Guide To Using Sim Cards in India in 2026

Using an Indian SIM card as a visitor is cheap but not quick. To buy one you need your passport, a valid visa, the address of your hotel and often a photo taken at the counter, and the line can take from a few minutes to most of a day to switch on. This guide explains the documents and the rules behind them, which of the four networks will actually sell to a foreigner, what a month of data costs in rupees, and what we can offer for India if you would rather have data working at the airport. Our plans for the country are on the India eSIM page.

Jio, Airtel, Vi and BSNL

India has three private networks, Reliance Jio, Airtel and Vi (Vodafone Idea), plus state-owned BSNL. Opensignal's February 2026 report named Jio the best network for reliability and download speed. For a visitor the practical ranking is different. Airtel is the easiest to buy as a foreigner, with counters at the big airports and shops in every city. Jio's own sign-up route is built around Aadhaar, India's national ID, and travellers report being turned away. Vi is a reasonable backup in the cities, and BSNL is mainly useful in remote areas.

The documents, and why the counter asks for them

The Department of Telecommunications' rules accept a foreign tourist's passport with a valid visa as proof of identity, and your hotel, or a local reference such as a tour operator, as proof of address. The connection is tied to your visa: it cannot run beyond the visa's end date and is limited to three months at a time. Bring:

• your original passport and visa or e-Visa approval;
• the full address and phone number of your first hotel;
• a passport photo, though many shops take one on the spot.

After the paperwork, activation can take minutes or hours; up to 24 hours has been reported, and some lines need a short verification call before they work. Do not plan a tight connection to a train around a SIM that is still waiting.

Airport counters or a city store

Airtel, Jio and Vi run counters in the arrivals halls at Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and the other major airports. They are set up for tourists and are the most reliable place to get the paperwork right, but they charge more than shops in town and keep their own hours. In the city, use an official store, Airtel's red or Jio's blue, rather than an unbranded stall, and never accept a SIM that is already active: it is registered to someone else and can be cut off without warning.

What a month costs

Indian data is among the cheapest anywhere, though the figures quoted for 2026 do not agree. One guide puts Airtel's ₹349 recharge at 28 days with 1.5GB a day; another reads the same price as 1GB a day. Jio's ₹349 recharge is quoted with 50 GB. One guide says standard tourist-friendly plans cost ₹300 to ₹600 and that a seller asking far more is inflating the price; another says tourist packages run ₹900 to ₹1,200 a month. Ask for the plan by name and price, and check it on the operator's app before you pay. If Jammu and Kashmir is on your route, note that Airtel's prepaid terms exclude roaming benefits into and out of the region.

What we offer for India

Our India range is small, and we would rather be clear about it. The Orange World 20GB eSIM includes India: $28 for 20GB over 30 days from first use, with a French +33 number, 15 minutes of calls and 50 texts, and no documents or counter visit. The Vodafone Travel VIP eSIM also works in India, but only at $7.50 for each day you use it on top of the $32 plan, so it suits a few days rather than a month. The O2 SMS Only eSIM at $8 a month gives you a private UK number for verification texts while the data comes from elsewhere. The Global PAYG eSIM at $20 includes €17.50 of credit.

Side by side

When you need an Indian number

A travel eSIM gives you data, not an Indian number. Some Indian services still want one: certain bank and payment apps, train bookings and delivery apps send their codes to a +91 number. If those matter to your trip, you will need a local SIM in addition to the eSIM. Jio has the widest 4G footprint in small towns and rural areas, while Airtel is strong in the cities; check the network for the region you are visiting before you buy.

Our recommendation

For a trip of up to a month, install the Orange World 20GB eSIM before you fly, so you have maps and messages from the arrivals hall. If you find you need an Indian number, take your passport, visa and hotel address to an Airtel store once you are settled. Keep the O2 SMS Only eSIM on a second line for verification texts. Set-up steps are in our eSIM installation guide, and the plans for the country are on the India eSIM page.