Explainers · 5 min read
Daily cap or total pool? Which plan type survives a two week trip
Two products, one word on the box. A daily cap plan gives you a set amount of full speed data each day, commonly 1, 2 or 3 GB, and slows you down past it until the reset. A total pool gives you one allowance for the whole trip, to spend however you like. Of the plans we track, 70,550 are daily and 129,783 are pools, and sellers price them so differently that the right choice can be half the cost of the wrong one. For a two week trip, it comes down to one question: how even are your days?
What each one actually is
| Daily cap | Total pool | |
|---|---|---|
| How it is sold | Often as unlimited, with the cap in the details | As a number: 5 GB, 10 GB, 20 GB |
| What you get | X GB at full speed per day, then a throttle, reset at midnight | X GB over the validity, at full speed until empty |
| What it punishes | Uneven days: a heavy day hits the throttle, a quiet day wastes the allowance | Overuse: a few heavy days empty it early |
| Where it shines | Steady use, no surprises, cannot run out | Flexibility, and cheap for light users |
| Plans we track | 70,550 | 129,783 |
The caps, from our data
Across the daily plans we track, four allowances account for nearly everything. In September 2026 we counted 1 GB a day on 16,957 plans, 3 GB a day on 15,029, 2 GB a day on 14,832, and 500 MB a day on 9,650. The throttle after the cap is most often 256 kbps, which is fine for messaging and useless for anything with pictures. Our guide to fair use caps covers what the throttle feels like at each speed.
How we put them in the same table
A daily plan has no total, so it has no price per gigabyte in the ordinary sense. We give it one by multiplying the daily allowance by the validity: a 1 GB a day plan for 14 days is compared as 14 GB. That is the full speed data the plan can deliver, and it is the honest figure. Sellers would prefer we compared on the word unlimited. We do not.
Two travellers, two weeks
The steady user
Maps, messaging, some social, a call home most evenings. About 600 MB a day, every day. Over 14 days, 8.4 GB. A 10 GB pool covers it with margin. A 1 GB a day plan also covers it and never runs out, and because daily plans are priced as a flat rate, the 1 GB a day plan is often the cheaper of the two for this person. There is no risk of the throttle, because the days are all under the cap.
The uneven user
Quiet museum days at 200 MB, then a day uploading a week of video at 4 GB, then two beach days at almost nothing. Over 14 days, maybe 9 GB in total, but concentrated. A 10 GB pool handles it perfectly. A 1 GB a day plan throttles on the upload day at 256 kbps, and wastes 800 MB on each quiet day. This person needs the pool, or a 3 GB a day plan, which costs more than the pool for the same fortnight.
The prices
Averages across the 61 sellers we track, in US dollars, as we read them in September 2026. The cheapest options in popular countries are well below these.
| Plan | Compared as | Average price, two weeks | Per GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 GB pool, 15 days | 10 GB | About $34 | $3.36 |
| 20 GB pool, 15 days | 20 GB | About $49 | $2.48 |
| 1 GB a day, 14 days | 14 GB | Varies widely by seller; often close to the 10 GB pool | Around $2 to $3 |
| 3 GB a day, 14 days | 42 GB | Typically above the 20 GB pool | Under $1.50, but only if you use it |
The per gigabyte figures on daily plans look good precisely because the daily cap is generous, and that is the trap: the price is real, the gigabytes are only real if you use them every day. A 3 GB a day plan for a person who uses 600 MB a day is a 42 GB plan used at 20 percent.
The rule: if your days are even and around 1 GB or under, a 1 GB a day plan is usually the cheapest thing that cannot run out. If your days are uneven, buy a pool sized for the total with a little margin. If you are heavy every day, a 2 or 3 GB daily plan beats stacking pools.
The reset time trap
Daily caps reset at midnight in the network's local time on most plans. Land at 6pm, use 1 GB by midnight, and the cap resets six hours after you started. Good. But a few sellers reset on a rolling 24 hours from the first byte each day, so a late night session pushes tomorrow's reset later and later. The plan terms say which. Late night users should check, because a rolling reset can leave you throttled through the morning you most need maps.
Mixing them
- Phone on daily, laptop on pool. The phone's steady use suits a cap; the laptop's bursts suit a pool. Two plans, two devices, and the laptop does not eat the phone's allowance.
- Pool for the trip, daily for the heavy day. Buy the pool sized for normal use, and if a day turns out to need 4 GB of uploads, a one day daily plan bought on hotel WiFi that morning covers it for a few dollars.
- Daily for the kids, pool for the adults. A daily cap is a natural limit for a teenager; a pool is flexibility for a parent. Our family trip guide works through the arrangement.
Where to compare them
Every country page lists both types in one table. Daily plans show their allowance as an amount per day in the data column and are priced per gigabyte on the allowance times the days. Filter to two weeks, look at the per gigabyte figures side by side, and remember which kind of traveller you are. The cheapest per gigabyte is the right answer only if you will use the gigabytes.
Questions people ask
What is a daily cap plan?
A plan that gives a fixed amount of full speed data each day, commonly 1, 2 or 3 GB, then slows the connection until the next reset, usually midnight local time. Unused daily data does not carry over. Sellers often call these unlimited, because the line never cuts off, only slows.
What is a total pool plan?
A plan with one allowance for the whole validity, say 10 GB over 15 days, to use however you like. Use 5 GB on day one and 5 GB spread over the rest, or 700 MB every day. When it is gone, it is gone until you top up or buy again.
Which is cheaper for two weeks?
For a steady user, the daily plan, because it is priced as a flat rate and the cap is usually more than a phone uses. For an uneven user, the pool, because it does not waste the quiet days. Across our data the crossover is roughly a 1 GB a day habit.
How do you price a daily plan per gigabyte?
By the daily allowance times the days, not by the word unlimited. A 1 GB a day plan for 14 days is compared as 14 GB, because that is the full speed data it can deliver. This is the only way to put daily plans and pools in the same table honestly.
Do daily caps reset at midnight where I am?
Usually at midnight in the time zone of the network you are on. A few sellers use a rolling 24 hours from first use each day, which drifts later. The plan terms say which, and it matters if you are a late night user.
Can I mix the two?
Yes, and it is sometimes the best answer. A daily plan for the phone and a pool for the laptop, or a pool for the trip with a cheap daily plan bought on the one heavy day. Both install alongside each other and you switch the data line.
Compare plans for popular destinations
236,811 plans from 61 sellers, ranked by real price per GB, with prices checked against the shops themselves.
