The short answer
Telstra's International Day Pass lets your own mobile plan work in Thailand for A$10 a day (about $7), charged only on the days you use the phone there. For a holiday I would buy Ringo Light instead, $22.99 for 2 weeks and $32.99 for 30 days, unlimited data at full speed. Telstra wins on your own number, calls and texts included, and nothing to install.
I read it as a clear win past a few days. You get unlimited data at full speed for 2 weeks at $22.99 or 30 days at $32.99, one payment, nothing renews. Telstra is A$10 for every day you use the phone in Thailand.
The pass runs on your own plan, so calls and texts keep working on your own number. There is nothing to install, and the cost lands on the Telstra account you already pay. A phone with no eSIM slot works too, which is a point I would not wave away. Ringo Light is data only.
Prices read on 31 October 2026: Telstra, Ringo Light, European Central Bank 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, 31 October 2026. Telstra is charged only on days the phone is used, so 14 days is the most it can cost for the fortnight. Telstra's A$140 is converted at the ECB reference rate of 30 October 2026, A$1 = $0.70. Ringo Light is unlimited data at full speed for the whole 2 weeks.
Telstra's page shows no monthly pass for Thailand, so 30 days is 30 times the daily price, A$300 at the ECB reference rate of 30 October 2026, A$1 = $0.70. Ringo Light is one payment for 30 days.
Side by side
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Head to head
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Get Ringo Light for Thailand, from $6.99.
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- 7 days $6.99
- 2 weeks $22.99
- 30 days $32.99
- 90 days $71.99
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Telstra International Day Pass vs Ringo Light in one paragraph
For data in Thailand, Ringo Light costs far less than the Day Pass on a holiday of more than a few days. Two weeks is $22.99 against A$140 (about $98), and a month is $32.99 against A$300 (about $211). The Day Pass wins on convenience, and that is a real win. Calls and texts work on your own number, nothing needs installing, the cost sits on the Telstra bill you already pay, and it works on a phone with no eSIM slot. For a quick stopover with zero setup I would use it without a second thought. For a longer stay, or a laptop on the hotspot, I would buy Ringo Light.
Price: the same trip at each
On 31 October 2026 I read Telstra's roaming page, which lists Thailand in Zone 2 at A$10 a day. A day is charged when the phone is used for calls, sent texts or data, background data included. Two weeks of use is A$140 (about $98) and 30 days is A$300 (about $211), because the page shows no monthly pass for Thailand. The dollar figures come from the European Central Bank reference rate of 30 October 2026, A$1 = $0.70.
Ringo Light is priced in US dollars, and the checkout shows the amount in the buyer's currency before paying. Trips are $22.99 for 2 weeks and $32.99 for 30 days, one payment. The gap is $75.01 on two weeks and $178.01 on a month. Ringo Light sells no 3-day trip for Thailand, so on a stopover of a day or two I would pick the Day Pass, which is the cheaper of the two.
Data and speed at each
Telstra's page puts 2 GB of data a day in the Day Pass, with unlimited standard calls and SMS. What you do not use expires at the end of each day. The page states no roaming speed, and I will not fill that gap with a guess. Beyond the 2 GB Telstra sells a data top up of 2 GB at A$10 (about $7), valid for 31 days. Two gigabytes covers maps, taxi apps and messages. A day of video or a laptop on the hotspot can pass it. Ringo Light is unlimited data at full speed for the whole trip. Fair use policy, see Terms.
Calls, texts and your own number
Here Telstra beats Ringo Light, and I would not argue otherwise. With the Day Pass your phone behaves as it does at home. The same number rings, texts arrive as usual, and verification codes sent to your Australian number keep reaching you. Ringo Light is data only. Calls go over apps that use data, and your own SIM stays in the phone for calls, with your number staying on your own SIM next to it. If your bank texts a code to your Australian number, my advice is to keep your own SIM active whichever you choose.
Setup and billing
The Day Pass needs nothing from you. A day is charged when the phone makes a call, sends an SMS or uses data in Thailand, and it lands on your Telstra account. Ringo Light arrives by email after you pay and installs in one scan of the QR code. What I look for in any eSIM is a setup you can finish at home, so I would do it on Wi-Fi before the flight and switch the eSIM on for data when you land in Bangkok or Phuket. The phone must support eSIM, and the Day Pass has no such requirement.
What Ringo Light is, and what it is not
I write for Ringo, and Ringo Light is its own data eSIM, sold to fund the full Ringo, one plan that works everywhere. For Thailand it sells three trips, all unlimited data at full speed: 7 days at $6.99, 2 weeks at $22.99 and 30 days at $32.99. One payment, nothing renews.
What it is not: it has no phone number, so it does not replace your Telstra service for calls and texts, and it needs a phone with an eSIM slot. Telstra is simpler and keeps everything on one bill. Ringo Light is the lower price for the same time in Thailand, and that is why I lean towards it for a real holiday.
If you want the other travel eSIM brands for Thailand, I compared them at /blog/best-esim-for-thailand. The card to buy Ringo Light is further up this page, just after the side-by-side table.
Which to pick
- ✓Ringo Light, for a holiday of two weeks or more. That is $22.99 for 2 weeks or $32.99 for 30 days, unlimited data at full speed, against A$10 for every day of use at Telstra.
- ✓Telstra Day Pass, for a day or two with zero setup. There is nothing to install, calls and texts stay on your own number, and it costs A$10 per day used.
- ✓Telstra Day Pass, if your phone has no eSIM slot. It works on the plan already in the phone.
- ✓Both, for a long stay with a work line. Use Ringo Light for data and keep your own SIM for the calls and texts your number needs.
Pick by trip
I would buy Ringo Light, 2 weeks, $22.99. Fourteen days of the Day Pass is A$140 (about $98).
Ringo Light, 30 days, $32.99, unlimited at full speed for the laptop. The Day Pass would be A$300 (about $211), a price I would not pay.
My pick is Ringo Light, 30 days, $32.99, one payment for the whole run.
Telstra Day Pass, or Ringo Light for data with your own SIM left in the phone for calls. I would not ask Ringo Light to do the calling.
Telstra Day Pass, because Ringo Light needs an eSIM-capable phone.
Frequently asked questions
How we compared, and our sources
Telstra, Ringo Light, European Central Bank, Ringo Light
We priced Telstra and Ringo Light for Thailand on 31 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: Other eSIM brands. Airalo, Holafly, Saily, Nomad and Ubigi sell Thailand too and are priced in the full comparison at /blog/best-esim-for-thailand. This page answers one question, Telstra or Ringo Light. Left out: Telstra prepaid. Telstra's page points prepaid customers to separate Pre-Paid International Roaming Packs and gives no prices for them, so this page prices the Day Pass only.
- Telstra: www.telstra.com.au/international-roaming, International Roaming Day Pass zones, A$10 a day for Zone 2 with Thailand listed, the 2 GB a day allowance, billing on days used and the A$10 2 GB top up, read 31 October 2026
- Ringo Light: ringoesim.com/thailand, the catalogue the checkout charges, read the same day
- European Central Bank: www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/eurofxref/eurofxref-daily.xml, euro reference rates of 30 October 2026, the latest published on 31 October 2026, used for the dollar figures (A$1 = $0.70)
- Ringo Light: our own catalogue, the prices the checkout charges on 31 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.
