TravelDatakit

Yesim eSIM review: data and a virtual phone number in one plan

Yesim includes a virtual phone number with every plan — incoming calls and SMS without a separate SIM. Yesim advertises 200+ destinations; third-party reviews place practical inventory around 156 individual countries available for fixed and unlimited plans. Pay-as-you-go option available. Verify your destination is listed before purchasing.

Last checked: May 2026. Plans, prices and product limits can change. Always check the provider's current terms before paying.

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Fast verdict

Yesim's main differentiator is a virtual phone number included with every plan. Most travel eSIM providers are data-only — you keep your home SIM for calls. With Yesim, you get a number that can receive calls and SMS at the destination, without needing your home SIM active for that purpose. This is useful for travellers who need a local or reachable number abroad, or who use SMS for 2FA codes from local services.

The pay-as-you-go option charges per MB rather than per fixed plan — useful for light use or when you are unsure how much data you will consume. Fixed plans with defined data limits are also available.

The main constraint: Yesim advertises 200+ destinations but third-party reviews and Yesim's product pages place practical inventory around 156 individual countries for fixed/unlimited plans. For popular travel destinations this is usually sufficient — verify your destination is listed before purchasing. Speed performance also varies by destination — not independently verified at the same scale as Roamless.

Before paying: if you only need data and your home SIM already handles calls and SMS, data-only providers are cheaper. Yesim's virtual number is the reason to choose it over simpler alternatives.

Editorial assessment

Per-criterion scoring against the published review rating framework. Four criteria, scale 1–5 each, no aggregate score. Each score is justified factually below.

CRITERION → SCORE → BASIS
Coverage breadth→5/5 — 200+ destinations according to Yesim's own site. Regional and global plans available alongside per-country plans.
Plan terms transparency→4/5 — PAYG billing, virtual number, hotspot policy and refund terms documented in the help center. Outgoing call support varies by plan and must be confirmed before purchase — the only meaningful opacity.
Unlimited plans transparency→5/5 — Yesim publishes an explicit statement that it does not enforce its own Fair Usage Policy on unlimited plans; partner operators apply their own. The provider invites readers to consider fixed plans if FUP variation is a concern. Partner-operator dependency named rather than hidden behind a headline figure.
Hotspot policy transparency→5/5 — hotspot enabled by default on most plans with no extra fee. Help center explicitly states that hotspot availability "ultimately depends on the local network operator" — partner-operator dependency named rather than hidden.
Yesim in brief
TRAVEL NEED → FIT → WHAT TO CHECK
Virtual phone number for calls and SMS→Included with every Yesim plan
Data-only — no calls needed→Airalo is cheaper for data-only
Pay-as-you-go flexibility→Available — billed per MB from credit balance, rates vary by destination
Coverage breadth→Yesim advertises 200+ destinations; ~156 individual countries available for fixed plans. Verify destination first.
Unlimited data plans→Available on select destinations — check plan details
Long-term travel→Pay-as-you-go suits uncertain itineraries — check per-GB cost
Keeping home SIM for SMS→Optional if Yesim virtual number handles SMS — check plan
Choose Yesim if…
You need a phone number that can receive calls and SMS at your destination without your home SIM.
You receive 2FA codes via SMS from local services and need a number that works in the destination country.
You prefer pay-as-you-go flexibility — billed per MB with no minimum commitment beyond the plan purchase.
Your destination is in Yesim's coverage list — verify before purchasing.
Consider skipping Yesim if…
You only need data — your home SIM handles calls and SMS, and data-only providers are cheaper.
Your destination may not be covered — Yesim's practical inventory (~156 individual countries) is narrower than the largest providers. Verify before buying.
You need the highest possible speeds — Roamless has better independently documented speed performance.
Your home carrier already covers the destination at a competitive rate.
Your phone is locked to your home carrier.
What Yesim does well

Virtual phone number included

Every Yesim plan includes a virtual number for incoming calls and SMS. This is one of the most meaningful differentiators in the travel eSIM market, where the large majority of providers are data-only. If you need to be reachable on a local number, or receive SMS verification codes from local services, Yesim removes the dependency on your home SIM for that function.

Pay-as-you-go option

The PAYG model bills per MB from your credit balance. This is useful for light users or unpredictable itineraries where a fixed plan might expire with unused data. Rates vary by country — check the per-GB cost for your destination before choosing this model over a fixed plan.

Single eSIM profile

Install once. Add plans per destination without reinstalling the eSIM profile.

Where Yesim is weaker

Practical inventory narrower than advertised

Yesim advertises 200+ destinations on its homepage. Third-party reviews and Yesim's own product pages indicate practical inventory around 156 individual countries available for fixed and unlimited plans. For less common destinations, verify coverage in the Yesim app before purchasing.

Speed not independently documented at scale

Travel ESIM Expert's testing recorded 203 Mbps in the UK and 11 Mbps in the USA for Yesim — wide variation across markets. Speed performance depends heavily on which partner network Yesim uses in each destination. Verify recent user reports for your destination before choosing Yesim if speed is important.

Turkey: app access status disputed

Multiple third-party trackers (Lycamobile, Surfroam, eSIM Fox and others) list Yesim among the international eSIM providers blocked at the network level in Turkey since July 2025, citing BTK decisions E-98966759-450.08-36681 (10 July 2025) and subsequent rulings. Yesim has not publicly confirmed the block. Given this ambiguity, travellers heading to Turkey should install and activate the Yesim eSIM before arrival and have a fallback (local Turkish operator, unaffected provider) ready for in-country top-ups in case access is restricted.

PAYG can cost more per GB than fixed plans

For heavy or predictable use, a fixed plan is usually more cost-effective than pay-as-you-go. Calculate your expected data use before choosing the PAYG model.

Key product limits to understand
LIMIT → WHAT IT MEANS IN PRACTICE
Virtual number — incoming calls and SMS→Included. Verify outgoing call support in plan details.
Practical inventory ~156 individual countries→Yesim advertises 200+; verify destination coverage before purchasing.
PAYG — billed per MB→Monitor usage. Can cost more per GB than fixed plans for heavy use.
Speed — variable by destination→Check recent user reports for your destination if speed matters.
Turkey: BTK block status disputed (Yesim listed by third-party trackers; not confirmed by Yesim)→Install and activate before arrival. Prepare a fallback for in-country top-ups.
Single eSIM profile→Install once — add plans per destination without reinstalling.
Field tip — verify what the virtual number covers

Yesim's virtual number receives incoming calls and SMS. Check whether your plan also supports outgoing calls and at what rate — some plans include outgoing minutes, others do not. If you need to make local calls as well as receive them, verify this before purchasing rather than discovering the limitation after arrival.

Setup before departure
Confirm your phone is eSIM-compatible and carrier-unlocked. Dial *#06# — look for an EID number.
Verify your destination is in Yesim's country list before purchasing.
Download the Yesim app and install the eSIM profile.
Choose PAYG or a fixed plan. For heavy use, calculate per-GB cost for each option first.
Set Yesim as your mobile data line in phone settings.
Test the virtual number before departure — send yourself a test SMS to confirm it is active.
Turn off data roaming on your home SIM if you are not using it as backup.
Yesim solves one part of your trip
Yesim for data + virtual phone number
VPN for public Wi-Fi
Password manager for accounts
Cloud + offline copy for documents
See the full travel kit →
Final recommendation
YOUR SITUATION → RECOMMENDATION
You need a phone number for calls and SMS abroad→Yesim — virtual number included with every plan
Data only — home SIM handles calls→Airalo — cheaper for data-only
Destination not in Yesim's coverage list→Use Airalo — wider inventory in less-common destinations
Speed is critical→Use Roamless — better independently documented speeds
Home carrier covers destination cheaply→Use roaming — do not buy an eSIM you do not need

Yesim is the right choice when a virtual phone number is a genuine requirement. For data-only travel, cheaper and wider-coverage providers are more suitable. Verify destination coverage and speed expectations before committing.

Check Yesim plans Read the roaming guide