Best Malaysia SIM Cards for Tourists: Types, Price, Where to Buy

Clover Garcia

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Latest update: September 2024

A Malaysia SIM card allows travelers to stay connected with high-speed internet, privacy and security – all while saving money.

Traveling to Malaysia, people have many connectivity options, including free WiFi, pocket WiFi, roaming, and prepaid SIM cards. Choosing which option for your trip is crucial because it impacts your budget and traveling experience. Many people choose Malaysia SIM cards over others, but why? This article reveals everything you need to know about SIM cards in Malaysia, including types, cost, where to buy, how to get, and alternative options.

I. Do you need a SIM card for Malaysia travel?

Yes.

If you are planning a trip to Malaysia, you need a reliable way to make calls, send texts, and access the Internet. While options like roaming, pocket WiFi, and free WiFi exist, they often come with drawbacks.

• Roaming: is associated with high charges that can quickly beat off your budget.
• Pocket WiFi: can be inconvenient to carry around and may require charging multiple devices.
• Free WiFi: while readily available, public WiFi networks often have security risks and unstable speeds.

That is where a prepaid Malaysia SIM card comes as a convenient and cost-effective solution. Using it, you can get connected instantly as soon as you land in Malaysia, enjoy affordable data at local rates, and stay connected securely.

Can my phone work with Malaysia SIM cards?

To use Malaysia SIM cards, you need to check two important things:

• Is your phone carrier unlocked? If your phone is locked to a specific carrier, it can only be used with their SIM cards. This means you will not be able to use SIM cards from Malaysian mobile operators.
• What type of network does you phone use? GSM, CDMA, or both? Malaysia mainly uses GSM networks (specifically bands 3, 7, and 8). Fortunately, most smartphones are compatible with GSM. To be sure, you should check the supported network bands in your phone’s settings or on the manufacturer’s website.

II. Which type of SIM card are available for tourists in Malaysia?

Malaysia SIM cards are available in different categories, varied by criteria:

By format:

• Physical SIM cards (standard, micro, and nano): the traditional, physical card that you insert into your phone. They are available in different sizes and nano is the most common. If your phone has one SIM tray, you need to remove the primary home SIM card and replace the new Malaysian one. Not convenient at all, right?
• eSIM (virtual SIM, digital SIM): This is a digital SIM embedded in your phone. It works 100% digital. You can buy it online, receive the plan through email, install it by scanning a QR code and get it activated right upon arrival in Malaysia. Using eSIM, you do not need to remove your home SIM card. eSIMs are increasingly popular, offer convenience, but require eSIM compatible devices.

By payment plan:

• Prepaid: you pay upfront for a set amount of data, calls and texts or data only. Recharge as needed.
• Postpaid: you sign a contract and receive a monthly bill based on your usage. It is suitable for residents and long-term travelers.

By function:

• Data only: it is the best if you mainly need internet access for browsing, navigating maps, using social media
• Data with calls and texts: this option gives you local phone numbers for making calls and sending texts within Malaysia and internationally (varied by plan)

So which is more suitable for travelers in Malaysia? Malaysia SIM vs eSIM

For tourists in Malaysia, prepaid data-only eSIM plans are an ideal option, offering budget control, flexibility and affordability. However, if your phone does not support eSIM technology, prepaid data-only physical SIM cards are still a good choice for staying connected.

III. Where to buy a Malaysia SIM card?

You can buy a SIM card for Malaysia either before your trip or upon arrival, or after arrival.

1. Buy before your departure

Buying a Malaysia SIM card before your trip can be convenient and active, which ensures you have Internet access right after arrival.

You have three ways to get a Malaysia SIM card before your trip:

• Buy from SIM stores in your home country that sell tourist SIMs for Malaysia. Choose your desired plan, pay, and have the staff there installed it for you.
• Buy online and have it delivered to your place: you can book a plan online and wait for it to be delivered to your place. This option is available on ecommerce platforms like Amazon, Shopee, Lazada, etc. But, be aware that some places are not in the serving locations. Also, there are risks of being late.

• Order online and pick it up at airports: Some agents, websites like KKday, Traveloka, etc. offer Malaysia SIM plans that tourists can pay in advance and get after arriving at Malaysia’s airports. For example, if you buy from KKday, after paying, you will receive an e-voucher. Then you present it at the meeting point at KLIA, KLIA2, BKI Airport to get the SIM card. That is that simple.

2. Buy at airports upon arrival

It is convenient to buy your Malaysia SIM cards at kiosks or booths of Malaysian mobile operators, such as Maxis/Hotlink, CelcomDigi, U Mobile or other convenience stores like Bluecube and TuneTalk.

After getting out of Arrival Hall, you will see many booths selling SIM cards scattered through the airport, especially near the baggage claim area.

For example, below is the image of Hotlink booths located in the Arrival Hall at Kuala Lumpur airports (KLIA1 and KLIA2)

To buy a SIM card there, you need to present a passport and probably take a photo as part of registration procedure.

The SIM card prices at Malaysian airports tend to be more expensive than online and outside in the city.

Also, if you arrive at rush hours, you may need to queue in lines to get the SIM. All the prepaid SIM card shops at Malaysia airports are open 24/24, but not all of them accept credit cards. BlueCube and Tune Talk only accept cash.

That is why we DO NOT recommend buying airport SIM cards in Malaysia if you are not in a hurry.

3. Buy at phone stores or official retail stores of internet carrier around the country

If you miss buying a SIM card online or at airports, you can get it from official retail stores of major mobile carriers and phone stores around the country. However, as a traveler, you are advised to buy from the official stores of one of the major Malaysian mobile internet providers.

Just use Google Maps to find the nearest store and head to it. You are required to present passport and possibly other personal documents when buying.

After choosing the right plan for your needs, have staff there support to install the SIM, make sure that you leave the store with everything working well (with Internet connection, of course).

IV. How much does a Malaysia SIM card cost?

The price of Malaysia tourist SIM card depends on the data amount, validity, features associated with, and provider. A typical SIM card plan with data only starts from $2.7 USD.

V. Which Malaysia network operator and plan is best?

Malaysia has 05 major mobile network operators that offer different prepaid SIM card plans and data bundles for travelers, which are: Maxis/Hotlink, CelcomDigi, U Mobile, Yes, Unifi. Among these, three stand out as the biggest players are: Maxis/Hotlink, CelcomDigi, and U Mobile.

There are also several MVNO (mobile virtual network operators) in Malaysia, but they do not have good prepaid SIM cards for travelers to Malaysia.

Below is the coverage maps of each major operator:

From the image, we can see that CelcomDigi has the widest coverage in Malaysia, followed by Maxis Mobile, and U Mobile.

Now, we go into details on which plan of each mobile operator is the best:

1. Maxis/Hotlink

Maxis has the 2nd widest network coverage in Malaysia, especially in rural areas. The prepaid service of this provider is called Hotlink. In terms of price, its plans are mid-range.

Here are the best prepaid SIM plans of Hotlink:

• Unlimited Internet 12Mbps (4G/5G): 100GB of data at highspeed (5G) + Unlimited data (12Mbps from 8am – 8pm) + unlimited calls, used for 30 days = RM50 – $ 11.5USD
• Unlimited Internet 6Mbps (4G/5G): 100GB of data at high speed (5G) + Unlimited data (6Mbps from 8am – 8pm ) + unlimited calls, used for 30 days = RM40 – $9.2 USD
• Unlimited Internet 6Mbps (4G/5G): 20GB uncapped speed data, used for 7 days = RM12 – $2.7 USD

We can see that though the plans are advertised “unlimited” , the speed is capped to a maximum of 12 Mbps or 6 Mbps depending on plan. That is not much compared with the neighboring country Thailand, with mobile data speed possibly reaching more than 300 Mbps. Besides, after running out high speed data, speed will be capped to 512 kbps.

2. CelcomDigi

CelcomDigi has the widest coverage in Malaysia. It offers affordable plans and are very popular for their heavy data packages.

You can buy a white SIM card from CelcomDigi for RM10 (about $2) first, then you can choose from two prepaid plans for tourists below:

• Prepaid 5G 25 plan: 15GB data + unlimited calls, used for 30 days = RM25 – $5 USD
• Prepaid 5G 39 plan: 65GB data + unlimited calls, used for 30 days = RM39 – $8 USD

CelcomDigi’s prepaid SIM cards are better than Maxis/Hotlink because the maximum speed is 100 mbps. But CelcomDigi does not offer eSIM for tourists.

3. U Mobile

U Mobile has many prepaid SIM plans for tourists to Malaysia to choose from, but the most customized for travelers are:

• 14-day travel pass (multi-country- MY/SG/IDN/TH): unlimited data (6 Mbps) + unlimited local calls, used for 14 days = RM35 – $8.05 USD
• 7-day travel pass (Malaysia only): unlimited data (6 Mbps) + unlimited local calls, used for 14 days = RM12 – $2.76 USD

Similar to Maxis Mobile, the maximum speed of their plans is 6 mbps, rather low. Besides, U Mobile does not provide eSIM for tourists.

So which is the best network tourists should choose in Malaysia?

If you travel only in Kuala Lumpur or other famous destinations, then all networks are good. The difference will be the quality of signal. CelcomDigi and Maxis seem to be better in terms of speed, but Celcom have wider coverage.

Overall, we can conclude that CelcomDigi’s SIM plans seem to be the best option for tourists, both in terms of coverage map and speed, followed by Maxis/Hotlink.

VI. Malaysia eSIM – Alternative to Physical SIM Cards

An eSIM is a great alternative for travelers due to its convenience and ease of use. A prepaid eSIM is a good choice for travelers visiting Malaysia with limited time and not wanting to spend time in mobile shops when they arrive in the country.

Visitors can buy prepaid plans from GIGAGO Malaysia eSIM before departing. You do not need to wait for delivery, just receive a QR code via email and then scan it to set up the virtual eSIM profile. Plus, eSIMs will help you prevent the risk of physical loss and damage.

For Malaysia, Gigago offers multiple data plan options, starting from 3GB for 5 days with $2.90 . What is great about Gigago’s Malaysia eSIM is that its plans’ costs are diversifying, vary between $2.90 – $81.50 . Thus, it does not matter how Internet users you are and how long your trip is in Malaysia, there is always an option for you with Gigago.

VII. FAQs about Malaysia SIM Cards