How 
we test apps
This is the method we’ll use. We haven’t run the tests yet, so results across the site are expected ones from public reports, marked as such. Dates, speeds and prices will appear once real tests exist.
First we land in China.
Every test will run from inside the mainland.
Then we open every app.
Does it open, send, load and call? The same checks each time.
We try four networks.
Local SIM, hotel and café Wi-Fi, roaming eSIM, home SIM on roaming.
Every month, again.
Each result will show its date, with a screenshot as proof.
| Network | Which one | What we check | Proof |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local SIM card | China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom | Does the app open, send, load and call? | Dated screenshot and speed test |
| Hotel and café Wi-Fi | Named in each result | The same checks on a Chinese fixed line | Dated screenshot |
| Roaming eSIM | Airalo, Nomad | Which country the data exits in, then the same checks | Exit location, screenshot and speed test |
| Home SIM on roaming | Named in each result | The same checks on your own carrier’s roaming | Dated screenshot |
What each result means
A result needs to hold up on the network you’ll use, so each app gets the same two kinds of check on each network: does it open, and does it do the thing you opened it for? For WhatsApp, that means sending a message and making a call. For Google, a search and a sign-in. For Maps, finding a place and how far your dot sits from where you are.
We use three words, and each is also shown as a colour and a shape, so you don’t have to rely on seeing colour:
- WorksOpens and works normally.
- PartlySome features fail, or it only works in some places.
- BlockedWon’t load or connect.
How eSIMs are tested
We buy each plan at the normal price, with no free samples, so we see what you’d see. Then we install them all on one phone, in one city, and run them on the same day, because mobile networks vary by place and time.
- Which country the data exits in, since that decides things like ChatGPT and Gemini.
- Whether Google, WhatsApp and Instagram work on the eSIM’s mobile data, with Wi-Fi off.
- Download speed, as a median of several runs at different times of day.
- Whether hotspot works, and any cap.
- How long setup takes, from buying to first connection.
How we handle the money
Some links to eSIM sellers will be affiliate links, which means we earn a commission if you buy, at no cost to you. It’s how the site pays for itself. The order of the table comes from results, and a seller can’t pay to change a result. We don’t take money to review a product, and we don’t recommend tools for getting around the filters. The affiliate disclosure has the details.
When results go out of date
Things change here without notice: a filter tightens, a plan changes its routing, an app adds a block of its own. That’s why every result shows its date, and why we plan to recheck each month. If a result looks wrong to you, please write in with your network, city and date. We’ll check it, then correct the page and note the change in its update history.
Where things stand
No tests have been run yet. Until they are, the site says “expected” rather than “tested”, a strip at the top of each page repeats that, and pages say “Not tested yet” where dates, speeds and prices will go. When the first results are in, they’ll be added page by page.