By Lisa Salter
Montreal travel advisor · Updated August 4, 2026
Rogers charges for international roaming by the day, which makes it excellent value for a weekend and expensive for a fortnight. Most of the confusion comes from not doing the multiplication before you leave.
What Roam Like Home actually costs
As of 2026, Roam Like Home is $16 per day in the United States and $18 per day for most other international destinations. You are charged for any day on which your phone uses the service — not for every day of the trip, but in practice that is usually the same thing, because a phone checks email in the background whether you asked it to or not.
Your Canadian plan's data, talk and text come with you on a day you are charged, which is genuinely useful. This is not a bad product. It is a product priced for short trips.
The arithmetic nobody does before leaving
| Trip length | US at $16/day | International at $18/day |
|---|---|---|
| Weekend (2 days) | $32 | $36 |
| One week | $112 | $126 |
| Two weeks | $224 | $252 |
| Three weeks | $336 | $378 |
| Snowbird month | $480 | $540 |
The daily model is why the same product feels like a bargain in February and a mistake in March. Nothing about it changed — only the number of days.
When Rogers roaming is genuinely the right call
For a short trip, it is hard to beat and we would say so. A two-night trip to Buffalo or a weekend in New York costs $32 and requires no setup, no second profile and no thinking. Your number rings, your texts arrive, everything behaves exactly as it does at home.
It is also the right answer if you need your Canadian number to receive calls, not just texts, throughout the trip — for work, for a family situation, for anything where someone has to be able to reach you by dialling your actual number.
And it is the right answer if you genuinely do not want to learn anything new before a trip. That is a legitimate preference and it has a price, which is fine.
When it stops making sense
Somewhere between four days and a week, the arithmetic turns. A travel eSIM is a single fixed price for the whole trip regardless of length, so the longer you are away, the wider the gap gets. At two weeks in the United States you are comparing roughly $224 against a data plan in the low tens of dollars.
The important nuance is that these are not either-or. With a travel eSIM your Rogers line stays active for calls and texts on your own number — you simply are not paying roaming rates for the data, which is the part that costs money. Bank verification codes still arrive.
How to avoid being charged by accident
The daily fee triggers on use, and background use counts. If you have decided not to roam, turn data roaming off in your phone settings before you land rather than relying on willpower, and be aware that turning it on for two minutes to check a map costs the full day.
Watch the border, too. Roaming can trigger on a US tower while you are still in Canada near the frontier, and on a cruise it can trigger on the ship's satellite network, which is charged differently and considerably worse. Airplane mode with Wi-Fi on is the safe posture on a ship.
What to do instead on a longer trip
A travel eSIM installs before you fly, activates when you land, and costs one fixed amount. You keep your Rogers number for calls and texts. There is no SIM to swap and nothing to return.
Frequently asked questions
How much is Rogers Roam Like Home per day?
In 2026 it is $16 per day in the United States and $18 per day for most other international destinations. You are charged on any day the service is used, including by background activity.
Does Rogers charge roaming if I do not use my phone?
Only on days it is actually used — but background email, app refreshes and message sync all count as use. If you do not intend to roam, switch data roaming off in settings rather than relying on not touching the phone.
Is an eSIM cheaper than Rogers roaming?
For a weekend, usually not — $32 for two days is hard to beat for the convenience. Beyond roughly four days the daily model loses, and by two weeks the difference runs to hundreds of dollars.
Can I keep my Rogers number if I use a travel eSIM?
Yes. The eSIM carries data while your Rogers line stays active for calls and texts on your usual number, which matters when a bank or airline sends a verification code.