For today’s traveler, the smartphone is as essential as a passport. From checking into flights and navigating new cities to streaming music and uploading that perfect brunch photo, nearly every travel moment involves some form of digital activity. But how much data are we actually using while exploring the world?
New research from Saily, an eSIM provider developed by the team behind NordVPN, offers eye-opening insight into how quickly those megabytes add up. According to the findings, a single hour-long video call can use around 300 MB, while streaming music for an hour burns through approximately 157 MB. Even short, seemingly harmless tasks — like checking Google Maps for five minutes (~11 MB) or uploading one photo to Instagram (~16 MB) — can quietly chip away at your data allowance.
“When we looked at the numbers, some apps stood out as real data guzzlers,” says Vykintas Maknickas, CEO of Saily. “Video calls and social media uploads top the list, while navigation apps and taxis silently rack up usage in the background. Together, they explain why so many travelers run out of data faster than expected.”
Saily’s “Day in Data” snapshot shows just how quickly mobile activity snowballs during an average day abroad:
- ChatGPT for two questions: ~393 KB
- Google Maps for a 5-minute walk: ~11.7 MB
- Instagram brunch photo upload: ~16.7 MB
- Two-minute iMessage chat: ~22.8 MB
- Booking an Uber: ~1.72 MB
And that’s before lunch. Factor in background app activity, TikTok uploads, or a long FaceTime session, and it’s easy to see how even the most generous roaming plan can vanish in a few days.
Another hidden culprit? Poor connection quality. Saily found that weak or unstable networks often lead to higher data use, as apps take longer to load and retry failed uploads — quietly doubling or tripling data consumption.
To help travelers stay connected without overpaying, Maknickas recommends a few easy strategies: use Wi-Fi or a reliable eSIM for large uploads, switch from video to audio calls when possible, download maps and playlists in advance, and use a data usage calculator to estimate your daily needs.