Before you start

These options only work if your phone has native eSIM support, or if you use a physical eSIM adapter such as eSTK.me or 5ber.eSIM. Without that, the services listed here are not usable.

You will also need a Visa or MasterCard debit/credit card. Many providers do not accept mainland Chinese payment methods like WeChat Pay or Alipay, and American Express often fails as well.

The focus here is strictly on eSIMs that do not require full real-name verification. They are generally easier to obtain. Plans with strict identity checks usually ask for a passport or similar documents, so they are left out.

eSIMs with phone numbers

These are mainly useful for receiving SMS, especially when registering overseas apps and services. Some of them allow mobile data, but data roaming is usually billed per MB and is extremely expensive, so enabling mobile data is rarely a good idea.

If the SIM still has balance, some providers also allow calling and receiving calls while roaming, but voice roaming charges are typically high enough that it only makes sense in special cases.

The list below is ordered by long-term number retention cost.

<table> <thead> <tr> <th>Country/Region</th> <th>Carrier</th> <th>Activation cost</th> <th>How to keep the number active</th> <th>Retention cost</th> <th>Roaming rates in China</th> <th>eSIM transfer</th> <th>Notes</th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td>UK (+44)</td> <td>giffgaff</td> <td>Activate by topping up £10 balance (about CNY 93); using an invite link gives £15</td> <td>Send one SMS every 6 months, or toggle data once; using SMS for maintenance can keep it active for 50 years</td> <td>No further cost for the next 50 years</td> <td>SMS £0.3 each (about CNY 2.8); data £0.2/MB (about CNY 1.9)</td> <td>Supported; can be requested in the app or via packet capture</td> <td>Monzo card works; on non-native eSIM phones, the QR code may need to be extracted via packet capture; the number can be changed twice for free; the first top-up requires a foreign-currency debit card, later top-ups can use PayPal</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Netherlands (+31)</td> <td>Simyo</td> <td>Top up €5 (about CNY 39.3); using an invite link gives €12.5</td> <td>Send one SMS every 6 months, or toggle data once; using SMS for maintenance can keep it active for 12 years</td> <td>No further cost for the next 12 years</td> <td>SMS €0.51 each (about CNY 4); data €5/MB (about CNY 39.3)</td> <td>Supported; a new QR code can be obtained in the app</td> <td>On non-native eSIM phones, the QR code may need to be extracted via packet capture</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Moldova (+373)</td> <td>Moldtelecom</td> <td>40 lei (about CNY 16.4)</td> <td>Top up 1 leu every 6 months (about CNY 0.4)</td> <td>2 lei/year (about CNY 0.8)</td> <td>SMS 2 lei each (about CNY 0.8)</td> <td>Supported; a new QR code can be obtained in the app</td> <td>Monzo card works</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Philippines (+63)</td> <td>Globe</td> <td>99 pesos (about CNY 12.5)</td> <td>Top up 20 pesos every 12 months (about CNY 2.5)</td> <td>20 pesos/year (about CNY 2.5)</td> <td>SMS 20 pesos each (about CNY 2.5)</td> <td>Supported; delete while connected, then scan the original QR code again</td> <td>Monzo card works; identity check is superficial and can reportedly pass even with a blank sheet upload; recycled numbers are common</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ukraine (+380)</td> <td>Lifecell</td> <td>50 hryvnia (about CNY 8.6)</td> <td>Valid for 180 days after activation; top up 10 hryvnia (about CNY 1.7) to extend to one year</td> <td>20 hryvnia/year (about CNY 3.4)</td> <td>SMS 10 hryvnia each (about CNY 0.9)</td> <td>Delete while connected, then scan the original QR code again</td> <td>Very picky about cards; Monzo does not work</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Thailand (+66)</td> <td>AIS SIM2Fly</td> <td>US$5.11 (about CNY 36.4)</td> <td>Top up 10 baht every month (about CNY 2.1)</td> <td>120 baht/year (about CNY 25)</td> <td>SMS 16.05 baht each (about CNY 3.3); calls 6.42 baht/minute (about CNY 1.3)</td> <td>Requires contacting customer service for a new eSIM; passport photo or similar documents may be requested</td> <td>Initial cost is a bit high; comes with 6 months of validity</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Latvia (+371)</td> <td>LMT</td> <td>Top up €1.5 balance (about CNY 11.8)</td> <td>Top up €1 every 70 days (about CNY 7.9); the initial €1.5 lasts about 3 months</td> <td>€5/year (about CNY 39.3)</td> <td>In actual testing, roaming activation did not allow SMS sending; data €0.99/MB (about CNY 7.8)</td> <td>A new QR code must be requested at a physical store</td> <td>Monzo card works</td> </tr> <tr> <td>North Macedonia (+389)</td> <td>Telekom</td> <td>295 denars (about CNY 37.6)</td> <td>Top up 100 denars every 2 months (about CNY 12.7)</td> <td>600 denars/year (about CNY 76.4)</td> <td>Incoming calls 153.4 denars/minute (about CNY 19.5)</td> <td>Transfer via customer service</td> <td>Initial cost is slightly high; identity verification is superficial and passport details can reportedly be filled in arbitrarily</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lithuania (+370)</td> <td>pildyk</td> <td>€0.69 (about CNY 5.4)</td> <td>Top up €3 every 3 months (about CNY 23.6)</td> <td>€12/year (about CNY 94.5)</td> <td>SMS €0.42 each (about CNY 3.3)</td> <td>Unknown</td> <td>Monzo card works; cheap to start, but expensive to keep active</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Austria (+43)</td> <td>RedteaGo</td> <td>US$3.01 (about CNY 21.3)</td> <td>Valid for one year and cannot be renewed</td> <td>One-time only, not suitable for long-term retention</td> <td>Cannot send SMS</td> <td>Not supported</td> <td>Supports Alipay; the phone number is 13 digits, which is unusually long; includes 100MB of data</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Data-only eSIMs

Most of these do not come with a phone number and are useful purely for internet access. Some can even be used for free.

One practical advantage is that roaming data usually reaches the global internet directly, so services like Google and YouTube are accessible without extra steps. These connections also tend to look cleaner from a risk-control perspective, which can make them more suitable for signing up for foreign websites and apps.

<table> <thead> <tr> <th>Roaming IP region</th> <th>Carrier</th> <th>Data</th> <th>Activation cost</th> <th>Validity</th> <th>Notes</th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td>Singapore</td> <td>Firsty</td> <td>100MB high-speed</td> <td>Free</td> <td>No expiry</td> <td>Watching ads gives internet time for unlimited low-speed access; traffic to the firsty.app domain is not throttled, which makes it possible to keep using high-speed data without paying</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Austria</td> <td>Red Bull MOBILE</td> <td>2GB</td> <td>Free</td> <td>No expiry</td> <td>Requires a phone with native eSIM support</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Poland</td> <td>YESIM</td> <td>1GB</td> <td>€0.5 (about CNY 7.8)</td> <td>No expiry</td> <td>Monzo card works; registering with an invite code gives 500 YCoin, enough to redeem 1GB</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hong Kong</td> <td>RedteaGo</td> <td>100MB</td> <td>US$3.01 (about CNY 21.3)</td> <td>1 year</td> <td>Supports Alipay; includes an Austrian phone number</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hong Kong</td> <td>3HK</td> <td>45GB</td> <td>HK$268 (about CNY 243.7)</td> <td>1 year</td> <td>Supports Alipay, WeChat Pay, and UnionPay; no real-name registration is required if used only in mainland China</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Choosing between them

If the goal is simply to keep an overseas number for receiving verification codes at the lowest long-term cost, UK giffgaff and Dutch Simyo stand out because they can be maintained just by occasional activity, with no ongoing recharge cost for years.

If you want the cheapest yearly upkeep, Moldtelecom, Globe, and Lifecell are also notable, though each has its own drawbacks: Globe has a higher chance of recycled numbers, and Lifecell can be difficult with payment cards.

If you mainly need internet access rather than a number, the data-only options are more practical. Firsty is especially interesting because it can be used at no cost, while 3HK is the more substantial paid option if you need a larger data allowance for use in mainland China.

For most number-based eSIMs here, receiving SMS is the real use case. Data roaming and calling are technically available on some providers, but the rates are high enough that they should be treated as backup functions rather than something to use regularly.