eSIM device compatibility: which phones work, and how to set each one up

Most phones sold since about 2019 can take an eSIM, but "most" is not "yours" — and the spec sheet is not the place to find out. This page gives you a check that takes half a minute and works on any handset, then the real setup steps for each major brand, because the menu is in a different place on every one of them.

The 30-second check that works on any phone

Before reading anything brand-specific, do this. Open the dialler — the keypad you make calls from — and type *#06#. You do not need to press call.

A panel appears showing your IMEI. If the phone has eSIM hardware, it also shows an EID: a 32-digit number, usually labelled exactly that. An EID means the phone can hold an eSIM. No EID means it cannot, regardless of what the model name or the box said.

This is more reliable than any compatibility list because it asks the actual handset in your hand rather than a model number. The same phone model is often sold with eSIM in Europe and without it elsewhere, and carrier-branded versions sometimes ship with the feature switched off. The EID does not lie about any of that.

One thing the EID cannot tell you: whether the phone is carrier-locked. A locked handset has the hardware but will refuse a profile from another operator. If you have ever been told you cannot use another network's SIM in it, sort that out before you buy a travel plan.

If eSIM is new to you entirely, what an eSIM actually is covers the concept in a couple of minutes, and buying an eSIM online walks through what arrives after you pay.

iPhone

Every iPhone from the XR, XS and XS Max (2018) onward supports eSIM, as do the iPhone SE from the second generation (2020). That covers the 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 families in full.

Two exceptions are worth knowing:

• iPhones bought in mainland China have no eSIM at all. Apple sells a dual-physical-SIM variant there instead. This is a hardware difference, not a settings one, and no update changes it.
• iPhone 14 and later sold in the United States have no SIM tray. They are eSIM-only, which makes a travel eSIM the only way to add a local plan — an advantage, not a limitation.

Installing on iPhone

1. Connect to Wi-Fi. The profile downloads over the internet, not over mobile data.
2. Open Settings → Mobile Service (called Cellular or Mobile Data on older iOS versions).
3. Tap Add eSIM, then Use QR Code. On iOS 16 the wording is Add Cellular Plan.
4. Point the camera at the QR code on your order page. If you are reading this on the same phone, tap Enter Details Manually and paste the SM-DP+ address and activation code instead — both are printed under the QR code for exactly this reason.
5. Label the line something you will recognise later, such as the destination name.
6. When asked which line to use for mobile data, choose the travel eSIM. Leave your normal number on for calls and texts if you want to stay reachable.
7. Turn Data Roaming on for the travel line only. This sounds wrong and is not: the travel eSIM is a foreign profile roaming onto a local network, so it needs roaming enabled to work. Your home line stays off and cannot run up a bill.

Samsung Galaxy

eSIM arrived across Samsung's flagship range with the Galaxy S20 series and has been standard since. The Z Fold and Z Flip lines all support it, as does the Note 20, and several recent mid-range A-series models including the A54 and A55.

Samsung is where region variants bite hardest. The same Galaxy model sold through a carrier in one country may have eSIM disabled while the unlocked version has it. Run the *#06# check rather than trusting a spec sheet.

Installing on Samsung

1. Open Settings → Connections → SIM manager. On One UI versions before 5.0 this is called SIM card manager.
2. Tap Add eSIM, then Scan QR code from service provider.
3. Scan the code from your order page, or choose Enter activation code to type the SM-DP+ details by hand.
4. Once installed, return to SIM manager and set the travel eSIM as your preferred SIM for mobile data.
5. Open Settings → Connections → Mobile networks and enable Data roaming. Samsung applies this per-SIM, so confirm you have switched it on for the travel line.

Google Pixel

Pixel has had eSIM longer than most Android phones. The Pixel 3 onward supports it broadly; the Pixel 2 technically had it but only for Google Fi. Every Pixel from the 4 onward, including the a-series, works with travel eSIMs without qualification.

Installing on Pixel

1. Open Settings → Network & internet → SIMs.
2. Tap the + next to SIMs, or Add SIM if no second line exists yet.
3. Choose Download a SIM instead? — this wording trips people up. It means eSIM.
4. Tap Next and scan the QR code.
5. Under SIMs, select the travel line and turn on Mobile data and Roaming.

Huawei

Huawei is the one major brand where the honest answer is "check first, because it often is not supported." eSIM appears on the P40, P40 Pro, Mate 40 Pro, P50 Pro and Mate Xs, but whether it is enabled depends heavily on the market the handset was sold into. Many Huawei phones sold outside Europe have the feature absent entirely.

The absence of Google services on newer Huawei devices does not affect this. eSIM is handled by the operating system and the modem, so a travel eSIM installs and runs normally on a Huawei phone with no Google apps at all.

Installing on Huawei

1. Run *#06# first and confirm an EID is listed. On Huawei this genuinely is the deciding test.
2. Open Settings → Mobile network → SIM management. Some EMUI and HarmonyOS builds label this Mobile data → eSIM.
3. Tap Add eSIM and scan the QR code.
4. Set the travel eSIM as the default for mobile data, then enable data roaming on that line.

If SIM management shows no eSIM option at all and *#06# shows no EID, the handset cannot take one. That is the end of the road for that phone, and no plan from anyone will change it.

Other Android brands

Android's eSIM menus are close enough across brands that one set of instructions covers the rest: find the SIM or mobile-network section in Settings, add a SIM, choose the eSIM or "download" option, scan the code, then set the new line as the data SIM and enable roaming on it.

Where each brand hides that menu, and which models have the hardware:

Model availability changes with each release and varies by market. Treat this as a starting point and confirm with the *#06# check on the handset itself.

Tablets and laptops

A travel eSIM is not limited to phones. Any device that takes a consumer eSIM profile can use one, which in practice means:

• iPad — cellular models of the iPad Pro (2018 onward), iPad Air from the 3rd generation, iPad mini from the 5th, and the standard iPad from the 7th. Wi-Fi-only iPads have no modem and cannot take any SIM.
• Windows laptops with built-in mobile broadband, such as the Surface Pro X and later 5G models, and the WWAN configurations of ThinkPad X1 and Dell Latitude. Add it under Settings → Network & internet → Cellular.
• Smartwatches — generally no. A cellular Apple Watch or Galaxy Watch uses a profile your home carrier provisions against your own number. It is not a standalone data line, so a travel eSIM will not install.

When the eSIM is installed but there is no data

Almost every "it did not work" case comes down to one of four things, in this order:

1. Data roaming is off on the travel line. This is the single most common cause. The travel eSIM is a foreign profile roaming onto a local network — without roaming enabled it connects to nothing.
2. The wrong line is set for mobile data. Installing the eSIM does not select it. Check the data SIM setting explicitly.
3. You have not landed yet. Most travel plans only attach to a network in the destination country. Nothing will happen while you are still at home, and that is normal rather than a fault.
4. The phone is carrier-locked. The profile installs, then fails to register. Nothing on the phone fixes this; your home network has to unlock it.

If all four check out, toggle airplane mode on and off, wait thirty seconds, and restart. If it still has no data, contact support with your phone model, destination and order email.

For iPhone specifically, installing a travel eSIM on iPhone goes further into the iOS settings, and the full set of eSIM guides covers data sizing, regional plans and roaming comparisons.

Frequently asked questions

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