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In today's rapidly advancing eSIM technology, mobile data is an indispensable part of any journey, whether it's for business trips, family vacations, rugged hikes, or solo adventures. However, with so many eSIM brands available online, it can be overwhelming to choose the right one and the appropriate data plan.
This article provides a detailed guide on how to estimate your data usage based on your habits and application consumption, helping you select the most suitable data plan. We've compiled detailed information on application data usage for different travel styles over 1 to 30 days, along with average daily data consumption, to help you quickly understand how much data you'll likely need.
How to choose the right eSIM data plan for your travel needs
Before we begin, let's clarify the data units:
- Megabyte (MB): A relatively small unit of data.
- Gigabyte (GB): 1 GB equals 1024 MB. This is the more commonly used unit for mobile data plans.
- Unlimited Data: A marketing term indicating that users will receive unlimited internet access, typically with reduced speeds or bandwidth restrictions once a certain data cap is reached and exceeded. (Generally, this is sufficient for 99% of data needs in daily life, as long as usage isn't excessive.)
Estimating Data Consumption Based on Application Usage (Estimated Per Hour of Active Use)
-
Google Maps/Navigation: 3-10 MB/hour(higher for satellite view or frequent interaction).
In summary, if you're just using Google Maps for basic navigation, 5-10 MB of data per day is usually sufficient. However, if you frequently use various features or need to download large amounts of map data, you'll need to estimate your data usage based on your actual needs.
- Basic Web Browse: 50-400 MB/hour (data usage affected by website complexity).
- Social Media (Browse feeds, stories): 100-300 MB/hour (higher for video-intensive platforms like TikTok/YouTube/Netflix).
- Listening to Music + Downloading Music (depending on audio quality/size): 40-200 MB/hour.
- Standard Definition (SD) Video Streaming: 0.7 - 1 GB/hour.
- High Definition (HD) Video Streaming: 1.5 - 3 GB/hour.
- Online Gaming (mobile): 100MB-300MB/hour (higher for graphics-intensive games like Fortnite).
- Messaging (plain text): Minimal (a few KBs per message).
- Voice Calls (VoIP/app-based): 20-30 MB/hour.
- Video Calls (VoIP/app-based): 300 MB - 1 GB/hour (higher for HD or multiple participants).
- Payment Applications: Minimal (a few KBs per transaction).
Tip:
These figures are averages and can vary based on app settings (e.g., video quality), content, and background activity.
Data usage for travel purposes
By understanding the estimated hourly data consumption of various applications, we can categorize and summarize data needs based on a user's travel purpose or type. This allows users to quickly determine whether they're traveling for business or leisure and how much data they'll need to purchase.
Business Travel: For Users with Business Needs and Some Free Time
Business travelers prioritize:
- Signal/Coverage: Ensuring an uninterrupted signal at their business or travel destination to stay constantly connected.
- Internet Speed: Some business professionals may require video conferencing, email access, cloud storage, and fast navigation.
Therefore, for this user group, we've estimated daily usage and optimal internet speeds. eSIM products for business travelers should meet the following requirements:
- Wide Coverage: eSIM products from multiple carriers are ideal. Multiple carriers mean the device can automatically switch between different operators in various locations, ensuring a continuous signal.
- Clearly Stated Speed/Network: Ensure the internet speed is clearly labeled as 4G or higher.
Here's an estimation of data usage:
Estimated Daily Data Usage (Per Person):
- Email & Office Applications: 1 hour (200 MB)
- Video Conferencing (1-2 calls): 1.5 hours (HD video 1.5 GB - 3 GB)
- Web Browse (for research): 1 hour (100 MB)
- Navigation (Google Maps): 1 hour (10 MB)
- Messaging (WhatsApp/Teams): 0.5 hours (50 MB)
- Occasional Social Media/News: 0.5 hours (100 MB)
Estimated Daily Data Consumption (Per Business Traveler):
- Conservative: 2 GB
- Moderate (some HD video calls): 3 GB
- High Usage (frequent HD video calls, large file transfers): 5 GB or more
Multi-User Considerations (e.g., two colleagues traveling together):
If two business travelers share a data plan or frequently collaborate, their total data usage will essentially be cumulative. However, shared Wi-Fi in hotels can significantly reduce individual mobile data consumption. For shared activities like video calls on a single device, data consumption will be calculated for that device and not multiplied by the number of participants.
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Family International Travel
When choosing an eSIM product for family international travel, the focus should be on shareability, broad coverage, and accommodating diverse needs. As family members often share data or have varying usage habits, here are key considerations:
Primary Needs:
- Data Sharing（Mobile hotspot）: Family trips often necessitate a shareable data package to avoid each person purchasing a separate plan, effectively managing costs.
- Extensive Coverage: Ensure stable network connectivity at the travel destination, whether in urban centers or remote attractions, for convenient navigation, information lookup, and sharing travel moments.
- Entertainment and Communication: Family members may need internet access for online entertainment (e.g., streaming videos, gaming), social media sharing, video calls, and navigation.
eSIM Product Requirements:
- Multi-Device Support or Hotspot Functionality: An ideal eSIM should support multiple device connections or offer hotspot capabilities, allowing family members to share data from a single phone.
- Clearly Stated Data Allowance: Offer various data tiers, such as medium to high data packages, to meet the combined usage needs of family members and avoid frequent top-ups or running out of data.
- Clear Speed and Network Labeling: Explicitly label the internet speed as 4G or higher to ensure a smooth online experience.
- Flexible Validity: Choose a validity period that matches your trip duration to avoid waste.
Estimated Data Usage:
Considering the combined needs of family members, here's a rough estimate of daily data consumption:
- Navigation & Information Lookup: 1 hour (approx. 100 MB)
- Social Media & Photo Sharing: 1-2 hours (approx. 300 MB - 500 MB)
- Online Video or Kids' Entertainment: 1-2 hours (approx. 1 GB - 2 GB, depending on quality)
- Instant Messaging & Video Calls: 0.5 hours (approx. 100 MB - 200 MB)
- Checking Emails/Hotel Bookings: 0.5 hours (approx. 100 MB)
- Estimated Total Daily Data Consumption for a Family (e.g., a family of 3):
- Conservative Use: 3 GB - 5 GB (basic navigation, communication, and minimal entertainment)
- Moderate Use: 5 GB - 8 GB (includes moderate video streaming and social media sharing)
- High Usage: 8 GB or more (frequent video calls, high-definition video streaming, large file transfers, etc.)
Multi-User Considerations:
Hotel Wi-Fi can significantly reduce individual mobile data consumption. If family members share a single device for video calls or watching videos, data consumption will be calculated based on that device's actual usage.
Solo Travel
When choosing an eSIM product for solo travel, the focus should be on stable connectivity, meeting individual needs, and flexibility. As it's for personal use, efficiency and convenience are paramount.
Primary Needs:
- Constant Connectivity: Ensure a stable network signal throughout the trip for navigation, information lookup, communication with loved ones, and handling emergencies.
- Efficient Information Access: Fast internet speed is crucial for finding attractions, restaurants, transportation details, and making online bookings.
- Safety and Social Connection: Online communication (e.g., WhatsApp, WeChat) is very important for solo travelers to stay connected with the outside world and share their travel experiences.
eSIM Product Requirements:
- Broad Coverage: Prioritize eSIM products with excellent coverage at your travel destination, ideally supporting multi-carrier switching for a continuous signal.
- Clear Speed/Network Labeling: Explicitly label the network as 4G or higher to ensure a smooth online experience, allowing for video calls or online content streaming.
- Match Individual Data Needs: Choose a data plan that aligns with your expected usage intensity to avoid running out of data or overspending.
- Convenient Activation and Management: When traveling alone, you'll want quick and easy eSIM activation and management to minimize hassle.
Estimated Data Usage:
Here's a rough estimate of daily data consumption for a solo traveler:
- Email & Office Applications (minimal use): 0.5 hours (approx. 100 MB)
- Video Calls (with family/friends): 0.5 hours (approx. 500 MB - 1 GB, depending on quality)
- Web Browse (for information/guides): 1 hour (approx. 100 MB)
- Navigation (Google Maps): 1 hour (approx. 10 MB)
- Instant Messaging (WhatsApp/WeChat): 0.5 hours (approx. 50 MB)
- Occasional Social Media/News: 0.5 hours (approx. 100 MB)
Estimated Daily Data Consumption for a Solo Traveler:
- Conservative Use: 1 GB - 2 GB (mainly for navigation, communication, and minimal information lookup)
- Moderate Use: 2 GB - 3 GB (includes moderate video calls and social media)
- High Usage: 3 GB or more (frequent video calls, online video streaming, or online entertainment)
Here are some common questions about traffic:
FAQs
1：What can you do with 1GB of data?
Web Browse
Browsing the web typically consumes around 60MB - 180MB per hour.
With 1GB of data, you can browse the web for approximately 5-16 hours.
Social Media
Scrolling social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter) without extensive video viewing uses about 90MB - 156MB per hour.
With 1GB, you can scroll through social media for roughly 6-11 hours.
If you include lots of video content (like TikTok or Reels), it can consume as much as 800MB - 1GB per hour, meaning 1GB would barely last an hour.
Music Streaming
Low-quality (96kbps) music streaming uses approximately 43.2MB per hour.
1GB can provide about 23 hours of low-quality music.
High-quality (320kbps) music streaming uses around 115.2MB - 144MB per hour.
With 1GB, you can listen to high-quality music for roughly 7-8 hours.
Video Streaming
This is the most data-intensive activity:
-
Standard Definition (SD) video consumes about 0.7GB - 1GB per hour.
This means 1GB might only be enough for approximately 1 hour of SD video. -
High Definition (HD) video uses around 1.5GB - 3GB per hour.
1GB is almost certainly not enough for even a half-hour of HD video. -
4K video can consume 7GB - 10GB per hour.
1GB wouldn't last even 10 minutes for 4K video.
Online Gaming
Most online games use 40MB - 300MB per hour.
With 1GB, you can play games for approximately 3-25 hours, depending on the game type (shooter games generally consume more data).
Note: Game downloads and updates consume a large amount of data, often several GBs to tens of GBs.
Video Calls (e.g., Zoom, FaceTime)
- Standard Definition (SD) video calls use about 340MB per hour.
1GB can support approximately 3 hours of SD video calls. - High Definition (HD) video calls can be as high as 2GB per hour.
1GB would be insufficient for even half an hour of HD video calls.
Email
Sending and receiving plain text emails consumes very little data, about 15KB per email. Emails with attachments are around 100KB per email.
With 1GB, you can send and receive tens of thousands of plain text emails or thousands of emails with attachments.
2：Is 1GB of data per day enough?
For light users, 1GB of data per day might just be enough. This includes daily text messaging (e.g., WeChat, Line), web Browse, checking emails, and using map navigation. However, if you watch high-definition videos, make long video calls, play large online games, or frequently upload photos and videos, 1GB will be used up quickly.
3：Is 10-20Mbps Mobile Data Speed Fast?
Mobile data speed of 10-20Mbps is fast enough for most daily usage scenarios.
- 10Mbps is generally sufficient for smooth high-definition (1080p) video streaming, video calls, web browsing, and social media use.
- 20Mbps provides an even more stable experience, especially when multiple devices are in use simultaneously or for activities that demand slightly higher speeds. For instance, Netflix recommends at least 25Mbps for 4K video streaming.
However, if you have higher demands, such as watching ultra-high-definition (4K/8K) videos, downloading large files, or playing online games that require very low latency, you might prefer faster speeds (e.g., 50Mbps or higher).
4：Is 2GB of data per day enough?
For moderate users, 2GB of data per day is generally sufficient. It can support more social media Browse, watching some standard-definition videos, listening to music, and moderate video calls.
If you are a heavy video streamer or frequently download large files, 2GB might still not be enough.
Overall, whether the data is enough mainly depends on your specific usage habits.
If you are mostly connected to Wi-Fi or only perform basic communication and browsing, then 1GB or 2GB per day might be sufficient. But if you are a heavy mobile user, especially for streaming content or online gaming, you might need more data, or even consider an unlimited data plan.
