Does Optus Roaming Work in China?

What Optus includes in China

China is on Optus’s Zone 1 list for Daily Roaming. Hong Kong and Macau are on the same list. Optus says Zone 1 covers more than 150 destinations. All prices on this page are in Australian dollars.

Option	Price	Data in China	Calls and texts
Daily Roaming, on Choice Plus and other eligible plans	A$5 per 24 hours	5GB per 24 hours	Unlimited standard talk and text
Prepaid $5 International Roaming	A$5, 1 day expiry	1GB	Up to 25 minutes of calls, 50 SMS
Prepaid $25 International Roaming	A$25, 14 day expiry	5GB	Up to 50 minutes of calls, 50 SMS
Prepaid $45 International Roaming	A$45, 28 day expiry	10GB	Up to 100 minutes of calls, 100 SMS
Prepaid $75 International Roaming	A$75, 186 day expiry	15GB	Up to 100 minutes of calls, 100 SMS

Daily Roaming prices are from Optus’s international roaming page and its Daily Roaming support article, and add-on prices from its Prepaid roaming page, all checked Oct 9, 2026.

• Who gets Daily Roaming: Optus lists Choice Plus, Plus Family, Plus Promo, Plus Data, Business Choice Plus, Business Choice Data Plus, Business Teams Plus and Qantas plans. On a Mobile Broadband service you get the 5GB but no calls or texts.
• What starts a charge: using data or MMS, making or receiving a standard call, or sending a standard SMS in a Zone 1 destination. Voicemail retrievals and diversions may also start one. Receiving an SMS, calling emergency services, calling Optus on +61 2 8082 5678 and using the My Optus app don’t.
• When the 24 hours start: Optus sends an SMS when the A$5 charge is triggered, and the 24 hours run from then.
• When the 5GB runs out: Optus automatically adds another 5GB and charges another A$5. The same happens after 24 hours if you keep using your phone. Unused data expires.
• Usage alerts: Optus sends them by SMS or email at 50%, 85% and 100% of the 5GB. It says usage screens and alerts may be delayed by up to 48 hours.
• Back home: Optus says you don’t need to turn roaming off when you return, and you won’t be charged roaming rates.

Other postpaid plans

If your plan doesn’t include Daily Roaming, Optus offers the $10 Optus Roaming Pass on selected postpaid plans. It gives 1GB of data and unlimited national talk and text for 24 hours in Zone 1 destinations. If you keep roaming, Optus charges another A$10 for another pass. Optus’s postpaid roaming rates page lists China in Zone 1. Without a pass, pay-as-you-go rates apply. Optus lists data at A$1 per MB in Zone 1 and Zone 2.

Prepaid add-ons

China is on the Zone 1 list on Optus’s Prepaid roaming page. Add-ons work on Optus Flex Plus, Flex Plus Casual, Flex Plus Traveller, Prepaid Epic Data and Prepaid Epic Value. Unless you’re on Flex Plus Traveller, you need an active recharge to buy one.

• Buying one: in the My Optus app, at optus.com.au/recharge, or by texting 9999 with a saved card or PayID. Optus says you can add roaming at any time while you’re in a Zone 1 destination. It suggests downloading the My Optus app and saving a card before you leave Australia.
• Expiry: the $5 add-on expires at 11.59pm on the day after you buy it. If you buy another add-on before one expires, unused inclusions roll over, up to 70GB of data.

How to turn on Optus roaming in China

On a plan with Daily Roaming:

1. Before you fly, open the My Optus app, tap the Services tab, select your service and scroll down to Add-ons. Daily Roaming should be listed there.
2. Optus turns international roaming on automatically for plans with Daily Roaming. In China, make sure data roaming is on in your phone’s settings.
3. Daily Roaming starts the first time you use data, make or receive a call, or send a text in China. Optus then sends an SMS.
4. To stop charges, turn on Aeroplane mode, then turn Wi-Fi back on if you need it. On a dual-SIM phone, you can turn off the Optus SIM in your settings instead.

On other postpaid plans, turn the $10 Roaming Pass on in the My Optus app: Account, My plan, View all in the available add-ons section, Settings, International roaming, then switch on “Roaming pass recommended”.

On Prepaid, Optus says international roaming is on by default. You can check it in the My Optus app or My Account. Optus asks you to make sure roaming is on before you buy an add-on, because the add-on can’t be used without it. If you’re not sure your phone works on Optus’s partner network in China, Optus suggests waiting until you arrive. A welcome SMS confirms the connection, and you can then buy an add-on by texting 9999 if you have a saved payment method.

Optus says roaming needs a compatible device and points to its VoLTE roaming page for details.

Google and WhatsApp on Optus: what’s known

Likely, but not confirmed by Optus. We found no Optus page that says how Optus routes roaming data or whether apps blocked in China work on it. Optus customers report that they do:

• Dr Marina Zhang, an associate professor at the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, told The Canberra Times in July 2026: “I use a normal Optus SIM, not an eSIM, and when international roaming is switched on, I can access Google, WhatsApp, Gmail and other services that would normally be blocked on Chinese Wi-Fi or a local Chinese SIM.” Zhang said this was on the daily roaming option of about $5 a day.
• In an Australian Frequent Flyer forum thread started in January 2025, an Optus customer asked whether roaming gets past the firewall. Another member replied that they “used Optus $5 daily roaming during my visit last year and could access Google, WhatsApp, etc”.
• In the same thread, a third member wrote that all foreign SIMs and eSIMs “land outside the wall”, meaning outside the firewall. The member added that this can reportedly cause trouble with Chinese payment apps such as Alipay and WeChat, which run slower, and with navigation apps such as Amap and Baidu.

Salil Kanhere, a cybersecurity expert at UNSW, said in the same Canberra Times article that in many cases roaming data is routed through the traveller’s home carrier or an overseas gateway, so some blocked apps might still work in China. Whether Optus routes China roaming data back to Australia is not confirmed.

These are personal reports, not tests. Optus also says it makes no guarantee about the quality and availability of roaming coverage. Have a backup ready. Our WhatsApp in China and Google in China pages cover other ways to reach them.

When you still need a VPN

Roaming doesn’t help on Wi-Fi. The Canberra Times article says that if you rely on local Wi-Fi at hotels and cafés, or buy a SIM card when you arrive, blocked apps stay blocked. On hotel or café Wi-Fi in China, you need a VPN for blocked apps, whatever your phone plan. A VPN is also your fallback if Optus roaming data doesn’t get past the firewall for you. Install and test one before you leave Australia. See eSIM or VPN for China and VPN for hotel Wi-Fi in China.

Cost compared with travel eSIMs

Extra cost for data in China for one person, in Australian dollars, checked Oct 9, 2026, on each provider’s site:

Option	Data in China	7 days	10 days
Optus Daily Roaming	5GB per 24 hours	A$35	A$50
Optus Prepaid $25 add-on	5GB for the whole trip	A$25	A$25
Nomad	Unlimited	A$35.97	A$47.48
Airalo	Unlimited	A$40.00	A$51.50

• 7 days: seven 24-hour periods of Daily Roaming cost A$35, if you stay under 5GB in each. That is A$0.97 less than Nomad and A$5.00 less than Airalo.
• 10 days: Daily Roaming costs A$50. Nomad costs A$47.48 and Airalo A$51.50.
• Counting: Optus charges Daily Roaming per 24-hour period from the first charge, not per calendar day, so your flight times change the count.
• Prepaid: the $25 add-on costs less than either eSIM, but its 5GB has to last the whole trip.

Daily Roaming and the Prepaid add-ons include calls and texts. Speed limits on unlimited eSIM plans, and how each one routes data, are on our eSIM comparison.