What Is Data Roaming? How US Carriers Charge You Abroad in 2026

A HelloRoam eSIM gives your phone a separate data line for the trip in 185+ destinations, so maps, ride apps and messages work when you land without running data on your US plan.

Data roaming means your phone borrows another carrier's network

Your carrier runs your home network. When your phone leaves its coverage, it looks for another network. If your carrier has a roaming agreement with that network, you can call, use apps and send email on it as you would at home, as CTIA's guide to how roaming works explains.

Roaming isn't only an overseas thing. CTIA notes you can roam while traveling around the country too, and many nationwide plans include that roaming. Overseas is where the bill changes. The FCC's guide to international roaming says most US domestic plans don't cover use abroad, and rates may be much higher on foreign networks.

Data roaming is the internet part of this. Apple describes it as the setting that permits internet access over a cellular network in places your carrier's network doesn't cover. Calls and texts roam as well, and on US day passes they can cost you money too.

AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile bill roaming in different units

Each big US carrier sells roaming its own way: by the day, by the megabyte, by the month or as an allowance that comes with your plan. We read each carrier's own pages on October 26, 2026, and the table shows what they listed.

Our AT&T International Day Pass guide covers what each AT&T plan pays abroad, and T-Mobile's passes and plan allowances get their own guide. Each carrier's own pages are in the sources below.

Mexico and Canada work differently. AT&T charges no daily fee there if your plan includes both countries. Verizon includes them on its Unlimited and Simplicity plans, and otherwise TravelPass costs $6 a day per line there. T-Mobile's Experience Beyond plan includes 30GB of high-speed data there, and Experience More includes 15GB.

A seven-day trip, priced on each carrier

Say you spend seven days in Italy and use your phone every day. On an AT&T postpaid plan, that's 7 × $12 = $84 for one line, and a second line on the account adds $6 a day, or $42 more. On Verizon TravelPass, one line costs $84 and two lines cost $168, plus taxes and fees, and select Verizon Unlimited plans include one TravelPass day a month at no charge.

On a T-Mobile Essentials plan, one 10-day pass at $50 covers the week with 15GB. T-Mobile's Experience plans add no data charge, with 5GB or 15GB at high speed, but calls cost $0.50 a minute. To see whether that's enough, try our data usage calculator.

Longer trips hit AT&T's cap of 10 daily fees per line each bill cycle, or $120 for one line on land. Verizon points travelers on trips of 9 days or longer to its $100 monthly plan.

Skip every pass on Verizon and data runs at $2.05 per MB on Pay as You Go. At that rate, 100 MB costs $205.

Cruise ships have their own daily rate

Phone networks on ships at sea bill separately from land. AT&T charges $20 a day at sea, with 500MB a day at the best available speed, and its 10-fee cap doesn't apply on ships. Verizon's Cruise Daily Pass is $20 a day per line, with 0.5GB of high-speed data and then 3G speeds.

T-Mobile's International Passes don't cover cruise ships. T-Mobile suggests turning roaming off while the ship is docked at a US port, so your phone doesn't pick up the ship's network and its charges.

Calls and texts can start a day pass even with data roaming off

Data roaming only controls data. On AT&T and Verizon, a call made or received, or a text you send, can start a day pass on its own.

AT&T charges its $12 daily fee the first time you use data, make or receive a call, or send a text in a covered destination. Texts you receive don't trigger it. Once TravelPass is on a Verizon line, Verizon charges it on days you make or receive a call, send texts or use data abroad. So one call from home, received on your US number, can start a 24-hour charge even if your phone used no data.

If you plan to rely on Wi-Fi only, AT&T's own terms say to turn off cellular data roaming and Wi-Fi calling to avoid unintended Day Pass charges. On AT&T, a Wi-Fi call to the US costs nothing extra, but a Wi-Fi call to any other country starts the Day Pass. The FCC says calling apps on free Wi-Fi may help you avoid or reduce voice roaming charges.

Background data counts too. Verizon says app refreshes, email syncing and software updates can start a TravelPass session once cellular data or data roaming is on. The FCC adds that roaming charges may not show up until the billing cycle after you get home, because they take time to process.

Data roaming on or off: keep it on for a line with a plan abroad

With data roaming on, your phone can use partner networks abroad, and your carrier's rules decide the bill. AT&T adds the Day Pass to your line on its own the first time you use your phone in a covered destination, unless you already have another international feature. It sends a text when it does, and you can opt out then.

Verizon bills a line with no TravelPass at Pay as You Go rates. T-Mobile plans with data abroad just work in its 215+ countries and destinations. Where your T-Mobile plan doesn't cover you, data stays off until you dial #RON#, and T-Mobile texts you the charges as you go.

With data roaming off, a line gets no mobile data once it's outside your carrier's network. Wi-Fi still works, and the FCC notes that Wi-Fi use doesn't count toward your data allowance. Wi-Fi abroad isn't always free, though, and the FCC flags security risks on public networks.

So keep data roaming on for a line that has a pass, an included allowance or a travel eSIM plan behind it. A line with no plan abroad should stay off data. If your phone has one switch for both lines, leave it on and pick the travel eSIM for mobile data, as the next section shows.

Turn data roaming on or off in Settings on iPhone, Pixel and Galaxy

Apple's steps for cellular data roaming start in Settings. Tap Cellular, then Cellular Data Options, and use the Data Roaming switch. With two lines, tap the number you want first, then Cellular Data Options, so each line has its own setting.

On a Google Pixel, open Settings, tap Network & internet, then SIMs, and turn Roaming on or off. With more than one SIM, Google's Pixel help gives each SIM its own network settings.

On a Samsung Galaxy, open Settings, tap Connections, then Mobile networks, and tap the Data Roaming switch. Samsung's US help page labels it Data Roaming Access and says the steps can differ by carrier.

With a travel eSIM, set roaming line by line or leave one switch on

A travel eSIM adds a second line. Our step-by-step eSIM setup guide has you turn data roaming on for that line when you land.

On iPhone and Pixel, each line has its own switch. Turn data roaming on for the travel eSIM and off for your US line, then pick the travel eSIM for cellular data. On iPhone, that choice is in Settings, Cellular, Cellular Data.

Samsung's steps show a single Data Roaming switch under Mobile networks. If your phone has one switch for both lines, leave it on and choose the travel eSIM for mobile data in Settings, Connections, SIM manager. Turn off automatic data switching too, if your phone shows it, so mobile data can't move to your US line. Our data roaming steps for each phone show where each switch sits.

Apple's page on travel eSIMs warns that with both lines on, you might still incur roaming fees from your home line. The carrier rules above show why: a call or a sent text can start a day pass. Apple also lets you use the travel eSIM by itself, and says FaceTime and iMessage keep working on your home number.

You can get online abroad without carrier roaming

The FCC lists the main alternatives to roaming: Wi-Fi, an unlocked phone with a local SIM or eSIM, or a prepaid phone you rent or buy after you arrive. A pocket Wi-Fi hotspot is another route, and our guide compares the devices and plans.

Apple notes that worldwide providers sell prepaid data eSIMs for travel, and you can buy one before you leave. An iPhone XS, XS Max, XR or later works, and supported models can keep one eSIM for your home number and one for the place you're visiting.

Your phone must be unlocked. On iPhone, open Settings, General, About: an unlocked phone shows No SIM Restrictions next to Carrier Lock. For other models, see which phones take an eSIM before you buy.

HelloRoam sells this kind of plan: eSIM data in 185+ destinations, on 212+ networks, with 24/7 support. To weigh it against a day pass, see how a travel eSIM compares with carrier roaming, or read how an eSIM works first.