ALDI Mobile roaming packs, and the clock that starts before you fly

What ALDI Mobile actually sells

Checked 1 September 2026. All packs run seven days.

The North America pack is genuinely good value. Two gigabytes for $5 across three countries, with your Australian number still working, is hard to argue with for a short trip to the United States.

The Global Travel pack is the one that does something an eSIM cannot. It includes 30 minutes and 50 SMS on your own number across 47 destinations. If you need to actually make and take calls on your Australian number, that is a different product from a data-only eSIM and it is worth the money.

You need an active ALDI Mobile plan before you can buy any of them.

The four rules that catch people out

These are all from ALDI’s own terms and they are the reason to read before you buy.

1. Roaming is off until you switch it on. From their support pages: “To use your ALDI Mobile overseas you’ll need to enable roaming.” You do it in My ALDI Mobile under Manage Account, and they “highly recommend enabling International Roaming whilst in Australia, before you leave.” Doing it from an arrivals hall with no connection is exactly the problem you were trying to avoid.
2. The seven days start when you buy, not when you land. Their terms state packs “start as soon as you buy them and last for 7 days, expiring at midnight Australian Eastern Time (AET).”

Two consequences worth thinking about. If you buy the pack the day before a long-haul flight, you have spent a day of it in Australia. And because expiry is measured in Australian time, a pack bought on a Monday morning in Sydney ends at midnight Sydney time the following Monday, whatever the clock says where you are.

3. Buying a second pack of the same type cancels the first. Their terms are explicit that purchasing the same pack type while one is active replaces it, and “unused inclusions are forfeited.” So if you run out of data on day four and buy another Asia pack, whatever was left of the first one is gone.
4. There is a daily purchase limit. A maximum of two data packs and two travel packs per calendar day. That caps how much data you can add in a hurry.

Unused data does not roll over, and packs only work in the destinations listed for that specific pack. Outside them you fall back to standard rates.

None of those four rules is standard across the industry, which is the frustrating part. Everyday Mobile bills from the day after you buy rather than the same day. Telstra starts the clock on first use overseas. Optus starts a rolling 24 hours from your first bit of usage. We have put every Australian carrier’s rule side by side in when your roaming day actually starts, and set out how ALDI’s packs compare against the other MVNOs in Australian MVNO roaming packs compared.

What happens without a pack

This is the part worth knowing even if you never buy from us.

From ALDI’s international roaming rates document, dated 17 June 2026:

Premium destinations include Brazil, East Timor, Egypt, Israel, Malta, Mexico, Nigeria, Qatar, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.

Rates are charged per megabyte, and there is no per-gigabyte option. ALDI’s own guidance puts it plainly: “Charges for using your service overseas are much higher than those at home and are not included in any of our plans.”

The practical advice is the same whoever you buy from: never travel on pay-as-you-go roaming rates. Buy something before you go, whether that is one of ALDI’s packs or a travel eSIM. The failure mode here is not choosing the wrong product, it is choosing nothing.

In ALDI’s favour, $0.50 per MB is at the cheaper end of Australian pay-as-you-go rates. Telstra publishes $3.00 per MB and Vodafone $1.00 per MB. All three are rates to avoid, and we have put them together in what roaming costs if you do not set anything up.

Their document also notes availability can change at short notice, and lists current restrictions including no international calling while roaming in the Philippines and incoming SMS only in Russia.

When ALDI’s packs are the better choice

Short trips with light data use. A week in Fiji on the Pacific pack at $5, using maps and messaging, is fine.

North America, on the numbers above. Two gigabytes for $5 is better value than our North America regional plan, which is A$8.95 for 1GB over seven days. If that is your trip, buy theirs.

When you need calls and SMS on your Australian number. The Global Travel pack does this and a data-only eSIM does not. If you are travelling for work and people ring your mobile, that matters more than the data price.

It uses your existing ALDI service. Enable international roaming in MyALDIMobile before leaving, then follow ALDI’s pack and phone-setting instructions. Check your destination is supported.

When a travel eSIM suits better

When the trip is longer than a week. ALDI’s packs are all seven days. A two week trip means two packs, a three week trip means three, each one starting the moment you buy it.

When you will use more than a gigabyte or two. The largest data-only pack is 2GB. Our Indonesia plan is 10GB over 30 days for A$17.95, our Thailand plan is 10GB over 30 days for A$16.95, and Japan is 10GB over 30 days for A$19.95.

Check the selected travel plan’s start rule and use-by before buying. Save the setup email before departure, then install after landing on working wifi. The exact option’s instructions control.

When you are going to one country. ALDI’s packs are priced for regional coverage. If you are only going to Bali, a single-destination plan is usually the cheaper shape: ours is A$4.95 for 1GB over seven days against $8 for ALDI’s 15 country Asia pack.

You can do both, and plenty of people should

This is not really an either-or, and the setup that suits most travellers uses both.

Keep the ALDI line enabled if you need texts on your Australian number. ALDI’s account roaming service and the phone’s Data Roaming switch are separate: check the account service is enabled, but turn data roaming off for the ALDI line when the travel eSIM supplies data.

We have set the phone settings out step by step in keeping your Australian number with a travel eSIM and dual SIM travel setup.

The one thing to get right is making sure your Australian line has data roaming turned off, so it cannot quietly pull data at the pay-as-you-go rate while the eSIM does the work. That toggle is explained in the data roaming toggle.

What we charge

For comparison, checked 1 September 2026, in Australian dollars. The SIM Shop is not registered for GST, so GST is not charged and the checkout total is the amount we charge you.

Our regional plans are not always the better buy and the table above shows it. On North America in particular, ALDI’s $5 for 2GB beats our A$8.95 for 1GB. Where a single-destination plan works for you, ours are the cheaper option; where you need multi-country coverage on a short trip, check theirs first.

Questions people actually ask

Does ALDI Mobile work overseas?

Yes, in the destinations listed for their roaming products, but only once you enable international roaming in your account. It is off by default and they recommend switching it on before you leave Australia.

When does an ALDI roaming pack start?

The moment you buy it. It runs seven days and expires at midnight Australian Eastern Time, regardless of where you are or what the local clock says.

What happens if I buy a second pack?

If it is the same pack type and one is already active, the new one replaces it and anything unused on the first is forfeited. There is also a limit of two data packs per calendar day.

How much is ALDI roaming without a pack?

$0.50 per megabyte in most countries and $1.00 per megabyte in premium destinations, per their rates document dated 17 June 2026. Calls are $1.00 or $2.00 a minute, made or received.

Can I use an ALDI roaming pack and a travel eSIM together?

You may not need an ALDI data pack if the travel eSIM covers your data needs. Check ALDI’s roaming service, call and SMS terms before deciding.

Will I keep my Australian number with a travel eSIM?

You can keep both lines on a compatible dual-SIM phone. Check ALDI’s roaming service and use the travel eSIM for data. Bank texts are not guaranteed.

Which is cheaper?

It depends on the trip. For a week in North America with light use, ALDI’s pack. For two weeks anywhere with real data use, a travel eSIM, because their packs cap at 2GB of data and seven days.

Sources

ALDI Mobile pack names, prices, data, validity, destination counts, activation and expiry rules from their roaming packs page, checked 1 September 2026. Roaming enablement and the recommendation to switch it on before leaving from their international roaming policy page and support article. Pay-as-you-go rates, premium destinations and country restrictions from ALDI Mobile’s international roaming rates and providers document, dated 17 June 2026. The SIM Shop prices from our own product catalogue, checked 1 September 2026, with methodology in travel eSIM prices in Australia. GST position per the Australian Business Register, checked 1 September 2026. Rates and availability change without notice, and ALDI’s own document notes availability may change at short notice.

Written by Lachlan, who runs The SIM Shop from Brisbane and answers the support email himself.