Beijing eSIM
In Beijing you connect to China Unicom or China Mobile, whichever is performing better where you are standing. The typical speed across the country is 41 Mbps. Your data starts working the moment you land, before you reach the immigration hall.
- Networks
- China Unicom and China Mobile
- Typical speed in China
- 41 Mbps typical, 10 Mbps at busy times
- 5G
- yes, non standalone
- Throttle
- None on metered plans
- Tethering
- Allowed on every plan
Plans that cover Beijing
| Data | Validity | Price per GB | Price | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GB | Never expires | $5.89 | $5.89 | |
| 3 GB | Never expires | $2.96 | $8.89 | |
| 5 GBMost travellers | Never expires | $2.38 | $11.89 | |
| 10 GB | Never expires | $1.89 | $18.89 | |
| 20 GB | Never expires | $1.49 | $29.89 | |
| 50 GB | Never expires | $1.36 | $67.89 |
How China compares across Asia
- Regional typical speed
- 42.95 Mbps
- Upstream networks
- 2, China Unicom, China Mobile
- 5G
- Yes, non standalone
- Next fastest nearby
- Cambodia, 42 Mbps
- Next slowest nearby
- Indonesia, 38 Mbps
- Cities with their own page
- 4: Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xian
Landing at Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK)
- Airport
- PEK / ZBAA
- Distance
- 32 km from the centre of Beijing
- Wifi on arrival
- Free wifi in the terminalFree network is named AIRPORT-FREE-WIFI-NEW; the airport offers three ways to authenticate - WeChat, SMS to a mobile number in any country or region, and a terminal kiosk. One authentication stays valid for three months.
- SIM on arrival
- SIM counters or vending in the terminalHuanqiu Manyou (Global Roaming) and Manyou Chaoren counters sell domestic and international SIM cards: Terminal 2 Level 1 in international arrivals baggage claim near carousel 3 (07:00-19:00) and Terminal 2 Level 2 near gate 4 (24h); Terminal 3C Level 2 international baggage claim near carousel 38 (24h) and Terminal 3 Level 4 at D Island (24h).
- Also serves
- Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX)
Getting into Beijing
- Capital Airport Express (PEK), about 20 minutes. Runs through tunnels, where a signal drops
- Daxing Airport Express (PKX), about 22 minutes. Runs through tunnels, where a signal drops
Underground and on the metro
Beijing Subway runs 30 lines. It opened in 1971. The operator states mobile coverage throughout the tunnels.
Worth knowing about Beijing
- Capital Airport's free wifi cannot be joined by simply accepting terms: you must authenticate by WeChat, by SMS to a mobile number, or at a terminal kiosk before the connection opens.
- Once you authenticate on Capital Airport wifi the login stays valid for three months, so a return trip within that window needs no re-registration.
- Beijing's two airports sit on opposite sides of the city - Capital 32 km northeast of downtown, Daxing 46 km south - so a transfer between them is a long ground journey.
- The Daxing Airport Express runs mostly in tunnel and every one of its stations is underground.
- Every fare gate on Beijing's 29 operating rail lines, both airport expresses and suburban line S2 included, accepts contactless UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, JCB and American Express cards, with no ticket or app needed.
- Overseas bank cards also work at subway ticket machines, both to buy single tickets for companions and to pay the difference when a single ticket overruns its distance or time limit.
- Daxing airport's free network is BDIA-FREE-WIFI. Foreign travellers can sign in by photographing their passport information page, or use a kiosk, WeChat or a phone number instead.
- Once connected at Daxing, scan the posted QR code to fill in the National Immigration Administration's online arrival card before reaching the border desk.
- At Capital airport, travellers with foreign numbers can insert a passport into a Wi-Fi dispenser, which prints a login valid for five hours. One passport can print up to three logins.
- Both Beijing airports have SIM vending machines as well as staffed counters. The city government reminds visitors that Chinese SIMs are physical cards that may not suit every phone.
- Arrival terminals have an Information Desk and a Payment Service Center where staff help set up Alipay and WeChat, which Beijing's government treats as essential for paying and messaging.
- Most Chinese map apps lack an English interface. Beijing's government suggests Apple Maps on iPhone, and Bing Maps on Android when the built-in map fails.
- Beijing's communications administration planned 5G on every subway line by 2024, after more than 300 stations on lines including 4, 5, 11 and the Daxing Airport Express were scheduled to carry all three carriers' 5G by the end of 2023.
- Since October 2025 every platform on Subway Line 12 has China Mobile's faster 5G-A signal, the first line in the country to get it.