How to Get Mobile Internet in Germany: a SIM Card and Other Options

In this article, we will tell you where tourists can buy a SIM card for Germany with the internet, how much internet connection costs in the country, what options are available to tourists. You will learn which connection method to choose to stay online abroad without high costs.

Mobile Internet in Germany: the most favorable options for connection

In Germany, you can connect to mobile internet in the following ways:

• Via a SIM card of a national telecom operator or a virtual eSIM card.
• Enable roaming — reconnect to a German mobile operator.
• Purchase or rent a portable Wi-Fi router.
• Find a point with free wireless internet.

Further in the article we will explore in detail all ways to connect to the mobile Internet in Germany from the point of view of benefits and convenience.

SIM cards for tourists in Germany

There are usual physical SIM cards with special tariffs for tourists, as well as virtual eSIM cards. You will learn which prepaid SIM cards for Germany are the best options for internet connection.

Usually traditional starter packs are bought in the following ways:

• online before arriving in the country or online, but already after crossing the border;
• offline in specialized communication shops, as well as in supermarkets, small stores, gas stations and other places alike.

If you prefer to solve all important issues in advance, order prepaid packages on Amazon, eBay or other international sites. You may have to overpay a little, and not all current tariff packages will be available for ordering.

Also, all tourists have an opportunity to buy a SIM card in Berlin, Munich, Dortmund, Frankfurt am Main, Dresden, Hamburg, Cologne, Stuttgart, Leipzig and other major cities of the country immediately upon arrival at the airport. On the way from the airplane to the terminal exit, you will definitely come across branded outlets of local mobile operators.

Sometimes, when registering a SIM card in Germany, a tourist is asked to show his passport. If it is necessary to additionally specify the local address, you can refer to your hotel or rented apartment. As a rule, the procedure for registering a starter pack takes a few minutes. For short-term travelers, a prepaid SIM card is suitable, rather than a contract option, which requires identity documents. You can top up your account at SIM card outlets, branded telecom showrooms or online.

There are more than 50 companies-providers in the country, so it is recommended to familiarize yourself with their terms and tariffs when choosing a tariff plan. There are operators that provide coverage not in all regions of the country, and to clarify whether this provider of mobile Internet suits you, you will have to study the map of signal distribution.

There is also a difference in the cost of data plans. The price depends on the operator and the number of allocated gigabytes. On average, you will have to pay 40-60 EUR/month just for 2G, 3G or 4G mobile internet. The cost of 5G is even higher — about 80 EUR/month.

In order not to waste time and not to try to comprehend which of the 50 mobile operators in Germany is suitable for your short-term trip, you can use a virtual eSIM card. You do not need to buy such a card, it is already embedded in your gadget and works on the principle of NFC chip. Traveling around the world, you will not have to look for ways to connect to the mobile Internet every time. Using eSIM, you can switch from one tariff to another depending on the country of stay.

Let's take a closer look at the tariffs for the best SIM cards in Germany for tourists.

1. Yesim

You can connect to the mobile internet in Germany using eSIM technology via the Yesim mobile app. Users have the opportunity to choose a tariff depending on the period of stay in the country and the required amount of traffic.

To connect to the network, you need to install the application on your smartphone, choose a tariff and pay online. The process takes about 5 minutes.

Before installation, you need to make sure that your smartphone supports eSIM technology. You can check the gadget for compatibility on this page of the service.

If eSIM virtual card support is provided, check for updates and install the latest version of the application.

Yesim provider offers for Germany:

• 3 GB for 5 days for 8 EUR;
• 5 GB for 7 days for 12 EUR;
• 10 GB for 10 days for 22 EUR;
• unlimited for 15 days for 37.50 EUR;
• free VPN for iOS 10 GB for 10 days.

Read also: eSIM vs SIM: what's the difference

2. Vodafone

The operator offers tourists traditional SIM cards and the following tariffs:

• 4 GB for four weeks for 9.99 EUR;
• 8 GB for four weeks for 14.99 EUR.

3. O2

This operator has the following offers for tourists:

• 6 GB for four weeks for 9.99 EUR;
• 12 GB for four weeks for 14.99 EUR.

4. Deutsche Telekom

This operator has the most expensive tariff packages for tourists in Germany, but they are available without signing a contract:

• 3 GB for a month for 9.95 EUR;
• 7 GB per month for 24.95 EUR.

Roaming in Germany

German mobile internet is also available by connecting to roaming. To enable roaming, it is enough to activate this option in your smartphone. But before traveling, it is better to ask your cellular operator about tariffs and special offers for traveling abroad. Many providers offer tariff packages with more favorable conditions than standard data roaming.

One of the advantages of this method is that you don't need to buy and reinsert a SIM card. But keep in mind that international data roaming is always expensive.

Pocket Wi-Fi

Portable Wi-Fi routers are suitable for traveling with a company of friends or the whole family. Such devices can support the connection of up to 10 gadgets simultaneously without reducing the speed of mobile Internet. The device can be purchased before traveling or upon arrival in Germany at a price starting from 100 EUR. Many companies offer door-to-door delivery, for example, to a hotel.

To use pocket Wi-Fi, it is enough to turn on the router in any convenient place and login to a smartphone or iPad. The main thing is to charge the battery in time and pay for the data plan.

The router can also be rented for the period of stay in the country. Using the device costs about 5 EUR per day, but the cost of services increases according to the amount of traffic used.

Free Wi-Fi in Germany

Free wireless internet in Germany is available in most public places. You can connect to Wi-Fi in the subway, at a train station, in hotels, supermarkets, in various retail outlets and in catering establishments.

The peculiarity of German free Wi-Fi is a limited time of use in some institutions and establishments. For example, at a train station you are allowed to be online for half an hour, in banks and Starbucks — about two hours, in the subway and McDonald's — for an hour.

To find the nearest Wi-Fi hotspot, you can use an online service or the Wi-Fi Space app. The map of the city will show the places where there is free Internet, as well as the data for connection.

This option is not always convenient, because you may need the Internet at any moment and there is no guarantee that the access point will be nearby. The second disadvantage of free Wi-Fi is an insecure connection. Cyber fraudsters can hack your device and steal passwords from accounts, personal photos, videos, documents and other personal information.

Read also: TОР 7 most secure VPN services in 2023

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