Are you planning a trip to Australia and flying to Brisbane? Let me help you finding the best sim card for your trip to Brisbane. In this guide you find everything you need to know before buying a sim card at Brisbane International Airport in 2025.
Find out where to buy a prepaid sim card, up to date prices as per January 2025, my recommendation, my experiences on arrival, info about international and eSIMs for Australia and more.
In the past I always used to buy a prepaid sim card in my destination, nowadays I mostly use eSIMs to stay connected when traveling abroad.
Table of Contents
- Why buying a sim card for Australia
- My recommendation
- Arrival at Brisbane International Airport
- Where to buy a sim card at Brisbane Airport
- Prices prepaid sim cards for Australia at Brisbane Airport
- Best sim card at Brisbane Airport
- Best eSIMs for Australia
- Order a prepaid sim card for Australia online
Traveltomtom also wrote a complete guide on how to buy a prepaid sim card in Australia and a comparison of the best eSIMs for Australia in 2025.
Some links in this article about the best sim cards at Brisbane Airport are affiliate links, which means I earn a small percentage in case you decide to purchase something after clicking on an affiliate link. This is at absolutely no extra costs to you!
Why buying a sim card for Australia
Don't end up with high roaming charges or slow overseas data roaming plans!
There are many reasons to stay connected when traveling to Brisbane, but the main reason is that we want to avoid high roaming charges and don't end up with a shocking phone bill.
Having a data connection on our phone makes life so much more convenient. Think about ordering an Uber, getting directions from Google Maps or looking for a cool nearby rooftop bar, it is not possible without a data connection on your phone.
Also think about emergencies, checking your banking apps, etc. Don't depend on public WiFi. There is no guarantee, it can be slow and keep in mind that public WiFi is through an UNSECURED network. The use of a VPN is recommended to protect your data.
Wherever I go I either order an eSIM or I buy a prepaid sim card to stay connected. Having data on your phone makes traveling much more fun.
As Traveltomtom is also on a mission to visit every country in the world and loves documenting all my travel tips, you can find already more than 200 sim card guides on Traveltomtom from all over the world: Auckland, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Sydney, Melbourne, Asia, Indonesia, Bali, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia Europe, London, Paris, USA, New York, Canada, Dubai, Istanbul and many more.
So next time you are planning your adventure abroad come check out Traveltomtom for the latest prepaid and eSIM advice for your next holiday destination. Bookmark me!
My recommendation
Traveltomtom recommends buying a Vodafone sim card at Brisbane Airport for your trip to Brisbane. You can get one in the arrival hall at the Vodafone store.
Vodafone has similar 4G/5G network coverage as Optus, but slightly cheaper prepaid sim card plans for tourists at Brisbane Airport
Traveltomtom definitely recommends eSIMs for traveling to Australia. eSIMs start from just $1 USD.
A Smartroam eSIM for Australia from Sim Local that operates on the Telstra network is regarded the best eSIM for Australia with 10 GB data for $17 USD. A Jetpac eSIM gives you 15 GB for $16 USD but operates on the Optus network.
eSIMs are just so convenient that I happily pay a couple dollar more to avoid the hassle of buying a prepaid sim card in Brisbane. For more detailed info check out my guide with the best eSIMs for Australia in 2025.
Traveltomtom only recommends a Vodafone sim card for a city trip to Brisbane, not for traveling in Australia because of the weak data network of Vodafone.
Vodafone is not the best prepaid sim card for traveling to Australia! That is Telstra. Find more info in my guide for the best prepaid sim card for Australia in 2025. I compared all the 4G/5G coverage maps of Vodafone, Optus and Telstra.
Traveling to several countries on your journey down under then check out my comparison of the best international (e)-sim card for traveling in 2025. Click on the link to see my recommendations.
Arrival at Brisbane International Airport
When flying to Brisbane for your trip to Australia then expect a pretty hassle free arrival. Brisbane Airport is not that big nor busy. After landing you first get to immigration and if your passport allows you to use the e-gates then you will be ‘stamped' into Australia in no-time.
After picking up your luggage you walk through the customs bag check. Occasionally there can be a line as Australian customs are pretty strict. But when you pass the customs check you walk into the Brisbane airport arrival hall.
Where to buy a sim card at Brisbane Airport
There are 2 sim card stores at Brisbane Airport that sell prepaid sim cards for Australia for tourists: Vodafone and Optus. Both sim card stores are in the arrival hall.
When entering from the international arrivals through the sliding door into the Arrival Hall then both stores are right in front of you. Vodafone is on your left hand side and Optus is on your right hand side. In and between there is the exit door to the taxi stand.
Prices prepaid sim cards for Australia at Brisbane Airport
All prices and info is updated as per January 2025 and prices are in Australian Dollars (AUD): $1 AUD = 0.62 USD and $1 USD is $1.60 AUD.
Optus Brisbane Airport
These are the 2 Optus prepaid sim cards for tourists they sell at Brisbane Airport and they are both valid for 30 days:
- 60 GB data on 4G + unlimited local calls/text + international calls = $30 AUD - $19 USD
- 60 GB data on 5G + unlimited local calls/text + international calls = $60 AUD - $37 USD
Basically the exact same prepaid sim card deals, but if you want 5G internet you pay double.
Vodafone Brisbane Airport
Vodafone offers a lot more prepaid sim card plans:
- 4 GB data + unlimited local calls/text for 7 days = $10 AUD - $6 USD
- 8 GB data + unlimited local calls/text for 14 days = $20 AUD - $13USD
- 40 GB data + unlimited local calls/text for 28 days + 500 minutes international calls = $25 AUD - $16 USD
For more info and available Vodafone prepaid plans see the picture above.
Best sim card at Brisbane Airport
As you can see from the comparison of the Vodafone and the Optus prepaid sim card deals at Brisbane Airport is that prices are basically the same. Vodafone has more prepaid plans for tourists and they start from much lower prices.
To find the best tourist sim card for Australia I also compared the 4G/5G network coverage of Vodafone and Optus and came to the conclusion that Optus has better 4G/5G coverage across the country.
Still, both Optus and Vodafone are far behind Telstra, which is the best prepaid sim card for Australia in 2025.
eSIMs are a little more expensive than buying a prepaid sim card at Brisbane Airport. But eSIMs are super convenient.
A Smartroam eSIM for Australia from Sim Local that operates on the Telstra network is regarded the best eSIM for Australia with 10 GB data for $17 USD. A Jetpac eSIM gives you 15 GB for $16 USD but operates on the Optus network. Jetpac has eSIMs starting from just $1 USD.
Check out Traveltomtom's complete guide with everything you need to know before ordering an eSIM for Australia in 2025.
Personally I also bought a Vodafone Australia prepaid sim card to check it out for my research and I had no problems and was happy with the data speed I experienced.
Here is my speed test that I ran, just outside the airport. I had hoped the upload speed would be a little better, but little too complain about the download speed.
Best eSIMs for Australia
The easiest way to stay connected when traveling to Brisbane in 2025 is an eSIM. Within just a couple minutes you can arrange everything online.
You order an eSIM for Australia on the internet, you receive a QR code, scan it, follow the simple steps and within less than 2 minutes you have an Australia eSIM installed on your phone.
Upon arrival in Brisbane it automatically connects you to an available network and you enjoy data on your phone pretty much when the plane lands.
If this raises a lot of questions then check out my complete guide with everything you need to know about using eSIMs when traveling to Australia in 2025, including a comparison of the best available tourist eSIMs.
There are many eSIM providers on the internet, below you can find some recommendations. All trusted, tested and reviewed by Traveltomtom personally.
Sim Local
The Traveltomtom Team has extensively tested Sim Local eSIMs. Find al the pros and cons of Sim Local in our extensive review.
Here are all the Sim Local eSIM plans for Australia:
- 1 GB data for 7 days = $4 USD
- 3 GB data for 30 days = $7.50 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $10.50 USD
- 10 GB data for 30 days = $17 USD
- 20 GB data for 30 days = $34 USD
Click here for more info or to order an eSIM for Australia via Sim Local.
The Smartroam eSIM plans for Australia operate on the Optus and Telstra network in Australia.
Airalo
Airalo is the market leader in eSIMs, very reliable but often a couple dollar more expensive. Here are the Airalo eSIM deals for Australia in 2025:
- 1 GB data for 7 days = $4.5 USD
- 2 GB data for 15 days = $8 USD
- 3 GB data for 30 days = $9 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $12.5 USD
- 10 GB data for 30 days = $20 USD
- 20 GB data for 30 days = $40 USD
Click here for more info or to order an eSIMs for Australia via Airalo.
The above eSIMs from Yes! Go! are data-only and phone calls are not supported. They operate on the 4G/LTE network of Optus in Australia.
Jetpac
The Traveltomtom Team was impressed reviewing Jetpac eSIMs for Australia. They not only offer eSIM solutions but also free lounge access if your flight is delayed, free VPN and a couple more advantages. Check out our honest and detailed Jetpac review.
Here are the Jetpac Australia eSIM plans:
- 1 GB data for 4 days = $1 USD
- 3 GB data for 7 days = $7 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $10 USD
- 10 GB data for 30 days = $12 USD
- 15 GB data for 30 days = $16 USD
- 20 GB data for 30 days = $27 USD
- 30 GB data for 30 days = $24 USD
- 40 GB data for 30 days = $48 USD
Click here for more info or to order a Jetpac Australia eSIM.
The Jetpac Australia eSIMs are data-only and incoming and outgoing calls and sms are not supported. These eSIMs do not come with a phone number. The Jetpac Australia eSIMs operate on the Optus network and they support 5G.
Before ordering an eSIM for Australia make sure your phone is eSIM compatible.
Check the link for a much more detailed guide including a comparison of the best eSIMs for Australia in 2025 and an answer to all FAQ about using eSIMs.
Order a prepaid sim card for Australia online
Is your phone not eSIM compatible but you would like to arrive prepared and order a physical prepaid sim card for Australia on the internet then check out the following...
By ordering an international prepaid sim card for Australia online you save yourself the hassle of buying a sim card on arrival at Brisbane Airport.
A pre-activated physical travel sim card and will be delivered to your home address. They automatically activate from its first use. So it is plug and play when you land in Australia.
See the following international prepaid sim card deals from SimOptions:
- 10 GB data valid in 56 countries for 15 days = $24.90 USD
- 10 GB data valid in 124 countries for 14 days = $49.90 USD
Click here to order an international prepaid sim card for Australia via SimOptions.
Also a last reminder that you can arrange everything online within just a couple clicks by ordering an eSIM for Australia.
I am sure some of the above tips for buying a prepaid sim card at Brisbane International Airport was helpful for your upcoming trip. If you have any questions, remarks or recommendations please leave me a comment below.
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 January 2025 I have visited more than 155 countries, so still a long way to go.
Enjoy your trip to Brisbane!