The best eSIM for South America depends on your route. Visiting several countries, like Peru, Bolivia and Chile? Pick a regional South America eSIM that lists every country on your trip, so you buy and install just one. Staying in one country, like Brazil or Argentina? A single-country eSIM often costs less for the same data and comes in bigger plans for long stays. One honest warning: no regional plan covers the whole continent. Ours works in 10 countries, and Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname aren't on the list. This guide shows which countries it covers, when a country plan is the better pick, and how to stay connected in the Andes, the Amazon and Patagonia.
Here are the two kinds of plans side by side. All three have 10 GB for 7 days, so the only difference is where they work.
South America (10 countries) · Brazil only · Peru only · all data only · See all South America eSIMs or browse every destination
Which eSIM do you need for South America?
Start with the countries on your route. Each plan lists its countries on the plan page, and the eSIM only works in those countries.
Visiting two or more countries
Get a regional South America eSIM, as long as every country on your route is on its list. Your data and days are shared between the countries, so you don't need a new eSIM at each border. This suits a classic backpacking loop through Peru, Bolivia and Chile, a trip to Iguazu Falls with nights on both the Argentine and Brazilian side, or a Patagonia trek that crosses from Argentina into Chile.
Visiting only one country
A single-country eSIM is often the better deal. Compare the cards above: for Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, Ecuador and Uruguay, a 10 GB country plan costs less than the regional one. For Colombia, Bolivia and Paraguay it's the other way round, so the regional plan can be the smarter buy even for one country. Country plans also come in bigger sizes: up to 50 GB for 30 days in Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Uruguay, and up to 60 GB for 90 days in Brazil and Chile. Popular ones: Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Chile and Ecuador.
Mostly one country, with a short side trip
Your phone can hold more than one eSIM. So you can pair a bigger country plan for your main stay with a small South America plan for a few days next door. Switch your mobile data line when you cross the border.
Countries the South America plan doesn't cover
Our South America eSIM doesn't include Venezuela, Guyana or Suriname. For each of these we sell a smaller country plan: Venezuela (up to 10 GB for 7 days), Guyana and Suriname (up to 5 GB for 7 days). The Falkland Islands aren't covered either. Heading on to Mexico or Central America? Those need a separate plan too, see our destinations.
Which countries does our South America eSIM cover?
The SimOptions South America eSIM works in these 10 countries:
- The Andes and the Pacific coast: Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru.
- The Southern Cone: Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay.
- Brazil and the north: Brazil, French Guiana.
The list can change, so check the countries on the plan card on the South America eSIM page before you pay. French Guiana is part of France, so if it's your main stop, its destination page also lists Bouygues Telecom plans that come with a French phone number.
What to look for in an eSIM for South America
Whichever provider you choose, check these before you buy:
- Every country on your route: regional plans cover a list of countries, not the whole continent. Some "Latin America" plans also add Mexico and Central America but leave out South American countries. Read the list, don't assume.
- Enough days: pick a plan whose validity covers your trip, or one you can top up.
- Enough data: maps, ride apps, photo uploads and video calls add up. See the sizing guide below.
- Top-ups: if you can add data to the same eSIM, you can start smaller.
- Hotspot: handy for a laptop or a travel partner's phone. Some unlimited plans cap how much you can share.
- Phone number: most travel eSIMs for South America are data only. You keep your home number on your phone for texts.
Our South America eSIM: the details
Here is what the plan details on our South America eSIM page say:
- Countries: 10, listed above, on one eSIM.
- Data and days: 1 GB or 3 GB for 3 days, 5 GB or 10 GB for 7 days, and 20 GB for 15 days.
- Phone number: no. Data only, no calls or SMS.
- Speed: 4G/LTE.
- Top-ups: available.
- Activation: once installed, the eSIM activates automatically when you arrive in a covered country. Your days start then, not when you buy. If you don't use it within a year of buying it, it expires.
Because these plans are data only, keep your usual SIM or eSIM on for calls and texts. Most eSIM phones can run two lines at once (Apple: Using Dual SIM with an eSIM). You still get bank codes and texts from home, while the travel eSIM handles data.
A travel eSIM also skips the paperwork of a local line. Carriers in South America register every line to a person, so as a visitor you usually need your passport and often a store visit. Our country guides explain the rules for Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Colombia.
How good is mobile coverage in South America?
Good in cities and along main roads, patchy or missing in many remote areas. That includes much of the Amazon, high passes in the Andes, the salt flats and deserts, and long stretches of Patagonia. No eSIM can fix that, because every eSIM uses the same local towers. What helps:
- Download offline maps before you leave town (Google Maps Help: offline maps).
- Save tickets and bookings offline, like train and entry tickets, so you can show them without signal.
- Use hotel or lodge Wi-Fi for big uploads and backups, and save your data for maps and messages.
- Don't rely on your phone alone on multi-day treks or jungle trips. Tell your guide or lodge your plans, and carry emergency numbers offline.
Popular trips in South America and which eSIM fits
A few classic routes, with a connection tip for each. Before you go anywhere, check your government's travel advice, for example UK FCDO travel advice.
Machu Picchu and Cusco, Peru
Cusco, the old Inca capital, sits at about 3,400 m (11,150 ft) and is the gateway to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. If Peru is your only stop, a Peru eSIM is the simpler pick, and our guide to eSIM providers in Peru compares it with the local carriers. Going on to Lake Titicaca and Bolivia, or down to Chile? Use the South America plan. Signal at the ruins and on the trails can be weak, so save your tickets offline before you set off.
Iguazu Falls, Argentina and Brazil
Iguazu is a chain of about 275 falls on the border between Argentina and Brazil, and you can visit it from both sides. This is where a regional plan shines: Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay (Ciudad del Este is just across the river) are all on the South America eSIM, so you stay online when you cross. Doing only one side as part of a longer stay? Pick the Argentina or Brazil eSIM.
Patagonia, Argentina and Chile
Patagonia covers the far south of the continent, from El Chaltén and the glaciers near El Calafate in Argentina to Torres del Paine in Chile, and down to Ushuaia on Tierra del Fuego. Argentina and Chile are both on the South America plan, which suits a route that crosses the border by bus. Towns have signal, but many trails, parks and roads between them don't, so download maps and your bus and park bookings first. More on local options in eSIM providers in Argentina and eSIM providers in Chile.
The Amazon rainforest
About 60% of the Amazon rainforest is in Brazil, with large parts in Peru and Colombia too. Trips usually start from Manaus in Brazil, Iquitos or Puerto Maldonado in Peru, Leticia in Colombia or the Ecuadorian Amazon. All four countries are on the South America plan. Expect signal in those towns and little or none on the river and in jungle lodges, whatever eSIM you use.
Rio, Buenos Aires and the big cities
In big cities like Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Lima, Bogotá, Medellín and Cartagena, you'll usually have a good signal. For a city break in one country, the country plan is usually all you need. For Colombia, compare it with the regional plan first, see eSIM providers in Colombia.
Angel Falls, Venezuela: check the travel advice first
Angel Falls in Canaima National Park is the world's highest waterfall, at 979 m. Venezuela isn't on our South America plan, but we sell a separate Venezuela eSIM. The UK advises against all but essential travel to Venezuela, and against all travel to several areas, including parts of Bolívar state, where the falls are (FCDO: Venezuela). Read the latest advice for your own country before you book.
Heading to the coast instead? See the best islands to visit in South America, like Fernando de Noronha and Ilha Grande in Brazil.
How much data do you need?
It depends on how long you stay and how you use your phone. As a rough guide:
- 3 to 7 days: 1 GB to 5 GB, for maps, messages and some browsing.
- 7 to 15 days: 10 GB to 20 GB, enough for daily maps, social media, ride apps and some video calls.
- Longer than 15 days: top up the South America plan as you go, or pick a country plan that runs for 30 days or more if you stay in one country.
Doing a two-week trip through several countries, like Peru, Bolivia and northern Chile? The 20 GB South America plan lasts 15 days, and you can top up if you run low.
Do you need a travel eSIM? Check your home plan first
Some home plans include roaming in a few South American countries, others charge a daily fee or by the MB. Check what your carrier charges in each country on your route and add up your days. If it's a daily fee, a prepaid eSIM gives you data at a fixed price instead, while your home number stays on your phone. Just turn off data roaming on your home line so it can't use data abroad.
Before you buy: check your phone and set it up
- Check eSIM support. Dial *#06#. If your phone shows an EID number, it supports eSIM. On iPhone, eSIM works on the iPhone XS, XS Max, XR and later (Apple: Using Dual SIM with an eSIM).
- Check that your phone is unlocked. A phone locked to a carrier only accepts that carrier's eSIMs.
- Install the eSIM at home on Wi-Fi before you leave. On iPhone, scan the QR code with the Camera app, or on iOS 17.4 and later press and hold the code in the email and choose Add eSIM (Apple: Set up eSIM on iPhone). Step by step for iPhone and Android: how to install an eSIM.
- When you land, pick the travel eSIM for mobile data and turn on data roaming for it. On iPhone, go to Settings > Cellular (or Mobile Data) > Cellular Data and choose the travel eSIM.
- Turn off data roaming on your home line, so it can't use data abroad.
No signal after you arrive? Our guide on what to do when your eSIM is not activating walks you through the usual causes.
Other eSIMs for South America
SimOptions isn't your only choice. Here is what two other providers say on their own pages:
- Airalo sells a Latin America regional eSIM that it lists for 17 countries and networks, with packages from 3 to 30 days. It says top-ups are available in many cases.
- Holafly sells an unlimited data plan for Latin America that lists 18 destinations, including Mexico and Central America. It says a fair usage policy can slow your speed for up to a day, you can share 1 GB per day as a hotspot, and there's no phone number.
Each provider covers a different list of countries, so compare the lists with your route first, then the data, days and hotspot rules.
FAQs
What is the best eSIM for South America?
The one that covers every country on your route. For a multi-country trip, a regional South America eSIM like ours (10 countries) means one eSIM for the whole trip. For a single country, a country eSIM often gives you more data for your money and longer plans.
Is there one eSIM that works in all of South America?
Not that we know of. Regional plans cover a list of countries, and Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname are often missing. Ours covers 10 countries. Check that every country you'll visit is on the list.
What is the best eSIM for Argentina?
If you only visit Argentina, an Argentina eSIM costs less than the regional plan for the same data, and it comes in plans of up to 50 GB for 30 days. If you also cross into Chile, Brazil or Uruguay, the South America eSIM covers all four.
Which eSIM works for Latin America, including Mexico?
Our South America eSIM doesn't include Mexico or Central America. For Mexico, get a Mexico eSIM and add a South America plan for the southern part of your trip. Your phone can hold both.
Can I use one eSIM for a two-month trip?
Our South America plans run for up to 15 days, and you can top up. For a long stay in one country, a country plan is often a better fit: Brazil and Chile go up to 90 days. For a long trip through several countries, top up the regional plan as you go.
Do these eSIMs come with a local phone number?
No. Our South America and country plans are data only. Keep your home number on your phone for texts, and use apps like WhatsApp or FaceTime for calls.
Will my eSIM work in the Amazon or on a Patagonia trek?
In towns, usually yes. On the river, in jungle lodges and on many trails, signal is often weak or missing, whichever eSIM or SIM you use. Download maps and anything you need before you head out.
When does my eSIM start counting days?
The plan activates automatically when you arrive in a covered country, so your days start on arrival, not when you buy or install it.