Ubigi vs The SIM Shop: stronger fair use or lower checked destination prices?

The price comparison

Ten gigabytes over thirty days, in Australian dollars. Both companies bill Australians in Australian dollars, so this is a genuine like-for-like.

The 35-area plan does not include France. If Paris or anywhere else in France is on your itinerary, take Europe 30+ Areas instead: it covers 34 destinations including France and Turkey, and 10GB over 30 days is A$29.95. The 35-area list also leaves out Turkey, Serbia, North Macedonia, Gibraltar and the Channel Islands.

Europe comes down to coverage. We sell three Europe plans at 10GB over 30 days. The 35-area plan is A$24.95 and undercuts Ubigi’s A$26.00, but leaves out France. Europe 30+ Areas includes France and Turkey at A$29.95, while our 41-destination plan is A$49.95. Europe is the highest-volume destination in this category, so spend a minute on the area lists before comparing prices. We have written the wider position out in the best eSIM for Europe.

Our full ladder is in travel eSIM prices in Australia. The SIM Shop is not registered for GST, so GST is not charged. The checkout total is the amount we charge you.

When Ubigi is the better fit

These are the situations where Ubigi makes more sense, and every item is checkable.

1. Their fair use terms are the best in the category, and ours are less consistent. From their own product page, next to the price:

“Your unlimited data plan includes 25GB of full speed data, then optimized to 2 Mbps, this Fair Use Policy ensures a stable and fair connection for all users on the network.”

That is the seven day Europe plan. Fifteen day USA plans publish 30GB and thirty day plans publish 60GB, both dropping to 2 Mbps.

Two things make this materially better than the norm. The allowance is per plan rather than per day, so one heavy day does not cost you the rest of the week. And 2 Mbps is roughly twice what most of this category throttles to, which is the difference between a video call that works and one that does not.

Our exact daily plans publish the allowance and supplier-backed reduced-speed wording, with a number only where the supplier states one. Ubigi still says it more clearly. Sourced comparison of all nine providers: what “unlimited” actually means.

2. They run their own network identity. Transatel is a licensed operator inside the NTT group. For most destinations that is a footnote. In Japan it is the actual story, because NTT is the group behind Docomo, and it is the single best reason to pay their higher Japan price if you are heading into the mountains rather than staying in cities. We have set that out in the best eSIM for Japan.
3. Five reinstalls, and a profile that persists.

“All Ubigi eSIM profiles can be re-installed up to 5 times max after being deleted (NB: other providers usually allow the installation only once and re-installation is not possible).”

The profile stays alive as long as you use a plan at least once every eighteen months. If you travel two or three times a year, you are topping up an account rather than buying a fresh disposable eSIM each trip. That is a nicer model than ours.

4. You can check your balance and top up with no data and no wifi.

“you can top up your Ubigi account at any time, even without Wi-Fi or a valid Data plan”

Their terms confirm that when a plan runs out “You still have access to the Ubigi selfcare.”

This solves the circular problem that ruins this entire category, needing data to buy data, and almost nobody else has an answer to it, us included. It is the most under-rated feature in the category and we would rather point at it than pretend it does not exist.

5. They are cheaper than our Europe options that include France, per the table, though our 35-area plan comes in below them. Our checked seven-country Southeast Asia plan is now A$13.05 lower than theirs, provided that narrower country list fits the trip.
6. Card refunds only, with no store credit push. If a Ubigi refund is approved it goes back to your card within 10 business days. Several competitors steer you toward their own currency instead. Ubigi does not offer one.

The catch, and it is a real one

Ubigi publishes two different refund tests simultaneously, on two live pages, producing opposite outcomes for the same customer.

Terms and Conditions:

“the refund of your preloaded eSIM profile is only possible if you have not scanned the QR code received by email after your purchase. If you have already scanned the received QR code, your refund request will be denied.”

Help Centre:

“The refund of your preloaded eSIM profile is only possible if you have not used any of the data plan(s) that you purchased. If you have already started using your data plan, your refund request will be denied.”

Under the first, installing your eSIM at home the night before you fly ends your refund rights before you board. Under the second, you keep them until you use data.

Ubigi’s own pre-travel guidance tells you to install before you travel. So following their advice can forfeit your refund under their own terms.

There is a second contradiction of the same kind on carrier-locked handsets: the Terms say refunds “are not possible”; the Help Centre says a refund “may be possible”. And the Terms carry a blanket line: “Once purchased, the Data Plan cannot be refunded.”

The claim window is 14 business days from purchase, and you must attach the payment receipt.

Practical advice if you buy from them: do not scan the QR code until you are committed to the trip. Check compatibility from the plan description first.

One more warning from their own pages, which is easy to walk into: deleting your Ubigi account is destructive in a way deleting the profile is not.

“In case you have active data plans on your Ubigi account, they will all be deleted. Data plans refund, retrieval, replacement, or transfer to other Ubigi account(s) are not possible after an account deletion. All requests of this kind after an account deletion will be systematically declined.”

Full process: how a Ubigi refund works, and the whole category side by side in travel eSIM refund policies compared.

“Unless provided otherwise in applicable laws, You are subject to French laws and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Paris.”

Australian consumer guarantees apply to services supplied to Australian consumers regardless of what a contract says, and a term cannot exclude them. Ubigi’s clause does at least open with “Unless provided otherwise in applicable laws”, which is a hook. But the practical difference is real: a dispute with us runs through a local tribunal, and a dispute over a thirty dollar plan under exclusive Paris jurisdiction, realistically, does not run anywhere.

4. Published support hours. Ubigi publishes no support hours and no response time commitment anywhere. Their contact routes are a form, an AI chat assistant, and a WhatsApp line that connects to the same AI. Their own description of that channel sets expectations correctly: the assistant “can access information from our website, but cannot access your customer account or personal data.” Their own advice is to skip the chat for anything real: “we strongly recommend using the contact form for faster, personalized support.”
5. Current documentation. A lot of Ubigi’s is old. Their core iPhone troubleshooting article is dated 2022, their APN article is dated 2022, and their profile validity rules are dated 2020. The content may still be correct. It has not been reviewed in a long time.

Where we are the same

Both bill Australians in Australian dollars, which puts both of us ahead of Nomad and Saily on currency.

Neither of us has phone support.

Both permit hotspot with no published device limit. Ubigi publishes how-to guides for four platforms, which is more than we do.

Neither of us publishes a response time commitment.

The verdict

Choose Ubigi if its Europe list covers your itinerary and its price beats the SIM Shop plan that covers it, or if its Asia coverage fits stops that our seven-country plan does not. Or if you are a heavy data user who wants a published full-speed allowance and a 2 Mbps floor. Or if you travel often and want a profile you can reinstall and top up from anywhere with no connection. Or if you are going into rural Japan and the NTT connection matters to you.

Consider us if you are going to Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, the UK or the USA, or if our seven-country Southeast Asia plan covers your route, where our checked price was lower. Or if you want one refund policy instead of two that disagree, with no rule about scanning a QR code. Or if you want an Australian company under Australian law with published support and someone in your own time zone.

If you do buy Ubigi, the one thing to remember from this article is: do not scan the QR code until you are sure you are going.

We have also compared Ubigi against the rest of the field, without us in the picture, in Airalo vs Ubigi.

Questions people actually ask

Is Ubigi a real mobile network?

Ubigi is a brand of Transatel, which is part of NTT, and it operates with its own network identity rather than purely reselling wholesale from other carriers. That is unusual in this category, where most providers are resellers or marketplaces.

Is Ubigi cheaper than The SIM Shop?

Against our 41-destination Europe plan, yes, and by a wide margin: A$26.00 against A$49.95 for 10GB. Against Europe 30+ Areas with France, they were A$3.95 lower. Against our 35-area plan at A$24.95 they were not, though that list leaves out France. On Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, the UK, the USA and the checked seven-country Southeast Asia plan we are cheaper. Ubigi may still fit a wider Asia itinerary, so compare the country lists.

Does scanning the QR code void a Ubigi refund?

Their Terms and Conditions say yes. Their Help Centre says only using data does. Both pages are live and they contradict each other, and their own pre-travel guidance tells you to install before you fly. If cancellation is possible, do not scan the code.

What speed does Ubigi throttle to?

2 Mbps, after a per-plan allowance published on each product page: 25GB on a 7 day Europe plan, 30GB on a 15 day USA plan, 60GB on a 30 day plan. That is the most generous published fair use policy in this category and more consistent than our plan-specific wording.

Can I reinstall a Ubigi eSIM?

Yes, up to five times, and the profile stays alive as long as you use a plan at least once every 18 months. Deleting your Ubigi account, as opposed to the profile, destroys any active plans and forfeits refunds.

Does Ubigi have Australian support?

No. Ubigi contracts through Transatel under French law with exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Paris, and publishes no support hours or response time commitment. Their WhatsApp line connects to an AI assistant that cannot access your account.

Can I top up a Ubigi plan without data?

Yes, and it is one of their best features. Their own material states you can top up “even without Wi-Fi or a valid Data plan”, and their terms confirm the self-care account stays reachable when a plan runs out. Almost nobody else in this category solves that.

Which is better for Japan?

Ours is cheaper at A$19.95 against A$29.00. Ubigi’s NTT connection is the strongest network argument anyone makes on that destination, so if you are heading into the mountains or off the main rail lines, their higher price may be worth paying.

Sources

Our own prices from our live product pages. Ubigi prices from their own Australian dollar store, confirmed to settle in Australian dollars at the cart. Ubigi policy quotes from their Terms and Conditions and Help Centre articles on refunds, fair use, reinstallation, account deletion, balance checking and contact channels. Ubigi’s corporate ownership from Transatel’s own published company information. All retrieved 17 to 20 August 2026. We re-check every price in this article monthly.

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