Drimsim

Drimsim is the odd one out among travel data services, and deliberately so: it sells no plans at all. There is no package to size, no validity window to race, and no allowance that expires unused. You hold a balance and pay for the traffic you actually spend, measured in kilobytes, in whichever of 190 countries you happen to be standing in. That model rewards one kind of traveller very specifically, the light or unpredictable user, and suits nobody who wanted a single fixed number to budget against before leaving home.

How the billing model works

Drimsim connects to a local provider in each country and charges for data as it is consumed. There are no subscription fees and no monthly commitment. Traffic is measured in kilobytes rather than rounded up to the next package, and data rates vary by country, published per destination on the site. You top the balance up and track expenses in the app, so what you are looking at is money spent rather than a bar showing how much of an allowance is gone.

The practical effect shows up on exactly the trips where package-based eSIMs leak money. A three-day stopover where the phone needs maps and a boarding pass and nothing else. A work trip where the hotel and the office both have Wi-Fi and mobile data only bridges the gaps between them. A month through six countries where every border would otherwise mean another purchase decision. In all three cases a per-country package means paying for headroom that is never touched, and a metered balance simply does not charge for it.

A physical card as well as an eSIM

Drimsim is one of the few travel data services still shipping a plastic card. The SIM card costs 10 euros, checked August 2026, and comes in nano, micro or mini format, so it fits older handsets, tablets and dedicated mobile hotspots as well as current phones. The eSIM version exists too: a virtual SIM installed by scanning a QR code, which Drimsim states operates on the latest iPhone and Android devices only.

That physical option is the reason to look here at all if your device situation is awkward. A carrier-locked handset, a phone a few generations old, a hotspot puck, a tablet without eSIM support: none of those can take an eSIM profile from any provider, and every eSIM-only competitor is simply unavailable rather than merely inconvenient. Drimsim covers the case, at the cost of needing the card to reach you before you fly.

One balance, 190 countries, no re-buying at borders

Because there is no per-country package, crossing a border is not a transaction. The same card and the same balance keep working on the other side at that country rate, with the service connecting to a local provider in each. For an itinerary made of short hops, this is the single largest difference from a package model, and it is a difference in attention rather than only in money: you stop checking whether the current plan still applies where you now are.

It also changes what happens when a trip extends. With a package you either buy again or go offline. With a balance you carry on, and the only thing that has to be true is that there is money in the account, which can be topped up from wherever you are.

Top-ups and expense tracking live in the app, and a referral programme adds a 7 euro bonus to your balance for each new user, checked August 2026. The single thing worth doing before you travel is reading the published rate for your specific destinations. Rates vary by country, and a metered model that is clearly cheaper in one place can be the expensive choice in another. That check takes a couple of minutes on the site, and it is essentially the whole risk of the pay-as-you-go approach.

It is also worth thinking about how you want the money to sit. A prepaid balance is a different relationship from a card charged per purchase: you decide once how much to put in, and the trip draws it down. Some travellers find that reassuring because the exposure is capped by what is in the account, and others find it one more thing to remember to refill mid-journey. Neither reaction is wrong, but knowing which one is yours predicts whether this model will feel calm or fiddly on the road.

Who it fits

Drimsim is the right answer for two people. The first is the light or intermittent data user who resents paying for allowance they never touch, particularly across multi-country trips. The second is anyone whose device cannot take an eSIM, where the physical card is not a preference but the only route. It is the wrong answer for a heavy user, who will pay more per gigabyte than an unlimited day pass would cost, and for anyone who wants the trip budgeted to a single figure before departure rather than metered as it happens.

No plans, just a balance

Drimsim does not sell packages. You hold a balance and pay for the data you actually use, measured in kilobytes, across 190 countries, with the service connecting to a local provider in each. There is no subscription and no allowance to burn through before it expires. For a light or unpredictable user, that removes the part of buying travel data that most often costs money: guessing the size of a package before the trip has happened.

Borders stop being purchases

Because nothing is tied to a country package, crossing a border is not a transaction. The same balance keeps working on the other side at that country rate. On an itinerary made of short hops, this is the difference between one decision and six, and it is why the model suits multi-country trips more than single-destination ones. If the trip extends, you carry on rather than buying again.

The physical card is the other reason to be here

Drimsim still ships a plastic SIM at 10 euros in nano, micro or mini format, checked August 2026, alongside an eSIM installed from a QR code which it states works on the latest iPhone and Android devices only. If your handset is carrier-locked, a few generations old, or is actually a tablet or a hotspot puck, eSIM-only providers are not an option at all. This is the route that still works. A referral programme adds 7 euros to your balance per new user.

Who should look at something else

Heavy users are the wrong fit: streaming, tethering a laptop all day or working from the connection will cost more metered than an unlimited day pass, and Yesim sells those by the day while GigSky One sells large monthly allowances. Anyone who wants one fixed figure decided before departure will be more comfortable with a package catalogue such as Airalo or Saily. And the card has to arrive before you travel, so a last-minute airport decision belongs to an eSIM. Choose Drimsim when the usage is light or unknown, the route crosses several countries, or the device cannot take an eSIM.