EU roaming on an Irish SIM, and a UK roam add-on, say nothing about China. Roaming in China vs eSIM is not a draw. Compatible unlocked mobile: take the eSIM, and turn data roaming off on the home line. The exception sits on this week’s factsheet, not on a welcome SMS at PVG.
This guide compares home-carrier roaming and a travel eSIM for everyone: solo, couple, family, group, business, older travellers, teenagers. Chinese hosts stay China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom. Detail in the network guide. The airport box is a sibling piece: eSIM or pocket Wi-Fi. Plans sit on the China comparison.
Supplier links are affiliates. They do not move the eSIM verdict or the catalog prices. Detail in the methodology.
Roaming or eSIM in China: the verdict
| Option | Who it is for | Strength | Traveller weakness |
|---|---|---|---|
| Travel eSIM | 1 to 3 compatible mobiles, 5 to 21 days | Host written, price per GB, install before Heathrow | Data only: no Chinese number |
| Home SKU that still lists China | Only if this week’s page names China | Data on the line you already have | You do not pick Unicom vs Mobile. Voice is often still billed. A French Free Max SKU is the example, not EE |
| Operator travel pass (EE, Vodafone, Three) | You must take voice calls on the home number in Shanghai | An add-on in the carrier app | Opaque host. This is not China Unicom |
| PAYG per MB | Nobody | None | WeChat is not a “quick test” |
Rule: EE, Vodafone, Three, Tesco Mobile, giffgaff, or a standard EU tariff: eSIM, home data roaming off. A rare premium “world” SKU that writes China (French Free Max is the textbook example): data roaming can hold if you recheck the country list the week you fly. Operator travel pass: useful for voice on the home number, not to pick Unicom or Mobile. PAYG per MB: never. EU roaming and a UK post-Brexit roam pass do not cover China.
Three eSIMs we track, useful once the phone passes the check:
CodeESIMP15
CodeSIMP
CodeESIMP
Who it is for: solo, family, world tariff, business
| Profile | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Solo, compatible iPhone / Pixel / Galaxy | eSIM | WeChat + maps, no PAYG ladder |
| Couple, two unlocked mobiles | 2 eSIMs (or 1 + tethering) | Two bars. One travel pass does not save the second phone |
| Family, kids / tablets | Adult eSIMs + hotspot | Monzo, Revolut, PayPal, high-street and HMRC OTPs stay on the home line |
| Group of 5+ | eSIM or pocket Wi-Fi | Home roaming does not become group Wi-Fi |
| Business, laptop | eSIM + tethering | An hour of video in Shanghai on EE PAYG has no human cap |
| Older traveller, uneasy with a QR | eSIM installed at home | The roam pass in the app is not simpler once PAYG opens |
| Teens on a cheap SIM | eSIM, home data off before boarding | A light UK PAYG or Irish SIM carries almost nothing outside Europe |
| Premium world tariff, China listed | Home data roaming possible | Recheck the list. Keep SMS on that line anyway |
| You must answer the home number | Travel pass or eSIM + WeChat / WhatsApp | The pass wins on voice. The eSIM wins on host and €/GB |
| Mobile with no eSIM | Travel pass, plastic SIM or pocket Wi-Fi | The eSIM is not relevant. Check the model first |
A reader on a world tariff that names China is not “behind” if they stay on that line. They have a SKU that writes the country. The rest of this guide assumes the usual case: a home plan that does not include the mainland.
What EU roaming does not cover
Since 2017, “roam like at home” stops at the EU border (plus some extras by carrier: UK on some Irish SIMs, Switzerland, sometimes Ukraine). China is not in that zone. A plan that “works in Spain” says nothing about a WeChat refresh in Pudong. Asia is not “almost Europe” for data. A UK post-Brexit roam pass is a different product again. EE, Vodafone and Three inclusive-roam lists are Europe-heavy. China is almost always extra.
At landing, carriers often send a welcome SMS. That is not a plan. It is a price list in a text. Out-of-bundle data outside Europe is billed per MB, in small increments. On French Orange the public ladder is about €13.31 per MB. UK PAYG is the same idea in pounds: a WeChat session plus two stories is a West End bill without the show.
China Unicom is not that SMS. It is a local MNO. Your EE or Vodafone line sometimes attaches to it in roaming. You do not pick the host. An eSIM, if you read the column, does.
Google and WhatsApp stay filtered, including in roaming. An EE pass is not a VPN.
EE, Vodafone, Three, EU SIMs: the home factsheet
You are not buying “EE’s Chinese network”. You are buying this week’s roaming agreement on your SKU. Hosts behind it are still China Mobile, Unicom, Telecom. The carrier app almost never names them. On our side the host networks column does, for the eSIM.
EE, Vodafone, Three, Tesco, giffgaff
Standard UK tariffs do not pour China data out of the UK allowance. Without an add-on, it is PAYG per MB.
Carriers sell travel passes / roam extras (day or trip). A few GB, sometimes minutes, short validity. Useful if you must answer the UK number from a Shanghai hotel. Less useful for ten days of WeChat, maps and Reels: price per GB on a China eSIM, in the catalog, almost always wins.
giffgaff and many MVNOs are stricter: nothing useful outside Europe unless you buy a bolt-on. Treat a welcome SMS as a warning, not a bundle.
Ireland and other EU SIMs
Same rule as Spain or Germany: EU roaming ≠ China. Vodafone IE, Three IE, eir, or a French Orange métropole SKU: eSIM, home data off. The French Free Max SKU is the textbook exception if China is still on the country list. It is not EE. It is not Three Go Roam.
The move: eSIM before Heathrow, home number on
Open the compatibility tool before you buy a QR.
Install the profile on home Wi-Fi, or at Heathrow / Dublin. Test the VPN. On arrival: data = China eSIM. Data roaming off on the home SIM. Data roaming on on the travel eSIM if the profile asks. Leave the home number on for HMRC, Monzo, banks.
Pocket Wi-Fi and a local SIM are plan B. See eSIM vs pocket Wi-Fi and eSIM vs local SIM.
| Provider | Typical host | Code | Offer | Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airalo | China Unicom (often) | ESIMP15 | Offer | Review |
| Ubigi | check live | ESIMP | Offer | Review |
| Holafly | check live | SIMP | Offer | Review |
 Orange Travel | check live | ESIMP | Offer | Review |
 Nomad | check live | ESIMPNOMAD | Offer | Review |
Estimate gigabytes for maps, video and hotspot.
Open calculatorPHONEeSIM compatibilityCheck iPhone, Pixel and Galaxy before you buy. EE, Vodafone or Three SKUs are not always eSIM.
Check my phoneHow much data for your trip in China?
Three typical trips, same maths as the calculator, China factor (VPN, WeChat, offline maps). Maps, WeChat, Reels or a laptop on tethering: the same gigabytes on an eSIM or a pocket Wi-Fi box. Turn off photo backup on cellular if you want the low end. Read the fair use.
Estimate 9.5 GB · Maps, chat, WeChat. No Reels, no laptop.
Estimate 18.9 GB · Same base, plus half an hour of video a day.
Estimate 36.1 GB · One hour of phone tethering a day for the computer.
Mistakes that still cost money
- Thinking EU roaming works in Shanghai
Italy yes, China no. A welcome SMS at PVG is not a plan. It is often PAYG per MB.
Compare China eSIMs - Leaving EE / Vodafone / Three data on “just in case”
PAYG per MB. Switch off data roaming, not the line: bank SMS still have to land.
Compare China eSIMs - Mixing Free Max with a cheap PAYG SIM
China may sit on the French Max data list. A light UK SIM carries almost nothing outside Europe. Recheck the country list.
Check compatibility - Switching off the home SIM to “avoid roaming”
You lose HMRC, Monzo, OTPs. A China eSIM is data only. Cut the data, not the number.
Check compatibility - Taking a 1 GB pass for Beijing + Xi’an
Size the GB. A voice pass of a few MB does not save WeChat. An eSIM host is readable, a pass host rarely is.
Size the data pack
FAQ
Does my home roaming work in China?
EU roaming says nothing about China. EE, Vodafone, Three and most EU SIMs bill per MB off-pass, unless a SKU writes China (French Free Max is the catalog example) or you bought a travel pass. Recheck the factsheet the week you fly.
EE, Vodafone or Three roaming in China: what to pick?
Compatible phone: travel eSIM, home data roaming off. Exception: a rare SKU that still lists China. An EE or Vodafone travel pass is mainly if you must answer the home number. That is not a draw with the eSIM: the eSIM host is readable.
Does Free Max include China?
Free’s destinations page sometimes lists China on the French Free Max data list. That is not EE, not Three Go Roam. Recheck the country list in the subscriber area before you land at PVG.
How much is PAYG data in China?
On French Orange the public ladder is about €13.31 per MB. UK PAYG is the same idea in pounds. A WeChat session plus maps in Pudong is not a small test.
Can I keep my home line for bank SMS?
Yes. A China eSIM is almost always data only. Leave the home SIM or eSIM for HMRC, Monzo and OTPs. Switch off data roaming, not the line.
Is Orange Travel EE roaming?
No. Orange Travel is a travel eSIM, a reseller. China Mobile, Unicom or Telecom is the host. An EE roam pass is itinerancy of your home line. Three products. Read the host.
Sources
All external sources open in a new tab.
- EE, Vodafone, Three: recross your roam brochure before boarding. Out-of-bundle data outside Europe is PAYG.
- French Orange public ladder €13.31 / MB outside the EU (operator / comparison sheets 2026), useful as an order of magnitude, not a UK bill.
- MIIT, communications statistics end of June 2026.
- eSIM Giga catalog: China comparison (price, hosts, hotspot).
- Sibling guides: best mobile network in China, eSIM or local SIM, eSIM or pocket Wi-Fi, Internet in China.
A travel eSIM and a home line in roaming often ride the same MNOs. What changes is the price per MB, the host pick, and the bank SMS. Once the phone is compatible, we stay on the eSIM.