Italy has been a popular vacation destination for German tourists for a long time. The Mediterranean climate, long sandy beaches, special architecture and good food make the country an “all time classic” among the destinations within Europe.
If you are planning to spend your next vacation in Italy, it might make sense to take a look at the topic “prepaid SIM card in Italy” in advance. And that is exactly what this article is about.
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Italian prepaid SIM cards at a glance
Italy has been part of the European Union since time immemorial. In relation to the topic of this article, this simply means that, due to the EU roaming regulation of 2017, you can also use your German mobile plan during your stay in Italy. At least as long as your rate plan includes EU roaming, otherwise you will face high roaming charges.
If that’s not the case, you can buy an Italian SIM card for little money when you arrive at your vacation destination and book a tariff that will allow you to surf the Internet and make phone calls for cheap during your vacation. To make it as easy as possible for you, I’ve picked out some cheap providers with prepaid SIM cards and compared the rates they offer. So here comes the result of my research. In Italy, the following providers offer prepaid options.
Vodafone
Probably the best known of them is the mobile phone giant Vodafone. Here you can choose the right tariff for you. While two of the rates have a limited data volume, they score with a much higher speed compared to the rate with unlimited data volume. Here is a small overview:
- Price: €14.99 + €6.99 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 50 GB
- Download speed: 2000 Mbps
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited (without fixed network)
- Price: €19.99 + €6.99 connection fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 100 GB
- Download speed: 2000 Mbps
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited (without fixed network)
- Price: €24.99 + €6.99 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: unlimited
- Download speed: 10 Mbps
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited
On the other hand, those who only need a prepaid data sim card can choose the following rates:
- Price: €9.99 + €10 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 50 GB
- Download speed: 1000 Mbps
- Price: €13.99 + €10 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 100 GB
- Download speed: 1000 Mbps
If you would like to find out more about Vodafone’s Italian offers, you can do so on the following website: Offerte Telefonia Mobile | Vodafone Italia. You can also find all bookable options in this overview: Contratti attivabili | Vodafone Italia. You can recognize prepaid offers by the word ricaricabili (rechargeable). Abbonamento offers, on the other hand, are subject to a contract.
Iliad
On the website of the Italian mobile communications provider Iliad there are changing offers that are no longer available after the end of the offer period. If you conclude such an offer, you have secured the conditions, so to speak, and you can use them indefinitely. Here you can check the current offer: Offer Telefonia Mobile | Ilias. You will find a small overview of the permanently available rates below:
- Price: €7.99 + €9.99 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 100 GB
- Download speed: 120 Mbps
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited
- Price: €13.99 + €9.99 activation fee
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 300 GB
- Download speed: 120 Mbps
WINDTRE
The next provider on the list is WINDTRE. Der 1997 gegründete Mobilfunkanbieter hat einiges zu bieten. The provider is said to offer really good value for money, on the one hand, and to have one of the best network coverages in the country, on the other. Sounds good!
So let’s take a closer look at the tariff on offer:
- Price: €14.99 + €10 for the SIM card
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 20 GB
- Free minutes / Free SMS: 100 minutes
There are other offers. For example, in case you’re looking for a data-only or phone-only plan. You can find a list on the WINDTRE website.
TIM
The next mobile phone provider to be discussed in this article is called TIM and has the best network and a good connection alongside WIND. We will now take a look at the price-performance ratio.
- Price: €14.99 + €10 for the SIM card
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 50 GB
- Free minutes / Free SMS: 200 minutes
ho. Mobile
Founded in 2018, the Italian telecommunications company ho. Mobile is a subsidiary of Vodafone Italia. Customers surf the 4G network and praise the good connection and outstanding price-performance ratio on Trustpilot. To extend the flat rate, you only need to top up the credit.
- Price: 5,99 €
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 100 GB
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited
- Price: 8,99 €
- Tariff duration: 30 days
- Included data volume: 180 GB
- Free minutes / free SMS: unlimited
Buy prepaid SIM card in Italy
As is now the case in most EU countries, SIM registration is mandatory in Italy. This means that in order to use your SIM card, you must verify your identity either at the time of purchase or during the registration process. So remember to have a valid ID document with you even when you buy the SIM card. Otherwise, the card may not be given to you at all.
All of the rates presented, and the SIM cards that go with them, are available in Italy from the respective provider stores. You can find these in most major cities. If you would like to take care of a continuous Internet supply before your vacation, you can either order a SIM card on the providers’ websites and book a tariff in advance, or you can take a look at the website www.messaxio.com.
With this service provider, you can purchase a prepaid card for your Italian vacation and be provided with German-speaking service, thus bypassing possible language barriers. However, you will also have to pay more than if you go directly to an Italian store. Just as a little tip on the side, for all those who want to avoid any stress.
The network coverage
Network coverage is a difficult issue, as it almost always is. In general, Italy is not necessarily considered one of the countries where the mobile network is advanced. Nevertheless, the network coverage, even in the statistics, is a lot better than here in Germany! However, that is not a great achievement either. Germany is still fighting for one of the last places in the statistics. Under the following links you will find the network coverage map of the individual providers:
Regarding the network coverage of TIM and ho. Mobile unfortunately no map can be found online.
Conclusion on prepaid SIM cards in Italy
The price range between the different suppliers is huge! What Vodafone is thinking with these prices and the throttled data speed is really a mystery to me. For less than half the money, you can get a similar rate with WIND, without such drastic throttling of speed. With a little patience, you will certainly be able to pick up a good offer from Iliad, I am sure of it. TIM is in my opinion in “the same drawer” with WIND, even if the prices are set a bit higher.
The rates offered are almost identical. If I were planning to go to Italy for a longer period of time, the very first thing I would do is check out Iliad’s current offer. If this does not meet my requirements, I would clearly choose the provider WIND. The prices are reasonable and the network, also from my own experience, is very good almost everywhere. For a short stay, I would still use my German SIM card and avoid buying an Italian SIM.
At the very end, I would like to give you a tip that would have made my research for this series of articles extremely easier if I had known it beforehand. Namely – in Google Chrome browser, in the upper right corner, there is an option to translate entire web pages. So if you want to take a closer look at the offers of a mobile phone provider or even another website in a language you don’t speak, you don’t necessarily have to learn the language.
And now I hope this article helps you in your decision for or against an Italian fare and wish you a great vacation in the land of pizzas!
More information
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Those who do not necessarily care about the speed can also reach for these much cheaper devices:
Everything you need to know about mobile communications and the Internet while traveling can be found in the following articles:
- Internet in the motorhome and caravan – the guidebook
- Strengthen WLAN on the campsite
- Internet reception while camping – these routers ensure a stable connection while traveling
- Podcast: Internet on the move
Cover image (montage): © CamperStyle
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SIM cards: © serezniy – depositphotos.com
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