Wise has added customisable eSIM data plans and cross-border QR payments to its account for travellers, the company said on October 6.
The launch gives hotels, destinations and tour operators a group of visitors who can connect and pay on arrival without cash or a local SIM card, in markets where QR codes handle everyday payments.
Alongside regional plans in more than 150 destinations, Wise is offering customisable data plans in the UK, EEA, US, Canada, Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand. Travellers download the eSIM once, then buy data in the Wise app by setting the allowance and the number of days. Wise refunds unused data plans, and data is only used when the eSIM is connected to the supported network at the destination.
The QR network links Wise to local schemes including PayNow in Singapore, QR Ph in the Philippines, DuitNow in Malaysia, Pix in Brazil, PromptPay in Thailand, Swiss QR-bill in Switzerland and Qvik in Hungary. Through a partnership with Alipay+, eligible travellers can pay at merchants in the Chinese mainland without a Chinese bank card, local mobile number or separate app. The network covers 50+ destinations including Hong Kong, Nepal, Korea, Sri Lanka and Cambodia. Alipay+ is not available to Wise customers in the US and Canada.
A Wise-commissioned YouGov survey of more than 14,000 travellers across 11 countries found that 62% of adults who have travelled internationally in the past year rely on hotel or accommodation Wi-Fi. Some 24% have bought something at a cafe they did not want to get free Wi-Fi, and 15% have stood outside a museum or attraction to use its network instead of going in.
Cash management was the most common payment problem abroad, cited by 43%. Of those who had problems, almost 40% said they missed local experiences such as street food markets.
Wise has also added pay-as-you-go airport lounge passes, country guides, multi-currency bill split and group spending to the account. eSIM services are provided by Gigs U.K. Ltd, with Wise Payments Limited acting as payment and administration facilitator.
Cross-border mobile services are spreading across the travel sector. Indonesia has expanded cross-border QR payments for tourists, and Kenya’s Kwetu eSIM has joined the Safaricom M-PESA super app for travellers.
Wise supported around 19mn people and businesses in its 2026 financial year, processing more than $240bn in cross-border transactions.