Telstra has quietly refreshed its international roaming offer, increasing the daily data allowance postpaid and Upfront customers get to 500MB per day. The telco previously only offered 200MB per day.
Customers will still pay $10 per day while overseas, however, unless in New Zealand in which case it drops to $5. If you go over 500MB, you'll be charged an extra $10 for 1GB which can be used over the following 30 days.
If you've got a Telstra Upfront plan, roaming will work in over 80 destinations. Customers on Telstra postpaid plans can roam in over 200 countries. Telstra plans to move all its postpaid customers to Upfront plans within the next 18 months. (Upfront plans are similar to Telstra's postpaid range, but instead of being issued a bill, you'll automatically be charged on a designated billing date.)
Telstra prepaid plans currently do not include international roaming, but we're expecting to see a new offer later this year.
Of course, we are currently in the midst of a global pandemic and international travel is off the table the foreseeable future. For example, Qantas was originally hoping to resume international flights in July, but has pushed that back to October. Qantas will also require travellers to have taken the COVID-19 vaccine to get on an international flight, so pump those antibodies right into my veins.
As far as roaming offers, Vodafone still arguably has the best option around. Customers can use their local inclusions for $5 per day when overseas in around 80 countries. If you've got a 50GB limit in Australia, you'll pull from the same limit when travelling.
Optus has a similar offer to Telstra, where you'll pay $10 per day while overseas and get a 1GB allowance. This works in around 90 destinations. Select Optus postpaid plans also include a small roaming data allowance that you can use overseas at no extra cost.
However, if you've got a phone that supports eSIM, it's now easier than ever to buy a digital local SIM when you get to your destination. All you need is WiFi.
UPDATE (04/03/21): A previous version of this story incorrectly reported that Telstra was charging $5 per day for all destinations, not just New Zealand. We regret the error.
Alex Choros
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