Traveling to Belgium any time soon? Avoid high roaming charges when visiting Europe and get yourself a local prepaid sim card for Belgium. Although Europe is expensive, most European sim cards are not! This is your guide for buying a prepaid sim card for Belgium with where to buy one, up to date prices as per July 2022, the best 4G/5G network in Belgium, my recommendation and even info about international and e-sim cards for Belgium.
Buying a local prepaid sim card is the first thing I do when I get to a new country. Since I am aiming to visit every country in the world I get to see a lot of cities and countries and therefore on Traveltomtom you can find more than 200 prepaid sim card guides: Europe, UK, Istanbul, Dubai, USA, Canada, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Zambia, Djibouti, El Salvador, Cameroon, New York, Dominican Republic, Colombia and many more.
Flying to Brussels Airport? Check out my guide for buying a sim card at Brussels Airport in 2022.
Why buying a sim card in Belgium
First of all to avoid high roaming charges and slow overseas data roaming packages. Did you know that most providers reduce the data speed when traveling abroad. The solution: a local prepaid sim card, an international sim card or an e-sim card for Belgium.
Traveling with a data connection on your phone is so much more convenient. Ordering taxis through an app, getting directions from Google Maps, finding nearby restaurants and friends, emergencies and so on. I can come up with a ton of reasons why staying connected is vital when traveling.
Also don't rely on public WiFi. There is no guarantee it is working or the connection is fast enough. Keep in mind that roaming the internet public WiFi is through an unsecured network connection. The use of a VPN is recommended in these cases to protect your data.
If swapping sim cards and changing phone numbers is something you don't prefer then look into renting or buying a portable WiFi device. Personally, I am NOT a fan, read here: how to get WiFi when traveling the world.
These things are old school. We are in 2022 and there are e-sim cards!
RELATED: Bruges Travel Guide for 2022! Don't miss out on this UNESCO World Heritage city.
My recommendation
Traveltomtom recommends an Orange prepaid sim card for visiting Belgium. For €10 you get 4 GB data and even some minutes to call valid in all of Europe.
We also recommend buying an international sim card for traveling abroad. Click on the link to read my comparison of the best world sim cards for travelers in 2022. Pick the one that suits your trip! You can already find 10 GB data for $30 USD. Or even better fix yourself an e-sim card.
E-sim cards for Belgium
The easiest way to stay connected when traveling abroad in 2022 is an e-sim card. Forget about changing sim cards or visiting a store, you can fix it all online. You order an e-sim card, receive a code, apply the settings and you are connected. All in just a couple minutes. Check out the following e-sim card deals for Belgium:
- 1 GB data for 7 days = $7.50 USD
- 3 GB data for 30 days = $15 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $22.50 USD
- 10 GB data for 30 days = $34 USD
Click here to order one of the above Belgium e-sim card deals directly online or find more info.
There are also physical sim cards for Belgium that you can order online and $30 USD give you 10 GB, great deal actually. Click here to order this international sim card directly online or find more info. These sim cards will be shipped to your home address before your trip!
Belgium prepaid sim cards and traveling in Europe
Belgium prepaid sim cards have no EU roaming restrictions meaning free EU roaming is included. All your data, voice and text allowance on your Belgium sim card is also valid in Rome, Paris, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, etc at NO EXTRA COSTS!
Find more information about free EU roaming and local sim cards in Europe in my complete guide with tips about buying a local sim card in Europe or check out my list of the best sim cards for Europe in 2022 that you can order online before your trip.
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Mobile internet providers in Belgium
There are 3 main mobile internet providers in Belgium: Proximus, Base and Orange. On top of that you can also buy Lebara sim cards and Lycamobile sim cards in some convenience stores. They offer random sim prepaid sim cards for tourists with ok deals.
Where to buy a sim card in Belgium
Brussels City Center
All of the big cities and tourists destination in Belgium have multiple mobile phone stores. They can be found all over the city center. Belgium is not a country with big malls, shops are concentrated in the historical center of cities. Keep in mind that Belgium is bi-lingual and especially in the French speaking part, English is not widely spoken. Find the nearest phone shop by using Google Maps.
Brussels Airport
The most convenient place to buy a prepaid sim card for Belgium is of course on arrival at Brussels Airport. There is a Relay convenience store that sells sim cards and a BASE store. Prepaid sim cards at Brussels Airport are more expensive. For more info check my complete guide for buying a sim card at Brussels Airport.
Gas station / Convenience Store
You can also buy prepaid sim cards at some gas stations as well as bigger convenience stores. These sim cards are already activated but you will need to top up with credit and then choose for example an internet package. It is possible to do it this way, but you will have to figure out everything yourself and it is NOT necessarily cheaper. Therefore Traveltomtom advices you to buy your Belgium prepaid sim card from an official retail store.
Best 4G/5G network in Belgium in 2022
Belgium is a small country and its 4G network is pretty extensive. Every tourist destination in Belgium is covered with a strong 4G signal, even if you go off the beaten path.
Is there 5G in Belgium?
Yes, there is 5G in Belgium! However, as of July 2022 it is still very limited! The 5G network in Belgium is very poor compared to other countries in Europe. Come on Belgium, you are one of the last countries in Europe who does NOT have a proper 5G network!
Base 4G/5G network coverage map
Proximus 4G/5G network coverage map
Orange 4G/5G network coverage map
From the above Belgium network coverage maps we can clearly see that although very small Proximus has the best 5G network in Belgium in 2022.
Even though the BASE Belgium network is the weakest it still covered almost all the country. For tourists there won't be much difference choosing one mobile provider over the other just for the network.
Prices prepaid sim cards in Belgium in 2022
Proximus
A Proximus sim card costs €10 and comes with €10 credit for calling/texting + 3 GB data. Very simple, easy and straight forward. All credit is valid for 30 days all over Europe. Check the latest Proximus prepaid sim card offers on their website.
Orange
An Orange prepaid sim card costs also €10 and comes with the following package:
- €10 = 4 GB data + 400 sms and 50 minutes.
You can even convert your minutes for calling into another 8.5 GB data, see the picture above. The above Orange prepaid sim card is valid for 30 days all across Europe. For the latest Orange prepaid sim card offers check their website.
Base
There are 3 different Base prepaid sim card packages available:
- €10 = 1 GB data + 40 minutes & 250 sms.
- €15 = 4 GB data + 60 minutes & 1000 sms.
- €25 = 8 GB data + 100 minutes & 5000 sms.
All Base sim card credit is available for 30 days and valid in all of Europe. Check their website for the latest BASE prepaid sim card offers.
Best Belgium sim card in 2022
Comparing all the Belgium prepaid sim cards for tourists I come to the following conclusion: Orange is the best sim card in Belgium in 2021!
For just €10 ($12) you get 4 GB data and 50 minutes valid all over Europe and you can convert those minutes into another 8.5 GB data if you want to. Pretty flexible, pretty good deal!
Buy a sim card for Belgium online
For traveling in Europe there are much better prepaid sim cards to be found than the deals you can find in Belgium. All the below pre-activated international sim cards work in Belgium and Europe and can be ordered directly online:
1. Orange Holiday ZEN - $29.90
- 8 GB data
- Unlimited calls/sms in Europe
- 30 minutes worldwide
- 200 sms worldwide
- Valid 14 days
2. Three PAYG AIO15 - $29.90
- 10 GB data
- Unlimited calls/sms within Europe
- Valid 30 days
3. Three PAYG AIO20 - $39.90
- 12 GB data
- Unlimited calls/sms within Europe
- Valid 30 days
4. Orange Holiday Europe - $49.90
- 20 GB data
- Unlimited calls/sms in Europe
- 120 minutes worldwide
- 1,000 sms worldwide
- Valid 14 days
Click here to order one of the above sim cards for Belgium directly online or find more info. These prepaid sim cards will be shipped to your home address before your trip. Another reminder that you can also order an e-sim card for Belgium online.
I hope the above tips for buying a prepaid Belgium sim card were helpful for your upcoming Belgium holiday. In case you have any questions don't hesitate to leave me a comment below. I am more than happy to help you out!
Curious what it looks like trying to visit every country in the world? Go check out my Instagram account @traveltomtom and follow along. As of July 2022 I have visited more than 135 countries, so still a long way to go.
Enjoy your trip to Belgium!
Some links in this article about the best Belgium sim card are affiliate links. If you buy any of the products after using the outgoing links I will earn a small commission. Don’t worry this is at no extra cost to you, but I have the duty to inform you. Thank you for your understanding!
