Travel eSIMs to rewrite the roaming playbook according to CCS Insight

Mobile phones to become eSIM-only

The breakthrough is eSIM, a built-in digital alternative to the plastic SIM card. Apple has already made eSIM standard in the iPhone 14 and 15 sold in the U.S., and industry chatter suggests future iPhones will go eSIM-only worldwide. Google’s Pixel line has supported eSIM for years, Samsung offers it on its flagship Galaxy models, and other Android manufacturers are quickly following suit. As more phones ship without a SIM slot, the path to digital-only connectivity is definitely the future.

That shift has invited a surge of newcomers—Airalo, Holafly, Kolet, Nomad, Ubigi and dozens more—selling cheap, instant data plans that undercut traditional roaming. A 10 GB travel eSIM for a U.S. trip can cost about $15. The same service would cost $100 through roaming with a typical carrier.

CCS Insight forecasts explosive growth: worldwide travel eSIM subscriptions are expected to soar from roughly 70 million in 2024 to more than 280 million by 2030. Global sales could climb nearly 250 percent over the same period, from $1.3 billion to more than $4.4 billion.

Traditional mobile operators need quick adaptation

For mobile operators, the message is clear: adapt or become marginal. A few big names, including Vodafone and Orange, have already launched their own travel eSIM products. But most carriers must rethink roaming strategies. They need to weight not just short-term revenue but also brand reputation, customer retention. They also must learn to operate with a global, not purely local, mindset.

Operators still hold key advantages—deep customer relationships, extensive roaming partnerships, and the network infrastructure every competitor relies on. But they’ll need to move quickly and position their offerings carefully to protect existing revenue while capturing new opportunities.

CCS Insight predicts that today’s eSIM specialists will eventually lose their early lead as the market matures and consolidates. The report analyses a range of possible outcomes in the market.

For the ones interested at more details about CCS Insight report, click on that link to CCS . Highlights are to be presented in a free webinar on 30 September at 10:00 BST, to which participants can sign up here.