Buying a SIM Card or eSIM at Cambodia's Airport: What US Travelers Should Get

eSIM before you fly vs a local SIM at the kiosk

The real decision is timing. An eSIM gets sorted at home before you fly; a local SIM gets sorted at the kiosk after you land. Both end with you online and paying a fraction of US roaming rates, so the choice comes down to whether you would rather skip the counter entirely or squeeze out the most data per dollar.

The eSIM case: walk straight past the kiosk

An eSIM is a digital SIM you install by scanning a QR code, with no physical chip to swap or lose. You buy a Cambodia plan from an app like Airalo, Holafly, or Nomad while you are still home on Wi-Fi, install it in a couple of minutes, and set it to activate on arrival. The instant your plane lands at Techo and your phone finds a Cambodian network, you are online — maps to find your ride, a message to your hotel, your eVisa PDF and e-Arrival QR already loaded. Your US number stays active on your physical SIM for calls and two-factor texts. The trade-off is price, since eSIM plans cost a little more than a bare-bones airport SIM, but you breeze past the kiosk and the registration step entirely.

The airport SIM case: the most data for the money

A physical local SIM from a kiosk is the value pick. For roughly $5 to $15 USD you walk away with a generous high-speed data bundle — often more gigabytes than a comparably priced eSIM — plus a local Cambodian number, which is handy for booking a Grab or PassApp ride and for any local business that needs to text you. The downsides are minor: you swap your US SIM out and keep it somewhere safe, you register the new SIM against your passport at the counter, and you are not online until the purchase is done. For longer trips, heavier data users, or anyone who just wants the most data per dollar, the airport SIM wins.

A quick word on sizing so you do not overpay or run dry: maps, messaging, ride apps, and browsing sip data, while video streaming and uploading lots of photos drink it. For a typical 1-to-2-week trip where you lean on hotel Wi-Fi each night, somewhere around 5 to 15 GB covers most travelers comfortably. If you plan to stream or hotspot a laptop heavily, lean toward an unlimited eSIM plan or a larger airport bundle rather than topping up repeatedly.

How to buy and activate, step by step

The mechanics are easy either way, but they happen at different moments — the eSIM before you board, the airport SIM after you land. Knowing the steps in advance means no scrambling at the gate or at the kiosk.

1. 1
   Unlock and check your phone first

   Before you leave the US, confirm your phone is carrier-unlocked, and for the eSIM route confirm it is eSIM-capable — you cannot fix a locked phone after you land.

2. 2
   eSIM: buy and install at home

   On home Wi-Fi, download an eSIM app like Airalo, Holafly, or Nomad, buy a Cambodia data plan, and scan the QR code to install it days before you fly.

3. 3
   eSIM: set it to activate on arrival

   Choose to start the plan on arrival and keep your US physical SIM for calls and two-factor texts, so you are online the moment your plane connects at Techo (KTI).

4. 4
   Airport SIM: go to a kiosk after immigration

   After you clear immigration and collect bags, head to a Metfone, Smart, or Cellcard kiosk in the KTI arrivals hall near the currency and transport desks.

5. 5
   Airport SIM: register with your passport

   Cambodian law requires SIM registration, so have your passport out — the same one tied to your eVisa and e-Arrival Card — and the staff will scan it and set up the SIM.

6. 6
   Pay, test, and store your US SIM

   Pay $5 to $15 USD for a tourist data bundle, let staff test it before you leave the counter, and keep your US SIM and ejector pin safe for the flight home.

Setting up an eSIM before you fly

Do this at home on Wi-Fi, not in the airport rush. Download your chosen eSIM app, pick a Cambodia data plan that fits your trip length, and pay. The app sends you a QR code; install the eSIM by scanning it in your phone settings, then choose whether to turn it on now or on arrival. Keep your US physical SIM handling calls and texts so your number and two-factor codes still work, and set your default mobile data line to the new Cambodia eSIM. Most plans let activation begin when the eSIM first connects to a network in Cambodia, so you can install days ahead without burning your data window.

Buying a local SIM at the airport kiosk

After immigration and baggage, head to a carrier kiosk in the arrivals hall. Have your passport out — Cambodian law requires every SIM to be registered to a passport, and the staff will scan or photograph it and set the card up for you on the spot. Tell them how many days you are staying and roughly how much data you want, pay in USD or local riel, and they will insert and test the SIM before you leave the counter. Keep your US SIM card and its ejector pin somewhere safe so you can swap back for the flight home. Start to finish, it is usually about five minutes.

The passport registration step is exactly why you keep your passport on you, not buried in your checked bag — it is the same document tied to your eVisa and your e-Arrival Card, in play at immigration moments earlier. If you want to compare the full SIM and eSIM landscape beyond the airport, including provider plans and coverage country-wide, our broader guide to Cambodia SIM cards and eSIMs for American travelers digs into the options in more depth.

Airport Wi-Fi, coverage, and getting connected on the ground

If you would rather not buy anything the second you land, Techo International has free terminal Wi-Fi you can use to message your hotel, pull up your ride, or check a map before you commit to a SIM. It is fine for the basics on the way out, and it gives you a window to glance at the kiosk plans without pressure. Many travelers who installed an eSIM at home skip all of this and are simply online the moment the plane connects — which is precisely the appeal of sorting it before you fly.

Once you leave the airport, coverage across the places most Americans actually go is genuinely good. Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Kampot, and the coastal islands all have solid 4G, with 5G expanding in the major cities. You will get a strong signal at Angkor Wat and the main temple complex, along the highways between the big destinations, and in nearly every town with a tourist presence. The further you push into remote provinces, the more it thins out — that is where Metfone's rural reach can edge ahead — but on a standard first-trip itinerary you will rarely be without a usable connection.

The SIM kiosk is not the only thing you will want at arrivals — most travelers also need cash and a ride within the same few minutes. Our guide to cash, ATMs, and currency exchange at the Cambodia airport covers the money side of the same arrivals hall, so you can plan the SIM stop and the cash stop together and walk out of the terminal sorted on both.

Mistakes to avoid (and a quick pre-flight checklist)

Almost every connectivity problem US travelers hit at the airport traces back to something that could have been settled before takeoff. None of these are hard to avoid once you know them.

• A carrier-locked phone. If your US phone is locked to Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile, neither an airport SIM nor an eSIM will work. Ask your carrier to unlock it before you leave — you cannot fix this once you land.
• No eSIM support. Older phones and some budget models do not support eSIM at all. Check your phone settings for an eSIM or "add cellular plan" option before you buy one; if it is missing, plan to buy a local SIM at the kiosk instead.
• Letting roaming switch on by default. Do nothing and your US carrier may auto-enroll you in a $10-plus daily roaming pass before you reach the kiosk. Turn off data roaming on your US SIM line and route data through your eSIM or local SIM.
• Forgetting your passport at the kiosk. Cambodian law requires passport registration to buy a SIM. Show up at the counter without it and you cannot complete the purchase.
• Losing your US SIM. If you swap in a physical local SIM at the airport, store your US SIM and the ejector pin somewhere safe so you can switch back for the flight home.
• Buying far more data than you need. With hotel and cafe Wi-Fi everywhere, most travelers get by on a modest plan. Start smaller; you can almost always top up.

Sort connectivity the way you sort the rest of arrival — a little before you fly, the rest at the airport. Get your phone unlocked and your eSIM installed (or your plan to hit the kiosk decided) before you leave, and the SIM stop becomes a five-minute formality. If you want to see where it fits into a full route through the country, our 10-day Cambodia itinerary for first-timers sequences arrival, Angkor, Phnom Penh, and the coast day by day.

Connectivity is the easy part; the one thing to lock in first is the visa. A Tourist eVisa is $80 USD all-in and a Business eVisa is $90 USD, both approved in 3 business days, delivered as a printable PDF by email, with free resubmission if Immigration flags a correction and US-timezone support if you get stuck. When your dates are set, apply for your Cambodia eVisa, then set a reminder for the e-Arrival Card in the week before you fly.