SIM card with prepaid 4G data in Japan: how much does it cost? Where to buy it?
Buy a SIM card before you leave
SIM cards in Japan are expensive and the purchase / activation process is quite complex (see all indications below).
A cheaper and simpler alternative is to buy a SIM card in France, before leaving.
With this offer for example(Amazon link) you get 6 GB of data valid for 15 days at the rate of 24 € which is much more interesting than what you will find on site.
At the end of the 15 days, the SIM card can be recharged.
Where to buy a prepaid SIM card at Osaka (Kansai) airport?
After passing through immigration and collecting your luggage, locate the area reserved for telecommunications (on the left as you exit).
You will be able to buy a SIM card in an instant thanks to distributors.
In Thailand, it was also possible to buy your card via a machine but you had to scan your passport. In Japan it isn’t even necessary.
Everything seems very simple but the operation is complicated… by the choice you have to face. There are indeed 4 or 5 distributors, belonging to different operators. Each distributor offers 4 or 5 options.
The adjustment variables are :
- The amount of data
- The validity period of the SIM card (7 / 15 / 30 or 60 days)
- The type of SIM (nano SIM, micro SIM, standard size SIM): be careful not to make a mistake!
- And of course the price
After 10 minutes to go through the offers, we chose the operator So-net which is the only one to offer SIM cards valid for 60 days.
Depending on the distributor, you can pay in cash and/or by credit card.
If you pay in cash, distributors do not accept large denominations. A machine is available right next door to exchange your large denominations for smaller ones.
These SIM cards do not allow you to make phone calls and send SMS, only to use the internet. This isn’t necessarily annoying because Japanese people use the Line instant messaging application a lot.
Near this space, several stores with vendors also offer the purchase of SIM cards.
This advertisement offered the following packages with a map to the two stores at Osaka airport. I guess you will find without any problem similar stores at Tokyo airport (Narita or Haneda)
Where to buy a SIM card in town?
Having had internet problems in our Airbnb, we had to buy a new SIM card in order to use a smartphone as a modem.
We went to Bic Camera, the biggest electronics store in Japan.
A department is available with many offers and more interesting rates than at the airport.
We were cautious and chose an offer with indications in English even if it was not the most interesting financially.
How much does a prepaid SIM card cost in Japan?
Disclaimer: it’s expensive for a rather disappointing amount of data.
Having the image of a country where the technology is very advanced (which is the case, many Japanese people pay their daily expenses via their smartphone for example) I expected to have very cheap rates. This is clearly not the case.
Rates vary according to the operators and formulas but here are two fairly representative examples (at the airport).
- One of the cheapest offers proposed by the operator U-Mobile allows you to benefit from 220 MB of data per day for 7 days for 2,500 yens. Don’t expect to watch a lot of Youtube videos with this.
- The offer we chose at So-net allows us to benefit from 3.2 GB of data over 60 days (about 50 MB per day on average…) for 5,500 yens.
At Bic Camera, we chose a 5 GB offer for 21 days at 3,229 yen.
Shortly before the end of the credit, I received an email proposing to top up 1 GB for 500 yens. The payment is done online by credit card. On the other hand, the extra credit is only valid until 11:59pm the same day.
What documents are requested?
None, you just have to choose and pay.
How to install your SIM card?
In all the countries where we bought a SIM card (about twenty!), the SIM card we bought was a 3 or 4 in 1 card, i.e. we can cut it according to the type of card accepted by your phone.
In Japan this isn’t the case, you must specifically buy a Micro SIM card or a Nano SIM card, you have no right to make a mistake!
The login and password will be used to activate the card.
How to configure and activate your SIM card?
Small disappointment there too, where in most countries the APN (Access Point Name) configuration is done automatically, here you have to do it manually (this is true for the So-net operator, we have not tested other operators) and moreover you need the Internet to do it (the height of irony)
The procedure is well explained in the small booklet. It isn’t very complicated but it still takes a few minutes. It is also not certain that your grandmother can do it alone…
Note that we had a small problem with the configuration on iPhone. The described procedure only works when using the Safari browser while we were using Chrome.
After configuring the APN, you must go to a URL address, enter login and password (displayed on the card in which you cut your SIM) to activate the SIM.
After that it’s gone, you can use the internet!
If the configuration scares you, it may be more prudent to buy your SIM in a store where salespeople will surely be willing to help you in case of problems.
The procedure for the card bought at Bic Camera was quite similar but you had to fill in your passport number.
The alternative to Wifi pockets
We have not had the opportunity to test this service but it is also possible to rent Wifi Pockets.
It is a small portable box that contains a SIM card and acts as a Wifi terminal.
This alternative is more expensive but allows you to benefit from an unlimited data volume (well, with a high speed up to xxxGB, beyond that, the speed is almost zero) . For mobile digital devices, see our Japan overview (with a paragraph about the connection here)
Beyond the volume of data, it can be more economical if you travel in a group. Thank you for reading us so far.
To go further: Check out the hotel deals in Japan below
Booking.comDid you like this article? Check out our travel diaries in Japan :
Travel Diary Osaka (Japan) #1 : flight hours and our Airbnb
Travel Diary Osaka (Japan) #2 : our first onsen, Dotonbori and Shinsaibashisuji Shopping Street
Travel Diary Osaka (Japan) #3: Osaka Castle, cherry blossoms, Namba Walk, Bic Camera, SK-II
Travel Notes Osaka (Japan) #4: Sakura at the Expo ’70 Commemorative Park, Japan Folk Crafts Museum
Travel Notebook Osaka (Japan) #5 : One night in a Ryokan – Fudouguchikan Ryokan in Osaka
Travel Notes Osaka (Japan) #6 : My Favorite Restaurants
Travel Notebook Osaka (Japan) #7 : My favorite shopping addresses
Travel journal Kyoto (Japan) #1 : Sakura, Cherry blossoms
Travel journal Kyoto (Japan) #2: Museum of Traditional Crafts, Kyoto Botanical Garden, Fushimi Inari-taisha
Miyako Odori 2018 : Advice and Practical Tips – Travel Diary Kyoto (Japan) #3
Carnet de Voyage Kyoto (Japan) #4: Nishiki’s market, Cat Cafe
Carnet de Voyage Kyoto (Japan) #5: Kiyomizu-dera, Hokanji, Ishibei-koji, Gion district
One day in Koyasan – Mount Kōya (Japan) : Okuno-in cemetery, how to get there, Koyasan pass, practical info
A day in Nara (Japan): Tōdai-ji, Isuien Neiraku Museum, Yoshikien Garden, Kasuga-taisha shrine, mochis and deer from Nara Park
A day in Kobe and Himeji (Japan): Himeji Castle and Arima-onsen Hot Spring
I tested the Kobe beef in Kobe (Japan) and loved it!
Travel diary Tokyo (Japan) #1: Nihonbashi, Ginza, Odaiba
Travel diary Tokyo (Japan) #2: Ueno, Akihabara, Tour of Tokyo, Shibuya and Shinjuku
A day at Mount Fuji (Japan) : Travel diary
How to get to Mount Fuji? and where to take beautiful pictures of Mount Fuji
Digital Nomad: Results after 1.5 months in Japan (Osaka, Kansai, Tokyo)
