How to Keep Your Phone Number While Traveling Abroad (2026 Guide)

Once upon a time, my husband and I decided to sell our things, pack up four suitcases and move from the USA to Salzburg, Austria.

Why? Because we were searching for a new adventure.

Living abroad would allow us to step outside our comfort zone, become familiar with the unfamiliar, and, most importantly, travel cheaply throughout Europe.

There was a lot that we needed to accomplish before our big international move. We had to get rid of some of our most prized possessions, which was not easy by any means.

But there was one thing that we simply could not give up. One thing that we needed to save for our return to the USA years down the road… Our cell phone numbers.

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Updated June 2026. We reviewed current options for travelers, expats, and digital nomads who want to keep their US phone number while living abroad, and updated this post accordingly.

It seems so minor but think about it for a second. When you’ve had the exact same digits from your teenage years to your 30s. Since the days of Nokia and hours of playing Snake to smartphones and making video calls.

It’s not something you can easily give up.

We knew we’d be living abroad for 2-3 years and then we’d settle back in the USA to start a family and put down our roots.

So, what would happen when we move back? Everyone important has these specific cell phone numbers saved. There had to be an option other than saying goodbye to our beloved digits.

Listen to Erin tell their story about moving to Austria on the BMT Podcast

Can You Keep Your US Phone Number While Living Abroad?

Yes! The most common options are keeping your carrier, suspending service, using Google Voice, or porting your number to a service like Tossable Digits.

TLDR: We chose Tossable Digits! Keep reading to see why.

Who Needs to Keep Their Phone Number While Traveling?

Who would even need something like this? Well, for starters:

• long-term travelers
• digital nomads
• expats
• study abroad students
• remote workers
• gap year travelers

Why Keeping Your Phone Number Matters

At first, keeping your phone number might not seem like a big deal. But if you’re planning to live abroad or travel long-term, you’ll quickly realize just how many important accounts and connections are tied to that number.

Your phone number may be linked to online banking, credit cards, airline loyalty programs, and other accounts that use two-factor authentication to verify your identity.

Losing access to those verification texts can make it difficult to log in or manage your accounts while you’re overseas. Let’s avoid adding that headache to the mix!

Beyond that, keeping your existing number makes it easier for family, friends, or business contacts to reach you without having to learn a new phone number. And when it’s time to return home, you can pick up right where you left off without updating your contact information everywhere.

Ways to Keep Your Phone Number While Traveling Abroad

If you’re moving abroad or traveling long-term, there are several ways to keep your US phone number. Here’s a quick comparison of the most common options before we dive into the solution we chose.

Option	Pros/Cons
Keep your current carrier	– Easiest option – Most expensive option for long-term travel
Suspend your service	– Lower cost – Usually only works for shorter trips
Use Google Voice	– Popular with digital nomads – May not work for all verification texts
Use Tossable Digits	– Specifically designed to hold your number – Good option for long-term travel and expat life

Which Option Is Best?

The one you choose will depend on your travel plans.

For trips under 3 months: Keep your current carrier.

For trips lasting several months: Consider suspending your service if your carrier allows it.

For digital nomads who mostly use Wi-Fi: Google Voice may work well.

For expats and long-term travelers who want their existing number when they return home: Tossable Digits

Since we knew we’d be living in Austria for several years, we decided to look more closely at Tossable Digits.

Check out our updated Complete Guide to Using Your iPhone Abroad

Our Research Pointed to Tossable Digits

We found that regular cell phone carriers like Verizon cost $20 per month to keep your cell phone number reserved with no plan (at the time). In our case, that would mean over $700, which – to us – could have been the cost of a trip to a new European country while we were there. Not worth it!

So, then we thought maybe we could suspend our account while we’re living abroad instead and reactivate it when we return. Nope!

At the time, our carrier would only allow us to suspend service for a limited period, which wasn’t long enough for our planned three years abroad.

After we thought we’d exhausted all our options, we came across Tossable Digits, a Virtual Phone Number company.

Virtual Phone Numbers allow you to have multiple lines without having multiple phones. They can be set up and changed within minutes and can forward calls to any existing phone.

How Tossable Digits Saved Our Day

Through a process called porting, you can turn any landline, business, or mobile phone number into a Virtual Phone Number by transferring it to Tossable Digits.

Then you can choose to let it sit, “parked” waiting for you to return to it. Or forward it to a new existing local line, like the one you set up in the new country you moved to for a few years.

This is just what we needed. It gave us a way to keep our existing phone numbers without maintaining a US phone plan while living abroad.

How Much Does Tossable Digits Cost?

There’s a simple pay-as-you-go plan that’s perfect for expats or those traveling long-term, like us.

It’s one of the most flexible and inexpensive options we came across in our mission to save our own digits.

At the time of our most recent update, plans started at $3.49 per month to “park” your number with Tossable Digits, or $40/year. That’s half of what you’d normally pay for your cell phone bill in one month!

See pricing and plans for Tossable Digits.

How Does Tossable Digits Work?

Let’s say you have a Verizon cell phone. While you’re living abroad, you port your Verizon number to Tossable Digits, allowing you to cancel your Verizon phone plan completely. So, you are not paying for both at the same time!

Tossable Digits will then save your number without an associated cell service plan or telephone line.

When you return home, you simply port the number from Tossable Digits – who’s been keeping your number safe the entire time you’ve been away – right back to Verizon or your carrier of choice.

Voila! Everything is back to the way it was before you left.

Best Tossable Digits Features

With your Tossable Digits Virtual Phone Number, you also get tons of included features, like:

• call recording
• call forwarding
• do not disturb
• custom voicemail
• call rules
• and more!

However, the best part is there are no cancellation fees whatsoever! When you move back to the USA, you can port your phone number back to Verizon instantly, with no hidden charges from Tossable Digits.

We learned about this option from Tossable Digits’ live chat, where a seriously helpful (and patient!) customer service representative guided us through the entire process.

Both cost AND customer service are top-notch. Another huge bonus of working with Tossable Digits.

Since we signed up, I’ve had at least 3 different questions regarding our account and they’ve answered every single one, every single time.

Update: They now have a mobile app with features to make using your virtual phone number as easy as possible. App features include SMS text messaging, outdialing, voicemail, call recording, and call logs.

Digital Nomads, Keep Your Business Running While You’re Abroad

We also learned that the company works great if you’ll be running a business while you’re living abroad or traveling long term.

You can implement call forwarding on your business line (aka your Virtual Phone Number) to your new local line abroad for low per-minute rates.

Yes, you need a local phone number for this to work, but clients will have no idea they’re calling an entirely different country. It will be a local call for your clients, no matter where you are physically located.

Why Keeping Our Phone Numbers Was Worth It

The possibilities are pretty much endless, but for right now, we are happy that our cell phone numbers will be kept safe and sound during our adventures in Europe. And when we move back to the USA, our friends and family will know exactly how to reach us.

To them, it will seem like nothing’s ever changed. We’ll pick up right where we left off with the same digits, settling in the same country we left behind. BUT with a whole new perspective and appreciation for the beautiful and wonderful world that we live in.

A true win all around – for us, for our future, and for our friends and family.

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