JetFi Mobile eSIM Review: Is a Free Day of Data and 30% Off Worth It?

JetFi Mobile is a travel eSIM app from Taiwan. According to JetFi's website footer, the eSIM app is provided by 桔豐國際股份有限公司 (Taiwanese company number 94175349) from an office in Taipei, while a sister company, 桔豐科技股份有限公司, provides JetFi's pocket Wi-Fi devices. The App Store lists the seller as JetFi Tech Co., Ltd. You buy prepaid data plans in the app, and it installs the eSIM on your phone without a QR code.

It is not a UK mobile network. JetFi's service terms, dated 1 June 2026, make the Taipei District Court the court of first instance for any dispute, and none of the JetFi pages we read names a telecoms licence or regulator. Plans are small prepaid purchases, not deposits, but if something goes wrong your practical routes are JetFi's support and your card provider's dispute process.

The eSIM gives you data only, next to your normal SIM. Plans are sold for single countries, plus bundles such as Japan with South Korea, China with Hong Kong and Macau, and a 39-country Europe plan that includes the UK.

JetFi supports the iPhone XS, XS Max, XR and newer, and many Android phones. The app needs iOS 16 or later on an iPhone. It checks your phone as soon as you open it and tells you if it can't use an eSIM. You can also dial *#06#: if an EID appears, the phone has eSIM. The phone must not be locked to a network; JetFi's FAQ singles out carrier-locked instalment phones from the US and Japan.

iPhones bought in Hong Kong, Macao or mainland China are the awkward case, which matters if you brought your phone with you to Britain. JetFi's terms and App Store listing say those iPhones aren't supported. Apple's own support page, published on 17 September 2026, says some Hong Kong and Macao models do have eSIM: the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, 17, 17 Pro and Pro Max, Air, 17e, 16e, 13 mini, 12 mini, SE (2nd and 3rd generation) and XS. The other Hong Kong models, the XR, XS Max and the 11 to 16 lines apart from the minis and the 16e, have two nano-SIM slots instead. If yours is one of the eSIM models, let the app check it, or look for the EID, before you rely on JetFi.

Some Android phones, Xiaomi models for example, can use an eSIM but not JetFi's one-tap activation. If you have already bought a plan, JetFi's support activates it for you by hand. Its FAQ adds that it can't offer its free trial on those phones; we couldn't confirm whether that also applies to the invite eSIM. Once an eSIM is activated it stays on that phone and can't be moved to another.

There are three kinds of plan. Fixed-data plans give a set amount, such as 10GB for 30 days. Day passes give a daily allowance, such as 1GB a day, for the number of days you choose. Unlimited day passes have no daily cap, subject to the fair-use rules below. For most plans you have 180 days from purchase to activate, although a few plan descriptions, including Japan's 3GB and 10GB plans in the Chinese listing, say 30 days, so read the plan text if you are buying well ahead. The validity period starts when the eSIM first uses data in the destination, not when you install it.

JetFi's English website prices plans in US dollars (its Chinese site uses New Taiwan dollars). On 13 October 2026 the list included Japan 1GB for 7 days at US$4, 10GB for 30 days at US$21 and five days of unlimited data on all four networks at US$26; South Korea 10GB for 30 days at US$18; Hong Kong 5GB for 30 days at US$11; China, Hong Kong and Macau 5GB for 30 days at US$18; Taiwan 5GB for 30 days at US$18; and Europe (39 countries) 10GB for 30 days at US$25, or seven days unlimited at US$39.

The plan list has obvious errors (one Europe unlimited day pass shows US$1,815), so check the price on the checkout screen. We also haven't confirmed that prices in the app match the website.

JetFi's eSIM page suggests 500MB to 1GB a day if you mainly use maps, 1GB to 3GB a day if you add social media, and 3GB or more, or an unlimited pass, if you stream. Its app page gives lower figures: 300MB to 500MB a day for maps, 500MB to 1GB with social media, and 1GB or more for streaming.

One catch for UK travellers: the Europe plans include the UK, and the clock starts at the first data use in the plan's region. Install a Europe eSIM at home if you like, but keep it switched off until you have left Britain.

JetFi doesn't run its own network. Its Japan fixed-data plans use KDDI (au) by default, with SoftBank also supported, and the four-network unlimited plan can use SoftBank, Docomo, KDDI and Rakuten. The South Korea unlimited plan uses SKT and LG U+. The app shows which supplier your eSIM uses: open My eSIM and the eSIM's details.

JetFi says its China plans let you use LINE, ChatGPT and Gemini in mainland China without a VPN. Separately, two App Store reviewers say their data was routed through Hutchison in Hong Kong while they were in Japan or the US. If that happens to you, apps and sites may treat you as being in Hong Kong, which can affect region-locked services.

Unlimited has limits. The service terms let local networks slow customers who use a lot of data in a short time, for example P2P, video, games, large downloads and automatic updates, and the unlimited plan descriptions let the network cut off traffic it judges abnormal. One App Store reviewer says their unlimited plan dropped to minimum speed after a short burst of heavy use, such as app updates.

The eSIM is data only, with no calls or texts on it. Your own number still works alongside it: leave your main SIM switched on with voice set to it, and texts to your UK number, such as bank security codes, keep arriving. Calls go through your own network at its roaming rates.

Hotspot sharing is allowed. On a Japan plan, if the Personal Hotspot option is missing on an iPhone, JetFi's FAQ says to enter vmobile.jp as the APN in the mobile data network settings, for mobile data, LTE and Personal Hotspot, and to update iOS if that doesn't fix it.

Your remaining data shows in the app under My eSIM. A few special plans can't show it there; for those you dial *111*6# from the eSIM line and get a text with your balance. One App Store reviewer says there was no low-balance warning, so check before a long day out.

Download JetFi through our link and register in the app with an email address, entering invite code 8emhjb while you register. You then get a voucher for a free eSIM in one of 110 countries and a coupon for 30% off the whole eSIM store. The code only works in the app, not on JetFi's website, and only with email registration: accounts made with Google sign-in can't enter a code. JetFi doesn't describe a way to add it after you have registered.

The free eSIM is for first-time JetFi registrants only. One JetFi banner says new and existing users both qualify, but the detailed terms say existing members don't. It is one per device and per account, and it can't be combined with other new-user gifts. JetFi also runs a separate free 100MB Taiwan trial; we couldn't confirm whether that counts as a new-user gift, so redeem your invite eSIM first.

Register and redeem by 23:59 on 31 December 2026: tap Use Redemption Code on the home screen, open your vouchers, choose the eSIM voucher and pick a destination. JetFi doesn't name a time zone; if it means Taiwan time, that is 3:59pm in the UK, so don't leave it to New Year's Eve. After redeeming you have 180 days to activate, and the eSIM then lasts one day: 24 hours from its first data use in the destination.

You get 1GB for Japan, South Korea, China/Hong Kong/Macau, Singapore/Malaysia/Thailand/Indonesia, Australia/New Zealand, the US and Egypt; 500MB for Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, Canada, the 47-country Europe bundle (UK included) and others; and 300MB for the Gulf states, Mexico, South Africa and a few more. The 30% coupon is valid until 31 December 2026. JetFi doesn't publish its minimum spend, cap or excluded plans, or say whether it stacks with other discounts.

Disclosure: 8emhjb is GetQuids' own code, so we receive JetFi store coupons (up to five), not cash, when you use it. The invite page and its terms are in Chinese only, and JetFi can change or cancel the offer at any time.

On its own, the free eSIM is worth about £3. JetFi charges US$4 (about £3.02) for one day of its 1GB-a-day Japan plan, and the same for a day of 1GB in Europe, where the free eSIM gives 500MB. A day of 1GB covers JetFi's own light-use level, maps and looking things up, on the day you land.

The coupon is where the money is, if you would buy a plan anyway. Assuming it applies in full, it takes five days of unlimited data in Japan from US$26 to US$18.20 (about £5.89 saved), Japan 10GB for 30 days from US$21 to US$14.70 (about £4.76) and seven days of unlimited data in Europe from US$39 to US$27.30 (about £8.84). That is a deeper cut than the 25% discounts JetFi advertises on its promotion pages.

We converted at US$1 = £0.7555, from the ECB reference rates for 12 October 2026; your card's exchange rate and any non-sterling fee will move these figures a little. So the invite is worth a few pounds, not tens of pounds. It suits a trip you are already planning before the end of 2026; on its own it isn't a reason to change how you get data abroad.

Refunds depend on the plan, and each plan's page shows its rule. For most plans you can get a refund within 30 days of ordering if you haven't activated the eSIM, or activated it without using any data. Japan 1GB, Korea 1GB and a few other plans can only be refunded before activation. JetFi also has a no-refund rule, although no plan on its website showed it on 13 October 2026. JetFi's FAQ words the rules differently; we have gone by the plan pages, which show the rule for each plan.

JetFi says it only takes credit cards; we couldn't confirm whether debit cards, Apple Pay or Google Pay work. If you are charged in US dollars, as the English site's prices suggest, a UK card that charges for non-sterling spending will add its fee.

Support is through LINE (@jetfimobile), email (service@jetfi-tech.com) and a Taipei phone number, +886 2 2751 9338. JetFi's app and eSIM pages promise support around the clock, every day of the year; App Store reviewers are split on how quickly it answers.

The app itself is in English, as well as Chinese and Japanese, but the invite page, the free eSIM terms and the service terms aren't available in English.

On 13 October 2026 the JetFi Mobile app was rated 4.59 from 965 ratings on the Taiwan App Store, 4.94 from 16 in the US and 5.0 from 4 in Hong Kong; it had no ratings yet on the UK App Store. On Google Play it had more than 50,000 downloads and 102 ratings, with the average depending on the country page: 4.0 on the Taiwan page and 2.1 on the US page.

Low-rated reviews on the Taiwan App Store from the past year repeat a few themes: slow or dropping connections despite full signal in parts of Japan (Osaka, Kyushu, Nagoya, Tokyo, Okinawa), Seoul, Shanghai and Sichuan; weak coverage outside cities in Germany and Italy; unlimited plans slowed after short heavy use; traffic routed through Hong Kong; no low-balance warning; slow customer service; and login or verification failures with Gmail accounts. On Google Play, older reviews from 2024 and 2025 include a promo code that didn't work and a request for a QR-code option.

On the positive side, reviewers like the quick one-tap setup and fast activation, and some say support answers quickly. If 8emhjb isn't accepted when you register, contact JetFi support before going further, because the code goes in at sign-up.

You need an unlocked, eSIM-compatible phone, an email address and, for any paid plan, a credit card. Download the app through our link, open the profile tab and register with your email and a password, entering 8emhjb as the invite code. Then redeem the free eSIM through Use Redemption Code before 31 December 2026, choosing the destination you are actually visiting.

Before you fly, on Wi-Fi, go to My eSIM and tap Activate eSIM; JetFi says installation takes about 2 to 15 minutes. When you land, switch mobile data to the JetFi line and keep your main line for calls and texts.

Afterwards there is nothing to cancel: plans are one-off purchases, not a subscription. Once a plan has run out you can remove the eSIM in your phone's settings. If you delete it by mistake while it still has data and time left, you can reinstall it from My eSIM.

Consider it if you are travelling to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, mainland China or Taiwan before the end of 2026, your phone supports eSIM, data only is enough, and you will buy a plan the coupon can cut by 30%. It also suits trips to mainland China if you want LINE, ChatGPT or Gemini without a VPN, as JetFi says its China plans allow.

Skip it if your iPhone was bought in Hong Kong, Macao or mainland China and isn't one of Apple's eSIM models, if you need a number for calls or texts abroad, if you would rather buy from a UK company under UK courts, if you can't pay by credit card, or if a Hong Kong IP address would get in the way of the apps you use abroad.