Confirmed from each provider's own site — see the trust card on each provider page for the verification date.
Airalo
Nomad
Cellesim
BNESIM
ID verification
Airalo:
Required for some countries (passport/ID)
Nomad:
Not required
Cellesim:
Not confirmed yet
BNESIM:
Not confirmed yet
Refund policy
Airalo:
Self-service refund request from your account (My eSIMs > Package History > Request Refund) for wrong purchase, changed plans, installation issues, or a non-working eSIM — expired or fully-used eSIMs aren't eligible. Wrong-purchase/changed-plans refunds go to Airmoney (their in-app credit) only; installation-issue/not-working refunds can go to Airmoney or your original payment method, taking 7-10 business days (up to 30 depending on your bank).
Nomad:
Refund requests must be made within 30 days of purchase: a plan not yet installed or activated may be fully refunded (to the card or as Nomad Points); after activation only a partial refund for verified technical failure. Unlimited plans and a few others are non-refundable.
Cellesim:
Refunds only for technical failures caused by Cellesim that support can't resolve; locked/incompatible phones, user error (e.g. deleting the eSIM), wrong-device installs and change of mind after delivery are non-refundable.
BNESIM:
Refund requests must be made within 14 days of purchase and are denied once over 10% of the plan's data has been used; approved refunds go to BNE Wallet credit (24h) or the original payment method (up to 3 business days).
Validity starts
Airalo:
Validity starts either when the eSIM connects to the destination network or at the moment of installation, depending on the specific plan — check 'Additional Information > Activation Policy' on the plan page before buying to see which applies.
Nomad:
Validity starts only when the eSIM is activated, meaning first connection to a network or the automatic activation-window deadline - not at installation or purchase.
Cellesim:
The validity countdown does not start at install - it begins only when the eSIM first connects to the network at your destination, so installing early does not waste days.
BNESIM:
Data validity starts counting down as soon as a plan is purchased by default; BNESIM also lets you schedule activation for a specific future day instead. Once installed, the eSIM begins working within about a minute of connecting to a local network.
Fair-use limit
Airalo:
Unlimited plans default to a 3GB-per-day full-speed allowance before throttling to 1 Mbps for the rest of that 24-hour period (counted from activation, not purchase); a different daily threshold is stated on the specific plan's page when it applies instead of the 3GB default.
Nomad:
Most Unlimited plans give 2 GB of high-speed data per day, then speed drops to about 1 Mbps or 2 Mbps (depending on the plan) for the rest of the day; the allowance resets every 24 hours from activation.
Cellesim:
Carriers throttle the connection after the high-speed cap (often 5-20GB depending on tier); Plus/Premium tiers keep full speed longer.
BNESIM:
Unlimited-data plans may be suspended if daily usage reaches 5GB or monthly usage reaches 100GB; BNESIM reserves the right to limit speed for very high network use.
Top-ups & rollover
Airalo:
Only plans marked 'rechargeable' (checkable under Additional Information before buying) can be topped up, via the My eSIMs > Top Up option in the app — a non-rechargeable eSIM or one that changed carriers requires buying a new eSIM instead.
Nomad:
Add-ons can be purchased in the Nomad eSIM app or website (Manage, then Add more data) without reinstalling; not every plan supports add-ons and they cannot be bought from the UAE or India.
Cellesim:
Where a top-up is offered for your eSIM, add data from your Cellesim account or app to the same eSIM profile without reinstalling; if none is available you need to buy a new plan.
BNESIM:
Top up via the BNESIM eSIM app: open My eSIMs, pick the eSIM to recharge, then choose a country and data plan; no reinstall needed.
Support
Airalo:
Live chat · Help center · 24/7
Nomad:
Help center · Email · Live chat
Cellesim:
Live chat · Email · 24/7
BNESIM:
Live chat · WhatsApp · Email · Help center · 24/7
Comparison by eSIMKart
