How United States scored
United States draws 72.4M (2024) annually and supports 3 carrier networks for eSIM roaming. The assessment covered all five providers (HelloRoam, Airalo, Holafly, Saily, Nomad) on T-Mobile's published 5G infrastructure. The market offers 8 distinct plans with per-GB rates from $1.64 to $2.87. We scored each provider across 5 weighted dimensions to produce the rankings below.
United States's 3 networks give providers real carrier options: T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon. T-Mobile is the primary routing partner for all five providers, on published coverage breadth.
The pricing ladder spans from 1GB at $2.87 ($2.87/GB) to 20GB at $34.46 ($1.72/GB). Best per-GB value sits at 10GB for $16.41 ($1.64/GB), our recommended tier for most United States travelers. Holafly adds an unlimited daily option from $2.99/day, which suits heavy data users on trips of 5+ days. All fixed-data plans deliver full 5G speed until the data cap is reached, with no mid-plan throttling.
Coverage notes from the carriers' published maps: T-Mobile publishes 5G along most interstate highways. National parks and rural Montana, Wyoming and Nevada carry large dead zones. That is the expected shape for a North America destination with 3 active eSIM-accepting networks. T-Mobile's 5G coverage is expected to reach standard tourist zones across the country.
HelloRoam earns the top position for United States at 9.5/10, with Airalo close behind at 9.3/10. These scores reflect United States-specific conditions: T-Mobile routing, 8 available plans, and 5G as the network standard. Rankings may differ for neighboring North America destinations where carrier partnerships and plan availability change.
United States processes 72.4M (2024) visitors per year. peak travel runs during Jun-Aug and Nov-Dec. most arrivals land at JFK (NYC) / LAX (LA) / ORD (Chicago) / MIA (Miami). the local currency is USD ($). These travel logistics inform our plan recommendations. The 10GB plan at $16.41 aligns with the typical visitor profile for this destination.
What the rubric scores
The rubric ranked 8 eSIM plans from 5 providers for United States on five dimensions: Coverage (25%), Pricing (25%), Network tier (20%), App features (15%), Support access (15%). Each provider takes a 1-5 mark per dimension, and the weighted total is doubled to give the /10 display score.
Where the inputs come from
Scores for United States use the published weighted formula: Coverage (25%), Pricing (25%), Network tier (20%), App features (15%), and Support access (15%). Each dimension receives a raw score from 1 to 5. The composite multiplies by 2 for a 0-10 display scale. Coverage and Pricing carry equal top weight because for travel eSIMs, network reach and cost matter most.
Country-specific adjustments for United States: Unlimited plan availability in United States adjusts the Pricing dimension to weight per-day unlimited rates alongside per-GB fixed rates. Widespread 5G in United States adds a 0.2-point uplift to the network-tier score for providers routing through 5G-capable partners. These calibrations keep scores comparable across the 185+ destinations in our database.
The scoring spread across 5 providers for United States is 1.5 points (HelloRoam at 9.5/10 down to Nomad at 8.0/10). A spread under 1.5 points indicates that all providers deliver comparable service for this destination. The wider gap here reflects meaningful differences in pricing, coverage, or support quality.
Read the full scoring rubric.
BesteSIM runs no speed tests and publishes no throughput figure for United States. The network-tier score reads the technology each carrier publishes, which is 5G here.
United States Network Landscape
United States has 2 mobile networks: AT&T (5G), Verizon (5G). T-Mobile delivers the strongest coverage combination. All 5 providers route through these carriers.
Carrier Partnerships
United States operates 2 mobile networks: AT&T (5G), Verizon (5G). T-Mobile serves as the primary routing partner for travel eSIMs in this market. All five ranked providers maintain routing agreements with T-Mobile. Some providers additionally route through Verizon as a fallback when T-Mobile's signal weakens.
T-Mobile publishes 5G across United States, and every ranked provider attaches to it rather than to a network of its own. Two carriers give United States travelers basic redundancy. Verizon supplements T-Mobile's coverage in areas where the primary signal is weak.
Provider routing varies subtly in United States. Airalo and Saily default to T-Mobile, while Holafly may route through Verizon in specific regions. Nomad uses T-Mobile exclusively. These routing differences show up in rural reach rather than in the plan terms.
Review Timeline
Plans and pricing for United States were last verified in May 2026. All 8 plans confirmed active on T-Mobile's 5G network. Provider scores reflect the most recent data available for this destination.
United States rankings update on a quarterly cycle. Plan pricing is checked monthly against provider websites. Carrier routing changes trigger an immediate score recalculation for all five providers. Network changes in T-Mobile's United States infrastructure are tracked through industry sources.
Recent update for United States: T-Mobile leads with widest 5G; all three carriers have extensive urban 5G; rural gaps remain. This 5G rollout feeds the network-tier dimension of the current scores.
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