aloSIM vs The SIM Shop: a bundled phone number, and what you pay for it

Do you actually need a second phone number?

This is the whole comparison, so it goes before the prices.

Your Australian number keeps working while you use a travel eSIM. That is the thing most people do not realise. A travel eSIM is data only and sits alongside your existing SIM, so your Australian number keeps receiving calls and texts, including bank verification codes, as long as you leave that line switched on with data roaming off.

So the common reason people think they need a second number, receiving bank SMS codes overseas, is already solved without buying anything extra. We have written that up properly in keeping your Australian number and receiving bank SMS codes while overseas.

Where a second number genuinely helps:

You need a local number a foreign business can call or text. Restaurant bookings in the USA, service appointments, delivery drivers, and verification systems that reject international numbers. This is a real problem and it is the strongest case for aloSIM.

You do not want to give out your Australian number. Marketplace listings, short-term rentals, tour operators, anything where you would rather use a disposable number.

Your Australian plan charges for receiving calls overseas. Some do. A bundled number can sidestep that.

You are travelling for a long time and want a number that works without your Australian plan running in the background.

Where it does not help:

Calling home. WhatsApp, FaceTime, Messenger and Signal all work fine over any data plan and are what most people actually use.

Bank codes from Australian banks. Those go to your Australian number, which is still working.

If none of the four situations above applies to you, the bundled number is a feature you will not use, and the comparison comes down to price per gigabyte, where we are cheaper.

The price comparison, with a caveat

The caveat first. aloSIM lists Australian dollars among its supported currencies, alongside US dollars, euros, pounds, Canadian dollars and Mexican pesos. We captured their prices in US dollars and did not capture the Australian dollar figures. We are not going to convert and present the result as a price.

So this table is their US dollar prices against our Australian dollar ones, which is not a clean comparison and should be treated as indicative rather than decisive.

Japan, which is the destination we have full aloSIM figures for:

At the rate on the day we checked, our Australian dollar figures sit below their US dollar ones once conversion is applied at the 5GB, 10GB and 20GB tiers, and above at 1GB and 3GB. Check aloSIM’s Australian dollar pricing directly before deciding, because that is the figure that will actually be charged and we do not have it.

aloSIM also sells duration-based unlimited plans, running from about US$11.50 for three days to US$74.00 for thirty.

Our full ladder for every destination: travel eSIM prices in Australia.

Where we think we are better

1. Price per gigabyte at the mid and upper tiers , subject to the currency caveat above. aloSIM’s data pricing is mid-market rather than cheap, which several independent reviews have noted, and it is the trade-off for the bundled number.
2. Australian dollars end to end, from an Australian company. aloSIM supports Australian dollars, which is good, but they are a Canadian company. We are an Australian company banking in Australia, under Australian law, with someone answering the email in your own time zone.
3. You probably do not need the phone number. Covered above, and it is the substantive point rather than a dismissal. Your Australian number keeps working for bank codes and calls from home, which is what most travellers actually need.
4. Simpler catalogue. aloSIM runs data buckets alongside a parallel set of duration-based unlimited plans with product names like Weekender, Extended Stay and Month Abroad. That is more shapes to compare than one clear ladder per destination.

Where we are the same

Both are retailers on wholesale. Neither of us owns a network. aloSIM’s parent is a software company, ours is us. Who actually owns the network behind your travel eSIM.

Neither publishes a universal numeric reduced-speed promise that we could find. Our exact plans publish the high-speed allowance and reset basis, but Ubigi, Airalo and Saily still provide clearer provider-wide numeric commitments.

Both are data plans, and neither is a VPN. A bundled phone number does not change what is accessible on a connection.

The verdict

Buy from aloSIM if you need a phone number a foreign business can call or text, particularly in the USA where phone-based booking and verification are still common. Or if you want a disposable number to give out. Or if their Australian dollar pricing on your destination beats ours, which you should check directly.

Buy from us if you do not need a second number, which is most Australian holidaymakers, and you want the lower per-gigabyte price from an Australian company under Australian law.

And check the alternative first, because it might be free: your Australian number keeps working alongside a travel eSIM for calls, texts and bank codes. If that is all you needed, you do not need either a bundled number or a paid add-on.

If you do need a number and want to compare the paid options, Saily sells one from about US$0.99 a month and Airalo sells voice and SMS on its USA, UK, Europe and Global ranges. Full field comparison: the best travel eSIM for Australians.

Questions people actually ask

Does aloSIM include a phone number?

Yes, on every plan, which is unusual in a category where roughly ninety-five per cent of providers are data only. It comes from their parent company’s existing second-number product rather than a telco partnership.

Do I need a second phone number when travelling?

Usually not. Your Australian number keeps working for calls, texts and bank verification codes on your existing SIM while a travel eSIM handles data. A second number helps if you need a local number a foreign business can call or text, or if you want a disposable number to give out.

Is aloSIM cheaper than The SIM Shop?

Their data pricing is mid-market rather than cheap. On Japan their published US dollar figures are US$11.00 for 5GB over 30 days and US$18.00 for 10GB, against our A$14.95 and A$19.95. We did not capture their Australian dollar prices, so check those directly rather than converting.

Does aloSIM charge in Australian dollars?

Yes. Australian dollars is one of six currencies they support, alongside US dollars, euros, pounds, Canadian dollars and Mexican pesos. That is more than several larger competitors offer.

Is aloSIM Australian?

No. They are run by AffinityClick, a Canadian software company. They do support Australian dollar pricing, which is a separate thing from being an Australian company under Australian law.

Which network does aloSIM use?

They name the carrier on their product pages, and their Japan page names KDDI. Our exact Japan plan also names KDDI/au, NTT docomo, Rakuten and SoftBank. Check the exact plan because network access can differ within one provider’s catalogue.

Can I use a bundled phone number for bank codes?

Australian bank codes go to your Australian number, which keeps working on your existing SIM alongside a travel eSIM. A bundled foreign number is for receiving calls and texts from businesses in the country you are visiting, not for your Australian bank.

Does aloSIM sell unlimited plans?

Yes, as duration-based plans running from about US$11.50 for three days to US$74.00 for thirty, alongside their standard data buckets. We could not find a published throttle threshold or throttled speed for them, which is the same gap we have.

Sources

aloSIM company information, currency support, carrier naming and pricing from their own site, alosim.com and their Japan product page, captured 17 August 2026. Their Australian dollar prices were not captured, and the figures quoted are their published US dollar ones, flagged as such in the text. Our own prices from our live product pages. Comparison context maintained in travel eSIM prices in Australia.

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