📶eSIMCompare
Nomad eSIM Offer

How Our Recommendation Engine Works

We don't just show you the cheapest eSIM. We rank plans based on real-world quality: network performance, fair terms, and supplier reputation — so you get what's actually worth buying.

Why not just sort by price?

The problem with price-only comparison

  • • Cheapest eSIMs often have hidden speed caps (FUP)
  • • Some suppliers throttle speeds or block hotspots
  • • Refund policies vary wildly (some are non-refundable)
  • • Activation timing gotchas (immediate vs. on arrival)
  • • "Unlimited" might mean 1GB/day at full speed

Our approach

  • ✓ Real network performance data (speed, latency, reliability)
  • ✓ Structured terms comparison (FUP, refund, hotspot)
  • ✓ Supplier reputation from real user reviews
  • ✓ Transparent scoring — you can see exactly why
  • ✓ Customizable weights for different travel styles

How Plan Cards Are Scored on Comparison Pages

Every plan shown on a destination comparison page (e.g. /destinations/japan) gets a 0–100 score from five weighted factors. The exact sub-scores are displayed on each plan card, so you can verify the math yourself.

The 5 factors (weights shown per 100)

  • Cost per GB (30) — cheaper per-GB plans score higher; unlimited plans get a fixed baseline.
  • Speed / FUP policy (25) — high-speed cap and throttle rules; truly-unlimited, no-cap plans score highest, low caps are penalized.
  • Roaming coverage (15) — local plans get a full baseline; regional/multi-country plans score by number of covered countries.
  • Signal stability (20) — based on underlying operator network scores; neutral baseline for newer operators.
  • Service & support (10) — refund policy, activation convenience, support channels, language support.

Example: a plan card shows

Cost per GB22.0 / 30
Speed Limit Policy20.0 / 25
Roaming Coverage15.0 / 15
Signal Stability18.0 / 20
Service & Support8.0 / 10
Total83.0 / 100

Weights are fixed for comparison pages. Scenario-specific weighting is used by the Recommend wizard below.

The Recommend Wizard: Four Pillars

Our Recommend wizard (/recommend) uses a separate four-pillar model with weights that adjust to your travel style. Default weights are shown below — they vary by scenario.

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Price Value (40% default)

0-100 pts

How much data you get for your money. We don't just look at total price — we calculate the cost per GB (or cost per day for unlimited plans) relative to other plans in the same destination.

How it's calculated:
  • Limited plans: $/GB ratio compared to all plans in the same country
  • Unlimited plans: $/day ratio compared to other unlimited plans
  • Non-linear scoring — the best value plans score disproportionately higher

Network Performance (35% default)

0-100 pts

Real-world network quality based on actual speed test data. This is what sets us apart from every other comparison site.

Metrics included:
📥 Download speed (0-40 pts)
📤 Upload speed (built-in)
⏱️ Latency (0-25 pts)
〰️ Jitter (0-15 pts)
📉 Packet loss (0-10 pts)
✅ Reliability (0-10 pts)
🔍

Terms & Fairness (15% default)

0-100 pts

How transparent and fair are the supplier's policies? No fine-print surprises. We dig through the Terms of Service so you don't have to.

Factors considered:
  • Base transparency score (FUP, refund, hotspot disclosure)
  • FUP penalty: "unlimited" plans with <2GB/day cap get -10 pts
  • Refund bonus: buyer-friendly refund policy +5 pts
  • Hotspot bonus: supported and clearly disclosed +3 pts
  • Auto-renew penalty: default auto-renewal -3 pts

Supplier Reputation (10% default)

0-100 pts

What do actual users say? Based on community reviews, Trustpilot scores, Reddit discussions, and support quality.

Sources:
  • Trustpilot and similar review platforms
  • Reddit r/eSIM and travel communities
  • Support response quality and availability
  • Note: currently estimated, will use real user data over time

Scenario-Based Weighting

Different travelers have different priorities. Our scenarios adjust the weights to match what matters most for your trip.

ScenarioPricePerformanceTermsReputation
🏆Best Overall Value
40%35%15%10%
💰Budget Traveler
60%20%12%8%
Speed & Performance
20%55%15%10%
🎬Video Streaming
25%50%15%10%
✈️Short Trip (1-3 days)
45%25%18%12%
🌍Long Trip (2+ weeks)
35%35%18%12%
♾️Unlimited Data
30%40%20%10%
💼Business / Remote Work
15%45%20%20%

Badges & Labels

What do those little badges on each recommendation mean?

Performance badges

  • Blazing FastPerformance score ≥ 85
  • Fast SpeedPerformance score ≥ 70

Value badges

  • Best PriceCheapest in the comparison
  • Great ValueTop 20% by price efficiency

Terms badges

  • Crystal ClearTransparency score ≥ 85
  • TransparentTransparency score ≥ 70

Feature badges

  • Unlimited DataTruly unlimited or FUP plans
  • HotspotTethering / hotspot supported
  • Long Validity30+ day plans

Data Quality & Limitations

⚠️ What you should know

  • Network performance data is currently estimated. We're building real speed test data as we go. Scores are based on research and community reports, not direct measurements.
  • Terms change frequently. Suppliers update their policies without notice. We do our best to keep up, but always verify with the official terms before purchase.
  • Reputation scores are editorial estimates.They're based on community sentiment, not a formal survey. We'll replace them with real user ratings as we grow.
  • We may earn affiliate commissions.This doesn't affect our scoring algorithm. We recommend based on quality, not commission rate.

Our Promise: Open & Transparent

We built this tool because we were frustrated with eSIM comparison sites that hide affiliate links and push the highest-commission option. Here's what you can always expect from us:

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Full Score Breakdown

Every recommendation shows you exactly how it scored across all four dimensions.

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Open Algorithm

Our scoring logic is fully documented here. No black boxes, no hidden biases.

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Commission-Neutral

Affiliate revenue doesn't change our rankings. Quality first, always.

Questions about our methodology? Found an error?

Get in touch →