Internet usage simulator: how many GB do you need for your trip?
Choosing the right eSIM should never feel like a gamble. Many travelers end up overspending on unused data... or running out at the worst possible moment. To make things much clearer, here's a simple overview of how much data the main online activities actually consume.
Length of stay
15 daysUsage profile
Select your usage profile:
Your estimated data usage
Estimate for 15 days with the selected profile
20
GB- Social media browsing (Instagram, Facebook)40%
- Music streaming (Spotify, Apple Music)20%
- Occasional SD videos25%
- Messaging and audio calls15%
Where do you need data?
Data usage distribution
A quick overview to understand how much data each activity consumes on a daily basis.
Activity | Consumption/hour | Example apps |
|---|---|---|
Messaging | 10-50 MB | WhatsApp, Telegram |
Web browsing | 50-150 MB | Chrome, Safari |
Geolocation | 30-60 MB | Maps, Waze |
Social media | 100-250 MB | Instagram, TikTok |
SD video | 500 MB | YouTube, Netflix |
HD video | 1.5-3 GB | Netflix, Prime |
Music | 50-100 MB | Spotify, Apple Music |
1 GB, 5 GB, 10 GB, 20 GB: what can you actually do?
Gigabytes remain abstract until you translate them into actual hours of use. Here is what each tier represents, based on average data consumption per app:
1 GB
About twenty hours of GPS, around 10 hours of music streaming, 4 to 10 hours of social media, or just 2 hours of SD video (20 to 40 minutes in HD).
5 GB
One week of light usage: daily GPS and messaging, web searches, and sending a few photos. It's enough if you use Wi-Fi in the evening, but it won't be enough as soon as you start watching videos.
10 GB
The perfect balance for a week of moderate use (social media, music, GPS) or two weeks of light use. It's the most popular data volume for travelers.
20 GB
Two comfortable weeks with moderate usage, or one intensive week with series and video calls. Beyond that, aim for 50 GB or a rechargeable eSIM.
Get your eSIM for your next trip
You know how many GBs you need, all that's left is to pick your destination.
How many GB per day do you need when traveling?
When you're planning a trip abroad, the question of a mobile plan always comes up: how many gigs do you actually need to last the whole trip? The answer depends less on the destination and more on how you use your phone. Here are the benchmarks we've noticed, for mobile data only, excluding Wi-Fi:
- Light usage (messaging, GPS, web browsing): about 0.5 GB per day
- Moderate usage (social media, music streaming, occasional videos): 1 to 1.5 GB per day
- Heavy usage (HD series, video calls, online gaming): 2 to 3 GB per day
- Very heavy usage (4K video, live streaming, hotspotting): 4 to 5 GB per day
Most travelers use between 1 and 2 GB per day. However, two people in the same city can consume anywhere from one to four times that amount: it's the accumulation of small, repeated tasks (using Google Maps, looking for a restaurant, sending photos on WhatsApp) that makes up the bulk of data usage.
These estimates apply to the mobile network only. As soon as you connect to hotel or cafe Wi-Fi, your mobile data usage drops significantly, sometimes to zero for the entire day.
How many GB should you plan for 1 week, 2 weeks, or 1 month?
Once you've identified your profile, just multiply it by the length of your stay. Here are the data volumes to expect, calculated using the same estimates as the simulator above:
Usage profile | 1 week | 2 weeks | 1 month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🙅♀️ Light use | ≈ 3.5 GB | ≈ 7 GB | ≈ 15 GB |
| 👀 Moderate use | ≈ 9.5 GB | ≈ 19 GB | ≈ 40 GB |
| 🍿 Heavy use | ≈ 17.5 GB | ≈ 35 GB | ≈ 75 GB |
| 🤩 Very intensive use | ≈ 31.5 GB | ≈ 63 GB | ≈ 135 GB |
Always leave yourself a little wiggle room: a few extra GBs cost much less than losing your connection in the middle of your trip. And if you're stuck between two data amounts, go for the higher tier, or just choose a rechargeable eSIM that you can top up in minutes while you're traveling.
How to use less mobile data while traveling
A few settings before you leave are enough to significantly reduce your data usage, without changing the way you travel.
Download in offline mode
Google Maps, playlists, podcasts, tickets, and reservations: everything you download in advance via Wi-Fi won't consume any data once you're there. Offline GPS works perfectly.
Close background apps
Background refreshing, automatic photo backups, updates: these invisible data uses can add up to several hundred MB per day. Disable them in your settings.
Lower the video quality
Video is the most data-heavy usage: up to 3 GB per hour in HD compared to about 500 MB in SD. Set YouTube, Netflix, and Instagram to standard quality, and save HD for when you're on Wi-Fi.
Limit hotspotting
A computer connected to your phone can consume several GBs in just a few hours, especially if it starts running updates. Save your hotspot for when you really need it.