Explainer

What is an eSIM, and should you switch from a SIM card?

An eSIM is a SIM built into the phone. You add a mobile plan by scanning a code instead of inserting a card. Some new phones, including the iPhone Duo, no longer have a SIM slot at all.

By the How To, Simply team · 1 October 2026 · 3 min read

What it is

A SIM chip soldered inside the phone

How you add a plan

Scan a QR code or use the network's app

Good for

Travel plans and a second number

Check first

That your phone and your network both support it

A SIM card tells the mobile network who you are. For decades it has been a small piece of plastic you push into the phone. An eSIM does the same job with a chip that is already inside the phone. The "e" stands for embedded. Nothing is inserted: the network sends your plan to the chip over the internet.

How you set one up

You buy or request an eSIM plan from a mobile network. You receive a QR code, or the network's app offers to install the plan. On the phone you scan the code, confirm, and the line is active in a few minutes. You need Wi-Fi or another internet connection for this step.

• On iPhone: Settings, Mobile Service (or Cellular), Add eSIM.
• On Android: Settings, Network & internet, SIMs, Add SIM. Samsung calls it SIM manager, under Connections.

What is better about eSIM

• Travel. You can buy a data plan for the country you are visiting before you land and keep your home number active for calls and codes.
• Two lines in one phone. A work and a private number, or a home and a travel plan, without a second slot.
• Nothing to lose or break. No tray, no pin, no tiny card.
• Harder for a thief. A stolen phone cannot have its SIM pulled out, so it stays online and can be located for longer.

What is worse

• Moving to another phone takes more steps. With a card you move the plastic. With eSIM you transfer the plan in settings or ask the network for a new code, and some networks charge for that or ask you to visit a shop.
• A broken phone is harder. If the screen is dead you cannot simply move your SIM to a spare phone. You need the network to issue a new eSIM.
• Not every network offers it. Smaller and prepaid providers are the most likely to be missing.

Phones without a SIM slot

iPhones sold in the United States have been eSIM-only since the iPhone 14. The folding iPhone Duo is eSIM-only in every country. If you buy a phone like this, eSIM is not a choice but a requirement, so confirm that your network supports eSIM for your type of plan before you order.

Is my phone eSIM-ready?

iPhones from the XS and XR onwards support eSIM, as do Google Pixel phones from the Pixel 3 and Samsung Galaxy S phones from the S20, with some regional exceptions. Phones sold in mainland China often have no eSIM. The reliable check is in the settings: if you see an option to add an eSIM, the phone supports it.

The phone must also be unlocked, meaning not tied to one network, to use an eSIM from a different provider.

Should you switch?

If your SIM card works and you rarely travel, there is no need. Switch when you have a reason: a trip abroad, a second number, or a new phone without a slot. Before you do, make sure you can still receive codes from your bank during the change, and do not delete an eSIM from the phone unless your network tells you to. A deleted eSIM usually cannot be restored without the network.