Cricket Wireless International Roaming: Passport Costs and Countries

Two catches are worth knowing. Passport counts background app data as use, so one app refreshing abroad can start a $10 day. And Cricket says roaming speeds can drop as low as 2G, so unlimited doesn't always mean fast.

If Japan is on your route, or you'd rather buy a set amount of data up front, a HelloRoam travel eSIM adds data to an unlocked phone while your Cricket number stays on it.

We read every Cricket price, rule and destination in this guide on Cricket's own pages on November 10, 2026. Cricket says its pricing and terms can change without notice, so check the Passport page before you fly.

Cricket Passport costs $10 a day or $25 for 5GB over 5 days

Cricket gives you two Passport options for the places on its list, and eligible plans cover Mexico and Canada on their own. Here's how all three compare.

Both Passport options include unlimited calls and texts in your destination, between listed destinations and back to the US. They work separately from your plan, so they don't touch your domestic data. Neither one includes mobile hotspot data, and Cricket says speeds depend on the local roaming partner and may be slowed to as little as 2G.

With 5GB for 5 Days, data stops when you hit 5GB or reach day 5, whichever comes first. Talk and text keep working for the full 5 days, and you can buy another pass or switch to Unlimited Daily.

Don't mix Passport up with Cricket's International Calling add-on. That one is for calling other countries from home, not for using your phone abroad.

Cricket international plans: Smart Unlimited and up can add Passport

Your plan decides what you can do abroad. Cricket's two lowest-priced monthly phone plans leave roaming out.

Monthly prices are for one line, and each one is $5 more without Auto Pay. The Auto Pay credit starts in your second month.

Passport also needs a compatible phone, a saved payment method (Auto Pay counts) and an account in good standing, and you can't be enrolled in BridgePay. Tablets, laptops and watches are excluded. Cricket says legacy plans may qualify too, so check your line on the Passport page.

On a Multi-Month plan, confirm before you fly. Cricket's Passport and support pages list Multi-Month plans as eligible. But the terms on its sign-up page name only Smart and Supreme Unlimited, and the Multi-Month plan terms say the plan isn't combinable with add-on features. Ask Cricket at 1-800-274-2538 which one applies to your line.

Cricket is a subsidiary of AT&T, and it sells its own roaming add-on. Our guide to how smaller carriers roam abroad puts Passport next to Visible's Global Pass and Mint's passes.

One background app can start a $10 Cricket Passport charge

Adding Passport costs nothing on its own. Cricket charges your saved card only when Passport is on your line and you use the phone in a listed destination. Here's what counts as use:

• Starts a charge: making or receiving a call, sending a text, or using data, including background data from apps.
• Doesn't start a charge: receiving texts, calling Cricket customer care, or using the Cricket website or Cricket app.

Unlimited Daily runs in 24-hour blocks, not calendar days, and it renews for every 24-hour period you use it until you cancel. So if your phone pulls in mail or a map update as you land, your first $10 day has started.

Want a day on Wi-Fi only? Put the phone in Airplane Mode with Wi-Fi on, so apps can't use roaming data. Cricket says Wi-Fi Calling to US numbers has no additional charge, but its Passport terms don't list Wi-Fi calls among the exceptions. An app like WhatsApp or FaceTime avoids the question.

Cricket's Unlimited Daily caps a 30-day trip at $100 a line

Here's what one line pays if it uses the phone every day. Cricket charges Unlimited Daily for at most 10 days in a continuous 30-day period abroad. Its example is 10 days in a row, then up to 20 more days at no extra cost if you stay in a listed destination.

A few things stand out. The 5GB pass costs less than Unlimited Daily from day 3 to day 15, as long as 5GB lasts each 5-day stretch. From day 16 to day 20 both cost $100, so Unlimited Daily gives you more data for the same bill. Past 20 days, Unlimited Daily is the lower bill. And every price is per line, so a family of four on Unlimited Daily pays up to $280 for a week.

Cricket gives no refunds or prorations for part-used periods, so a pass you stop using after two days still costs $25. Not sure 5GB is enough? Work out how much data your trip needs before you pick.

Cricket works in Mexico and Canada on Smart Unlimited and up

Smart Unlimited, Supreme Unlimited, Multi-Month and select legacy plans include Mexico and Canada at no extra charge. You get unlimited calls and texts within both countries and back to the US, plus your plan's data, and you don't need Passport. Turn the phone on and it should usually find a local network in 30 to 40 seconds, Cricket says.

Select Unlimited and Sensible 10GB don't include this. Select still covers calls and texts from the US to both countries, and its fine print says add-on options "may be available" without naming one. The direct route is moving up to Smart Unlimited, since Cricket's terms allow a change to a more expensive plan twice in a monthly service period. The same terms say a change can carry charges or cost you the rest of your plan balance, so ask before you switch. Select is for new lines only, so you may not be able to move back.

The fine print matters on longer stays:

• Canada has a limit. Calls, texts and data in Canada must stay under 50% of your total use in a 3-month period, or you risk a suspended line.
• Mexico has no published percentage. The Cricket pages we read give no figure for Mexico, but they say primary use must be in the US.
• You must live in the US. Cricket's international terms require a US residence, and your phone must register on Cricket's US network before it can roam.
• Speeds vary by network. Cricket names AT&T Mexico and Telcel in Mexico, and Rogers, TELUS and Bell in Canada. Its terms say data on networks other than AT&T Mexico may be reduced to 2G speeds, which covers Telcel and all three Canadian partners.

Cricket's Mexico and Canada help page still says plans start at $55 a month, while its plans page and Passport terms include Smart Unlimited. If you're on Smart Unlimited, ask Cricket to confirm before you go.

Planning a long stay, or worried about those speeds? Compare eSIM plans for Mexico or eSIM plans for Canada before you go.

Cricket international roaming countries: Japan isn't on the Passport list

Cricket's Passport list had 85 entries when we read it. Its Passport page says 50+ countries and territories, and its 2025 launch article said 60, so trust the list itself. Cricket says it'll keep adding countries through 2026, that destinations can change without notice, and that coverage inside a destination can vary by device type. Mexico and Canada aren't on the list because eligible plans already cover them.

Check names carefully, too: South Korea appears as Republic of Korea. These places weren't on the list:

• Asia: Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
• Europe: Hungary, Romania, Malta, Cyprus, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania and Serbia.
• Middle East: Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
• Americas: Uruguay and Belize.

Passport won't work on a Japan trip, so plan another way to get online before you fly, such as eSIM plans for Japan. Every other place above was on our own list in October 2026, so see every destination we sell if yours is missing from Cricket's.

Here's how Cricket covers the five countries Americans visited most in 2024, using National Travel and Tourism Office figures.

On a trip longer than a week, Passport adds up. Price the same days on UK eSIM plans or eSIM plans for Italy before you choose.

How to turn on Cricket international roaming before you fly

Cricket lets you sign up before you travel or when you arrive. Doing it at home gives you time to fix a payment problem.

1. Save a payment method in your Cricket account. If you're already on Auto Pay, skip this step.
2. Go to cricketwireless.com/passport. You can sign in, or use Cricket's no-login option, which sends a six-digit code to your phone.
3. Pick your line, then choose Unlimited Daily or 5GB for 5 Days. Cricket won't charge your card until you start using it.
4. When you land, turn on Data Roaming for your Cricket line. On iPhone, go to Settings, Cellular, tap your Cricket number if you have two lines, then Cellular Data Options, as Apple's data roaming steps show. On a Samsung Galaxy, go to Settings, Connections, Mobile networks, Data Roaming Access.
5. Your Passport begins with your first call, text or data use.

Forgot before you left? Cricket sends a text with your Passport options when you arrive in a listed country.

Not sure when that switch should stay on? Our guide explains how US carriers bill data roaming and when to use it.

To cancel, use the Passport page, the Cricket app or customer care. The 5GB pass turns off by itself after 5 days. Unlimited Daily doesn't, so leave it on and it can start charging again on your next trip.

Cancel after the trip, not during it. Cricket's terms say you keep service through the period you paid for, but its Passport page warns that removing the feature loses any prepaid roaming you've already bought.

See a charge you don't recognize? Check your usage on the Passport page, then reach Cricket in the myCricket app chat or at 1-800-274-2538. Calling customer care doesn't trigger a Passport charge. In Mexico or Canada, you can also dial 611, or +1-214-547-2346 from a landline.

Cricket international roaming not working: what to check first

Run through this list before you call.

• Passport is on the right line, and your destination is on Cricket's list.
• Data Roaming is on for your Cricket line.
• You still have data. On 5GB for 5 Days, data stops at 5GB until you buy another pass or switch to Unlimited Daily.
• Slow doesn't always mean broken. Cricket says speeds depend on the local partner and can fall to 2G.
• Turn on Airplane Mode for 1 to 2 minutes, then turn it off. Cricket gives this fix for border crossings, and Apple suggests the same step for about 30 seconds.
• Date & Time is set automatically, as Apple advises for roaming problems.
• Crossing a border? Cricket suggests turning the phone off, crossing, then turning it back on, and not staying on a call or data session as you cross.
• Near Wi-Fi? Turn on Wi-Fi Calling. Cricket says it needs a phone that has connected to Cricket's network at least once, and it may be restricted in certain countries.

Cricket phones must be unlocked to add a travel eSIM

A Cricket phone may be locked to Cricket's network, and Apple's eSIM travel guide says an iPhone can't use another carrier abroad while it's locked. So check the lock before you buy any travel eSIM.

Cricket's device unlock help page splits the rule by purchase date. Phones bought on or after July 1, 2026 need at least 365 days of paid service, so one bought that month won't qualify until July 2027 at the earliest. Phones bought before that date need at least six months. Its separate Device Unlock Policy lists only the 365 days, so ask Cricket which applies if your phone is older. Cricket makes an exception for deployed military.

To check an iPhone, go to Settings, General, About. "No SIM Restrictions" next to Carrier Lock means it's unlocked. If you qualify, unlock an iPhone through Cricket's online unlock process. Most Android phones unlock in the myCricket app: sign out, then tap Unlock Device on the sign-in screen. Motorola or Cricket-brand phones that launched in 2025 or later use the Cricket Device Unlock app.

When a travel eSIM costs less than Cricket roaming

Cricket's own options are often the easy answer. On Smart Unlimited or higher, Mexico and Canada are already paid for. And Passport is the route Cricket offers for regular calls and texts on your own number in listed countries.

A travel eSIM is worth pricing when:

• Your destination isn't on Cricket's list, like Japan, Singapore or Hungary.
• You're on Select Unlimited or Sensible 10GB, which can't add Passport.
• You're traveling as a group, since Passport bills every line.
• You want hotspot data for a laptop or tablet, which Passport leaves out.
• You don't want background data starting a daily charge.

Keep the comparison fair. Passport charges $25 for 5GB over 5 days, and that price also covers calls and texts on your number. A data-only eSIM doesn't include those, so price the same data for the same days, then decide what regular calls are worth to you.

You can set up a HelloRoam eSIM at home as a second line, and its plan won't start until your phone connects to a local network at your destination. In October 2026, most of our Japan plans listed KDDI/au and SoftBank, and some listed NTT docomo or Rakuten Mobile. Check the plan page for the current networks.

With a travel eSIM handling your data, skip Passport. If the add-on isn't on your line, there's no Passport charge. Then make the eSIM your data line. On iPhone, go to Settings, Cellular, Cellular Data and pick it, then turn on Data Roaming for that line. On a Pixel, go to Settings, Network & internet, SIMs and set it for Mobile data, as Google's dual SIM help shows.

Your Cricket number stays on the phone, and Apple says iMessage and FaceTime keep working on your home line. Cricket's Mexico and Canada help page says you can receive texts there on any plan, but its pages don't clearly say the same for other countries. Ask Cricket first if your bank sends codes by text. With Passport on your line, receiving texts won't trigger a charge, but a call you make or receive will. Keep Allow Cellular Data Switching off on iPhone so data stays on the eSIM.

For the wider picture, see how travel eSIMs compare with roaming on cost and setup. If you go abroad several times a year, also weigh Google Fi against a travel eSIM.

We sell travel eSIMs, so we're not neutral here. Our conflict-of-interest policy explains how we handle that.