English
An eSIM for Laos is a digital data plan for the phone you already own. There is no physical SIM card, no airport lines, and no passport needed. Your plan is ready on your SIMAREA account before you even leave home.
It works safely alongside your normal SIM. You keep your own number for calls and important text messages. Your data goes through the SIMAREA plan. Just turn off data roaming on your home SIM to avoid high bills.
Coverage comes from Lao Telecom, the one network these plans use. Your phone connects to it when you arrive.
If you stay longer, top up your current plan with more data. You do not need to buy a new one.
What it is not: a local phone number. If you need a number for verification codes, see virtual numbers.
Laos eSIM: travel data on Lao Telecom
Mobile data in Laos for a week to a month, on one network. Every plan starts counting at its first connection in Laos, so you can install it at home or in Bangkok and cross the border with it ready.
The unlimited plan is the day pass we feature for Laos: after its daily full-speed allowance it keeps you connected at a lower speed, and it is billed per day for the days you choose. Fixed plans are one price for the term shown. Nothing on this page is an estimate.
How to get mobile data in Laos
Set it up at home the night before. Your eSIM waits quietly until you arrive.
Pick eSIM plan
Choose how long you are there. The day pass is billed per day, so the term is yours to set.
Pay, then scan
Charged from your balance, which you top up with crypto. Your QR code is in your dashboard once the order is paid.
Turn it on when you arrive
Turn on data roaming for your SIMAREA plan when you arrive, and it joins a partner network.
What to know about an eSIM for Laos
The specifics that decide whether a travel eSIM is useful once you're actually there.
Runs on Lao Telecom
Plans for Laos connect to Lao Telecom. Your phone joins it once data roaming is on for the eSIM.
Set up before you go
No SIM card store, no passport check. Install it at home, then turn on data roaming for it when you arrive.
Hotspot sharing
Share your internet with a laptop or a friend, if your plan and phone allow it.
Keep your own number
The eSIM is just for internet. Your normal SIM still receives calls and important bank codes. You can use both at once.
Keep using the same eSIM
Staying longer? Top up the same plan with more data from your dashboard. No need for a new QR code.
If it does not work
Not installed or connected yet? Ask for a refund within 30 days of buying it. Installed but not working on any of its networks? Support helps, and refunds you if it cannot be fixed.
Laos eSIM on one network: Lao Telecom, 4G and 3G
Every Laos plan here, the day pass included, runs on a single network, Lao Telecom. There's no second operator to fall back on: where Lao Telecom has no signal, neither does the eSIM, and picking a network by hand won't change that. Save offline maps before a long bus ride or a slow boat on the Mekong.
No Laos plan reaches 5G: they use 4G/LTE where it's available and 3G elsewhere. Traffic exits in Singapore, so sites see a Singapore IP address.
Laos plans for a week to a month
The smallest plan is 1 GB for 7 days, then 3 GB for 15 days and four 30-day sizes: 3, 5, 10 and 20 GB. Nothing runs longer than 30 days, but each plan tops up with more data on the same eSIM.
The day pass gives 1 GB a day at full speed, then 512 Kbps until the day resets: enough for messages, bookings and email, while photo backups wait for guesthouse Wi-Fi.
Laos with Thailand, Vietnam or China
A Laos plan works only inside Laos. If you cross the Friendship Bridge from Thailand, head on to Vietnam, or take the train north to China, there is one wider option:
- Asia 19-country rows and the Asia day pass: the only plans on sale that include Laos. They also list Thailand, Vietnam and mainland China, along with Japan, India and more. In Laos they use Unitel, not Lao Telecom, and traffic exits in the UK or Norway. The fixed rows run 7 to 30 days; the day pass gives 1 GB a day, then 384 Kbps.
- Every other list leaves Laos out: the 7-, 12- and 20-country Asia rows, and Global 130 too.
Cambodia isn't on the 19-country list, so a Thailand, Laos and Cambodia loop needs separate plans: one from this page, plus a Thailand eSIM and a Cambodia eSIM.
Laos eSIM questions
Will my Thailand eSIM work in Laos?
No. A Thailand plan stops at the Thai border. Use a Laos plan for your days in Laos, or an Asia 19-country row or the Asia day pass if one eSIM should cover both countries.
Can I install the Laos eSIM in Thailand before crossing?
Yes. No Laos plan starts counting until it connects in Laos, and an unused plan stays valid for 180 days. It can sit on your phone in Bangkok or Chiang Mai until the day you cross.
Does the eSIM include a Lao phone number?
No, it carries data only, with no +856 number for calls or SMS. Your own SIM keeps your number. Numbers that receive codes for a rented term are on the virtual numbers page, in the countries listed there.
What if the eSIM doesn't connect in Laos?
Make sure data roaming is on for the eSIM and that mobile data uses it. With one network there's nothing to switch to, so if it still won't connect where Lao Telecom has coverage, contact support while the plan is valid. They fix it, or refund it if it works on no supported network in Laos.
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The SIMAREA app is on its way
Check your data, top up and manage every eSIM from your phone.
Choose your Laos plan
Lao Telecom on every plan, from a week to a month. Combining Laos with Thailand or Vietnam? Compare the 19-country Asia plans.