Tokyo Airport Visitor SIM Cards: Guide and Maps to Narita and Haneda

The complete guide to finding a SIM card when arriving in Tokyo. Whether it’s Haneda or Narita, Terminal 1 or Terminal 2, short term visitors or those staying longer term this guide aims to reduce the confusion that comes with buying a SIM card when landing in Japan. From my experience and research, I put together this guide to the best SIM cards for arriving visitors to Japan, and maps to where they can be found.

In summary: If arriving at Tokyo Narita airport, the JAL ABC shops sell SIM cards suitable for travellers staying 1 week or up to 3 months in Japan. For Tokyo Haneda airport, look for the SIM cards at the Air Bic Camera shop.

At Narita Airport, overall I found the the best options were:

For visitors staying less than a week:

• TRE SIM sold at the JAL ABC counter: 2GB of data for 2,647 JPY ¹;

For visitors staying less than a month:

• Japan Prepaid SIM sold at the JAL ABC counter: 5GB of data for 4,073 JPY²;

For visitors staying up to 3 months:

• The JAL ABC counter should sell a JAPAN Travel SIM that is valid for 3 months with 2GB of data for 4,100 JPY +tax³; So-net is also an option as it can be topped up with 1GB for 2,838 JPY +tax which adds 60 days validity⁴.

See above for maps, or click here for more detail.

At Haneda Airport, similarly the best options appear to be:

For visitors staying less than a week:

• Air Bic Camera shop: b-mobile has a 10 day SIM card for 1,980 JPY that includes 5GB of data⁵;

For visitors staying less than a month:

• Air Bic Camera shop: b-mobile also has a 21 day SIM (2,970 JPY for 7GB) or the Japan Travel SIM for 2,460 JPY +tax including 1GB (it can be topped up);

For visitors staying up to 3 months:

• Vending machine: Keikyu Travel SIM offers 2GB for 4,200 JPY with 3 month validity, the SIM can have more data added to it⁶.

The Air Bic Camera store sells the b-mobile and Japan Travel SIM cards; Keikyu can be purchased from the vending machine - see Haneda map above or click here for more detail.

For anyone needing more data than the options listed above, JAL ABC also sells the Unari-kun SIM card which includes unlimited data⁷:

• 7 days for 4,073 JPY
• 15 days for 5,601 JPY
• 30 days for 6,619 JPY

Ordering online for collection at the airport is also a good option. Klook (a voucher website) and Smash Mobile (a Japanese company) have websites where SIM cards can be purchased for collection at Narita or Haneda airport. Scroll down or click here for more information. SIM cards ordered online start from 1,050 JPY.

For foreigners staying in Japan for more than 3 months (e.g. working in Japan), consider purchasing one of these 30 day SIM cards and then switching to a more permanent solution once you have an identity card.

Extending validity and topping-up Japanese SIMs

Not all SIM cards sold to foreigners in Japan can have their validity extended or have value added to them. Of the ones I like to use (as mentioned above), the top-up options include:

• b-mobile can be extended at 500 JPY per day, this may only be able to be applied for 10 days
• IIJmio SIM cards can have more data added (starting from 500mb for 1,500 JPY) by coupon or online, this does not appear to extend their validity;
• Smash Mobile (a SIM card received by delivery, see below for more details) offer foreigner friendly monthly plans that don’t have fixed expiry (resident visa or identity card required).

If transiting to a domestic flight at Narita Airport a SIM card can be purchased after collecting luggage and passing through customs. As transit passenger join all international arrivals, the directions in this guide help transit passenger as well. Look for the JAL ABC shops after exiting customs (see map above).

If transiting to a domestic flight at Haneda Airport a SIM card can be purchased after collecting luggage and passing through customs. Look for the Air Bic Camera shop to the right after exiting customs (see the map above).

Roaming into Japan with a foreign SIM

Many countries nearby have cheap Japan roaming SIM cards available. These can be a good option if stopping over at such a country on the way to Japan. For example:

• Singaporean carrier Starhub offers 1GB of prepaid roaming data for use in Japan - 8 SGD (roughly 640 JPY, starting from 7 days)⁸
• Hong Kong carrier Birdie offers day pass roaming for 15 HKD (roughly 210 JPY per day)⁹
• Australian carrier Optus offers 10GB of roaming data for 20 AUD (roughly 740 JPY and lasts for 14 days)¹⁰
• American AT&T includes Japan in their $70/month roaming passport or day pass for $10 (roughly 1,085 JPY) per day¹¹

I couldn’t find any good roaming packages for people with UK or Canadian mobile phone plans; pick up a local SIM card on arrival in Japan if coming from these countries.

Networks and Coverage

SIM cards discussed in this article either use the NTT Docomo network or the Softbank network (the Softbank and Anyfone SIMs). I’ve found NTT to provide slightly better coverage when using foreign phones due to the use of similar frequencies; the difference isn’t very often noticeable though. The other network in Japan is au by KDDI is mostly unavailable to foreigners as it uses a different technology.

WiFi Rental

Wi-Fi rental is advertised heavily in Japan. It is pitched at visitors who can have a hard time figuring out if their phone will work on local Japanese networks; this is also different for different parts of the country. I’ve never liked renting Wi-Fi or a SIM card when visiting a country, it means having to find the shop to return it upon departure (and what if it’s not even open!).

List of Shop Locations and SIM Cards Sold

Below is a list of the various shops and vending machines that sell SIM cards at Tokyo Haneda and Narita Airports:

Narita Airport SIM Card Locations

The location, SIM cards available, and opening hours of each of the shops at Narita Airport is below:

Vending machines at Narita Airport also sell SIM cards.

There are 3 vending machines located in the Tourist Information Centre, located in the Central building - turn left if coming out of the South Customs; turn right if coming out of the North Customs.

The vending machines are:

• NTT, selling Prepaid SIM for Japan, which includes 700mb and priced from 3,278 JPY
• U-NEXT, selling U-mobile Prepaid SIM, which includes 1.54GB of data (I haven’t been able to confirm the price - tax rates have changed since I last visited Japan)
• INPLUS, which sells a 1GB SIM card, but I haven’t seen it myself

Tokyo Haneda Airport SIM Card Locations

At Haneda airport, I found one shop and one vending machine available in the arrivals area:

Ordering a SIM card online

Ordering a SIM card online for collection at Narita or Haneda is the cheapest option, though it means planning ahead (which I don’t always have time for). Examples of SIM cards available for collection include:

• Smash Mobile, 1GB with 7 day validity for 2,500, more details here
• Klook, 1GB with 6 day validity for 1,050 JPY, longer validity and more data available, order online here

Klook is a voucher website that will arrange a SIM card for collection upon purchase of their voucher. Show the voucher at the counter to collect the SIM card.

Smash Mobile and Klook will provide directions on how to collect the SIM card upon arrival. Check the counter opening times though, SIM cards can only be collected when the counter is open.

Receiving a delivered SIM card at a residential address

Many SIM card providers in Japan offer to deliver a SIM card to a hotel, office, home address, or selected post offices (such as at major airports). While this offers some alternatives to the above, I find the Klook voucher hard to beat.

Some of the SIM cards that can be bought by delivery include:

• Smash Mobile, 1GB of data for 2,500 JPY (including delivery, plus tax), more data options available
• b-mobile, 5GB of data for approximately 2,400 JPY, more data options are also available
• Japan Travel SIM (with VOIP card), 1GB of data for approximately 2,800 JPY (including delivery)

If staying more than 21 days, order a Smash Mobile SIM. Other providers tend to have short expiry.

Smash Mobile SIM cards are valid from 7 to 90 days. Top-up options:

• Extra data costs 3,800 JPY plus tax for 3GB
• Extra validity (only available on the unlimited plan) costs 5,500 JPY for 30 days

b-mobile SIM cards are valid for 10 or 21 days. Top-up options:

• Extra data costs 500 JPY per gigabyte
• Extra validity costs 500 JPY per day

Details of Smash Mobile can be found here: https://smashmobile.jp/travelers/

Details of b-mobile can be found here: https://www.bmobile.ne.jp/english/product.html

Details for the Japan Travel SIM can be found here.

Making phone calls with a Japanese SIM

Prepaid SIM cards for short-term visitors to Japan do not usually include local phone calls.

To make phone calls while in Japan I like to use a service such as Skype. Skype usually works well with a data connection and calls are 2-10 cents (USD) per minute depending on whether the call is going to a landline or mobile. For calling back home, I prefer using an app such as WhatsApp.

To receive phone calls in Japan, I’ve only ever tried using the app Line. I haven’t found a good solution to receiving phone calls from Japanese numbers while visiting Japan; let me know if you have a good idea.

It is apparently possible to receive calls with the Japan Travel SIM card (and its associated VoIP card) but I’ve never tried. I’ve also heard it’s possible using Softbank or a provider called Wi-Ho. These are the only ways I know of to get a phone number as a short-term visitor to Japan, a number that could be used by people outside the country can also use to call.

To find out more about the different options for calling people (and being called) while travelling, I wrote a helpful guide that can be found here: https://landinglastminute.com/calling-while-travelling-guide/

Roaming a Japanese SIM card to another country

The only Japanese SIM card I found that offers prepaid roaming (to other countries) that can be sold to a visitor to Japan is the IIJmio Global Travel SIM Service. This is the same company behind the Japan Travel SIM mentioned earlier in this guide. Prices start from around 6,800 JPY and it can be purchased from Bic Camera or online (Japanese only): https://www.iijmio.jp/gts/

References: