unable to install it. If you have an unlocked phone, or if your carrier allows it with a locked phone, I think Airalo is a great option.
I have an unlocked 2015 BLU, it’s not 4G. Is this too old, to use in Iceland?
Hi Gina,
It should work just fine, as long as Willmyphonework.net says it’s compatible with the networks in Iceland!
Great article. So we do have Sprint and my phone is unlocked. My husbands phone is probably not unlocked. Should we go for the high speed data at $25/week or should I do the eSim option? Can I make calls if I go that option? or Maybe use my husbands phone without esim or $25 a week for calls at 2G? Laptop wont get internet access regardless of anything I do and can only be used in a wifi situation so perhaps maybe do option 3 which will cover both phones and laptop? This would come out to $112 for our trip vs $50 with high speed through sprint or $13 for esim. Confused yet?
Hi Shannon- It’s always confusing, isn’t it? 🙂
Whether you choose the eSim or the high speed data pack from Sprint, you’ll still make calls through your regular Sprint service. Both are data-only options. Calls cost 20 cents a minute on most Sprint plans that have free low-speed data. So for your phone, the eSim is a cheaper option (as long as you’ll use less than 5 GB of data, which is a lot of data!) though it takes a bit more work to set up.
If you want to have data on all 3 devices then the Trawire WiFi hotspot could be your best bet? It’s another device to keep track of and keep charged, but both phones and the laptop can connect that one device. You could skip the eSim and high speed data plans and all share the Trawire for Wifi.
Thank you so much!
For the SImmin Card, do incoming calls and texts count towards the 50 that are included in the prepaid plan? Is there another plan where we can get more minutes/ We will have to call hotels, restaurants, etc and will be traveling for 14 days so 50 minutes is not going to be enough.
Thank you
Hi Mina! No, only outgoing calls and texts count toward the limits of 50 each. But if you think you’ll need more, Nova has SIM cards in duty free at the airport when you arrive. There are cards with differing amounts of data, but they all have unlimited calls and texts. Coverage may not be as good out in East Iceland, though.
Day 4 of our Iceland adventure. I’ll leave a few breadcrumbs for those who come after us.
1. In the USA, I am used to seeing pre-Paid SIM cards out in plain view. If you are shy to ask like I was, you may pass up a store that has SIM cards because they keep them behind the counter. I missed them completely in the airport and only discovered they were available in Duty Free later.
2. When I purchased SIM cards at a gas station, I got bad advice. The retail clerk steered me toward the 10G Siminn Data card because either he wrongly believed it included the capability to make calls in Iceland OR I misunderstood what he was telling me (lost in translation). The Data SIM even has an Icelandic phone number listed on the back of the card, so it may be difficult to know what you’re buying.
3. Chat support is available from Siminn. I got some clues from talking to them. I felt reassured after speaking with them both times, but I felt mislead because the information they gave was only what I asked. I didn’t get important information I needed to know. I don’t at all blame customer service here. I think this was another case of information lost in translation.
4. If you get into a situation where you have purchased a Siminn Data Card, don’t lose hope! You can top up the card you have with more minutes as well as buying more data. (Remember, they gave you a phone number on the back of the card, right?) It took me several hours of thrashing in the long rainy Icelandic night this week to figure this out. It doesn’t help that the website kept wanting to switch to responding to me in Icelandic. Once you find the Top Up page, it will ask for your Icelandic number and then give you three options. The 500 ISK option will give you calling minutes and SMS both domestic and international. It’s not clear to me how much domestic calling/messaging I got for it, but I am relieved now that it at last seems to be working.
I can’t speak for the experience with Vodaphone, Nova, or any of the rest. I had a sunk cost in Siminn and some spare time while kids played video games that I probably could have spent with my patient and understanding spouse. Fortunately, our vacation is less than half over. We have more time to enjoy those long winter nights together.
Hi Ryan- Thanks so much for sharing your experience! Yes, the world of Icelandic SIM cards can be very confusing, especially with the 10-11 store in the airport being closed. I’m glad you finally got to the point that you have data and voice service with Siminn. Hopefully eSIMs will take over the next few years and make all of this easier. Thanks again, and enjoy the rest of your vacation!
Does the 10-11 store on Laugavegur in Reykjavík also sell SIM cards?
Yes, I think they should at least sell Siminn cards there!
If you have an iPhone 14 (eSIM only) and you’ll be in Iceland for 4 months and are required to have an Iceland phone number while there, what are the options? We have Verizon wireless and had planned to get the international plan, but that doesn’t help with having an Iceland phone number. From what I can tell the international eSIM from Airalo is for data only and doesn’t provide a local Iceland phone number. Is it easiest just to get a prepaid phone from one of the carriers once I arrive in Iceland (and then just juggle two phones)? Help!
My family took a trip in 2021 for a little over a week. We were able to get eSIMs for our phones from a local convenience store. While we started out with Data only cards, we were able to get an Icelandic number attached to the cards once I clued in on the fact that I could call customer support. The card was pay-by-minute which worked out for us. For four months, I might consder getting a regular phone plan and cancelling when you leave. If you’re at all uncomfortable, I would recommend that you find a Siminn store in Rekjavik and sort it out there. Simminn had great reception througout the South Coast, and I’ve read they’re the leading carrier throughout the country. Good luck!
Thank you!
All U.S. carriers have now shut down their 3G networks – CDMA or GSM – so any phone that still works in the U.S. should be compatible with Icelandic networks.
Thanks- I updated the post!