Tokyo eSIM guide: Narita, Haneda, the Metro and free Wi-Fi

Our fixed Japan plans connect to NTT docomo, with 5G where docomo has it, and use a Japanese internet address, so Japanese sites and apps see you as being in Japan. The 7-day day pass uses KDDI (au) and SoftBank instead.

In an article dated May 1, 2026, docomo says it is bringing 5G to stations on all nine Tokyo Metro lines by switching equipment already installed for 4G. It aimed for 5G at more than 60% of Metro stations by the end of April 2026, then all of them. (source)

docomo calls the tunnel sections between stations its next major challenge, so for now 5G underground is a station feature. Work can only happen between the last and the first train, on a network carrying 6.84 million riders a day. (source)

Narita says all its phone rental, Wi-Fi rental and SIM card sales counters are in areas before departure passport control. Arriving passengers reach them after customs, in the arrivals areas. (source)

Its directory lists SIM vending machines in every terminal: Terminal 1 South Wing 1F and Central Building 1F, Terminal 2 Main Building 1F and four on 2F before customs, and Terminal 3 Main Building 1F. (source)

Staffed counters include JAL ABC, XCom Global, J WiFi & Mobile, Telecomsquare, AnyFone JAPAN and SoftBank Global Rental, mostly open 07:00 to 21:00. Rakuten Mobile has a shop in Terminal 1 Central Building 4F, open 08:00 to 20:00. (source)

Narita's free Wi-Fi also works on the shuttle buses between terminals. The airport itself recommends a VPN on it, because the network needs no security setup. If you have no phone data at all, Narita lends free internet devices at desks in the terminal, one per person. (sources 1, 2)

Most international flights arrive at Terminal 3. Haneda lists a Mobile Center run by Telecom Square on the 2F Arrival Lobby, open 6:30 to 23:00, with a 24-hour unstaffed Wi-Fi rental in front of it, and an AnyFone JAPAN counter on 2F that sells prepaid SIMs from 6:00 to 23:00. (source)

In Terminal 1, the domestic terminal, Haneda says prepaid SIM cards come from vending machines, with an AnyFone JAPAN machine at B1F Marketplace North. (source)

Haneda's free network, HANEDA-FREE-WIFI, cannot be used inside shops other than lounges, and the airport says it can be hard to connect in some areas. (source)

Phones have worked on every Tokyo Metro line since March 2013, between stations as well, for browsing and email. The same announcement asks riders not to make voice calls on trains and to switch phones off near priority seats, so data is fine and calls are not. (source)

On the Skyliner from Narita, KEISEI FREE Wi-Fi is open to anyone, on board and at nine stations including Narita Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and 3, Nippori and Ueno. Pick KEISEI_FREE_Wi-Fi and accept the terms. (source)

The city runs TOKYO FREE Wi-Fi, which needs a settings profile installed once, about five minutes. If you have no data yet, you can start from the START_TOKYO_Wi-Fi network wherever you see the Wi-Fi sticker. Its help line, 0120-839-440, answers in Japanese and English from 8:30 to 19:00 every day. (source)

For taxis, the GO app says it works in all 47 prefectures, takes international credit cards and Apple Pay, and shows a number so you get into the right car. It also verifies a phone number when you sign up. A data-only eSIM has no number, so keep your home line able to receive that text. (source)

Uber says rides can be requested around Tokyo at any hour and has pickup pages for Haneda. Its Tokyo page does not mention Narita. (source)

JR Central offers Shinkansen_Free_Wi-Fi on every Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen train. You register an email address or a social account, and you have to log in again every 30 minutes. (source)

Every Tokaido Shinkansen station has JR-Central_Free Wi-Fi near the gates or waiting rooms, including Tokyo, Shinagawa and Kyoto, with a fresh login every 60 minutes. Mobile data on your own plan needs no logins at all, which is why many visitors keep a plan running on the train. (source)

Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) says that under the current rules the ID check at signup applies to voice services only, so data-only SIMs need no ID today. (source)

That changes. MIC says that from April 2027 data-only SIMs will also need an ID check at signup, in principle by reading the IC chip in the ID document. For contracts made online, IC chip reading has been required in principle since April 1, 2026. (source)

Our eSIM is bought from a US store, so none of this applies to it. If you plan to buy a Japanese SIM from a shop in 2027 or later, bring your passport.