August 2021 Update: I used to recommend Skyroam as the best pocket wifi for Europe but I last traveled extensively with TEP TravelWifi. Since it’s been a long time since I used Skyroam, I recommend TravelWifi. Read about it here.
In March 2017, I went to Ireland, Germany, Spain, France and Italy. I didn’t want to deal with the expensive cost of extra data and minutes on my current phone plan nor get a different SIM card for each country I went to. I wanted something seamless and simple so I partnered up with Hip Pocket Wifi to put their Europe pocket wifi device to the test.
Recently though, my travel blogging friends, Travel Pockets, turned me onto Skyroam. What interested me about Skyroam is that it worked beyond Europe, and you could even permanently buy their device, which makes data usage cheaper in the long run.
See the differences between Hip Pocket Wifi and Skyroam to see which is the best pocket wifi for Europe.
All costs and offerings listed are as of the date of this post and are subject to change.
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August 2021 Update: I last traveled extensively with TEP TravelWifi. Since it’s been a long time since I used Skyroam, I recommend TravelWifi. Read about it here.
Pocket Wifi Delivery Costs to Your Home or Hotel
Both Hip Pocket and Skyroam will deliver their pocket wifi rental to your home or hotel. However, Skyroam does not deliver the pocket rental in Europe. This means you’ll have to get the Skyroam delivered to your house in the US, but this only matters if you intended on getting your wifi rental AFTER you landed in Europe to possibly save a day on data.
I personally think getting the wifi rental BEFORE you go to the airport and leave the country is smarter so that you can test out the device and have wifi on hand when you arrive at your destination for directions to your Airbnb or hotel.
That being said, the shipping costs for Skyroam if you are getting the wifi rental mailed to your home in the US and shipped back to Skyroam from the US is only $9.99.
For Hip Pocket, to get the device mailed to you in the US before your trip and then returning it from any European country at the end of your trip costs €29 (20 for shipping to outside Europe and 9 for shipping it back from anywhere in Europe).
You can completely avoid this cost if you have it delivered to your hotel in Europe and ship it back from France, but that means a) you’ll have to incur international data charges looking up directions from the airport to your hotel or b) you’ll be at the mercy of pre-printed out directions.
Winner in Delivery Costs: The Europe pocket wifi that wins this category for delivery costs keeping in mind the convenience of having data as soon as you arrive in a new country is Skyroam.
The only way that Hip Pocket’s delivery cost will be the same cost or cheaper is if you get it shipped to your hotel in Europe, then return it from France (free) or another country in Europe (€9).
– Get 10% off your Skyroam rental with code: LTDXSKYROAM –
They sometimes have a 15% off code if you sign up for their mailing list too!
Cost of Daily Wifi
Both Hip Pocket and Skyroam’s pricing changes depending on a few things, but let’s start with the basics for daily rates:
- Hip Pocket’s rate for 1GB of data a day starts at €9/day (3 to 5 days) and decreases to €6,90/day (14+ days).
- Hip Pocket’s rate for unlimited data daily starts at €11,90/day (3 to 5 days) and decreases to €8,90/day (14+ days).
- Skyroam’s rate for unlimited data daily stays consistent at $9.95 if you rent their device or $9 if you own their device.
If you only need 1GB of data daily, then Hip Pocket is comparable on a short trip and cheaper the longer the stay. On the unlimited plan, Skyroam is cheaper on a short trip or comparable on a long trip.
Winner of daily rates: It depends on how long your trip is, but since they’re comparable and most likely you wouldn’t go to Europe just for 3 – 5 days, Skyroam seems to be a safer bet if you prefer to get your device sent to your home in US before your trip.
Cost of Monthly Wifi
Skyroam
Both companies offer monthly wifi, but Skyroam only offers it if you buy their device, which is $149.99. The benefit of owning their device is simply the convenience of having it. If you travel often, then this may be worth it so you don’t have to deal with the hassle and cost of shipping it back and forth and since you only pay for the days you use.
With this device, the monthly unlimited global wifi rate is $99 per month or for only 1GB of data for the month, it’s $9 for the month.
If you only need 1GB of data for the whole month, then you can save $140 in the first month of owning a Skyroam ($9.95 day rental price X 30 days = $298.50 – $9 Skyroam Go Data – $149 Skyroam device).
If you need the unlimited data for the whole month, you would still save $49.50 ($298.50 – $99 unlimited wifi plan – $149 Skyroam device).
Hip Pocket vs. Skyroam Monthly Cost Comparison
Hip Pocket has two different monthly packages: 20GB and 50GB size. It’s not so easy to compare the Hip Pocket to Skyroam because of varying data packages and time frames.
Here’s a table for you to decide which company is better for you long-term. Keep in mind that Hip Pocket is in Euros whereas Skyroam is in USD. Also, the Skyroam device can be used in other countries outside of Europe.
| Hip Pocket | Skyroam | |||
| 20GB | 50GB | 1GB Data | Unlimited Data | |
| Initial Cost | € – | € – | $ 149 | $ 149 |
| Total After Month 1 | € 120 | € 180 | $ 158 | $ 248 |
| Total After Month 2 | € 170 | € 280 | $ 167 | $ 347 |
| Total After Month 3 | € 195 | € 300 | $ 176 | $ 446 |
| Total After Month 4 | € 260 | € 400 | $ 185 | $ 545 |
| Total After Month 5 | € 325 | € 500 | $ 194 | $ 644 |
| Total After Month 6 | € 300 | € 450 | $ 203 | $ 743 |
Number of Devices That Can Connect
What really brings down the prices of these Europe pocket wifi rentals is if you and a friend split the cost of them because you can have multiple devices on one device! The Hip Pocket Wifi can have up to 10 devices connected at once while the Skyroam can have up to five devices.
If you are a big family or group traveling together and are all using one device, then Hip Pocket wins here, but this may not be a big issue for most.
– Get 10% off your Skyroam rental with code: LTDXSKYROAM –
They sometimes have a 15% off code if you sign up for their mailing list too!
Overall, we think that Skyroam is the way to go but Hip Pocket is also good too depending on how long your trip is. Nonetheless, we hope this post helped you make an informed decision about the best pocket wifi in Europe!
Thanks for stopping by! xo.
– Get 10% off your Skyroam rental with code: LTDXSKYROAM –
luan
Friday 10th of February 2023
https://wifi4g2go.com/vi/wifi-du-lich