The short answer
Holafly and Nomad sell different things in Malaysia, so there is no like for like price to compare. Holafly sells unlimited at 3, 7, 15 and 30 days, from $11.90 to $73.90. Nomad sells buckets, 10 GB for $16 and 20 GB for $25, and no unlimited at those lengths. If you want unlimited for two weeks or a month, Ringo Light, the third option, is unlimited data at full speed at $23.99 or $35.99.
Unlimited data at full speed, 2 weeks at $23.99 or 30 days at $35.99. Nothing renews and there is no app. It has no 3-day or 7-day plan and no buckets.
Unlimited at $11.90 for 3 days, $27.50 for 7, $50.50 for 15 and $73.90 for 30, sold in days rather than gigabytes, with no buckets. It states no daily cap for your own phone, limits sharing to 1 GB a day, and runs on Celcom and Digi.
10 GB for 30 days at $16 and 20 GB at $25. Its unlimited gives 2 GB a day at full speed, then slows, on Maxis and Digi, and stops at 5 days for $18 or 10 days for $33. The 20 GB lasts 30 days.
Prices read on 25 October 2026: Holafly, Nomad on their own sites or listings, Ringo Light from its catalogue. All in US dollars unless stated. Treat every number as a snapshot.
See the full price index for every country.
Travelling further? Compare the best eSIM for Asia and the eSIM for Asia-Pacific.
The prices, charted
US dollars, 25 October 2026. Ringo Light sells 2 weeks, Holafly 15 days. Nomad sells no 15-day plan, so it has no bar. Ringo Light is unlimited data at full speed.
The 30-day plan at each brand. Nomad sells no 30-day unlimited, so it has no bar. Ringo Light is unlimited data at full speed.
Holafly sells no buckets, so it has no bar. Ringo Light sells no bucket either: its 2 weeks is unlimited, and lasts 2 weeks, not 30 days.
Side by side
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- 30 days $35.99
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Holafly vs Nomad in one paragraph
Holafly and Nomad answer different questions. Holafly sells unlimited days at 3, 7, 15 and 30, from $11.90 to $73.90, and installs from a QR code with no app. Nomad sells buckets, 10 GB for $16 and 20 GB for $25, and its unlimited stops at 10 days. For two weeks or a month of unlimited, neither is the cheapest: Ringo Light is $23.99 for 2 weeks and $35.99 for 30 days, unlimited data at full speed.
Price: the same trip at each
Prices are in US dollars from 25 October 2026. Holafly asks $11.90 for 3 days of unlimited, $27.50 for 7, $50.50 for 15 and $73.90 for 30. Nomad has no unlimited at any of those lengths, only 5 days at $18 and 10 days at $33.
Ringo Light sells two trips for Malaysia, 2 weeks at $23.99 and 30 days at $35.99. Two weeks costs $26.51 less than Holafly's 15 days, and it is under Holafly's 7 days at $27.50 as well, with a week to spare. A month is $37.91 less than Holafly's $73.90. There is no 3-day or 7-day Ringo Light plan, so look at Holafly's row for a short trip.
Nomad's buckets are 10 GB for 30 days at $16 and 20 GB at $25. The first is under Ringo Light's $23.99 for 2 weeks and the second under its $35.99 for 30 days, so if a bucket is enough, buy the bucket. Holafly sells none. We would rather you read that here than at checkout.
What unlimited means at each
Holafly states no daily cap on your own phone and limits sharing to 1 GB a day. Nomad gives 2 GB a day at full speed and then slows you down. Ringo Light is unlimited data at full speed for the whole 2 weeks or 30 days. Fair use policy, see Terms.
Networks and coverage in Malaysia
Malaysia has two big networks, Maxis and CelcomDigi (Celcom and Digi merged in 2022), plus U Mobile, Unifi and Yes, which is YTL. All of them cover Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Malacca and the main highways well, most with 5G in the cities. Coverage thins in the rainforest, on the mountain roads of the Cameron Highlands, on the East Coast islands and in the interior of Sabah and Sarawak on Borneo. There Maxis and CelcomDigi reach furthest. For the classic city and coast route, any of them works; download offline maps before a Borneo trek or an island crossing.
Holafly rides Celcom and Digi, and Nomad rides Maxis and Digi. Ringo Light rides a local partner network.
Installation and app
Holafly needs no app, only a QR code, and Nomad's app is optional. Ringo Light needs none: the eSIM arrives by email in seconds and installs in one scan. Whichever you pick, install it at home before you fly and switch it on for data when you land.
The cheaper third option: Ringo Light
Ringo Light is our own data eSIM for travellers. For Malaysia it sells two trips, both unlimited data at full speed: 2 weeks at $23.99 and 30 days at $35.99. You pay once, nothing renews, and there is no app.
It has no buckets and no 3-day or 7-day plan, and it is data only, so calls go over apps that use data.
The full comparison for Malaysia, with the other brands priced the same day, is at /blog/best-esim-for-malaysia. The card to buy Ringo Light is further up this page, just after the side-by-side table.
Which to pick
- Nomad, if you want a bucket. 10 GB for 30 days at $16 and 20 GB at $25. Holafly does not sell buckets.
- Holafly, if you want 3 days. $11.90 for 3 days of unlimited. Neither Nomad nor Ringo Light has a plan that short.
- Holafly, if you refuse a daily cap and want a QR code install. No daily cap stated on your own phone, with sharing limited to 1 GB a day. The price is $50.50 for 15 days and $73.90 for a month.
- ✓Ringo Light, if the trip is two weeks or a month. Unlimited data at full speed, $23.99 for 2 weeks or $35.99 for 30 days, below Holafly's price at 15 days.
Pick by trip
Holafly, 3 days of unlimited at $11.90. Neither Nomad nor Ringo Light sells one.
Ringo Light, 2 weeks at $23.99, against $50.50 at Holafly for 15 days.
Ringo Light, 30 days at $35.99, against $73.90 at Holafly.
Nomad's 10 GB for 30 days, $16.
Frequently asked questions
How we compared, and our sources
Holafly, Nomad, Ringo Light
We priced Holafly, Nomad and Ringo Light for Malaysia on 25 October 2026, all on the same day, in US dollars. Each rival's price comes from its own website where it showed dollars, otherwise from an esimdb.com listing, and every source and its date is listed below. Ringo Light's prices come from the catalogue our checkout charges.
We compare the trips people actually book: a week, two weeks and a month of unlimited data, and a 10 GB bucket. We read each brand's fair use and speed rules and quote them as the brands state them. We did not run speed tests, so this page makes no speed claims for any brand.
Ringo Light is our own product. We put it in the table on the same terms as everyone else, and where a rival is the better buy the page says so.
Left out: Airalo, Saily and Ubigi. They sell Malaysia too and are priced on the same day in the full comparison at /blog/best-esim-for-malaysia. This page answers one question, Holafly or Nomad, so it keeps to those two and the cheaper third option.
- Holafly: esim.holafly.com/esim-malaysia/, own site, 25 October 2026
- Nomad: www.nomadesim.com/malaysia-esim, prices and networks in dollars on nomadesim.com/malaysia-esim, read 25 October 2026
- Ringo Light: our own catalogue, the prices the checkout charges on 25 October 2026.
Written and priced by the Ringo team. Prices change often; if you spot one that has moved, tell us through the contact page and we will update the table.
