The Best Prepaid SIM Cards for Italy in 2023

Traveling to Italy for the first time can be one of the most overwhelming things you will experience. Italians have a very special way to communicate, eat and live, so you will learn and enjoy a lot when visiting this country! Of course, you need to make a travel plan before going to Italy, but we are sure that you will want to discover more and more things while you walk around it beautiful and colorful streets full of delicious smells and flavors.

Everybody needs to have Internet access when traveling abroad, especially when visiting a country like Italy with so many great places to visit and so many interesting activities to do. If you are able to browse on the Internet, your trip will definitely be the best! However, if you do not choose the best prepaid SIM card, your trip can become more expensive than you think. We chose the best prepaid SIM card for Italy so you can buy a SIM card that best suit your needs.

Looking for an alternative solution? We have eSIMs for Italy available!

Roaming in Italy

Something really important that you must know about roaming in Italy is that you can now roam like at home if you travel outside your home country to another country that is part of the European Union. How is that even possible? In 2017, the Roam Like at Home rules entered into force. These rules are about paying no roaming charges when going from one country to another but inside the European Union.

With these benefit, you will be able to make and receive calls, text messages and even browse the Internet paying the same charges as if you were in your home country. However, you cannot do this permanently; it is possible to do it just for a reasonable time. If you exceed that time, you will need to pay extra charges.

We know this topic is very extensive and it can be kind of difficult to understand at the beginning, so we recommend you to visit this webpage for more information about roaming in the EU.

What Are The Best SIM Cards for Italy?

	About the provider	Sim Card Features
	Orange SA is one of the oldest mobile network providers in France. They commit to the best network and recently were awarded as best operator for the eighth time in a row. With the available Travel Prepaid SIM Cards for Europe, you can enjoy a great internet experience through Italy and Europe. Make international calls or send international text messages from Italy to worldwide.	Data: 12GB Calls/SMS: Yes Credit Validity: 14 days Only $29.90	Learn more
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	As one of the biggest network providers in Europe, Three U.K. provides its services to more than 130 million users worldwide. Stay connected to a fast internet network in Italy and enjoy voice, text & data.	Data: Calls/SMS: Credit Validity: Only $29.90	Learn more
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	Going on vacation or business trip to Italy? With Orange Holiday Europe you do not have worry about roaming charges anymore. Browse the internet in all European countries with the best networks available, make calls and send SMS from Europe to your home around the world at no extra cost – guaranteed! Orange has been awareded as the number 1 mobile network for the 8th consecutive time.	Data: 30GB Calls/SMS: Yes Credit Validity: 14 days Only $49.90	Learn more
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	The first SIM Card that truly covers every country in the whole world! Enjoy a great internet experience within Italy with the ISP Orange. They commit to provide the best service possible and have been awarded as the best internet operator in France many times in the row.	Data: 10GB Calls/SMS: No Credit Validity: 14 days Only $49.90	Learn more
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	With internet from Three U.K. and its Pay as you Go (PAYG) Prepaid SIM Card, stay connected to the internet in Italy for a whole year. Experience one of the best network connections and never worry about losing connection again.	Data: 12GB Calls/SMS: No Credit Validity: 1 Year Only $59.90	Learn more
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	Stay connected to the internet for up to 2 years with the new PAYG Internet data SIM Card by Three U.K.! Enjoy superior international internet roaming service by Three U.K. in Italy.	Data: 24GB Calls/SMS: No Credit Validity: 2 Year Only $79.90	Learn more
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What is The Best Italy SIM Card?

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In this section, we will be talking about some of the best SIM card options that you will find on the Internet when planning your trip to Italy. Of course we will talk about the best Italian mobile networks, but first, we will mention the one we consider is the best alternative when traveling to Italy and many other countries. Yes! We are talking about SimOptions.

 

SimOptions – Prepaid SIM Cards for Italy

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When talking about prepaid SIM cards for travel, this company is the biggest international marketplace. SimOptions work with the best and the most well-known network operators in the whole world to provide the best alternatives and prices. With this company, you do not need to think about going to different stores when arriving in Italy to find the best SIM. You just need to go to their webpage, pick the SIM that you prefer and they will deliver it wherever you are (more than 120 countries around the world!). The best part of this SIMs is that you will not need to call or text the company to activate the SIM card; you just need to plug it into your phone and start using it. SimOptions’ SIM cards come pre-registered!

But these are not the only benefits that SimOptions has, check the four different SIM cards they offer and see all they have for you:

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European Carriers

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Before we start comparing the local Italian MNO’s that offer mobile connectivity in Italy, let’s compare the best operators with a coverage across Europe. You can get SIM Card data packages that are perfectly suited for travelers while benefiting from the roaming regulations.

 

Orange – One of The Best 4G Networks in Europe

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Orange SA was founded in 1988 as France Télécom and is now considered to be the fourth network operator in the whole European continent. The MNO Orange has won following awards for their mobile network performance:

• N°1 streaming video
• N°1 in web browsing in residential areas and in transport
• N°1 in voice and SMS calls in residential areas and in transport
• N°1 in reliability of file transfers

Let’s take a look at their most famous prepaid SIM card for Europe:

 

Find more information here: Orange Holiday SIM Card 3GB

Find more information here: Orange Holiday SIM Card 20GB

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Three – Pay As You Go SIM Cards for Europe

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Originally founded in Hong Kong in 2002, Three is now considered to be one of the biggest MNO’s worldwide with around 130million users worldwide. As an interesting fact, we have that Three UK was launched on 3 March 2003 (03/03/03) for publicity purposes.

Of course, Three has many SIM cards options, but we chose the ones that we think are the best fit for travelers in Europe.

 

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Italian Carriers

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Italy has three main carriers that provide Italians and foreigners the best prepaid SIM cards and some of those telecommunication companies also provide data only SIM, which is more directed to travelers. Now let’s learn a bit more about TIM, Vodafone, and Wind:

Pay attention to the different SIM cards you will find in Italy depending on the mobile network you choose:

 

TIM

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This telecommunication company is the largest company in the country. Thanks to all the benefits offered by this carrier, local people and tourist consider TIM the most important provider in Italy.

Compared to other mobile operators in the country, TIM has the best Internet connection in Italy, including rural places where the other companies do not work so well as TIM. Now let’s check some of the best options provided by this network operator:

 

TIM Tourist SIM – 15 GB (US$22.45)

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• Data: 15 GB of internet 4G
• Free Chat: Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger, and Snapchat
• Calls: 200 minutes in Italy and abroad
• Validity: Valid for 30 days

 

If you want to continue your trip around Europe and you want to keep using your TIM Tourist SIM, you can enable the TIM Viaggio Pass with the following benefits for you:

 

TIM Viaggio Pass – 10 GB (US$22.45)

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• Data: 10 GB of internet 4G
• Calls: 500 minutes (250 minutes to make calls and 250 minutes to receive calls)
• SMS: 500 SMS
• Validity: Valid for 30 days since the first phone call, SMS or connection to the Internet

 

Visit TIM’s webpage and sign up to activate this option online. You can also send a text message to 40916 with the text “TVPASS ON” and follow the instructions that TIM will give you. You can also turn off this pass sending “TVPASS OFF” to the same number. This pass includes other countries outside the European continent such as the USA and Canada. You can get more information about this pass calling customer service at 119.

Apart from these options we just gave you, TIM also offers a data SIM that does not include phone calls or SMS. When buying this data-only SIM you will be able to choose among three different data packages that are valid for 28 days since its activation.

• Internet XL – 10 GB (US$33.70)
• Internet Large – 5 GB (US$22.45)
• Internet Start – 2 GB (US$11.23)

 

Vodafone Italy

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Although it is not considered the main telecommunication company in Italy, Vodafone is the second largest mobile network in the country. It has around 26,000,000 subscribers and it provides great coverage in 100 countries all over the world. As it was mentioned before, people consider this company the second main network after TIM, but tourists prefer Vodafone when visiting Italy. It has some of the best options for travelers, so many of them buy Vodafone prepaid SIM cards for Italy because of the quality-ratio price. Here you have the most famous prepaid SIM cards for Italy preferred by travelers and some other packages offered by Vodafone:

 

Vodafone Holiday – 2 GB (US$33.70)

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• Data: 2 GB of 4G Internet
• Calls: 300 minutes to Italian numbers and to your home country
• SMS: 300 SMS to Italian numbers and to your home country

 

Vodafone Holiday is automatically renewed at $33.54 per renewal, even if there is no credit on the SIM card. In this case, please top up the SIM card in order to use the promotion. The renewal fee is pre-paid and it is valid for 4 weeks. If you want to deactivate the automatic renewal call the free number 42071.

This company has a famous plan called Red Plan, which is available in many countries, including Italy. Check them out:

 

Red Maxi – 8 GB (US$54.98)

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• Data: 8GB of mobile data
• Calls: Unlimited
• SMS: Unlimited

 

Red Maxi – 4 GB (US$43.76)

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• Data: 4GB of mobile data
• Calls: Unlimited
• SMS: Unlimited

 

This Italian carrier also offers a Data-Only SIM, which is also one of the most favorite alternatives among tourist. This type of SIM card has different data packages so you can pick the one that you prefer. Take a look at the data plans of the Vodafone Data-Only SIM card:

 

Total Giga – 50 GB (US$33.70)

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• Data: 50 GB of Internet
• Night Data: 50 GB
• Validity: 28 days
• Activation fee: 3€

 

Total Giga Digital – 30 GB  (US$16.85)          

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• Data: 30 GB of Internet
• Night Data: 15 GB
• Validity: 28 days
• Activation fee: 3€

 

Giga In & Out – 20 GB (US$14.60)

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• Data: 20 GB
• Night Data: 20 GB
• Validity: 28 days
• Activation fee: 3€

NOTE: Take into account Night Data is valid from midnight to 8:00 AM.

Apart from these data plans, Vodafone also has cheaper plans that can adjust to your budget in case you want to spend more money on some other things during the trip. However, these plans do not have as much mobile data as the ones mentioned before. Keep reading and see what these data packages include:

 

Giga Maxi Plan – 10 GB (US$33.66)

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• Data:5 GB of Internet
• Validity: Valid for 28 days

 

Giga Extra Plan – 5 GB (US$22.44)

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• Data: 5GB of Internet
• Validity: Valid for 28 days

 

Giga Start Plan – 2.5 GB (US$11.22)

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• Data: 5GB of Internet
• Validity: Valid for 28 days

 

Wind

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Wind is the third most famous Italian carrier; however, it does not mean that Wind does not offer great options and prices. Wind merged with another important Italian carrier in June 2017 and they joined their best offers and characteristics to create better SIM cards, plans, and improve their Internet connection. Nowadays, Wind has 27.1 million subscribers and it keeps raising the quality of its services and products to become a better telco company.

We chose the most well-known SIM cards and plans offered by Wind:

 

All Inclusive Unlimited – 5GB (US$13.48)

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• Data: 5GB of mobile data
• Calls: 500 minutes
• SMS: 500 SMS

 

All Digital – 5GB (US$11.23)

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• Data: 5GB of mobile data
• Calls: 500 local minutes
• SMS: Unlimited local SMS

 

Wind also offers data packages taking into account that, most of the time, tourist need more data than locals. Here you have two different data plans:

 

Internet No Stop Large Plan – 2GB (US$8.43)

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• Data: 2GB of mobile data
• Validity: 28 days

 

Internet No Stop Plan – 1GB (US$5.62)

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• Data: 1GB of mobile data
• Validity: 28 days

 

Italy will definitely surprise you with all the amazing things you will be able to do while you travel about this colorful country. We assure you that your travel experience will be much better if you have internet access for the whole trip. You will save money and enjoy your journey to the fullest if choose the best prepaid SIM card for Italy.

If this article was useful for you, it can be useful for the rest of your family and friends; do not forget to share it with them!

 

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