The short answer: for a typical week in Bali, a SimKit Indonesia eSIM with 10 GB costs A$13.10. The same week is A$70 on Telstra’s Day Pass and A$35 on Vodafone’s $5 Roaming or an Optus Plus plan. For a fortnight, our 20 GB plan is A$22.80, against A$140 on Telstra and A$70 on Vodafone or Optus Plus. Roaming still makes sense if you’ll be on the phone a lot, and a couple of prepaid packs are cheap if you barely use data. Both are covered below.
SimKit is a Sydney company, and Bali is the trip we get asked about most. So here is everything we’d tell a mate before they fly: what it actually costs, which networks you’ll be on, and how to keep getting your bank’s texts without paying for roaming.
What a week or a fortnight in Bali costs
All prices are in Australian dollars. Carrier prices come from each carrier’s own website (the sources are listed at the end of this page). Daily fees are multiplied by the number of days, before any extra data. SimKit prices are live and converted from US dollars at today’s rate, so they move a little from day to day.
- A$13.10 (lowest)
- A$28.34
- Telstra Pre-Paid pack2 GB for 7 days, prepaid onlyA$15
- felix roaming add-on4 GB, felix customers onlyA$20
- Boost 7-day pack5 GB, Boost customers onlyA$30
- Vodafone $5 RoamingAlso Optus Daily Roaming on Plus plansA$35
- Telstra Day PassAlso the Optus Roaming PassA$70
Carrier passes include calls and texts; SimKit plans are data only, and your Australian SIM stays on for texts. A prepaid pack needs you to already be with that carrier.
That is A$56.90 less than a week on Telstra for the same trip, and the 10 GB is yours for 30 days rather than seven.
| Option | What you get | 7 days | 14 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| SimKit Indonesia eSIM, 10 GB for 30 days | Data only, keep your Aussie SIM for texts | A$13.10 (lowest) | A$13.10 (lowest) if 10 GB is enough |
| SimKit Indonesia eSIM, 20 GB for 30 days | Data only | A$22.80 | A$22.80 |
| SimKit day pass, 2 GB a day | Data only, full speed to the daily allowance | A$28.34 | A$54.82 |
| Telstra International Day Pass (Zone 2) | 2 GB a day, unlimited standard calls and SMS | A$70 | A$140 |
| Optus Roaming Pass (non-Plus postpaid) | 1 GB a day, standard calls and texts | A$70 | A$140 |
| Optus Daily Roaming (Plus plans) | 5 GB a day, standard calls and texts | A$35 | A$70 |
| Vodafone $5 Roaming (postpaid) | Your plan’s own data, calls and texts | A$35 | A$70 |
| Telstra Pre-Paid International Roaming Pack | 7 days: 2 GB. 14 days: 4 GB. Plus some calls and texts | A$15 | A$25 |
| Vodafone Prepaid Roaming Add-on | 7 GB, calls and texts, 7 days | A$35 | A$70 two 7-day add-ons |
| Boost International Roaming Pack | 7 days: 5 GB. 14 days: 7 GB. Plus some calls and texts | A$30 | A$40 |
| Belong travel pack | 3 GB, 150 minutes, unlimited standard texts, 15 days | A$30 | A$30 |
| amaysim roaming packs | 6 GB data only (A$50), or 9 GB with calls and texts (A$70). Valid 365 days | A$50 to A$70 | A$50 to A$70 |
| felix International Roaming add-on | 4 GB, 100 minutes, 100 texts, 365 days | A$20 | A$20 |
A few things the table doesn’t show:
- Carrier passes include calls and texts. SimKit plans are data only. Your Aussie SIM stays in the phone for texts, and WhatsApp, FaceTime and Messenger calls all run over the eSIM’s data.
- Daily passes start automatically on Telstra and Vodafone postpaid plans, and on Optus Plus plans. They kick in when you use data, send a text, or make or answer a call. One background app refresh can cost you a full day’s fee.
- Prepaid packs are cheap but small. felix’s A$20 for 4 GB, or Telstra Pre-Paid’s A$25 for 4 GB over 14 days, works if you mostly live on villa Wi-Fi. If you’re using maps, Grab and Instagram all day, 4 GB disappears fast.
- Vodafone’s $5 Roaming is capped at 90 days a year. After that, pay-as-you-go rates apply.
Which networks you’ll be on in Bali
- Telkomsel
- XL
- Indosat
SimKit’s Indonesia eSIMs connect to Telkomsel, XL and Indosat, with 5G where the network and your phone support it and 4G/LTE elsewhere. Speeds depend on your phone and local coverage, and the partner network for each plan is shown on the plan page before you buy.
Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, Lombok and the Gili Islands: we won’t promise you perfect signal on every beach. Coverage on the smaller islands is patchier than in Bali’s south and it varies by network. If you’re spending days there, download offline Google Maps for those areas before you go.
How much data do you actually need?
For maps, messaging, social and browsing, about 1 GB a day is comfortable for most travellers. Streaming and hotspotting a laptop use more.
Light
5 GB for 30 days
Mostly on villa Wi-Fi, a few Grab rides and maps. Plenty for a week.
A$7.60
Typical week
10 GB for 30 days
Maps, WhatsApp, Instagram and a few video calls, every day.
A$13.10
Heavy
50 GB for 30 days
Streaming or working remotely. Or take a day pass, from A$1.40 a day.
A$47.20
Every SimKit Indonesia plan supports top-ups. If you’re unsure, start smaller and add data from your account mid-trip, with no new QR code and no reinstall.
Keep your Aussie number for bank texts, without roaming charges
This is the bit that saves people the most money. Receiving a text is free on Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. All three say an incoming SMS won’t trigger their daily roaming fee, so your bank codes and one-time passwords still reach you.
What does trigger the fee: using data (including background data), sending a text, or making or answering a call. Voicemail can count too, because it’s a call. So let calls go to missed and call back on WhatsApp or FaceTime over your eSIM.
On iPhone
- Check your phone takes an eSIM. Dial *#06#. If you see an EID, it has one. It also needs to be carrier-unlocked. Our eSIM compatible phones list covers the rest.
- Install your SimKit eSIM at home on Wi-Fi. On iOS 17.4 or later, tap the install button in your order. Otherwise go to SettingsthenMobile ServicethenAdd eSIM and scan the QR code from another screen.
- Label the new line Travel. Keep your Aussie line as the default for calls, texts and iMessage.
- Turn Allow Mobile Data Switching off, so your phone can’t quietly fall back to your Aussie plan overseas. The switch is under SettingsthenMobile ServicethenMobile Data
- Turn data roaming off on your Aussie line, but leave the line itself on so texts still arrive. It is under SettingsthenMobile ServicethenYour main linethenData Roaming
On Android (Samsung and Pixel)
- Check for an EID by dialling *#06#, and make sure the phone isn’t locked to a carrier.
- Install the eSIM at home on Wi-Fi. On Android 10 or later, the one-tap link in your order does it for you. By hand, it is SettingsthenConnectionsthenSIM managerthenAdd eSIM on a Samsung and SettingsthenNetwork & internetthenSIMsthenAdd SIM on a Pixel.
- Rename the new line Travel. Keep your Aussie SIM as the preferred SIM for calls and messages.
- Turn data roaming off on your Aussie SIM and leave the SIM switched on. Samsung: SettingsthenConnectionsthenMobile networks, then switch Data roaming off for your Aussie SIM. Pixel: SettingsthenNetwork & internetthenSIMsthenYour main SIMthenRoaming
Want zero risk from an accidentally answered call? Switch roaming off for the whole service in your carrier’s app. Incoming texts may stop too, though, so only do that if you don’t need them. The Telstra, Optus and Vodafone pages show where the switch is.
Install before you fly, then the first five minutes after landing
Before you fly: buy and install at home on Wi-Fi. A SimKit plan only starts when the eSIM first connects to a network in Indonesia, so installing a week early costs you nothing.
When you land at Denpasar:
- Turn the Travel line on. iPhone: Mobile ServicethenTravelthenTurn On This Line. Android: switch it on in SIM manager or SIMs.
- Select it for mobile data. iPhone: Mobile ServicethenMobile DatathenTravel. Samsung: SIM managerthenMobile datathenTravel. Pixel: open the Travel SIM and turn Mobile data on.
- Turn on data roaming for the Travel line only. You’ve already paid for this data, so there’s no extra charge. Leave roaming off on your Aussie line.
- Give it a minute to find a network. No luck? Toggle aeroplane mode, or restart the phone. That clears nearly every first-connection hiccup.
- Still nothing? Check the network in your status bar is one of the partner networks on your plan page, or pick one manually under Network Selection. Then email support@simkit.app. A real person will help, and if we can’t get you connected, we refund you.
When roaming is actually the better deal
We’d rather you get this right than buy from us for the wrong reasons. Roaming or a prepaid pack can win when:
- You need to make lots of calls on your Aussie number. SimKit plans are data only. Carrier passes include standard calls and texts.
- You’re on an Optus Plus plan and use a lot of data. 5 GB for A$5 a day is strong value if you need well over 2 GB a day.
- You barely use mobile data. If you’ll live on villa Wi-Fi and just need a bit of maps, felix’s A$20 for 4 GB, or Telstra Pre-Paid’s A$15 7-day pack, is a fair option, provided you’re already with them.
- It’s a one-day stopover and you can’t be bothered setting anything up. A single A$5 or A$10 day fee is simpler.
For most week-long or fortnight trips, though, the numbers in the table do the arguing.
Every current Indonesia plan is below at today’s prices. For the full carrier-by-carrier picture first, see international roaming from Australia. New to this? How to use an eSIM and is my phone eSIM compatible? cover the basics.