North Macedonia eSIM

Staying connected in North Macedonia

North Macedonia's two international airports serve the capital, Skopje, and Ohrid, about 170 km to the southwest; the Ohrid region has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. Install a travel eSIM at home and switch it on when you land. AirOva sells North Macedonia plans from $1.99: fixed GB, unlimited data and a data + calls option, on A1 Macedonia and Makedonski Telekom.

Which North Macedonia plan to choose

GB plans suit most trips, since maps and messaging take little data. Each plan card shows whether it is listed as 4G or 5G; on a 5G plan, expect 4G, with 5G where available. Unlimited plans give unlimited data with no data cap and no fair-usage limit, priced by the number of days, and the data + calls option adds call minutes. GB and unlimited plans are data only, and no plan includes a local phone number.

Makedonski Telekom and A1

The two big networks are Makedonski Telekom, which dropped its T-Mobile brand in 2015 and now trades as Telekom, and A1 Macedonia, which traded as Vip until 2019. A plan card that says T-Mobile means Makedonski Telekom, and one that says vip means A1 Macedonia. Mtel, which launched mobile service in October 2022, is not on our plans. The regulator AEC licensed 5G spectrum to both big operators in July 2022, with obligations to cover all transport corridors by the end of 2025 and every city by the end of 2027.

EU roaming stops at the border

North Macedonia is outside the EU's Roam Like at Home area, which covers the EU, the EEA, Moldova and Ukraine, so an EU SIM pays its operator's roaming rates here, even though neighbouring Greece and Bulgaria are in the EU. The EU has opened talks to bring the country in, but nothing changes until an agreement is finalised. Until then, turn off data roaming on your home SIM before you cross.

Arriving in Skopje or Ohrid

Skopje International Airport (SKP), the larger and busier of the two, lies near Petrovec, a village about 15 km southeast of the capital. Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle Airport (OHD) is 9 km northwest of Ohrid. After landing, switch on the eSIM line, choose it for mobile data and enable Data Roaming for that line.

Tip: a North Macedonia plan works in North Macedonia only, and Albania shares Lake Ohrid, with Pogradec on its shore, so add an Albania plan for trips across the border; more in our Balkans road-trip guide.