Staying connected while traveling abroad is more important than ever as our devices continue to play increasingly important roles in our lives. For US based travelers, options for easy access to cellular internet while traveling abroad are limited, though my favorite option without a doubt is Google Fi.
Before I dive into Google Fi, I’ll briefly go over the other options for staying connected while traveling abroad.
1. International Cell Phone Plan
Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint all offer international plans which you can purchase in advance to use your cell phone in a foreign country without needing to replace your sim card.
Pricing for each plan is as follows:
While I haven’t tried it, Sprint’s plan seems be the best with unlimited 2G internet for free and $5 per day for 4G speeds. I’m not a big fan of Sprint’s network or customer service, so I would be hesitant despite the attractive price.
T-Mobile offers an unlimited plan for $70/month which matches Google Fi’s unlimited plan. Having used T-Mobile’s international unlimited plan in the past, I was disappointed by the speeds and greatly prefer Google Fi’s unlimited plan for their better speeds and customer service.
Both Verizon and AT&T are considered to have the best coverage in the US, however on a long international trip, their plans may become quite expensive.
2. Buy a Local Sim Card
Local sim cards can often be the least expensive option for high speed connectivity. These can be purchased either at the airport or at a cell provider’s store in the city and can be pretty inexpensive in many countries like Poland, Latvia, Serbia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Oman where 2GB of data cost me about $2.
While this can be the least expensive solution, purchasing the sim card can take some time, you need to be careful not to go over your limit, and local customer service may not be so helpful in case you have any issues. Nevertheless, I opt for a local sim on longer trips to one country where I know the costs are significantly lower than my alternatives.
3. Portable WiFi Hotspots
I have never tried these before because I found prices similar to cell phone data plans which also offer the ability to hot spot to other devices. I really don’t see the point of lugging around another piece of hardware unless you are traveling as a group and plan to all use the WiFi rather than each purchasing access through a cellular provider.
4. Google Fi
Google’s relatively new solution to staying connected while traveling abroad is my top pick. While many Americans use this as their primary cell phone plan, I solely bought my Google Fi sim card to use while traveling abroad and pause the service when I’m not traveling.
Google Fi offers two plans: Unlimited or Flexible which start at $20 and $70 per month respectively. The cost per person decreases the more people you have on your plan.
Pricing for one person is as follows:
I’ve used my Google Fi sim when taking lengthy trips through several countries where it would be inconvenient and/or expensive to buy a local sim. Fi is convenient, reliable, and offers extremely fast internet speeds all over the world.
Fi has been a lifesaver when traveling to China as the network it connects to isn’t blocked by China’s firewall, allowing you to access Google, Whatsapp, Facebook and other Western websites and apps while in China.
My Top Pick: Google Fi
Google Fi fits my needs perfectly with a simple, and fairly priced cell plan that can be paused at any time and only activated when I need it. With Google Fi, I’ve never waited more than a few seconds after landing in a new country to pick up a signal, an issue I’ve experienced before with other sim cards.
I still plan to buy local sim cards when they make sense in countries like Poland that sell data for less than $2 per GB, even though going to the store in person to set it up can be a hassle.
Bottom Line
Google Fi has been an excellent tool for me to be able to stay connected wherever I go. While not the only solution, I do think it’s the best option for many people and I can’t imagine ever canceling it.
To sign up for Google Fi, click here. You can use referral code 7C2CTH to earn a $20 credit for new users!