Abu Dhabi – known for its mosques, museums & beaches.
It is also regarded as the lesser of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi International Airport, now Zayed International Airport (as of 2024), is the second-largest airport in the United Arab Emirates, with around 23 million passengers.
And it is the base of Air Arabia (Abu Dhabi), Etihad & Wizz Air Abu Dhabi.
Writing a list of all the cool things to do in Abu Dhabi would require another blog post (or a dedicated Abu Dhabi blog), so I will save you from that because you want to know what SIM card options are available at the airport.
Which SIM cards are available at the airport?
You can get an Etisalat, Du, or Virgin Mobile SIM card for between 49 AED (13.30 USD) and 525 AED (143 USD) at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
And eSIMs are available too 😎.
But yeah, those are not low prices. The average cost for a SIM card is around 200 AED (54.50 USD).
However, you can get truly unlimited data (at 5G NR speeds) for a week for that price.
With only two mobile operators and one Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) in the country, there is not much incentive to drop the prices in the country 🫠.
And unlike in most countries where SIM cards sold outside airports are (much) cheaper, that is not the case in the United Arab Emirates.
So yeah, expect to spend quite some money on Emirati SIM cards 😩.
Let's review all your options at Zayed International Airport.
Original publication: 17th of April 2024. Last updated: 22nd of April 2024.
Table of Contents
Mobile Operators in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has two mobile operators and one Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) offering prepaid services easily accessible to travelers:
- Etisalat UAE
- Du
- Virgin Mobile UAE (Du MVNO)
All three of them sell SIM cards and eSIMs at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
Let's see what their options are.
Where to Buy a SIM Card at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport
Etisalat UAE, Du & Virgin Mobile UAE SIM cards and eSIMs are sold in the arrivals hall of Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
As of the end of 2023, all flights use the new Terminal A (also known as Midfield Terminal).
Previously, the airport had three terminals (1, 2, & 3).
After luggage claim and customs, walk through the door, and you will see other people waiting for arrivals.
Here, you can take a left or right turn (from your perspective).
I recommend taking a right turn because Etisalat, Du & Virgin Mobile have stores on this side.
If you go left, you will find a Virgin Mobile stand – it is usually quieter here.
Before Terminal A opened, SIM cards could also be purchased at luggage claim. As I did not fly to Abu Dhabi when I traveled to the UAE (I used Sharjah International Airport (SHJ) instead, I cannot confirm if this is still the case).
All stores are open 24/7, so you can get your SIM card at 3:00 in the morning if necessary.
At the airport, expect to spend at least 49 AED and up to 525 AED on a SIM card or eSIM.
Etisalat sells regular plans at the airport, while Du and Virgin Mobile sell (overpriced) tourist plans only.
Let's go through each mobile operator to see what they sell at Zayed International Airport.
Etisalat UAE SIM Cards at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport
You can get an Etisalat UAE SIM card or eSIM for between 49 AED and 319 AED at the arrival hall of Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
Etisalat UAE, just Etisalat, is the largest mobile operator in the United Arab Emirates.
It is also the mobile operator with the best coverage and the fastest speeds.
After luggage claim and customs, walk through the sliding door and head to your right (from your perspective).
Eventually, you will have to look to your left, where you will see the Etisalat store across the hall.
When I was there, the staff was not proactive – they were too busy chatting among themselves.
But they do have flyers with the plans they sell.
So, here is how much each Etisalat plan costs at Abu Dhabi Airport:
| Price | Plan | Data 1 | Minutes 2 | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49 AED | 49 AED Basic Plan | 2 GB | 30 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 79 AED | 79 AED Basic Plan | 4 GB | 30 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 125 AED | 125 AED Premium Plan | 8 GB | 120 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 200 AED | 200 AED Premium Plan | 22.5 GB | 525 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 200 AED | 200 AED Unlimited Plan | Unlimited | 100 Flexi Minutes | 7 days |
| 319 AED | 319 AED Unlimited Plan | Unlimited | 300 Flexi Minutes | 14 days |
1 5G NR access
2 for local use and to more than 100 countries (full list)
With each purchase, you also get discounts, data & other perks for Careem, Hala, GoChat & Smiles.
I purchased the 200 AED Unlimited Plan (but at Sharjah International Airport (SHJ) instead).
This plan is truly unlimited (on 5G NR) – no daily caps or throttled speeds at all.
You can pay in cash (AED only) or by card. And you can choose an eSIM if you want.
To purchase a SIM card in the UAE, you must show your passport, entry stamp, or resident card (if applicable) upon purchase.
The salesperson will go through the paperwork, insert the SIM card into your phone, activate the plan & take your payment.
After that, you are ready to go (once you have received the welcome SMS)!
However, you may have to restart your phone to enable 5G NR connections if you are stuck on 4G/LTE (5G NR is available at the airport).
That is it! You now have an Emirati SIM card or eSIM.
But as you can see, they are pricey – 2 GB will cost you 13.30 USD.
You would pay the same if you went to Abu Dhabi city center to get a SIM card in an Etisalat store.
So, you are better off buying your SIM card at the airport (Etisalat stores often have very long queues – up to an hour).
However, you can also get a travel eSIM for the United Arab Emirates, which can be significantly cheaper than an Etisalat SIM card or eSIM.
For example, 13 USD can get you 5 GB of data instead if you get an eSIM from various eSIM providers.
I write about the best travel eSIMs for the UAE in my Best United Arab Emirates eSIM buying guide.
I even tried many of them extensively for my Emirati eSIM review series.
Du UAE SIM Cards at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport
You can get a Du SIM card or eSIM for between 49 AED and 319 AED at the arrival hall of Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
Du is the other mobile operator in the United Arab Emirates.
It is popular with the migrant worker community because it is often (slightly) cheaper than Etisalat UAE.
After luggage claim and customs, walk through the sliding door and head to your right (from your perspective).
Eventually, you will have to look to your left twice, where you will see the large Du store.
The lone salesperson was hiding in her office when I was there.
Even though someone else was at the store when I arrived – the poor guy got ignored 😔.
Eventually, the employee left her office and told me all their plans were available on some tablets.
Here is how much each Du plan costs at Abu Dhabi Airport:
| Price | Data 1 | Minutes 2 | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 99 AED | 6 GB | 30 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 139 AED | 10 GB | 30 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 189 AED | 20 GB | 30 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
| 199 AED | Unlimited | 100 Flexi Minutes | 7 days |
| 299 AED | Unlimited | 200 Flexi Minutes | 14 days |
| 499 AED | Unlimited | 400 Flexi Minutes | 28 days |
1 5G NR access
2 for local use and to more than 90 countries (country list is listed below)
At the other Emirati airports I visited (Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Sharjah International Airport (SHJ)), you also have a 49 AED plan giving you 2 GB of data and 30 Flexi Minutes for 28 days.
It may also be sold at Abu Dhabi airport, but you need to ask the salesperson (if they can be bothered to assist you).
With each purchase, you also get discounts through ALSAAADA and unlimited calls through BOTIM.
Flexi minutes can be used to call to the countries listed below:
I purchased the 199 AED Unlimited Plan (but at Sharjah International Airport (SHJ) instead), giving unlimited data for 7 days.
This plan is truly unlimited (on 5G NR) – no daily caps or throttled speeds at all.
However, I only had 5G NR access for the first two days.
I was “stuck” on 4G/LTE the last two days – even at locations Du claims to have 5G NR access.
It was odd because it looked like 5G NR access was turned off on my third day in the UAE 🤔.
And it did not get fixed on my fourth day either.
Anyway, you can pay in cash (AED only) or by card. And you can choose an eSIM if you want.
To purchase a SIM card in the UAE, you must show your passport, entry stamp, or resident card (if applicable) upon purchase.
The salesperson will go through the paperwork, insert the SIM card into your phone, activate the plan & take your payment.
After that, you are ready to go (once you have received the welcome SMS)!
However, you may have to restart your phone to enable 5G NR connections if you are stuck on 4G/LTE (5G NR is available at the airport).
But… why did I not mention Du's free SIM card offer?
Yes, Du actually gives out SIM cards for free, giving you 1 GB of data for 24 hours.
It is not a lot, but it is better than nothing 🤣 – it used to be only 20 MB pre-COVID times.
Apparently, this offer is only available at Dubai International Airport when arriving at Terminal 1 or Terminal 3 – not Terminal 2 (which hosts low-cost carriers and some regional non-Gulf State ones).
Note: Do not use the automated gates if you want a free Du SIM card because immigration officers give them to you (and they link the starter pack to your passport number). You do not interact with these officers when you use the eGates, so no SIM card will be given.
Anyone arriving at any other Emirati international airport, including Abu Dhabi's, Al Ain's (AAN), Dubai World Central/Al Maktoum (DWC), Ras Al Khaimah's (RKT), or Sharjah‘s (SHJ) are out of luck 🫠.
Anyway, if you are stuck on 4G/LTE, you may have to restart your phone after inserting your SIM card to enable 5G NR connections (5G NR is available at the airport).
That is it! You now have an Emirati SIM card or eSIM.
But as you can see, they are pricey – 2 GB will cost you 13.30 USD.
You would pay the same if you went to Abu Dhabi city center to get a SIM card in a Du store.
So, you are better off buying your SIM card at the airport (Du stores often have long queues – up to an hour).
However, you can also get a travel eSIM for the United Arab Emirates, which can be significantly cheaper than a Du SIM card or eSIM.
For example, 13 USD can get you 5 GB of data instead if you get an eSIM from various eSIM providers.
I write about the best travel eSIMs for the UAE in my Best United Arab Emirates eSIM buying guide.
I even tried many of them extensively for my Emirati eSIM review series.
Virgin Mobile UAE SIM Cards at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport
You can get a Virgin Mobile UAE SIM card or eSIM for between 150 AED and 252 AED at the arrival hall of Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH).
Virgin Mobile UAE, just Virgin Mobile, is a Du MVNO, meaning it uses the Du network.
Virgin Mobile is popular for those on a tight budget because it is the cheapest option in the UAE.
But also because you can customize your plan the way you want.
Unfortunately, this option is not available at Abu Dhabi Airport.
After luggage claim, walk through the sliding door and head to your left or right.
Virgin Mobile has a proper store on your left and a booth on your right.
The booth tends to be quieter, but the store has more staff, resulting in a quicker turnaround time.
Unlike Etisalat and Du, the Virgin Mobile staff enthusiastically welcomed me when I approached them.
Here, I was informed that they have three types of plans: Tourist, Exclusive Tourist & Unlimited.
Let's go through each plan and see what is offered.
These two Tourist Plans are available:
| Price | Data 1 | Local Minutes | International Minutes | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 150 AED | 3 GB/day (21 GB) | 30 minutes | 20 minutes | 7 days |
| 200 AED | 3 GB/day (40 GB) | 30 minutes | 20 minutes | 10 days |
1 5G NR access
Then you have these five Exclusive Tourist Plans:
| Price | Data 1 | Local Minutes | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 180 AED | 10 GB | 30 minutes | 30 days |
| 220 AED | 14 GB | 30 minutes | 30 days |
| 270 AED | 20 GB | 30 minutes | 30 days |
| 340 AED | 28 GB | 30 minutes | 30 days |
| 410 AED | 40 GB | 30 minutes | 30 days |
1 5G NR access
Finally, two Unlimited Plans are for sale:
| Price | Data 1 | Local Minutes | International Minutes | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 275 AED | Unlimited | 30 minutes | 20 minutes | 15 days |
| 525 AED | Unlimited | 30 minutes | 20 minutes | 30 days |
1 5G NR access
According to Virgin Mobile staff, the unlimited data plans are the most popular because they are of the best value.
However, we can see that Virgin Mobile is not (significantly) cheaper than Du (when only considering plans sold at airports).
For example, 20 GB will cost 270 AED with Virgin Mobile (+30 local minutes).
However, Du only charges you 189 AED (but gives you 30 local/international minutes instead to 90+ destinations).
89 AED is about 22 USD at the time of writing – significant savings!
Even with unlimited plans, Virgin Mobile is not cheaper.
525 AED gives you truly unlimited data and 30 local minutes for 30 days.
Du charges you 499 AED and 400 local/international minutes.
The only downside of the Du variant is that it is valid for 28 days instead of 30 days, as with Virgin Mobile.
Anyway, I did not buy a Virgin Mobile SIM card because I no longer review MVNOs.
I spend that time testing and reviewing travel eSIMs instead.
To purchase a SIM card in the UAE, you must show your passport, entry stamp, or resident card (if applicable) upon purchase.
The salesperson will go through the paperwork, insert the SIM card into your phone, activate the plan & take your payment.
After that, you are ready to go (once you have received the welcome SMS)!
And if you want an eSIM instead, that is possible too.
As mentioned, Emirati SIM cards are not cheap – not even Virgin Mobile.
Virgin Mobile becomes significantly cheaper if you get one of their half-annual or yearly plans.
The smallest data plan available, 10 GB, costs a whopping 49 USD (180 AED).
If you were to go to a Virgin Mobile store in Abu Dhabi proper, the price may change by 10 AED to 20 AED, but not by much.
For example, 10 GB of data costs 189 AED instead from a convenience store in Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport (DXB).
But that plan gives you 50 local and 50 international minutes instead.
So, the offers are slightly different per location, but not by a lot.
However, you can also get a travel eSIM for the United Arab Emirates, which can be significantly cheaper than a Virgin Mobile SIM card or eSIM.
For example, 10 GB of data is available at less than half the cost of Virgin Mobile (around 20 USD).
I write about the best travel eSIMs for the UAE in my Best United Arab Emirates eSIM buying guide.
I even tried many of them extensively for my Emirati eSIM review series.
Should You Buy a SIM Card (or eSIM) at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport?
I recommend getting a SIM card at Abu Dhabi-Zayed International Airport (AUH) because plans are sold at roughly the same prices as regular stores. Go with Etisalat for the best network experience and Virgin Mobile for the most choices.
The three mobile operators have stores and booths where SIM cards and eSIMs can be purchased.
In fact, it may be quicker to get a SIM card at the airport instead of at an Etisalat or Du store because the wait often exceeds 40 minutes.
Etisalat, Du & Virgin Mobile sell SIM cards and eSIMs within these price ranges:
- Etisalat UAE: 49 AED – 319 AED (six options)
- Du: 99 AED – 499 AED (six options)
- Virgin Mobile UAE: 150 AED – 525 AED (nine options)
As mentioned, I recommend going with Etisalat if you want the best (5G NR) experience in the country.
While Virgin Mobile's short-term and tourist plans are not (much) cheaper than Etisalat's and Du's, it has more choices, allowing you to select the best plan for your purpose.
While SIM cards at Zayed International Airport are far from cheap, the same prices are charged outside the airport.
So, you are not being charged a tourist/convenience tax.
With truly unlimited data plans available from the three mobile operators, I recommend buying a SIM card at Abu Dhabi Airport.