How to add an eSIM to your iPhone

How to add an eSIM to any supported iPhone, from iPhone XR to iPhone 14.

With the iPhone 14 US range, Apple ditched the physical SIM card slot. This means if you want to add another SIM, either for a different carrier or for a different country, you’ll need to go with an embedded SIM or eSIM. Support for eSIM has been available on iPhones since the iPhone XR. Whether you have a new US model iPhone 14 without a physical SIM card, or an older iPhone with both a physical and embedded SIM card, adding an eSIM to your phone saves you the hassle of having a physical SIM card. Map.

On the other hand, not all carriers or plans support eSIM. Adoption is growing, and hopefully Apple’s move with the US iPhone 14 will spur more carriers to jump on the bandwagon. However, at the moment certain carriers support it, many don’t, and some only support it with postpaid subscriptions and not with prepaid plans. To see if your desired carrier supports this by country, consult this Apple support page.

Even if your chosen carrier doesn’t offer eSIM, you might be able to get the feature through an independent provider, a helpful option if you’re visiting another country and only need coverage for a week or two. My wife and I recently took a trip to London and I wanted to add an eSIM to my iPhone for local data coverage. The default provider supported eSIM, but only for postpaid subscriptions. Instead I turned to an eSIM provider called Airalo who was able to provide the service I needed for our time in London.

Depending on your carrier, plan and country, you can get the eSIM in two ways – either in a retail store or online. With Airalo, I could just sign up and pay for access online using my phone, and then download a QR code that allowed me to set up the service.

Here’s how to add an eSIM to your iPhone. The actual steps may vary slightly depending on the provider or service, but this is the basic process. Also, the steps I’ve outlined assume you already have a main carrier set up on your iPhone and want to add a second one via an eSIM.

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Make sure you’re connected to your iPhone, either through Wi-Fi or your existing cellular plan. Go to Settings on your phone and select Cellular. Tap the option for Add eSIM. The Cellular Setup screen has two options: Transmission from nearby iPhone and Use QR code. If you’re not switching from one iPhone to another, select the option for QR code (Figure A).

Figure A

The next screen will ask you to enter the QR code that you should have received when signing up for the eSIM. If you don’t have a QR code but have an activation code and other information, tap the option for Enter details manually and enter the required details (Figure B).

Figure B

Both your primary SIM card and secondary SIM card will appear on the cellular screen. A prompt may appear asking you to give each SIM a specific name or label to distinguish them from one another. Your primary SIM card may be labeled Primary. Select the Label option for your eSIM and give it the name of your choice. In my case I have the label Travel (Figure C).

Figure C

Next you need to decide how you want to use each SIM card. In my case, I still wanted to use my primary SIM for voice calls and texts, and my secondary SIM for data. Tap the Cellular data option at the top of the Cellular screen, and then select the SIM card you want to use for your data. Turn on the switch for Allow cellular data switching if you want both SIMs to provide cellular data. Return to the previous screen and select Default voice line. Select the SIM card you want to use for your calls, then return to the previous screen (Figure D).

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Figure D

Now you need to select each of the SIMs to configure specific settings. Select your primary SIM. Make sure it’s turned on and that all other settings are correct. For example, if you don’t use your primary SIM card for data, turn off the option for data roaming. Next, select your secondary SIM card and do the same. If you use this SIM card for mobile data, turn on the option for data roaming (Figure E).

Figure E

You should now be active with both your primary SIM and your new eSIM. If you have opted for a prepaid plan, the eSIM service will automatically expire based on the duration of coverage. When you no longer need the service, you can disable the eSIM and even remove it from your cellular profile. To disable the eSIM, select it and turn off the switch for Turn on this line. To remove it completely, tap the button for Delete eSIM and follow the prompts to delete it. After erasing the eSIM, select your primary SIM and check all settings to make sure they are configured correctly (Figure F).

Figure F