Buying a Travel eSIM for France: Your Complete Guide

France is an amazingly diverse country with more than just romantic cities, vineyards, and beaches to explore. If you’re travelling to France, you might also be surprised as to how massive the country truly is!

However, while exploring the highs of the Alps to the amazing cities of Nice, Bordeaux, and – of course – Paris – you’ll also want to make sure you stay connected during your travels across France.

With that in mind, have you ever considered using an eSIM? It might just be the most convenient and efficient way for you to connect to local data without having to faff around with physical cards.

Here’s a quick guide on buying a travel eSIM for France, and some of the most important benefits.

Where to buy an eSIM for France

With SIMOVO, buying an eSIM to use in France is dead easy. Simply register an account with us, set up a plan to cover the country (or broader if you’re going on a wider trip), and then purchase an eSIM through QR code online.

Buying an eSIM through SIMOVO is faster, more cost-effective, and far more convenient than having to muddle around with physical, regional cards when you touch down in France. But, more on that later!

What is an eSIM?

As the name suggests, an eSIM is a non-physical SIM that you can embed to your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or other device so you can access online data while you travel across France. It’s a completely digital solution that means you don’t have to swap out your physical SIM for another.

Our eSIMs connect you to some of the biggest and most reliable data operators in France – you won’t be covered for calls or texts, but remember, if you use apps like WhatsApp, Messenger, or FaceTime, you’re covered for the conversations you have provided you’re connected to mobile data when you travel!

What are the benefits of using an eSIM when exploring France?

Here are just some of the main reasons why registering and using an eSIM when travelling across France just makes sense:

• You can activate your eSIM so it works seamlessly alongside your physical number
• You don’t have to worry about buying a new physical SIM and keeping track of it
• You’re cutting down on plastic waste by going digital
• You can avoid some costs and demands of your current network
• There’s no contract or minimum term required
• We have different plans and coverage options available if you want to continue travelling elsewhere in Europe
• You can get started in minutes thanks to our superfast activation process

Before you take up an eSIM through SIMOVO to connect to mobile data in France, you should always check that your device accepts eSIMs – you can check our list of device compatibility to see if your phone, tablet, or laptop is good to go.

What’s more, you’ll need to purchase a new eSIM every time you travel – expiration dates will apply. But, don’t worry – we break down everything you need to know before you get started!

How to activate your eSIM for France

Before you head off to France, we recommend you take some time to carefully activate and set up your eSIM.

How you do this will vary depending on the device you use, however, once you’ve purchased your eSIM we will email you a QR code that you can scan to activate it. 

After activating your eSIM, make sure that you change your phone settings so that data roaming is activated. This will allow you to connect to data networks provided to you through your eSIM while you explore France.

From there, you’re ready to go! 

How much does it cost to run an eSIM in France?

Depending on how long you intend to travel for and stay in France, SIMOVO has a range of plans and options to cover your data usage for whatever you need.

For example, if you’re just travelling to France this time, we suggest you use our plan to cover you for the country alone. If you want to continue into Europe, we have a regional plan available, and if you’re intending to make it a world tour, our global plan will give you access to the data you need, no matter where you go. 

Buying an eSIM vs. buying a physical SIM in France

Buying an eSIM before you travel to France just makes sense. It takes literal minutes to buy and set up at home, and compared to the going rates you’ll expect from traditional SIMs in France, it’s much more cost-effective.

And, you won’t have to worry about fiddling around with wasteful, plastic SIMs, either. You’ll connect to the most popular and most trusted networks operating in France right now, too – meaning you don’t have to take risks on picking a specific operator to experiment with.

However, it’s probably just as well to know which networks are regarded as the best in France when you come to travel. Mobile users tend to agree that Orange and Bouygues are the most reliable, but there are also Free and SFR to consider, too.

Save yourself time and effort picking one of this set and let us connect you to the best available 4G and 5G wherever possible.

FAQs About eSIMs in France

Can I make calls and texts with my eSIM in France?

SIMOVO eSIMs only provide data. However, you can still call and text through data with apps such as Messenger, FaceTime, iMessage, and WhatsApp.

Will I need to buy a new eSIM every time I travel?

Yes – eSIMs have expiry dates, so make sure to refresh with a new one if you travel again in the future.

My eSIM isn’t working, what should I do?

Make sure your device accepts eSIMs before getting started, and turn roaming on. If your eSIM still doesn’t connect you properly once you’re abroad, get in touch with our support team.