Mar 22, 2016, 3:00 am
Last edit by: RichardInSF
Japan - Prepaid Data SIM Wikia
1) get a SIM before the trip, activate it when you land. you can find japan-specific prepaid SIMs on ebay/amazon/... .Some countries have providers that offer good roaming rates in other countries(eg Starhub in Singapore, Ais Sim2Fly available globally)
2) preorder it, delivered to your hotel
3) preorder it to airport post office, can pick up when you land
4) preorder it, pickup at some airport counter/store
5) at airport/city, find an store/kiosk/vending machine and buy from them
6) Use an app such as Iijmio, Airalo or Ubigi to buy an e-SIM if your phone supports it
If you are arriving at Haneda international terminal without a SIM: Exit customs, turn right, and continue to the BIC camera store on the left side. Ignore any other places and vending machines that will sell you a SIM. BIC has a good selection at regular camera store prices.
1) get a SIM before the trip, activate it when you land. you can find japan-specific prepaid SIMs on ebay/amazon/... .Some countries have providers that offer good roaming rates in other countries(eg Starhub in Singapore, Ais Sim2Fly available globally)
2) preorder it, delivered to your hotel
3) preorder it to airport post office, can pick up when you land
4) preorder it, pickup at some airport counter/store
5) at airport/city, find an store/kiosk/vending machine and buy from them
6) Use an app such as Iijmio, Airalo or Ubigi to buy an e-SIM if your phone supports it
If you are arriving at Haneda international terminal without a SIM: Exit customs, turn right, and continue to the BIC camera store on the left side. Ignore any other places and vending machines that will sell you a SIM. BIC has a good selection at regular camera store prices.
Prepaid SIM discussion (consolidated)
Sep 29, 2022, 3:53 am
#586
Join Date: Jun 2021
Posts: 11
For someone like me who visits for two weeks, the initiation fee (350 yen) + 20gb (1650) for one month seems great. I read up thread to cancel after two months though(?) Does that mean we have to pay for at least two months of service?There are a couple of other things working in IIJMio's favor aside from the price.
1. Guaranteed local connection. Most major players in the eSIM market will route your data through whichever provider/country provides them the cheapest way to provision one-off data SIMs, which, for some reason, is rarely a provider in the country you're going to. IIJMio is local and will route your data locally. Ubigi is technically owned by NTT but unless someone comes back and reports on it I won't just assume they're issuing the eSIMs themselves.
2. No hard cap. Ubigi eSIMs hard-cap your data- use that 10GB and that's it. IIJMio just throttles you to 200kbps and allows you to buy more high-speed data should you want it.
3. Set it up once and use it over and over again. If you're a repeat visitor then it's easier to set up IIJMio once and be able to just turn it on once you arrive in Japan.
1. Guaranteed local connection. Most major players in the eSIM market will route your data through whichever provider/country provides them the cheapest way to provision one-off data SIMs, which, for some reason, is rarely a provider in the country you're going to. IIJMio is local and will route your data locally. Ubigi is technically owned by NTT but unless someone comes back and reports on it I won't just assume they're issuing the eSIMs themselves.
2. No hard cap. Ubigi eSIMs hard-cap your data- use that 10GB and that's it. IIJMio just throttles you to 200kbps and allows you to buy more high-speed data should you want it.
3. Set it up once and use it over and over again. If you're a repeat visitor then it's easier to set up IIJMio once and be able to just turn it on once you arrive in Japan.
Sep 29, 2022, 8:02 am
#587
Join Date: May 2015
Posts: 51
Wow, I'm having no luck at all trying to buy an esim. Amazon Japan is now blocking all forms of payment I'm trying for the iijmio esim (all US credit cards, and also buying an Amazon gift card with a US card and using that doesn't work.)
Now I'm on iijmio's site and I keep doing something wrong and I'm redirected to the SIM signup.
I should've kept one of my old iPhones with a SIM slot, but I didn't. I'm going to have to get a pocket WiFi for the first time in a long time. Do they still run really hot? I accidentally took a rental cell phone through the gates once. No one would take it back out for me and so I had to take it to the US and mail it back to Japan. I hope I don't do the same with the pocket wifi.
Now I'm on iijmio's site and I keep doing something wrong and I'm redirected to the SIM signup.
I should've kept one of my old iPhones with a SIM slot, but I didn't. I'm going to have to get a pocket WiFi for the first time in a long time. Do they still run really hot? I accidentally took a rental cell phone through the gates once. No one would take it back out for me and so I had to take it to the US and mail it back to Japan. I hope I don't do the same with the pocket wifi.
Personally after using SIMs that routes through Hong Kong in the past I definitely try to go for local SIMs, I find those SIMs also drains your battery life more, like it is constantly communicating back home.
Pick left option (New Contract), next pick right option (SIM Only)
Pick right most option (Data/eSIM), don't pick anything next section, that's for regular SIM, but pick from the next option which is for ESIM. The numbers indicates the amount of GBs and the cost will go down on the right.
Sep 29, 2022, 8:24 am
#589
Join Date: Aug 2008
Programs: HHonors Gold, Marriott Lifetime Gold, IHG Gold, OZ*G, AA Gold, AS MVP
Posts: 1,874
Sep 29, 2022, 8:32 am
#590
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 7
Blocking in what way? I just purchased one a few days ago through amazon.co.jp, and i highly doubt they would go to any effort to block payments because a few people bought esims. US citizens buy stuff on japan amazon all the time.
On iijmio's site, you have to sign up once you get the SIM in the cart and before you can pay, put in the katakana version of your name for the kanji and kana names, and the romaji put your real name, there are websites that let you convert you name to katakana. 姓 and セイ are last names 名 and メイ are first names.
For address, put your hotel address and phone number. Just have to put the zip code in and it'll fill out the rest, then put their phone number with a leading 0 (ie 3-1234-5678 becomes 03-1234-5678 ). Should be good to go after that. If it's the giga esim, you won't be asked for your ID.
On iijmio's site, you have to sign up once you get the SIM in the cart and before you can pay, put in the katakana version of your name for the kanji and kana names, and the romaji put your real name, there are websites that let you convert you name to katakana. 姓 and セイ are last names 名 and メイ are first names.
For address, put your hotel address and phone number. Just have to put the zip code in and it'll fill out the rest, then put their phone number with a leading 0 (ie 3-1234-5678 becomes 03-1234-5678 ). Should be good to go after that. If it's the giga esim, you won't be asked for your ID.
Sep 29, 2022, 8:41 am
#591
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 7
Blocking in what way? I just purchased one a few days ago through amazon.co.jp, and i highly doubt they would go to any effort to block payments because a few people bought esims. US citizens buy stuff on japan amazon all the time.
On iijmio's site, you have to sign up once you get the SIM in the cart and before you can pay, put in the katakana version of your name for the kanji and kana names, and the romaji put your real name, there are websites that let you convert you name to katakana. 姓 and セイ are last names 名 and メイ are first names.
For address, put your hotel address and phone number. Just have to put the zip code in and it'll fill out the rest, then put their phone number with a leading 0 (ie 3-1234-5678 becomes 03-1234-5678 ). Should be good to go after that. If it's the giga esim, you won't be asked for your ID.
On iijmio's site, you have to sign up once you get the SIM in the cart and before you can pay, put in the katakana version of your name for the kanji and kana names, and the romaji put your real name, there are websites that let you convert you name to katakana. 姓 and セイ are last names 名 and メイ are first names.
For address, put your hotel address and phone number. Just have to put the zip code in and it'll fill out the rest, then put their phone number with a leading 0 (ie 3-1234-5678 becomes 03-1234-5678 ). Should be good to go after that. If it's the giga esim, you won't be asked for your ID.
In any case, maybe my problem is that I have an Amazon Japan account with a US address and all I was trying to change is the shipping address. Here's my error.
Sep 29, 2022, 11:09 am
#593
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite
Posts: 1,970
Well, I'm good at computers. Good thing I get paid for this. I hope this is the only reply because somehow I lost the last one.
In any case, maybe my problem is that I have an Amazon Japan account with a US address and all I was trying to change is the shipping address. Here's my error.
In any case, maybe my problem is that I have an Amazon Japan account with a US address and all I was trying to change is the shipping address. Here's my error.
All that said, it's not really needed, you will have to go through the same process with IIJMio regardless, and the price comes out the same (550 yen when all is said and done for the sim). Amazon is 350 plus you get charged 200 from iijmio and still have to register, or just pay 550 to iijmio. Just go straight through IIJMio's website and skip the amazon step.
Sep 29, 2022, 1:32 pm
#595
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite
Posts: 1,970
cons for pocket wifi: extra thing to charge and lose, if you split from your party, whoever doesn't have the pocket wifi loses internet, harder to find a lost party unless they are able to find free wifi
pros for eSim: your phone has data no matter what (assuming you have data left in the plan or are unlimited), no need to charge an extra device, all people in party will have their own data, so easier to keep in touch
cons for eSim: can be a pain to set up if you're not a techy, if you are already using your eSim slot, you will have to add back your domestic (ie US-based) eSim when you get back to the US.
Sep 29, 2022, 2:19 pm
#597
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite
Posts: 1,970
Sep 29, 2022, 5:31 pm
#598
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 2,304
I guess there's also pro for esim - setup remotely & can stop contract from home. Never thought about forgetting to return a rental phone or pocket wifi but I can see that. The postal boxes if you have to mail it are also before security at Narita and Haneda
I've used a paid or travel sponsored wifi access plan on a secondary mobile device supplementing primary device on data sim. Looks like if one were setup with IIJMio account then adding paid wifi access is ~400 JPY https://www.iijmio.jp/hdd/option/iijmiowifi/ or free 2 month trial when on a new contract.
I've used a paid or travel sponsored wifi access plan on a secondary mobile device supplementing primary device on data sim. Looks like if one were setup with IIJMio account then adding paid wifi access is ~400 JPY https://www.iijmio.jp/hdd/option/iijmiowifi/ or free 2 month trial when on a new contract.
Sep 29, 2022, 11:43 pm
#599
Join Date: Aug 2008
Programs: HHonors Gold, Marriott Lifetime Gold, IHG Gold, OZ*G, AA Gold, AS MVP
Posts: 1,874
So in your amazon.co.jp account settings, you have to change your region to Japan and might have to use VPN from Japan to get it to work, i did the VPN thing, but i'm not sure if that was needed or not.. The region change is under your digital content settings iirc. Also your default address for billing has to be in japan, so i set it to my hotel, you can still use a US address for your credit card billing address.Once I did that I was able to check out. It took a lot of trial and error, but a combination of those made it work.
All that said, it's not really needed, you will have to go through the same process with IIJMio regardless, and the price comes out the same (550 yen when all is said and done for the sim). Amazon is 350 plus you get charged 200 from iijmio and still have to register, or just pay 550 to iijmio. Just go straight through IIJMio's website and skip the amazon step.
All that said, it's not really needed, you will have to go through the same process with IIJMio regardless, and the price comes out the same (550 yen when all is said and done for the sim). Amazon is 350 plus you get charged 200 from iijmio and still have to register, or just pay 550 to iijmio. Just go straight through IIJMio's website and skip the amazon step.
And yes, as long as the 550 promo is on you're absolutely better off doing it directly with IIJ, the Amazon step is mainly for when IIJ isn't doing promos. Amazon has always been selling those codes for 350 (+200 "eSIM profile fee" from IIJ), IIJ promos are time-limited. They sell codes for a variety of MVNOs all at that 300-ish yen price point, in fact.
Oct 1, 2022, 1:18 pm
#600
Join Date: Oct 2008
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 887
Think I might have screwed up. Purchased the 20GB eSim from IIJMio, then went to activate it and got a message saying it couldn't be activated after about 10mins - I'm assuming this is because I'm in the UK currently.
Anyone know if it will automatically activate when I land in Japan next month and switch to the IIJMIo Sim?
Anyone know if it will automatically activate when I land in Japan next month and switch to the IIJMIo Sim?