1 GB
Valid for 7 days
$4.99
$4.99 per GB
eSIM for Malta
Malta is small and dense. Three islands, buses that change route with the season, ferries between Valletta, Sliema and the Three Cities, and a fast boat to Gozo from Cirkewwa. Almost none of it is walkable end to end, so you plan it on your phone: the Tallinja app for bus times, Bolt or eCabs when the bus is full, and the ferry timetable that shifts between summer and winter.
A FairSIM eSIM roams onto GO, Epic or Melita, the three Maltese networks. All three run 5G in the built-up areas around Valletta, Sliema, St Julian's and Mosta, with 4G LTE across the rest of Malta, Gozo and Comino. You install it over Wi-Fi at home, land at Malta International Airport, and you have data before you reach the bus stop outside arrivals.
One local rule worth knowing: Malta requires prepaid SIM cards to be registered to an identity document, so buying a local tourist SIM means a counter, a passport and a form. A travel eSIM skips that entirely. The other rule is on the road, not the network: Malta drives on the left, and if you rent a car the lanes in Valletta and Mdina are narrower than your mirrors suggest.
Malta is in the EU, so EU and EEA travellers roam at home rates here. Everyone else pays a daily pass or buys an eSIM.
Malta eSIM plans
Wholesale rates in US dollars, with nothing added at checkout. Buy in the FairSIM app and the plan is on your phone in seconds.
How long is your trip?
All plans. Pick a trip length to narrow the list.
- Get it in the app for Malta
5 GB
Valid for 30 days
Get it in the app for Malta$9.99
$2.00 per GB
- Best value
10 GB
Valid for 30 days
Get it in the app for Malta$18.99
$1.90 per GB
Unlimited
Valid for 15 days
Get it in the app for Malta$33.99
Speed policy shown in the app
Coverage in Malta
- 4G LTE
- 5G
- GOThe incumbent operator, with 5G in the main towns and 4G across both main islands. Wide fixed and mobile footprint including Gozo.
- EpicThe former Vodafone Malta, now part of Monaco Telecom. 5G in the harbour area and the main centres, plus maritime coverage on the Gozo crossing.
- MelitaThe third network, grown out of the cable business, with 5G in Malta's urban core and 4G elsewhere.
Typical speed: Fast enough for video calls, maps and streaming almost everywhere on the islands. Expect slowdowns in summer crowds: Paceville at night, the Blue Lagoon on a Sunday, and the ferry terminals at Cirkewwa when three buses arrive at once.
Malta is only about 27 km long, so coverage is close to universal on land. Signal can dip in the deeper valleys behind Dingli, inside the Hypogeum and catacombs, and on the crossing between Comino and Gozo it depends which side of the boat you are standing on.
How much data do you need in Malta?
It depends on how you travel. Find your trip below, then pick the plan that matches. You can always top up in the app.
Valletta and harbour city break
Three or four nights around the capital, Sliema and the Three Cities.
Why data matters: Bus times in the Tallinja app, ferry schedules, Bolt or eCabs at night, museum and St John's Co-Cathedral tickets, and restaurant bookings.
- 7 days
- 5 GB
- 14 days
- 10 GB
- 30 days
- 20 GB
Gozo and Comino island hopping
Ferry to Mgarr, a base in Xlendi or Marsalforn, and a boat day at the Blue Lagoon.
Why data matters: Gozo Channel and fast ferry timetables, boat operators who confirm on WhatsApp, offline maps for the coastal walks, and photo uploads once you are back on 4G.
- 7 days
- 5 GB
- 14 days
- 10 GB
- 30 days
- 20 GB
Summer beach and family trip
Mellieha or Bugibba for a week, with pool days and one or two boat trips.
Why data matters: Two or three phones streaming on the balcony, kids' video calls home, weather and sea state checks, and hotspot for a tablet. Hotel Wi-Fi in older resorts struggles in August.
- 7 days
- 10 GB
- 14 days
- 20 GB
- 30 days
- Unlimited
Diving week
Wreck and cave dives out of Cirkewwa, Gozo and Comino.
Why data matters: Dive centre messages, tide and wind apps before each morning, GPS on the drive to the shore entries, and big video files to upload in the evening.
- 7 days
- 10 GB
- 14 days
- 20 GB
- 30 days
- Unlimited
English school or remote work stay
Two to six weeks in Sliema, St Julian's or Gzira, working or studying.
Why data matters: Zoom and Teams, hotspot for a laptop when the apartment connection drops, and a local-network line that keeps working if the building Wi-Fi does not.
- 7 days
- 20 GB
- 14 days
- Unlimited
- 30 days
- Unlimited
What your home carrier charges in Malta
Daily roaming passes look small until you multiply them by the length of the trip. FairSIM plans for Malta start at $4.99 and never bill per day.
Malta is in the EU, so EU and EEA SIMs roam at domestic rates under roam-like-at-home, within fair-use data limits. Travellers from the US, UK and Australia usually pay a daily pass.
| Carrier | Roaming charge | FairSIM |
|---|---|---|
| AT&T International Day Pass (US) | $12 per day per line, $6 for additional lines | from $4.99, no daily fee |
| Verizon TravelPass (US) | $12 per day, high-speed data then slowed | from $4.99, no daily fee |
| EE (UK) | Europe roaming is a daily add-on on most plans sold since mid-2021, and included on some older and higher tiers. Check your plan before you fly. | from $4.99, no daily fee |
| Vodafone UK | Europe roaming is chargeable on most newer plans, either per day or as a multi-day pass, and inclusive on some higher tiers. | from $4.99, no daily fee |
| Orange France / Telekom Germany (EU) | Included at no extra cost under EU roam-like-at-home, subject to fair-use data caps | from $4.99, no daily fee |
| Telstra International Day Pass (Australia) | A$10 per day for 2 GB in most eligible destinations, including Malta | from $4.99, no daily fee |
Carrier prices as published on their roaming pages at the time of writing. They change often; check your own plan before you fly.
How FairSIM works
- 1
Pick a destination and a plan
Choose the country or region and the data you need. The price you see is the price you pay.
- 2
Tap install
On iPhone (iOS 17.4+) the eSIM installs in one tap, no QR code. Do it at home while you still have Wi-Fi.
- 3
Land and connect
Turn on data roaming for the FairSIM line when you arrive. Your plan starts when it first connects.
Connectivity tips for Malta
Install the eSIM over Wi-Fi at home and switch the line on after landing; validity normally starts at the first connection to a Maltese network.
Get a tal-linja card or use the Tallinja app for buses. Single tickets cost more, and cash on board slows everything down.
Check the Gozo Channel timetable each morning. Summer and winter schedules differ, and the last boats back are earlier than you expect out of season.
Book Blue Lagoon boats early in the day and go at opening or late afternoon. Midday in July is shoulder to shoulder and the network is congested too.
Driving is on the left, lanes are narrow and parking in Valletta is limited. Buses, ferries and a ride app cover most itineraries without a car.
Download Malta and Gozo in Google Maps before a hike along Dingli Cliffs or the Gozo coast path, where signal thins in the valleys.
Emergency number is 112 and it works from any phone, including one with no active plan.
Plugs are Type G, the same as the UK, so bring a UK adapter if you are arriving from mainland Europe.
Apps you will actually use
- Tallinja Malta Public Transport's official app: live bus times, route planning and top-ups for the tal-linja card.
- Bolt the ride app with the widest coverage on the islands, useful when buses stop or fill up.
- eCabs the Maltese ride and taxi app, good for airport transfers booked in advance.
- Google Maps solid for driving and walking; download Malta and Gozo offline before the rental car.
- Gozo Channel timetables for the Cirkewwa to Mgarr ferry, which changes between summer and winter schedules.
- Wolt food and grocery delivery across the main towns.
- Bolt Food the second delivery app, with different restaurants signed up.
- WhatsApp how boat skippers, dive centres, landlords and tour operators actually reply.
Bolt and eCabs are the ride apps locals use; the airport has a fixed-fare taxi booth in arrivals if you would rather not open an app after a late flight. Buses are cheap and go almost everywhere, but they are single-deck, frequent and often full in August, so build in slack.
Can you rely on free Wi-Fi?
Wi-Fi is easy to find in Malta: hotels, cafes, the airport and many public squares have it, and Valletta has free hotspots in parts of the centre. Quality is another matter. Older apartment blocks and summer-season resorts share one line among a lot of guests, so evening video calls stutter, and hotspots on beaches and in bus shelters are often too slow to load a ferry timetable. Treat Wi-Fi as a bonus for big downloads in your room, and keep your own data line for anything time-sensitive.
Local SIM card or eSIM in Malta?
GO, Epic and Melita all sell prepaid tourist bundles, and you will find outlets at Malta International Airport arrivals and on the main shopping streets in Valletta, Sliema and Victoria on Gozo. Prices are reasonable by European standards and the data allowances are generous. The friction is registration: Maltese law requires prepaid lines to be registered against an identity document, so you hand over a passport, wait for the form, and wait again if there is a queue behind a full flight.
A FairSIM eSIM is installed before you leave home, needs no counter and no paperwork, and roams on the same GO, Epic or Melita towers your local SIM would use. You keep your home number active for bank codes and boarding passes while data runs on the eSIM. A local SIM still wins if you need a Maltese phone number for a long stay, a delivery or a local subscription; for a week of maps, ferries and WhatsApp, the eSIM is simply faster to get going.
Good to know before you land in Malta
- Currency
- Euro (EUR)
- Plug type
- Type G (UK three-pin)
- Voltage
- 230 V, 50 Hz
- Emergency number
- 112 for all services
- Language
- Maltese and English, both official; English is spoken everywhere
- Time zone
- UTC+1 (CET), UTC+2 in summer
- Capital
- Valletta
Malta eSIM questions
Does eSIM work in Malta?
Yes. Any unlocked eSIM-capable phone connects to GO, Epic or Melita with a travel eSIM. On iPhone that means XS, XR or newer; most recent Pixel, Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy A models support eSIM too.
Which network will my Malta eSIM use?
GO, Epic or Melita. The app shows the host network for each plan, and your phone may switch between them depending on the plan and local signal.
Is there 5G in Malta?
Yes. GO, Epic and Melita all run 5G in the urban areas around Valletta, Sliema, St Julian's and the main towns, with 4G LTE across the rest of Malta, Gozo and Comino. Your handset needs 5G support, otherwise you get 4G.
Does the eSIM work on Gozo and Comino?
Yes. Both islands have 4G coverage, with 5G in parts of Victoria and the built-up areas. Signal can drop briefly on the crossing and in the deeper bays.
Do I need to register my SIM in Malta?
Local prepaid SIMs must be registered to an identity document, which means a counter and a passport. A travel eSIM needs no registration in Malta.
Can I use Personal Hotspot in Malta?
Yes. Every FairSIM plan supports Personal Hotspot, with no separate cap on tethered data.
How much data do I need for a week in Malta?
A sightseeing week on maps, messaging and social runs about 5 to 8 GB. Two weeks of family travel with streaming is closer to 20 GB. If you work remotely or upload dive video, take an unlimited plan.
Do I need an eSIM if I have an EU SIM?
Usually not. EU and EEA plans roam in Malta at domestic rates under roam-like-at-home, though fair-use data caps apply on long stays. US, UK and Australian travellers normally save with an eSIM.
Can I make calls with the eSIM?
FairSIM plans are data only, so there is no Maltese phone number. WhatsApp, FaceTime and Signal calls work over the data connection, and there are no restrictions on internet calling in Malta. Keep your home SIM active for SMS codes with its own data roaming off.
What is an eSIM?
A SIM card built into your phone. Instead of a plastic chip, you download a profile. Every iPhone since the XS has one next to the physical SIM slot, so your home number stays put while FairSIM supplies the data.
Is my phone compatible?
FairSIM works with eSIM-compatible, carrier-unlocked iPhones: the XS, XR and everything newer, on iOS 17.4 or later for the one-tap install with no QR code. iPhones bought in mainland China do not support eSIM at all, even when unlocked. Not sure yours is unlocked? Check Settings, General, About, Carrier Lock, or ask your carrier. The full list is on the How it works page.
When should I install my eSIM?
Before you travel, while you still have Wi-Fi. Installing does not start your plan; the validity typically starts when the eSIM first connects to a network at your destination.
Do FairSIM eSIMs come with a phone number?
No. FairSIM eSIMs are data-only by design, which keeps costs low. For calls and texts, your physical SIM stays active so you keep your existing number, and WhatsApp, FaceTime and iMessage work over data.
Traveling beyond Malta?
Get your Malta eSIM in the app
Plans from $4.99. Install before you fly, track your data live, and top up in seconds if you need more.
Download on theApp Store
iPhone XS or later · iOS 17.4+ for one-tap install
