Wholesale & Retail Roaming Revenues From Consumer, Travel eSIM & IoT Connections to Reach $70 Billion in 2030
Data Roaming Traffic to Exceed 20,300 Petabytes by 2030, Driven by 5G, IoT and Travel eSIM Adoption
January 7th 2025, London – New research from travel connectivity and roaming experts Kaleido Intelligence forecasts that combined wholesale and retail roaming revenues generated by consumer, travel eSIM, and IoT mobile connections will exceed $70 billion in 2030. This growth in mobile operator roaming revenue represents a 55% increase compared to 2025 levels.
This surge will be driven by rising data roaming activity, primarily fuelled by consumers transitioning to 5G roaming services and increasing inbound roaming traffic from travel eSIM usage. This anticipated expansion in both consumer and IoT roaming data usage is projected to soar by 140%, reaching over 20,300 Petabytes in 2030.
Travel eSIMs to Contribute $10 Billion+ in Wholesale Roaming Revenues
Kaleido’s latest Mobile Roaming Data Hub predicts much of this growth is being reinforced by travel eSIMs, where a substantial share of traffic continues to terminate via roaming rather than local access. This structure delivers inbound roaming revenues to operators, positioning travel eSIMs as a demand accelerator for wholesale revenues, alongside rising consumer roaming and IoT usage.
Latest data predicts that global traveller adoption of travel eSIM packages reached 12% in 2025, with penetration more than doubling to 31% by 2030. During this period, attributable wholesale revenues from travel eSIM services for operators is projected to approach $10 billion by 2030.
Research author Nitin Bhas commented: “This highlights strong demand for flexible, cost-effective cross-border connectivity and confirms that travel eSIM growth is reinforcing inbound roaming revenues for operators.”
Faster Growth in IoT Roaming Connections Predicted
Kaleido forecasts IoT roaming connections to grow at an average annual growth rate of 18% between 2025 and 2030, well ahead of the wider cellular IoT market at 11%, reinforcing roaming’s continued relevance despite regulatory and technological pressure, with distributed network infrastructure playing a critical role in meeting increasingly complex IoT requirements.
About Kaleido Intelligence
Kaleido Intelligence is a specialist consulting and market research firm with a proven track record of delivering telecom research at the highest level. Kaleido Intelligence is the leading research company addressing mobile roaming and connectivity services in its entirety, covering industry-leading market insights, data forecasts, historical viewpoints, competitive intelligence and operator market surveys.
Research is led by expert industry analysts, each with significant experience delivering market research and insights that matter.