{"id":45590,"date":"2026-10-10T22:56:54","date_gmt":"2026-10-10T20:56:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/povnomad.com\/georgia-sim-card-for-tourists\/"},"modified":"2026-10-10T22:56:54","modified_gmt":"2026-10-10T20:56:54","slug":"georgia-sim-card-for-tourists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/povnomad.com\/en\/georgia-sim-card-for-tourists\/","title":{"rendered":"Georgia SIM Card for Tourists: Magti at the Airport, Passport Rules or eSIM?"},"content":{"rendered":"

At Tbilisi and Kutaisi airports, Magti hands out a free SIM card with its Welcome package for tourists: 15 GEL (about \u20ac5.15) for 5 GB over 15 days, or 30 GEL (\u20ac10.29) for 3 GB plus free local calls and 30 international minutes. You show your passport at the counter. The POVNOMAD Georgia eSIM<\/a> costs \u20ac2.90 for 1 GB over 7 days or \u20ac10.90 for a week of unlimited data, and you install it before you fly. As of 10 October 2026.<\/p>\n

Put plainly: in Georgia the local SIM is cheap and easy to get. If you land in Tbilisi or Kutaisi and need more than 1 GB, Magti’s 15 GEL package costs less than any travel eSIM we checked. The eSIM is worth it when you want to be online the moment you land, when you arrive by land or at another airport, or when 1 GB is enough for a short trip.<\/p>\n

Local SIM, travel eSIM or roaming: what is the difference in Georgia?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/th>\nLocal SIM (Magti Welcome)<\/th>\nTravel eSIM (POVNOMAD)<\/th>\nRoaming on your home contract<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Price<\/td>\n15 GEL (\u20ac5.15) for 5 GB\/15 days, 30 GEL (\u20ac10.29) for 3 GB with calls\/15 days<\/td>\n\u20ac2.90 for 1 GB\/7 days, \u20ac10.90 for 7 days Unlimited Smart<\/td>\nGeorgia is outside EU roaming and has no price cap, you need a travel pass<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
What you need<\/td>\npassport, unlocked phone, a free SIM slot<\/td>\neSIM-capable, unlocked phone<\/td>\na pass booked with your provider<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Where you get it<\/td>\nMagti desk at Tbilisi or Kutaisi airport<\/td>\nonline, installed at home<\/td>\nno purchase needed<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
When you get online<\/td>\nafter the counter<\/td>\non landing<\/td>\non landing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Calls and SMS<\/td>\nyes, with a Georgian number; local calls free in the 30 GEL package<\/td>\nno, data only; WhatsApp calls run over data<\/td>\nyes, at your provider’s rates<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Network<\/td>\nMagti, 2G to 5G according to Magti<\/td>\nMagti 4G (variable)<\/td>\ndepends on your provider<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hotspot<\/td>\nnot mentioned on Magti’s tourist page<\/td>\nyes, no separate limit<\/td>\ndepends on your contract<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Validity<\/td>\n15 days<\/td>\n7 to 30 days, depending on the plan<\/td>\ndepends on the pass<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

As of 10 October 2026. Magti offer from magticom.ge (tourist SIM page for Georgian airports), POVNOMAD prices and network from the Georgia product page. Converted at the official rate of the National Bank of Georgia valid on 10 October 2026 (\u20ac1 = 2.9154 GEL).<\/small><\/p>\n

How much does a tourist SIM card cost in Georgia?<\/h2>\n

Magti, the operator with the most coverage according to its own website, publishes two Welcome packages for travellers arriving at Tbilisi or Kutaisi airport. The SIM card comes free with either:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Package<\/th>\nPrice<\/th>\nData<\/th>\nCalls<\/th>\nSMS<\/th>\nValidity<\/th>\nActivation code<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Welcome 15<\/td>\n15 GEL (\u20ac5.15)<\/td>\n5,000 MB<\/td>\n\u2013<\/td>\nfree local SMS\/MMS<\/td>\n15 days<\/td>\n3315<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Welcome 30<\/td>\n30 GEL (\u20ac10.29)<\/td>\n3,000 MB<\/td>\nfree local calls to Magti, Silknet, Cellfie and landlines, 30 international minutes<\/td>\nfree local SMS\/MMS<\/td>\n15 days<\/td>\n2230<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Source: magticom.ge, “SIM cards for Tourists in Georgian airports”<\/a>, retrieved 10 October 2026. The page carries no date. Euro amounts at \u20ac1 = 2.9154 GEL (National Bank of Georgia, 10 October 2026).<\/small><\/p>\n

Georgia’s two other operators are harder to pin down. Silknet’s website has a tourist package page, but the packages load by script and did not show in readable form when we checked on 10 October 2026. On Cellfie’s website we found no tourist package that day. Travel blogs quote prices for both that contradict each other, so we leave them out. Ask at the desk for the total price including the SIM card.<\/p>\n

Travel eSIMs, bought before departure, as of 10 October 2026:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Plan<\/th>\nPOVNOMAD<\/th>\nAiralo<\/th>\nHolafly<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
1 GB<\/td>\n\u20ac2.90 (7 days)<\/td>\n\u20ac4.50 (3 days)<\/td>\n\u2013<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5 GB<\/td>\n\u20ac10.90 (30 days)<\/td>\n\u20ac15.00 (15 days), \u20ac15.50 (30 days)<\/td>\n\u2013<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
20 GB, 30 days<\/td>\n\u20ac23.90<\/td>\n\u20ac33.50<\/td>\n\u2013<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Unlimited, 7 days<\/td>\n\u20ac10.90 (1 GB a day at full speed)<\/td>\nnot in Airalo’s Georgia eSIM<\/td>\n\u20ac25.50<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Unlimited, 15 days<\/td>\n\u20ac20.90<\/td>\nnot in Airalo’s Georgia eSIM<\/td>\n\u20ac47.90<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Read on 10 October 2026 on povnomad.com, airalo.com\/georgia-esim and esim.holafly.com\/de\/esim-georgien\/. Holafly sells unlimited plans only. “\u2013” = no such plan.<\/small><\/p>\n

For 5 GB over 15 days you pay \u20ac5.15 at the Magti desk, \u20ac10.90 with us (30 days) and \u20ac15.00 at Airalo. Only below 1 GB is the eSIM cheaper. The unlimited plans and the roaming costs of German contracts are compared in our Georgia eSIM provider comparison<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Do you need a passport for a Georgian SIM card?<\/h2>\n

Yes. Under the consumer rules of Georgia’s regulator, the Georgian National Communications Commission (ComCom), a contract for mobile services must contain the customer’s identity and address (Resolution No. 3, Article 12<\/a>, English version on comcom.ge). As a visitor, you show your passport, so take the original with you.<\/p>\n

A travel eSIM from abroad needs no Georgian contract, because it joins the network as a roaming guest. Our Georgia eSIM uses the same Magti network as the local SIM.<\/p>\n

What if you do not land in Tbilisi or Kutaisi?<\/h2>\n

Magti’s tourist page names the airports of Tbilisi and Kutaisi as the places to get the Welcome package. It does not say whether its city offices sell the same package. If you arrive at Batumi airport or by land from Turkey or Armenia, plan for that gap: either find a Magti office in town or have an eSIM ready.<\/p>\n

The eSIM switches on as soon as your phone finds the Georgian network after the border. If you continue to Armenia or Azerbaijan, each country needs its own profile. Our guide Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan on one trip<\/a> covers the border crossings and the costs.<\/p>\n

Does a Georgian SIM work in the mountains?<\/h2>\n

That depends on the network, not on whether the SIM is local. In Svaneti, Kazbegi and towards Tusheti, Magti is often the only network with signal, and Tusheti is largely offline. Our eSIM runs on Magti, Airalo’s Georgia eSIM on Cellfie, and Holafly lists Magticom and Beeline, the former name of Cellfie (as of 10 October 2026). Download maps before mountain hikes, whatever SIM you use. Details per region are in the Georgia comparison<\/a>.<\/p>\n

How do you buy the local SIM the right way?<\/h2>\n