# Optus international roaming: Daily Roaming, the Roaming Pass and prepaid add-ons

> Optus has two postpaid roaming options. On Plus plans, Daily Roaming costs A$5 per 24 hours for 5GB of data plus standard calls and texts, and starts automatically. On other postpaid plans, the Roaming Pass costs A$10 per 24 hours for 1GB, and you opt in through the My Optus app. Prepaid add-ons start at A$5.

Source: https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/optus · Carrier prices checked 2026-09-28 · 6 min read · By SimKit

What Optus charges overseas depends on which plan you’re on, and the two postpaid options work quite differently. Check your plan name first: if it has “Plus” in it, you have Daily Roaming.

## Optus postpaid roaming prices

| Option | Price | Includes | Who gets it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Daily Roaming | A$5 per 24 hours | 5GB data, unlimited standard calls and texts in the destination and back to Australia | Choice Plus, Plus Family, Plus Kids and other Plus plans; Qantas plans. Automatic. |
| Roaming Pass | A$10 per 24 hours | 1GB data, unlimited standard calls and texts | Other postpaid plans. You opt in. |
| Pay as you go | A$1 per MB of data | Calls and texts at per-country rates | Postpaid plans without a pass |

Both passes work in Optus’s Zone 1, which covers 150+ destinations including Japan, Indonesia, the US, the UK, Europe, New Zealand, Thailand, Fiji, Singapore and India. On Plus plans, roaming outside Zone 1 isn’t available at all.

## When Optus charges you

On Plus plans, Daily Roaming is on automatically. The A$5 is charged when, in a Zone 1 destination, you use data, send a text, or make or answer a call. The Roaming Pass is charged the same way once you’ve turned it on. Receiving a text doesn’t trigger either.

Both passes renew themselves when you use the data. Go past 5GB on Daily Roaming and another A$5 buys another 5GB. Go past 1GB on the Roaming Pass and it’s another A$10. The 24-hour clock restarts each time.

## What a week away costs on Optus

Both Optus passes for seven days, against a SimKit eSIM with 2GB a day and SimKit’s cheapest plan with at least 7GB.

| 7 days in | Optus Roaming Pass Other plans: 1GB a day, calls and texts | Optus Daily Roaming Plus plans: 5GB a day, calls and texts | SimKit day pass 2GB a day, data only | SimKit data plan Cheapest with 7GB+, data only |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Japan | A$70 | A$35 | [A$33.49](https://simkit.app/esim/japan/unlimited) | [**A$13.10**](https://simkit.app/esim/japan) 10 GB, 30 days |
| Bali (Indonesia) | A$70 | A$35 | [A$28.98](https://simkit.app/esim/indonesia/unlimited) | [**A$13.10**](https://simkit.app/esim/indonesia) 10 GB, 30 days |
| United States | A$70 | A$35 | [A$26.40](https://simkit.app/esim/united-states/unlimited) | [**A$16.90**](https://simkit.app/esim/united-states) 10 GB, 30 days |
| United Kingdom | A$70 | A$35 | [A$18.68](https://simkit.app/esim/united-kingdom/unlimited) | [**A$12**](https://simkit.app/esim/united-kingdom) 10 GB, 30 days |
| France | A$70 | A$35 | [A$21.90](https://simkit.app/esim/france/unlimited) | [**A$13.10**](https://simkit.app/esim/france) 10 GB, 30 days |
| New Zealand | A$70 | A$35 | [A$30.27](https://simkit.app/esim/new-zealand/unlimited) | [**A$21.30**](https://simkit.app/esim/new-zealand) 10 GB, 30 days |
| Thailand | A$70 | A$35 | [A$28.98](https://simkit.app/esim/thailand/unlimited) | [**A$15.50**](https://simkit.app/esim/thailand) 10 GB, 30 days |
| Fiji | A$70 | **A$35** | [A$63.11](https://simkit.app/esim/fiji/unlimited) | [A$42.70](https://simkit.app/esim/fiji) 10 GB, 30 days |
| Singapore | A$70 | A$35 | [A$28.34](https://simkit.app/esim/singapore/unlimited) | [**A$17.20**](https://simkit.app/esim/singapore) 10 GB, 30 days |
| India | A$70 | A$35 | [A$34.13](https://simkit.app/esim/india/unlimited) | [**A$29.60**](https://simkit.app/esim/india) 10 GB, 30 days |

All prices in AUD for 7 consecutive days of use. Carrier prices are the daily fee times 7, before any extra data. Carrier passes include calls and texts; SimKit plans are data only, and your Australian SIM stays on for texts. SimKit prices are live. Lowest price in each row in bold.

On the A$10 Roaming Pass, a SimKit eSIM is much cheaper and carries twice the daily data. Daily Roaming on a Plus plan is good value: if you really use 3GB or more a day, stay with it. For typical use, SimKit’s fixed-data plans still come in under A$35 a week in most destinations.

## Optus prepaid roaming add-ons

Optus Prepaid uses add-ons you buy before or during your trip. They work in Zone 1 destinations only.

| Add-on | Price | Includes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 day | A$5 | 1GB, 25 minutes, 50 texts |
| 14 days | A$25 | 5GB, 50 minutes, 50 texts |
| 28 days | A$45 | 10GB, 100 minutes, 100 texts |
| 186 days | A$75 | 15GB, 100 minutes, 100 texts |

Incoming calls use the add-on’s minutes, the same as calls you make.

## How to turn off Optus roaming

In the My Optus app: Your service › Settings › International Roaming. You can also turn roaming on or off by dialling 1509. For Daily Roaming, Optus’s own advice is to keep the phone in aeroplane mode. On a dual-SIM phone, turning off data roaming for the Optus line does the same job for data and still lets texts in.

## How to keep your number without paying for roaming

Most phones sold in the last few years hold two lines at once. Your Optus SIM stays in the phone for calls and texts, and a travel eSIM handles data. Four steps, all done at home:

1. **Check your phone takes an eSIM and isn’t locked.** Dial \*#06#: if you see an EID, it has one. Our [eSIM compatible phones list](https://simkit.app/esim-compatible-phones) covers the rest.
2. **Install your travel eSIM on Wi-Fi before you fly.** A SimKit plan only starts when it first connects at your destination, so installing early costs nothing.
3. **Turn data roaming off for your Optus line.** Leave the line itself switched on so texts still arrive. On iPhone: Settings › Mobile Service › Your main line › Data Roaming
4. **When you land, pick the eSIM for mobile data.** Turn data roaming on for that line only. [How to use an eSIM](https://simkit.app/how-to-use-an-esim) walks through it on iPhone, Samsung and Pixel.

Receiving a text doesn’t cost anything on Telstra, Optus or Vodafone, so bank codes and one-time passwords still reach you. Answering a call does start the daily fee, and so can listening to voicemail, because that is a call too. Let calls go to missed, and call back on WhatsApp, FaceTime or Messenger over the eSIM’s data.

> **Tip:** Turning data roaming off stops data charges only. If you’d rather not risk a fee from an answered call either, switch roaming off for the whole service in your carrier’s app. Incoming texts may stop too, so do it only if you don’t need them.

## Optus roaming or a travel eSIM?

On a Plus plan with heavy data use, Daily Roaming is a fair deal. On any other Optus plan, the A$10 Roaming Pass is the expensive way to get 1GB a day, and a travel eSIM will cost a fraction of it. Compare [Telstra](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/telstra) and [Vodafone](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/vodafone), or see [every carrier side by side](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia).

## Sources

Carrier prices are from each carrier’s own website, checked 2026-09-28. SimKit prices are live, in AUD. SimKit is not affiliated with any carrier named here.

- [Optus: International roaming](https://www.optus.com.au/mobile/plans/international-roaming)
- [Optus: Daily Roaming explained](https://www.optus.com.au/support/answer/optus_daily_roaming_explained_20237)
- [Optus: International roaming explained](https://www.optus.com.au/support/answer/optus_international_roaming_explained_1368)
- [Optus: How to add and remove international roaming](https://www.optus.com.au/support/answer/how_to_add_and_remove_international_roaming_20050)
- [Optus: Prepaid international roaming](https://www.optus.com.au/mobile/plans/international-roaming/prepaid)

## Questions people also ask

### How much is Optus international roaming?

It depends on your plan. Optus Plus plans get Daily Roaming at A$5 per 24 hours with 5GB of data and standard calls and texts. Other postpaid plans can add the Roaming Pass at A$10 per 24 hours with 1GB. Without a pass, data is charged at A$1 per MB.

### Is Optus Daily Roaming automatic?

Yes. On eligible Plus plans, Daily Roaming is on automatically and the A$5 charge starts when you use data, send a text or make or answer a call in a Zone 1 destination. Receiving a text does not trigger it. Optus’s advice for avoiding it is to keep your phone in aeroplane mode.

### What happens when I use all my Optus roaming data?

Another pass starts automatically. On Daily Roaming, using the 5GB triggers another A$5 for another 5GB. On the Roaming Pass, using the 1GB triggers another A$10 for another 1GB. In both cases the 24-hour clock restarts.

### How much are Optus prepaid roaming add-ons?

Optus prepaid International Roaming add-ons are A$5 for 1 day with 1GB, A$25 for 14 days with 5GB, A$45 for 28 days with 10GB, and A$75 for 186 days with 15GB, each with a set number of minutes and texts, for Zone 1 destinations.

### How do I turn off Optus international roaming?

In the My Optus app, open your service, go to Settings, then International Roaming. On a dual-SIM phone you can also switch the Optus line’s data roaming off in your phone’s settings and use a travel eSIM for data.

## Roaming by carrier

- [Roaming from Australia](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia): Every Australian carrier’s roaming price, side by side, with the cost of a week away.
- [Telstra roaming](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/telstra): Day Pass prices by zone, what triggers a charge, and how to switch it off.
- [Vodafone roaming](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/vodafone): How $5 Roaming works, the 90-day limit, prepaid add-ons, and how to turn it off.
- [Other carriers](https://simkit.app/international-roaming/australia/other-carriers): amaysim, Boost, ALDI Mobile, Belong, Kogan, TPG, Dodo, felix, Lebara and more.