1 GB
Valid for 7 days
$6.99
$6.99 per GB
eSIM for Nigeria
Nigeria is a phone-first country with an unreliable everything else. The grid collapsed repeatedly in 2024, and cell towers run on diesel and batteries. Lagos traffic turns a 10 km ride into two hours you spend on WhatsApp. Data prices jumped about 50% in early 2025 when the regulator approved the first tariff rise in over a decade. Every local SIM now needs a passport, fingerprints and a photo at the counter.
A FairSIM eSIM for Nigeria connects to MTN, Opensignal's Best Network for 2025, or Airtel, at the wholesale rate. It is installed before you fly, so Bolt loads in the arrivals hall at Murtala Muhammed and you skip the SIM kiosk, the NIN question and the queue.
For the diaspora flying home for Detty December, that matters. Late November to early January is when Lagos hosts its biggest concerts, Calabar runs its carnival and flight prices double. Every person in the family can carry their own plan from one app, and top up from the couch in Lekki.
Nigeria 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 Nigeria
3 GB
Valid for 30 days
Get it in the app for Nigeria$14.99
$5.00 per GB
- Best value
10 GB
Valid for 30 days
Get it in the app for Nigeria$29.99
$3.00 per GB
Coverage in Nigeria
- 4G LTE
- 5G
- MTNLargest network and Opensignal's Best Network for 2025, winning all six speed awards, with 5G in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt. The usual host for travel eSIMs.
- AirtelSecond network with about 35% of subscribers, the video experience winner, and 5G in the big cities. A good backup outside Lagos.
- Glo and 9mobileGlo has about 12% of the market and no Opensignal awards; 9mobile is the smallest and thin outside the cities.
Typical speed: MTN averaged about 20 Mbps overall download in Opensignal's July 2025 report, a third faster than Airtel and twice Glo. Ookla's Q4 2025 median is about 44 Mbps, driven by 5G in Lagos and Abuja.
Good on Lagos Island, Victoria Island, Lekki, Ikeja and in central Abuja. Speeds sag at peak hours and during power cuts when tower batteries run flat. The far north and long highway stretches drop to 3G or nothing.
How much data do you need in Nigeria?
It depends on how you travel. Find your trip below, then pick the plan that matches. You can always top up in the app.
Detty December in Lagos
Concerts, beach clubs in Lekki, Christmas with the family.
Why data matters: Bolt and Uber in surge traffic, event tickets and WhatsApp groups, Instagram from Landmark or Ilashe, and bank apps for transfers.
- 7 days
- 5 GB
- 14 days
- 10 GB
- 30 days
- 20 GB
Lagos business trip
Victoria Island meetings, Ikeja factories, an Eko Hotel conference.
Why data matters: Video calls when the office generator hums, hotspot for the laptop, email, Bolt, and Google Maps in traffic.
- 7 days
- 10 GB
- 14 days
- 20 GB
- 30 days
- Unlimited
Abuja and government travel
Ministries, embassies, a weekend at Zuma Rock or Gurara Falls.
Why data matters: Bolt and Uber across a spread-out city, email and calls, maps to compounds that have no street numbers, and hotel Wi-Fi backup.
- 7 days
- 5 GB
- 14 days
- 10 GB
- 30 days
- 20 GB
Family visit in the south-west or south-east
Ibadan, Enugu, Owerri, village time over Christmas.
Why data matters: WhatsApp video with relatives abroad, maps on the expressways, banking apps, and a hotspot when the compound's Wi-Fi is off with the power.
- 7 days
- 5 GB
- 14 days
- 10 GB
- 30 days
- 20 GB
Calabar carnival and Obudu
Africa's biggest street party in December, then the mountain resort.
Why data matters: Carnival schedules and WhatsApp groups, hotel bookings, Bolt in Calabar, and offline maps for the Obudu road.
- 7 days
- 3 GB
- 14 days
- 6 GB
- 30 days
- 12 GB
NGO or project work across states
Weeks on the road between Lagos, Abuja and the field.
Why data matters: Hotspot for a team laptop, reports and cloud sync, security check-ins, and coverage that holds when the office power does not.
- 7 days
- 10 GB
- 14 days
- 20 GB
- 30 days
- Unlimited
What your home carrier charges in Nigeria
Daily roaming passes look small until you multiply them by the length of the trip. FairSIM plans for Nigeria start at $6.99 and never bill per day.
Nigeria sits in the most expensive roaming tier at most European carriers. A month home for December on a day pass costs more than the excess baggage.
| Carrier | Roaming charge | FairSIM |
|---|---|---|
| Verizon (US) | TravelPass at $12 per day, 5 GB high-speed then 3G speeds | from $6.99, no daily fee |
| AT&T (US) | International Day Pass at $12 per day | from $6.99, no daily fee |
| T-Mobile (US) | Included at 256 kbps on most plans; 5 GB high-speed on Go5G Plus | from $6.99, no daily fee |
| O2 (UK) | O2 Travel Bolt On at £7 per day, speeds capped at 2 Mbps | from $6.99, no daily fee |
| Vodafone (UK) | No daily pass; pay-as-you-go roaming at about 12p per MB, roughly £120 per gigabyte | from $6.99, no daily fee |
| Rogers (Canada) | Roam Like Home at C$18 per day | from $6.99, 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 Nigeria
Apply for the e-visa online before you fly. Visa on arrival ended in May 2025, and the digital landing card must be filled in before boarding.
Carry a power bank of at least 20,000 mAh. Grid power is unreliable and hotel generators go off at set hours; a dead phone means no Bolt and no map.
Use Bolt or Uber with the plate checked, and a hotel car for the airport. The UK Foreign Office flags a kidnap risk with taxis in some areas.
Apple Pay does not work in Nigeria. Bring a Visa or Mastercard that taps, tell your bank you are travelling, and keep some naira for markets.
Detty December doubles flight prices and triples ride times. Book concerts early, share your live location with the family, and buy a 10 GB plan for a two-week stay.
Signal thins fast outside the cities and during outages when tower batteries run flat. Download offline maps for the Lagos to Ibadan and Abuja to Kaduna expressways.
Keep the phone away from car windows in traffic. Window taps at Lagos junctions are a known trick.
Adding Ghana or a London stopover? Nigeria is on the Africa plan, but Ghana and the UK are not, so buy those separately in the app.
Apps you will actually use
- Bolt, Uber and inDrive Bolt is the biggest in Lagos and Abuja; inDrive lets you bid a fare. Match the plate before getting in.
- WhatsApp family, drivers, vendors and event promoters all live here.
- Google Maps essential in Lagos traffic; check the route before the Third Mainland Bridge.
- Nigeria e-Visa and landing card portal apply online before flying; keep the approval and the digital landing card on your phone.
- Your bank app plus a Visa or Mastercard Apple Pay is not supported in Nigeria, so card taps and bank transfers do the work.
- Chowdeck or Glovo food delivery in Lagos and Abuja.
- Jumia shopping and gifts delivered to the family compound.
- Air Peace and Ibom Air domestic flights and boarding passes.
The UK Foreign Office warns that taxi apps carry a kidnap risk in some areas, so use a hotel car for airport runs and stick to Bolt or Uber inside Lagos and Abuja with the plate checked.
Can you rely on free Wi-Fi?
Hotels, malls and cafés on Victoria Island, in Lekki and in Abuja offer Wi-Fi, but it runs on the same generator as the lights and drops when the power does. Outside the big cities it is rare. Treat it as a bonus, not a plan.
Local SIM card or eSIM in Nigeria?
Visitors can buy a SIM with a passport and a valid visa, no NIN required; the NCC only asks for a NIN if you later take up residence. Registration means fingerprints and a photo at the counter. MTN sells visitor bundles of 5 GB for 7 days at ₦5,000 and 12 GB for 14 days at ₦10,000, after prices rose about 50% in early 2025 with the regulator's first tariff approval in over a decade. Airport kiosks exist at Murtala Muhammed but often close late at night.
A FairSIM eSIM runs on MTN or Airtel at the wholesale rate with no registration, no biometrics and no kiosk. It is installed at home before the flight, so you leave the terminal with Bolt already loaded.
Good to know before you land in Nigeria
- Currency
- Nigerian naira (₦, NGN)
- Plug type
- Type G (British three-pin) and Type D
- Voltage
- 230 V, 50 Hz
- Emergency number
- 112 for all services
- Language
- English, plus Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and Nigerian Pidgin
- Time zone
- UTC+1, no daylight saving
- Capital
- Abuja
Nigeria eSIM questions
Does eSIM work in Nigeria?
Yes. MTN and Airtel support eSIM, and any unlocked eSIM iPhone connects. FairSIM installs in one tap and activates on your first connection in Nigeria.
Which network will my FairSIM eSIM use in Nigeria?
Plans connect to MTN or Airtel, the two networks with the best speed and coverage in Opensignal's 2025 report. Both cover Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and the state capitals. The app shows the network for each plan.
Is there 5G in Nigeria?
Yes, on MTN and Airtel in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and a few other cities, where your plan and phone support it. Most travel eSIMs run on 4G LTE, which is plenty for WhatsApp, Bolt and maps.
Can I use my eSIM as a hotspot?
Most FairSIM plans support Personal Hotspot; the app confirms it per plan. Useful when the hotel Wi-Fi goes off with the generator.
Do I need a NIN for a FairSIM eSIM?
No. The NIN-SIM rule applies to Nigerian SIMs. Visitors buying a local SIM use a passport instead, and a foreign travel eSIM roams on MTN or Airtel with no registration at all.
Should I install the eSIM before or after landing?
Install it at home on Wi-Fi in one tap, keep it off, then enable data on it when you land. Validity typically starts on the first connection in Nigeria.
Can I make calls and use WhatsApp?
WhatsApp calls and messages work fully over data, and that is how Nigeria talks. There is no Nigerian number, so keep your home SIM for SMS codes and bank OTPs.
How much data for 7, 14 or 30 days?
Family visit or Detty December: 5, 10 and 20 GB. Business with hotspot: 10, 20 GB, then unlimited. Calabar and the road: 3, 6 and 12 GB. Top up in the app at any time.
Local SIM or travel eSIM for Nigeria?
A local SIM needs a passport, visa, fingerprints and a photo at a counter, and prices rose 50% in 2025. A travel eSIM is set up before departure, needs no registration and runs on the same MTN or Airtel network.
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. iOS 17.4 or later unlocks the one-tap install with no QR code. Check the full list 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 Nigeria?
Get your Nigeria eSIM in the app
Plans from $6.99. 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
