A good provider gives your travellers reliable data in the places they actually visit, fits the way you want to sell, offers terms that leave you a healthy margin, and helps when a traveller needs support. This checklist covers what to look for, the evidence to ask for, how to score suppliers side by side and how to test one before you sign.

Start with how you want to sell

Before comparing suppliers, decide how eSIMs will reach your customers. Most B2B eSIM providers offer some mix of three routes, and each one asks something different of the supplier.

Many travel businesses start with a store or portal and move to an API later as volumes grow. If that might be you, check that a supplier offers all three routes, so you can change approach without changing supplier. Our guide to travel connectivity explains the routes in more detail

The checklist: nine areas to check

For each area, there is what to look for, the evidence to ask for, and why it matters to a travel brand. A supplier that answers clearly and shares evidence without fuss is usually a good sign in itself.

1. Network quality where your travellers go

Headline coverage figures, such as "200 countries", tell you little on their own. What matters is the quality of service in the destinations your customers actually book.

• Look for: named partner operators in each of your top destinations, ideally more than one per country so the eSIM can switch to a stronger network; 5G where it is available; no artificial speed caps on standard plans.

• Ask for: a list of operators for your top ten destinations and test eSIMs for two or three of them.

• Why it matters: if a traveller can't connect on arrival, they remember your brand, not the supplier's.

  
  

2. Product range

• Look for: single-country and regional plans (for multi-country trips), a sensible spread of data sizes and validity periods, and top-ups on the same eSIM rather than a new installation each time.

• Ask for: the full catalogue and wholesale price list for your destinations.

• Why it matters: easy top-ups are where much of the ongoing revenue comes from. A traveller who has to install a second eSIM is more likely to give up or buy elsewhere.

  
  

3. Delivery and activation

• Look for: instant delivery of the QR code or activation details, clear installation instructions in your customers' languages, and help with checking whether a phone supports eSIMs.

• Ask for: a walkthrough of the traveller's journey from purchase to first connection, on both iPhone and Android.

• Why it matters: most support requests come from installation and activation. A clear journey cuts tickets before they start.

  
  

4. Tools and integration

• Look for: an easy-to-use portal for orders, pricing and reporting; for API users, clear documentation, a test environment and notifications when a traveller activates or runs low on data.

• Ask for: a portal demo or trial login, and the API documentation if you plan to integrate.

• Why it matters: good reporting shows what sells, where and when, so you can price and promote better.

  
  

5. Branding

• Look for: your brand, not the supplier's, on the store, emails and installation screens.

• Ask for: screenshots of a live partner store and the emails travellers receive.

• Why it matters: the traveller should feel they bought connectivity from you. That keeps the relationship, and the next booking, with your business.

6. Commercial terms

This is where suppliers differ most, and where the small print matters. Start by understanding the pricing model.

Also consider bundling. Some suppliers let you include a free eSIM in a package, with the cost built into the package price. The traveller arrives connected, sees the value in your package, and buys more data through your store if they need it. Here the long-term revenue comes from top-ups, so the top-up journey and the margin on top-ups matter as much as the base price.

• Ask for: pricing in writing, setup or monthly fees (ideally none), minimum volumes, settlement and payment terms, billing currency, and how rate changes are communicated.

• Why it matters: a low headline price means little if setup fees, minimums or fixed retail prices squeeze your margin. Our guide to how travel agents get paid shows how add-ons like eSIMs fit into overall agency income.

7. Traveller support

Travellers usually contact whoever sold them the eSIM. Be clear about who handles what.

• Look for: support for travellers in the hours and channels they use when abroad, a clear escalation route for network problems, and training for your own team so they can answer common questions quickly.

• Ask for: the support model in writing (who handles first contact, who handles technical faults), typical response times, and fault and uptime data for the past year.

• Why it matters: a quick fix abroad builds trust in your brand. A slow one undoes the goodwill the eSIM was meant to create.

8. Standards, security and data

• Look for: provisioning built on the GSMA's consumer eSIM standard (SGP.22), which governs how eSIM profiles are delivered to phones, and a supplier that can explain how it protects customer data.

• Ask for: confirmation of the standards their platform follows, a data processing agreement if you sell to customers in the UK or EU, and where customer data is stored.

• Why it matters: you share responsibility for your customers' data, and a weak link at the supplier becomes your problem.

  
  

9. Partnership and exit

• Look for: flexible contract terms, a supplier that shares what it is improving, and help growing the product, not just a price list.

• Ask for: contract length and notice period, references from similar travel businesses, and what happens to active customers if you switch supplier.

• Why it matters: the best supplier relationships improve over time. If they don't, you need a clean way out.

How to score suppliers side by side

A simple weighted scorecard turns the checklist into a decision. Score each supplier from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) in each area, multiply by the weight, and add up. Dividing the total by 5 gives a score out of 100.

The weights below suit a typical travel agency selling through a store or portal. An OTA planning an API integration might move weight from branding to tools and integration. The example suppliers are fictional.

Supplier C has the best network and tools, but Supplier B comes out narrowly ahead because of stronger commercial terms and support. That is the point of weighting: it shows which strengths matter most for your business, not just which supplier has the longest feature list. Treat a close result as a reason to run a trial with the top two.

Test before you sign: a one-week trial plan

A short trial tells you more than any sales call. Ask your top one or two suppliers for test eSIMs and portal access, then:

1. Install test eSIMs on different phones. Use at least one iPhone and one Android, and time how long it takes from purchase to connection.

2. Test in your top destinations if you can. A colleague travelling, or a trusted partner abroad, can check real-world speed and coverage.

3. Buy a top-up. Check that it is quick and adds data to the same eSIM.

4. Raise a support ticket outside office hours. Note how fast you get a useful answer.

5. Review the reporting. Can you see what sold, activated and topped up?

6. Read the contract. Check fees, minimums, payment terms, notice periods and data protection terms before you commit.

Red flags

• The supplier won't share operator names, fault data or uptime figures.

• Setup fees or minimum volumes are required before you have tested demand.

• Retail prices are fixed by the supplier, so your margin is capped.

• The supplier's branding appears on your store or emails and can't be removed.

• Nobody can explain who supports the traveller when something goes wrong.

• The supplier offers only one sales route, so growing means switching.

How Xylen supports travel brands

Xylen is a GSMA member and B2B telecoms carrier that supplies Travel eSIMs to travel agencies, tour operators, DMCs, OTAs and travel brands. Here is how it maps to the checklist.

• Three ways to sell. A free co-branded eSIM website that can be live in minutes, a Wholesale Portal with same-day setup, and API integration for platforms that want eSIMs inside their own booking flow. You can start simply and move to a deeper integration later.

• No upfront investment. The co-branded website is free to set up, with no upfront fees. On the Wholesale Portal you simply log in and buy only the eSIMs you need, so you are not spending money before you start selling.

• Your price, your margin. Xylen supplies eSIMs at wholesale rates and you set the retail price, so your margin isn't capped.

• Bundling built in. Xylen's Free eSIM Module, available with the co-branded website, lets you include complimentary eSIMs in your packages. Travellers arrive connected, and your revenue grows as they top up through your branded store.

• Coverage. Travel eSIMs cover 200 countries through 328 mobile operators.

• Support for you and your travellers. Each partner has a dedicated account manager, and Xylen's team is on hand to resolve issues quickly. Xylen also trains your team to handle common support tickets and provides customer support directly, so travellers get help when they need it.

• Free marketing and bundling advice. At no extra cost, Xylen's team advises partners in regular meetings and calls on how to market eSIMs and bundle them with their existing services, so connectivity becomes part of the trip rather than an afterthought.

Ready to compare? Use the checklist above, then see how Xylen's Travel eSIMs work for travel businesses.