Airalo vs Saily
Airalo runs the wider catalogue; Saily, built by Nord Security, leans on bigger fair-use allowances. This page sets the two travel eSIMs side by side on entry price, plan types, unlimited and fair use policy, hotspot, KYC, and refunds, using sourced data only. Where a per-brand score cannot be sourced, no winner is named.
Is Airalo or Saily better?
It depends on what you weigh. Airalo and Saily both start near $4 (Airalo from $4.00 for 1 GB / 3 days; Saily from $3.99 for 1 GB / 7 days) and both run on local 4G and 5G with hotspot allowed. The split is in the detail: Airalo is the older, wider catalogue with a 3 GB/day fair-use cap on unlimited plans, while Saily, built by Nord Security, pairs a longer 7-day entry validity with a more generous 5 GB/day fair-use allowance and a 30-day refund if a plan is never used.
Simscanner names no single overall winner, because a per-brand score that survives scrutiny is not publicly sourceable. The use case that matters most for your trip decides the answer. Cells shown as pending are a designed holding state, not estimates.
Airalo and Saily snapshot
The same tracked attributes for each brand, at equal visual weight. Every value moves from pending to verified only when read from a primary source. Neither brand is ranked above the other here.
Side by side
Every dimension Simscanner tracks for a brand-vs-brand page. Each value carries a source. Values still being verified are shown as pending, never as a guess. The entry-price row shows the lowest sourced local plan only; full pricing by tier lives on the brand profiles.
| Dimension | AiraloBrand A | SailyBrand B | Source |
|---|
Coverage comparison
How many countries each brand covers, counted only where Simscanner has a published page with a sourced plan listing. Both brands market 200+ destinations; that marketing is not the source. The 72-page figure is Simscanner's own tracked count on each side, not a brand coverage claim.
Airalo markets eSIMs for 200+ countries and regions. Simscanner currently lists an Airalo plan on 72 published country pages, and maps the local carrier per country, for example T-Mobile in the United States and KDDI au in Japan.
Saily sells data plans in 200+ destinations. Simscanner currently lists a Saily plan on 72 published country pages. Per-country carrier names are largely not published yet, so network mapping stays pending.
Unlimited and fair use policy
Whether each brand markets unlimited plans, and whether it publishes a fair use threshold. Simscanner records the published wording, with a retrieved date, rather than estimating an effective cap.
Airalo's published fair-use policy gives unlimited plans high-speed data up to 3 GB per day, then throttles to 1 Mbps, resetting at midnight local time. Simscanner records unlimited Airalo plans across 38 tracked country listings.
Saily's unlimited plans carry a fair-use allowance most commonly set at 5 GB per day (3 GB/day in some markets), then throttle to up to 1 Mbps. Its premium Ultra plan gives 30 GB high-speed a month before the same throttle. Simscanner records unlimited Saily plans across 61 tracked country listings.
Hotspot and tethering
Each brand's stated tethering allowance, read from its own published wording. Hotspot policy can vary by brand and sometimes by plan.
Airalo states that tethering, or personal hotspot, is permitted where the device and the local network support it. The allowance is not tied to a separate add-on.
Saily supports hotspot sharing and publishes step-by-step setup guides for both iOS and Android in its help centre.
Speed and reliability
Country-level public performance signals for each brand. Speed depends on the local network used in a given country, so this is reported per country rather than as a single brand figure.
Speed signals pending verification
PendingSpeed and reliability for both Airalo and Saily are reported per country, tied to the local network each plan connects to. Network mapping is pending for both brands, so no speed figures are shown here yet. Simscanner does not estimate throughput.
When verified, country-level signals will appear on the relevant country pages and feed the speed category on Rankings.
Reviews and user sentiment
Review signals are shown only with a named source, a review count, and a fetched date. Simscanner never displays a star rating it has not sourced, and never publishes an aggregate rating of its own.
Public review signals for Airalo are pending verification. When published, each source will list its own rating, the number of reviews behind it, and the date Simscanner fetched it. No averaged or invented score is shown.
Public review signals for Saily are pending verification. When published, each source will list its own rating, the number of reviews behind it, and the date Simscanner fetched it. No averaged or invented score is shown.
Device compatibility and activation
Both brands require an eSIM-compatible, carrier-unlocked device. Specific supported-device lists are read from each brand's own published wording and are pending verification.
eSIM-compatible device
Both brands need a phone or tablet that supports eSIM. The supported-model list per brand is pending verification.
Device list pendingCarrier-unlocked
An eSIM cannot install on a phone locked to a home carrier. This applies to both brands.
Applies to bothActivation flow
Each brand publishes its own activation steps in its app. Step-by-step wording is pending verification on both sides.
Activation steps pendingKYC default
Airalo requires eKYC, such as a passport upload, only for eSIMs in certain countries, not for every purchase. Saily does not require identity verification for the travel eSIM in nearly all tracked countries; a few listings, such as Sri Lanka, note registration (secondary).
Country-specific on bothBest fit by traveller type
Each verdict leans on a sourced feature difference, not on an overall score, which Simscanner cannot source. Where the deciding signal is still pending, the card names no winner.
Both list plans on 72 tracked country pages, but Airalo also maps the local carrier per country while Saily's network names stay pending.
Saily's unlimited plans give a typical 5 GB/day high-speed before throttling; Airalo's give 3 GB/day before 1 Mbps.
Both allow tethering on their main plans. The sourced wording is equally clear, so no card leans either way.
Saily's entry plan is $3.99 for 1 GB over 7 days; Airalo's is $4.00 for 1 GB over 3 days, so Saily edges entry price and validity.
Saily gives a full refund within 30 days if a plan is never installed or activated; Airalo's 14-day right to withdraw ends once a plan is activated.
Speed depends on the local network per country. Network mapping is pending for Saily, so no leaning is shown.
Where data is pending
An open ledger of what still needs a primary source before this comparison leaves preview. Each field publishes independently as it is verified on both sides.
How Simscanner compares brands
The same rules apply to both columns. A value publishes only when it is read from a primary source, dated, and re-checked on a schedule. No brand can pay to change a value or its position.
Primary source only
Every value is read from the brand's own published wording or a regulator, never from marketing claims or third-party summaries.
How we score →Dated and re-checked
Each verified value carries a retrieved date and is re-verified on a schedule, so a stale figure never sits unflagged.
Verification cadence →Equal weight
Both brands use identical tiles, identical rows, and the same pending treatment. Neither gets larger visual space.
Zero paid placements →Verdicts only when verified
A winner is named per use case only when sourced data supports it, with a link to the methodology anchor behind it.
Category anchors →Airalo vs Saily questions
The questions travellers most often ask when choosing between these two brands.
Is Airalo better than Saily?
Which has more countries, Airalo or Saily?
Does Airalo or Saily allow hotspot tethering?
Is Airalo or Saily unlimited data really unlimited?
How much do Airalo and Saily cost to start?
Does Simscanner favour one of these brands?
Does Simscanner name a winner for Airalo vs Saily?
Related links
Article FAQPage BreadcrumbList. No Product, Offer, Price, Review, AggregateRating, ItemList, or HowTo schema is used. Simscanner does not sell or price eSIMs, and this page is a binary comparison, not a ranked list.