Planning your trip to Israel and flying to Tel Aviv and wondering if you can buy a tourist sim card at the airport on arrival? Don't get stuck with high roaming costs or slow overseas data plans.
This is a complete guide with everything you need to know before buying a sim card at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv in 2025.
Find out where to buy a sim card, up to date prices as per January 2025, my recommendation, info about eSIMs for Israel and more.
In the past I always used to buy a prepaid sim card on arrival, but nowadays I mostly use eSIMs to stay connected.
Traveltomtom also wrote a complete guide on how to buy a prepaid sim card in Israel and a comparison of the best eSIMs for Israel in 2025.
Table of Contents
- My recommendation
- Why buying a sim card for Israel
- Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport Tel Aviv
- Where to buy an Israel sim card at Ben Gurion Airport
- Prices sim card Tel Aviv Airport in 2025
- Best tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport in 2025
- Best eSIMs for Israel
- How to get from Ben Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv
RELATED: 33 Things To Do in Israel in 2025
With more about hot air ballooning in the Negev Desert, boat ride on the Dead Sea, ATV riding in Makhtesh Ramon and much more.
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My recommendation
Traveltomtom does NOT recommend buying a tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport. Why not? Super expensive, totally overpriced!
Ordering an eSIM for Israel on the internet is cheaper and you are already online as soon as the plane lands.
The cheapest tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport is a Partner sim card from the Steimatzky book store for around $48 USD.
You can order a prepaid sim card or eSIM from SIM to Israel with 150 GB data for just $25 USD. Easy conclusion right?
For this and many more eSIM plans check out my comparison of the best eSIMs for traveling to Israel in 2025.
Tourist sim cards at Tel Aviv Airport are sold at tourist prices. If you buy a prepaid sim card in Tel Aviv city center in a phone store you will find much better sim card deals and prices. For more info see my guide on how to buy a prepaid sim card in Israel in 2025.
Related: Everything you need to know before you travel to Israel in 2025.
Why buying a sim card for Israel
For many reasons I would encourage you to get a sim card for your trip to Israel. But most of all we don't want to end up with excessive high data roaming charges or slow overseas data plans when traveling to Tel Aviv.
Life with a working data connection is so much more convenient. Think about ordering an Uber on the streets, getting directions from Google Maps or finding a nearby restaurant with good reviews.
Also don't rely on public WiFi. Yes, most places in Tel Aviv have free public Wifi, but what if the signal in your hotel room is weak, or the WiFi is too slow to upload anything? When you get a sim card for Israel you can rely on 4G and even 5G these days.
Be aware that public WiFi is through an UNSECURED network so it is recommend to use a VPN to protect your data if using public WiFi.
Buying a local sim card in Israel is fairly easy. Buy a sim card at Tel Aviv Airport, put it in your phone, wait till it is activated and you are online within a couple minutes. Prepaid sim cards with data are cheap in Israel, but at the airport of Tel Aviv they charge tourist prices.
The easiest, fastest and most convenient place to buy your Israel sim card on arrival is of course at the airport. Keep in mind though that for this convenience you pay a couple extra dollars.
That said, there is no easier way to get connected when traveling to Israel then an eSIM and Traveltomtom will also discuss eSIMs for Israel in this guide. More about it later.
Buying a sim card on arrival in a new country is the first thing I do myself and that is how I already wrote more than 200 guides for buying local sim cards in many places around the world: Finland, Belgium, Ireland, Iceland, USA, Canada, Mexico, Europe, Brazil, Thailand, Vietnam, South Africa, Jordan, London, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam and many more.
Another alternative is a world sim card with global coverage. You can find some good deals among these sim cards specially designed for world travelers. Check out my comparison of the best international sim cards in 2025 and find the one for your trip to Israel.
If you are not a fan of swapping sim cards and your phone is not eSIM compatible then have a look into a pocket WiFi. Personally, I am not the biggest fan but these portable WiFi devices do work. Check out my HONEST review in my article about how to get WiFi when traveling.
Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport Tel Aviv
The main hub for traveling to Israel is Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. It is an easy to navigate airport and there is only one big arrival hall where all passengers arrive.
After going through immigration you end up in the arrival hall at Ben Gurion Airport, a huge open space and there are convenience stores, book stores and sim card shops.
Where to buy an Israel sim card at Ben Gurion Airport
As soon as you walk into the arrivals hall after immigration you will see shops straight ahead of you and on your left hand side. There are only two shops that sell an Israel prepaid sim card for tourists: 019 Mobile and the Steimatzky book store.
They both have big signs saying Israel sim card for sale!
Both shops accept international credit cards and are open 24 hours.
Prices sim card Tel Aviv Airport in 2025
All prices and info is updated as per January 2025. Prices are in Israeli Shekel (ILS) and $1 USD = 3.6 ILS and 10 ILS = $2.8 USD.
One of the things I learned from my first trip is that Israel is an expensive country. Buying a tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport is expensive too.
019 Mobile Tel Aviv Airport
All the 019 Mobile Israel sim cards you can buy at Tel Aviv Airport come with unlimited calls all over the world, so at least that is a great thing. Plus they are flexible in how many days you travel to Israel.
- 10 GB data for 8 days = $45 USD
- Unlimited data for 8 days = $54 USD
- 2 GB data for 20 days = $49 USD
- 20 GB data for 20 days = $69 USD
- Unlimited data for 20 days = $75 USD
- 5 GB data for 35 days = $69 USD
- 30 GB data for 35 days = $99 USD
- Unlimited data for 35 days = $109 USD
The cheapest 019 Mobile prepaid sim card for tourists at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv is $45 USD and then you get 10 GB data for 8 days.
Remember that ordering an Israel sim card via SIM to Israel starts from just $25 USD and you get 150 GB data and unlimited calls in Israel and to the USA and Canada.
Steimatzsky Tel Aviv Airport
The Steimatzky shop is actually a book shop that sells Israel sim cards, but the guy was very helpful and knowledgeable. All the Israel sim card sold at this shop are from the mobile internet operator Partner.
Partner Israel sim card for 7 days:
- 15 GB data + 500 minutes + 500 sms + 40 NIS ($11 USD) international calling credit = 175 NIS - $48 USD
- 50 GB data + unlimited minutes & sms + 30 NIS ($8) international calling credit = 185 NIS - $51 USD
- 30 GB data + 1500 minutes + 1500 sms = 170 NIS - $47 USD
Partner Israel sim card for 10 days:
- 30 GB data + 1500 minutes + 1500 sms = 180 NIS - $50 USD
- 150 GB data + unlimited minutes & sms = 230 NIS - $63 USD
Partner Israel sim card for 30 days:
- 200 GB data + unlimited minutes & sms = 235 NIS - $65 USD
- 200 GB data + unlimited minutes & sms + 110 NIS ($31 USD) international calling credit = 269 NIS - $74 USD
Data-only Partner Israel sim card:
- 5 GB valid for 30 days = 169 NIS - $47 USD
Best tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport in 2025
The best Israel tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport can be bought at the Steimatzky book store. They have sim cards from Partner, one of the mobile internet providers in Israel.
The best-buy tourist sim card at Tel Aviv Airport is $48 USD and you get 25 GB valid for 30 days.
But as I said when ordering a sim card for traveling to Israel online you can get 150 GB data for just $25 USD. Traveltomtom has had great experiences with ordering a sim card for Israel via Sim to Israel and they now also have eSIMs available.
So why wasting money on buying a prepaid sim card at Tel Aviv Airport?
Best eSIMs for Israel
eSIMs are the easiest way to stay connected when traveling to Israel in 2025. No more visiting a sim card shop and swapping physical sim cards. You arrange everything online within just a couple clicks.
You order an eSIM for Israel on the internet, you receive a QR code, scan it, follow the simple steps and within less than 2 minutes you have an eSIM installed on your phone.
Upon arrival in Israel it automatically connects you to an available network and you enjoy data on your phone pretty much when the plane lands.
For more info check out my guide everything you need to know about ordering an eSIM for Israel in 2025.
SIM to Israel
The Traveltomtom Team has tested the SIM to Israel eSIMs and was very happy with the outcome. SIM to Israel has the best-buy eSIMs for Israel and are by far the most recommended eSIM for traveling to Israel in 2025.
- 150 GB data + unlimited calls & sms in Israel + unlimited calls & sms to USA and Canada for 7 days = $25 USD
- 150 GB data + unlimited calls & sms in Israel + unlimited calls & sms to USA and Canada for 10 days = $29 USD
- 150 GB data + unlimited calls & sms in Israel + unlimited calls & sms to USA and Canada for 14 days = $35 USD
Click here to order an eSIM for Israel from SIM to Israel.
They have many more eSIM plans up to 3 months validity even. All SIM to Israel eSIMs come with a phone number and they are 5G ready.
Airalo
Airalo is a very reliable eSIM provider and Traveltomtom has used Airalo uncountable times in more than 50 countries around the world. Airalo is the market leader in eSIMs and rock-solid.
Before buying an Airalo eSIM for Israel you need to scan you passport. Airalo requires an ID verification.
These are the Airalo Israel eSIM plans for 2025:
- 1 GB data for 7 days = $4.50 USD
- 2 GB data for 15 days = $5.50 USD
- 3 GB data for 30 days = $7 USD
- 5 GB data for 30 days = $9.50 USD
- 10 GB data for 30 days = $13.5 USD
- 20 GB data for 30 days = $17 USD
Click here for more info or to order an eSIM for Israel via Airalo.
Airalo has in total 12 eSIM plans for Israel. They have data-only eSIMs as well as eSIMs with data & voice.
The Airalo eSIMs for Israel are called Annatel and according the the Arialo website they operate on the Annatel 5G network. We couldn't find more info on which mobile network Annatel uses in Israel, so it is unclear.
Make sure your phone is eSIM compatible before ordering an eSIM for Israel.
For many more eSIM plans check out my comparison of the best eSIMs for Israel in 2025.
How to get from Ben Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv
A taxi from Ben Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv will cost you around $30 to $50 depending where in the city you are going to. But there are cheaper options to get from Tel Aviv Airport to Tel Aviv. There are regular busses that take about 30 minutes into the city and they cost only $8 USD. But the train is my favorite way to get from Ben Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv: the 15 minutes journey costs only $4 USD.
I am sure some of the info about buying a sim card at Tel Aviv Airport was helpful. If you have any questions please leave me a comment. I am happy to help you out with Israel travel tips as well as questions about Israel sim cards.
In case you need some unusual things to do in Israel, check this link or read my article with 24 reasons to visit Israel or all my Israel travel tips.
Curious what it looks like to travel to every country in the world? Check out my Instagram profile @traveltomtom and get fuelled by wanderlust. As of January 2025 I have been to more than 155 countries.
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Enjoy your trip to Tel Aviv!