Frequently asked questions

A SIM built into the phone's own hardware rather than a chip you push into a tray. You install a plan by scanning a QR code, and whatever plastic SIM you already carry stays exactly where it was.

Most phones sold since 2018: iPhone XS and newer, Samsung Galaxy S20 and newer, Google Pixel 3 and newer, and most current Android models. The phone also has to be carrier-unlocked. Our setup guides show where to check on your model.

At home over Wi-Fi, a day or two before departure. Nothing starts running at that point: the clock begins when the eSIM first connects to a network in Switzerland. Installing early costs you nothing and saves you doing it on station Wi-Fi with a train to catch.

Yes. The eSIM is data-only, so your home line stays active for your number, your SMS codes and your messaging accounts. Point mobile data at the eSIM and leave the rest alone. You do not get a Swiss number — for a visit that rarely matters, since Swiss bookings and tickets run happily on email and the apps you already have.

Check before you assume. Switzerland is not in the EU or the EEA, so the roam-like-at-home rule that carried you through France or Germany does not apply here by law. Some European operators choose to include Switzerland in their bundles anyway; many others put it in a separate zone with its own charges. The only reliable answer is on your own tariff page — read it before the trip, not on the bill after.

No, and you should not. Both lines sit in the phone together. The only setting worth touching is which one carries mobile data — point that at the eSIM, and turn data roaming off on your home line so it cannot quietly rack up charges in the background.

Top up from inside the app. The extra data lands on the same eSIM that is already on your phone — no second QR code to scan, nothing to reinstall.

Yes, tethering is included. One plan can carry a laptop on the train, a tablet in the chalet, and everyone else in the car.

Yes, for the download itself — the profile has to come down over Wi-Fi or a working connection, which is exactly why you install it before leaving. Once it is on the phone, it wakes up on a Swiss network on its own, no connection of its own required.

Not on this plan. It carries internet, not a phone line, so ordinary calls and texts stay on your home SIM, as does your number. Calling over the internet — WhatsApp, FaceTime, Teams — works as usual, and on Swiss networks it works well.

Every plan shows its own validity before you buy, and the range covers everything from a weekend in Zurich to a season's worth of visits. The countdown starts when the eSIM first connects in Switzerland, not on the day you paid.

It is sold for the whole country, so crossing a canton changes nothing about the plan. Signal is a separate question, and in Switzerland it is mostly a good answer: cities, rail lines and villages are covered to a standard few countries match. The gaps are high-alpine trails and some remote valleys — from any operator, on any plan. One quirk to know: near Geneva, Basel or Lugano the phone can latch onto a network across the border, which this plan does not cover — select a Swiss network manually and you are back. France, Italy, Germany and Austria are not included; the app sells those separately.

Payment is handled entirely by the App Store or Google Play, so we never see your card details. If a compatible phone still will not install or activate the eSIM, message support from inside the app — we will sort it, and refund it if that is the fair outcome.

For a visit, usually. Swiss prepaid SIMs are registered against a passport at the counter, the counters keep shop hours, and you pay Swiss retail prices for the privilege. The eSIM is bought at home at a price you saw in advance, and you are online before the luggage belt starts. A local SIM does give you one thing this does not: a Swiss phone number. If you are moving here rather than visiting, get the local SIM as well.