Help centre

Install, activate, connect, top up. If something is not working, work down the troubleshooting list: it fixes most problems, and if it does not, email us.

What an eSIM is

An eSIM is a small digital profile that installs onto your phone, like an app for mobile data. It sits on your device and connects to a mobile network in the country your plan covers. There is no plastic SIM, nothing to post, and nothing to swap between devices. You need a phone that supports eSIM and is not tied to another network (carrier-locked).

Before you install

Check your phone. Any iPhone XS (2018) or later works, and most Android phones from the last few years do. Your phone must be unlocked by the network you normally use, and it must be eSIM-capable; ask the manufacturer if you are not sure.
Have a connection when you install. The profile has to download. Wi-Fi is fine; mobile data is fine. This is the only moment the profile needs a connection.
Install it on the device you will use in that country. An installed profile is normally tied to that device.
Know what installing means. Installing the eSIM is the moment we start supplying your plan, and it ends your 14-day right to change your mind. If you are not ready to travel, do not install yet: an uninstalled plan is refundable on request within 60 days of purchase, and it stays usable for 180 days.

Installing on an iPhone

iOS 17.4 or later: open the install link from your order email (or your order page) on the iPhone that will use the eSIM. Tap the link, allow the profile to be added when iOS asks, and it is installed. No QR code, no typing.
Older iPhones (XS, XR, 11, 12, 13 and similar): open your order page on a screen you can scan, then on the iPhone go to Settings → Cellular → Add eSIM → Scan QR Code and point the camera at the code on the screen.
Newer iOS, if you prefer the QR route:Settings → Cellular → Add eSIM → Scan QR Code, the same way.

Installing on an Android phone

Many recent Android phones: open the install link from your order email on the phone and tap through, the same as iOS 17.4.
Everything else: open your order page on a screen you can scan, then on the phone find the add-SIM option. On a Google Pixel it is Settings → Network & internet → SIMs → + → Scan QR code. On a Samsung it is Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM. The names differ by maker, but you are looking for "add eSIM", then "scan QR code".

If you bought on a computer

Open your order page on the computer. It shows a QR code.
On your phone, open the camera app and point it at the code on the screen. Or forward your order email to yourself and open it on the phone.
Your order page is also a bookmark: it always shows your plan and a fresh QR code if you need one later.

What "activation" means

Activation is the first time your device connects to a network in the country the plan covers. It is not the same as installing.

Installing puts the profile on your device. It can be done at home, weeks before you fly.
Activating starts the plan. The moment your phone picks up a network in the covered country, the plan's validity period starts counting. The days shown on the plan page run from that moment, not from the day you paid.
You have 180 days from purchase to activate. After that the profile expires and the plan cannot be used. That is the window for buying in advance.

If your data does not connect

Work down the list. It is in order of how often each one is the answer.

Turn off Airplane Mode and make sure mobile data is switched on for the eSIM, not just for your usual line. On iPhone:Settings → Cellular and tap the eSIM, then check Cellular Data is on. On Android: Settings → Network & internet → SIMs, tap the eSIM, and check mobile data is on.
Restart the phone. Genuinely restart it: power off, wait ten seconds, power on. Half the cases are a profile that needed a fresh session.
Set the network to automatic. If the phone is set to prefer a specific network, and the plan does not run on it, nothing will connect. iPhone:Settings → Cellular → [your eSIM] → Network Selection → Automatic. Android: the same option under the SIM's settings.
Check you are actually in a covered country and that the plan has data left. On a daily plan, once the day's allowance is used the speed drops to 512 Kbps until the next day. The data still works, it is just slow. The order page shows your plan and what is left of it.
Turn off anything that intercepts your traffic for a test: a VPN, a private DNS, or a data-saver mode (Low Data Mode on iPhone, Data Saver on Android). Some devices apply the setting on your usual line to the eSIM as well, and some of them stop the eSIM's data altogether.
Check the APN. If you have ever edited the APN settings for this line, put them back to the defaults. A wrong APN is a common cause of "no internet" on a line that is otherwise active.
Still nothing? Email support@fadoesim.com with your order reference. If your order page shows the profile's ICCID, include that too: it lets us check the profile's status with the network and tell you whether the problem is on the device or at our end.

Top-ups

A top-up adds more data to the eSIM you already have. It is not a new plan: it stacks on top of what is left, and it runs from the same activation date, so buying one does not restart your clock.

Where to buy one: your order page: the link in your order email. If there is no top-up button there, your plan does not support top-ups. Not every plan does.
How long it lasts: each top-up has its own validity, shown before you pay.
Refunds: a top-up that has not been applied yet is refundable under the 60-day policy. Once it is on the eSIM, it cannot be returned.

Which country your plan actually covers

The country you pick on the site is the market you are buying for. What is covered is the plan's own list of covered countries, and that list is on the plan page. A country plan covers that country and whatever the plan page says alongside it; some cover two, and the regional plans cover many.

Regional plans are the ones to read carefully. They cover a list of countries that is published on the plan page, and the data allowance is shared across all of them. If the country you are about to fly to is not on that list, the plan will not work there. Check before you buy, not at the airport.

And one thing worth saying plainly: our plans are data. Unless the plan page says otherwise, there is no phone number, no incoming calls and no SMS with your plan.

Speed and fair use

The speed on the plan page is the speed the host network gives you. The network can be busy (at a stadium, in a city centre, at an airport) and when it is, it slows down for everyone, us included. We cannot control that and we do not promise it will not happen. On a daily plan, using the whole day's allowance drops the speed to 512 Kbps until the next day's allowance resets.

Refunds

If your plan is unused (you have not installed it and no data has been used through it), email us within 60 days of purchase and we will refund it to your card. If the plan does not work as described, tell us and we will put it right; that is not limited to the 60-day window. The refund policy has the details.

Quick answers

How long do I have before I need to install?

180 days from purchase. Until the profile is activated it does nothing, so you can buy now and travel in June.

When do my days start counting?

When your phone first connects to a network in the country the plan covers, not when you paid, and not when you installed.

When am I charged?

When you order. The plan's own validity starts later, at activation.

Do I need to be in the country to install?

You need a connection to download the profile: Wi-Fi or mobile data, either is fine, and it does not have to be in the covered country. The plan itself only works once the phone is on a network in the covered country.

Can I use the eSIM on two devices?

No. An eSIM profile normally lives on one device. If you need it on another, email us and we will look at what is possible.

My eSIM will not install. What now?

Check you are connected to the internet, check no other eSIM profile is conflicting on the device, and try the QR code from your order page. If it still will not install, email us with your order reference.

Can I get a refund?

Yes, if the plan is unused, within 60 days of purchase. See the refund policy.

Still stuck? Email support@fadoesim.com with your order reference. We aim to reply within one working day.