How to buy SIM cards in China?

SimOptions – Prepaid SIM Card for China

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Although this company is not part of the main Chinese mobile operators, it provides the best alternatives and prices for travelers. SimOptions offers 2 different pre-registered prepaid SIM cards for China that makes everything easier! You will not need to worry about roaming rates, surprises or hidden costs. You just need to go to their official page, buy your personal SIM Card for China and get it delivered in 120+ countries.

Take a look at the great benefits you will get with the Prepaid SIM Card for China by SimOptions:

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China’s Main Telecommunication Companies

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With 1,320,810,000 mobile phones in use, this country is the largest nation in terms of mobile phone subscribers. Nowadays, China has three main telecommunications companies that offer different SIM cards and plans for locals and tourists.

These providers are China Mobile, which is the most important company in the country – and one of the largest companies worldwide, China Unicom, that is considered to be the second network carrier but it is very famous among travelers, and finally there is China Telecom, the third most important carrier in the Asian country.

Let’s talk a little bit about each one of them and see the great prepaid SIM cards and plans they have for their subscribers:

 

China Mobile

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As the most important mobile network corporation in China, this company is the leader with more than 900 million mobile subscribers. This number makes China Mobile the largest mobile phone operator in the world.

Its network coverage is very good and it goes from 2G and 3G to 4G-LTE; however, its bands are kind of different from the USA and other countries, this means that you might not be able to use 3G or 4G in the whole country, just in specific areas.

China Mobile provides many alternatives and deals for each type of subscriber, no matter if they are local subscribers or if they are foreign subscribers. This company has created different options thinking about the needs of its users nowadays. Check what they have for you as a traveler:

4G/3G Individual Traveler Prepaid SIM Card

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• Data: First 5 days* 3GB 4G/3G Hong Kong Local Data Service
• Calls: Hong Kong local airtime/call to Mainland China $0.25/min
• Includes IDD and roaming service

*Service starts from activation till the 5th day 23:59 (Hong Kong time)

There is also another prepaid plan that was chosen by many travelers as the best option for 2019. Take a look at the benefits:

Prepaid Plan for Tourists – 88 RMB (12, 78 USD)

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• • Data: 10 GB of nationwide data coverage
  • Incoming Calls & SMS: Free
  • Outgoing Calls: 50 minutes of outgoing nationwide calls. Additional outgoing calls are 0.19 RMB/minute (0, 028 USD)
  • Additional data slows down to 1 Mbps until you top off your card

 

China Unicom

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This telecommunication company is the second most important company in the whole country. China Unicom has more than 90 million users around the world, and it is also recognized as one of the largest network operators worldwide. Many people consider this Asian corporation the best in China due to its large data network in this nation.

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China Unicom offers many options to its users so they can create and arrange their own mobile plans according to their requirements and needs. It has different alternatives regarding calls, SMS and mobile data. You can choose just the ones you need and that’s it! Read a bit more about these options:

1. Data Packages: These options are required, so you need to choose one of them.

• 6GB: $80
• 3GB: $45
• 2GB: $25
• 1GB: $25

2. Calls and SMS: This part is optional; you do not need to select any of these options if you do not need them.

• 250 minutes or 500 SMS: $11.5
• 150 minutes or 300 SMS: $6.5
• 50 minutes or 100 SMS: $2.5

3. Direct International Calling: This is also optional; you can activate this alternative for $10 extra just if you need it and you will get the following:

• 100 minutes for Hong Kong, USA, Canada and Singapore
• 60 minutes for Taiwan, Macao, Korea, Malaysia, India, and Thailand
• 40 minutes for Japan, Vietnam, Colombia, and Brunei
• 20 minutes for Australia, France, Spain, Greece, Egypt, Russia, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Ukraine, and Mongolia

* Note: You will not need to activate roaming service to make these calls; you just need to dial 00 + code of the country/region + destination number.

 

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China Telecom

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As the third network operator in China, it is considered the smallest telecommunication provider in the country. It often has good offers to attract new subscribers so you can take advantage of this. Take into account that, as a tourist, you will need to show your passport to buy any SIM card from this company. All SIM cards from China Telecom need to be purchased only at official stores; they cannot be activated anywhere else.

Data-only SIM Card Plans:

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1GB (50 RMB – 7, 25 USD)

• Data: 1GB
• Validity: 30 days

3GB (100 RMB – 14, 51 USD)

• Data: 3GB
• Validity: 30 days

6GB (180 RMB – 26, 11 USD)

• Data: 6GB
• Validity: 30 days

2GB (100 RMB – 14, 51 USD)

• Data: 2GB
• Validity: 90 days

4GB (200 RMB – 29, 01 USD)

• Data: 4GB
• Validity: 90 days

To purchase all the previous SIM cards and plans, you will need to show your passport as your only ID while you are in China, so do not forget to have it with you all the time!

Having internet access while you travel around a city or country is one of the most important parts of a trip nowadays. Technology is a very important aspect of our everyday life, so we always need to be connected no matter how far we are.

Traveling to an Asian country like China can be sometimes difficult because of language barriers, different customs, etc, but if you choose the best prepaid SIM card for China we are sure you will have an amazing experience! We hope all this information was useful for you and you can have a better trip now.