Roaming Retail Revenue for Operators to Exceed $20B in 2025

12^th December 2025, London, UK: New research by Kaleido Intelligence forecasts consumer and IoT roaming revenues will surpass $20 billion in 2025, a 19% increase over pre-pandemic levels. This surge is fuelled by a full recovery in international travel and heightened consumer and IoT roaming activity across global markets.

IoT roaming connections alone are projected to grow 17% in 2025, underpinning a 2.5x increase in IoT traffic compared to 2019. The expected surge in IoT roaming traffic will drive revenue growth and new opportunities in the IoT roaming market.

Research from Kaleido’s new Retail Roaming: Market Trends & Outlook 2025 reveals that global retail roaming spend is expected to grow at an average annual growth rate of 5% over the next 5 years. The growth will be influenced by the global expansion of ‘roam like at home’ policies, the availability of more affordable roaming bundles, and the rising adoption of travel eSIMs. Kaleido forecasts that retail spending on travel eSIM services will reach $3.3 billion by 2025, a nearly 165% increase from 2023.

Growing Impact of eSIM Technology on Retail Revenues

Kaleido’s 2024 Roaming & Travel eSIM survey explored travel and connectivity usage patterns whilst examining spend habits. The survey of over 5,000 respondents in 20 country markets examines the silent roamer opportunity, the rise of eSIM-based roaming alternatives and their importance for travellers.

It highlights the rise of SIM-based roaming alternatives, with travel eSIM spend per trip averaging under $20 across all markets. These alternatives are increasingly popular in high-cost roaming corridors. Addressing ‘silent roamers’ – travellers avoiding mobile usage or relying solely on Wi-Fi – could unlock an additional $1.5 billion revenue opportunity for mobile operators by 2030.

International Outbound Trips to Reach 2 billion in 2025

The return of international travel growth signifies a global economic and social return to normality amongst travellers. Pent-up demand and increased consumer confidence is expected to continue to drive outbound travel. Kaleido forecasts a 5% y-o-y increase in global outbound travel for 2025, where outbound travel trips will exceed 2 billion for the first time.

Dawnn Dinsey, Research Analyst at Kaleido Intelligence said: “The recovery of international travel presents mobile operators with significant opportunities to drive roaming revenues over the next five years. The continued development of global operator initiatives and affordable daily bundles, coupled with the ongoing expansion of 5G deployments, will contribute to the growth of the retail roaming market“.