Staying connected in Egypt.

A tourist data pack runs roughly 6 to 12 dollars for an allowance most visitors will not finish, and all four networks sell one: Vodafone Egypt generally has the broadest reach and is the safe default, with Orange, Etisalat and WE competitive. Registration needs your passport. Against a week of US carrier day passes at 70 to 84 dollars, it is not a close comparison, and we earn nothing on the local SIM.

One practical warning that is really about money. The arrivals-hall kiosks at Cairo and Hurghada are set up for tourists and priced accordingly, and the pitch can be firm. An official carrier shop in town usually sells the same pack for less, and if you already have data working through an eSIM or a T-Mobile allowance you can make that decision unhurried rather than at the airport. Agree the price and what is included before the SIM goes in the phone.

Egypt's population lives along the Nile and the coasts, and the network does too. Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor, Aswan, the Red Sea resorts and the road between them are comfortable, with 4G throughout and 5G in the cities. Outside that: the Western Desert and the oases route toward Siwa, the Sinai interior including the St Catherine and Mount Sinai roads, the desert highways and the Nile cruise stretches between towns all lose signal for long periods.

That is geography rather than tariff, so plan for it: download offline maps, save your hotel and Nile cruise details offline, and expect a desert camp or a remote dive site to have nothing. On a cruise boat, the onboard wifi is often satellite and slow, which is worth knowing before you rely on it for anything.

AT&T and Verizon day passes are about 10 to 12 dollars a day, so a week is 70 to 84 dollars, and AT&T caps its Day Pass at 10 daily fees per line per bill period, about 120 dollars, and covers the rest of that bill period on land, so the daily arithmetic stops past day 10. T-Mobile's current tiers include roughly 5GB on Experience More, Magenta MAX and Go5G Plus, 15GB on Experience Beyond and Go5G Next and 30GB on Better Value, so check yours first: on a short Nile trip that may be all you need.

The honest case for a Nomad eSIM in Egypt is arriving with data already working, which is worth more here than in most countries: it lets you decline the airport kiosk, order a ride, and check what a taxi should cost before anybody quotes you a number. It is a few dollars per gigabyte and it is the convenience option, not the cheap one. This guide is written for US travelers departing the US. For more, see cash or card in Egypt, taxis and apps in Egypt, and the Egypt money guide.

Common questions

Quick answers.

More on Egypt

The little money things nobody warns you about.

• Do I need cash in Egypt, or can I use cards?Short answer: cash, mostly. Cards work at hotels and upscale spots, but almost everything else runs on cash, including the constant tipping. Here is how to handle it.
• Uber or Careem in Egypt, and the Cairo airport taxi trapEgypt is one of the places where an app quietly solves the problem. Here is which one to install, why the old street cabs are best skipped, and how to get out of Cairo airport without the invented fees.
• Tipping in EgyptTipping in Egypt, called baksheesh, is not an extra: it is woven into daily life. The trick is to carry lots of small notes and give little and often. Here is how much, when, and in what currency.
• Common money scams in Egypt, and what they cost youEgypt is one of the world's great trips, and the hassles that do come up are almost all about money, not danger: overcharging, pressure, and a tip expected for everything. A few calm habits defuse nearly all of it. Here is each trap, what it costs, and how to sidestep it.
• Do US citizens need a visa for Egypt?Short answer: yes, but it is quick. US citizens need a tourist visa, easiest as an e-visa on one official site before you fly, or bought on arrival. Here is the real fee, the passport rule Egypt enforces strictly, and the free Sinai exception.
• What does getting sick in Egypt cost a visitor?Egypt's medical money story starts at the cashier: hospitals expect payment, often in cash, before they will treat you. The second half is geography, because the places visitors actually go, the Red Sea coast, the desert, the temples upriver, sit a long way from Cairo's best hospitals.