I have not been shy about my hatred for eSIM, the digital expertise that shops SIM data in your machine moderately than on a separate SIM card. One of many occupational hazards of my job is that I am at all times switching telephone strains between iOS and Android telephones. Ever since Apple and Google shifted to promoting eSIM-only telephone fashions, it has been painstakingly tough. I might have taken a 50% success price, however my luck with transferring eSIMs between iOS and Android felt extra like an unrelenting battle.
In the event you’ve had comparable eSIM hardships, belief me, I imagine you. With that being stated, I am thrilled to report that Apple and Google have lastly discovered cross-platform eSIM transfers. This is not precisely a brand new function — it was first introduced at final yr’s WWDC — nevertheless it required software program updates to work. In different phrases, the joint function would not do customers a lot good till most people broadly adopted iOS 26 and Android 16.
It appears like we’re there as a result of I have been transferring eSIMs no less than as soon as every week for months, and I have not set foot in an AT&T retailer as soon as. That is how one can rapidly and simply switch eSIM knowledge from an iPhone to an Android telephone, or from an Android telephone to an iPhone, with out calling your provider or going to a retailer.
For years, iOS and Android did not play good
The expertise behind eSIM is not unhealthy — the truth is sort of the alternative. Whereas bodily SIM playing cards are simpler to switch between units, this allows safety vulnerabilities like “SIM swapping.” This assault includes stealing a locked telephone, eradicating the bodily SIM card, and inserting it into one other machine, the place hackers can intercept issues like two-factor SMS codes. Moreover, eSIMs are simpler to buy on a whim. You should purchase a journey eSIM on-line and cargo it onto your telephone in minutes.
Sadly, the infrastructure simply wasn’t there to help straightforward eSIM switching earlier than. Transferring from iPhone to iPhone or Android to Android was easy, however transferring eSIMs between platforms was a headache. You seemingly needed to contact your provider, present IMEI numbers, or stroll right into a bodily retailer to get the switch accomplished. With a bodily SIM, a SIM-eject device is all you want to change telephones.
Apple and Google lastly mounted this shortcoming with iOS 26 and Android 16. Now, you possibly can seamlessly transfer SIM knowledge between units with out resetting them or contacting a provider.
Find out how to switch an eSIM from iOS to Android
Transferring an eSIM from an iPhone to an Android telephone is straightforward, so long as you’ve got bought the fitting {hardware} and software program. Examine that your provider helps peer-to-peer eSIM transfers between iOS and Android. Then, confirm your iPhone is up to date to iOS 26, and your Android telephone is working Android 16.
Since each units might be with out mobile knowledge briefly through the eSIM switch course of, it is vital to attach them to a Wi-Fi community. Merely sticking with the mobile knowledge or cellular hotspot connection from the eSIM you want to switch will not lower it. After you’ve got related to Wi-Fi and checked that your units are prepared, you possibly can start the switch.
In your Android telephone:
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Faucet Community & Web.
3. Press SIMs & cellular community.
4. Faucet Obtain new SIM.
5. Choose Switch SIM from one other machine.
6. Select to switch from iPhone.
7. You may now see a QR code that can be utilized to provoke the switch. Alternatively, you possibly can faucet Pair your units manually to view a Session ID and Pairing code.
Now that you’ve got the QR code and pairing particulars able to go, it is time to pull out your iPhone.
In your iPhone:
8. Open the Digicam app and scan the QR code in your iPhone.
9. Alternatively, navigate to Settings > Mobile > Switch Cellphone Quantity > Proceed to scan the QR code in your iPhone or enter the guide Session ID and Pairing Code numbers.
10. Choose the telephone quantity you need to switch, then hit Proceed.
All you want to do now could be maintain each units shut to one another and watch for the switch to complete. Quickly, your eSIM might be transferred out of your iPhone to your Android telephone.
Find out how to switch and eSIM from Android to iOS
To start out transferring an eSIM from an Android telephone to your iPhone, make certain each units are up to date to no less than Android 16 and iOS 26. Then, you will want to make use of every machine all through the pairing and switch course of.
Do not forget that each telephones will must be related to a Wi-Fi community for the switch to finish — mobile knowledge or a cellular hotspot from the eSIM you are transferring will not work. With that out of the best way, let’s start!
In your iPhone:
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Faucet the Mobile tab.
3. Press Arrange Mobile.
4. Faucet Switch from Android.
5. Learn the disclaimer about machine and provider help, then press Proceed.
6. You may now see a QR code that can be utilized to provoke the switch. Alternatively, you possibly can faucet Different choices to view a guide Session ID and Pairing code.
Now, it is time to decide up the Android telephone that has the eSIM you need to switch.
In your Android telephone:
7. Open the Digicam app and scan the QR code in your iPhone.
8. Alternatively, navigate to Settings > Google > All providers > Pair with iPhone or iPad > Switch eSIM to enter the guide Session ID and Pairing Code numbers.
9. Watch for the units to attach.
10. Select an eSIM to switch to your iPhone, then hit Switch.
11. Enter your passcode or use biometrics to authorize the eSIM switch.
Now, return to your iPhone. In a minute or two, your eSIM could have been transferred out of your Android telephone to your iPhone. You may see a spinning Activating display screen in your iPhone when you wait.
Ultimately, a Cellphone Quantity Switch Full display screen will seem in your iPhone confirming that the eSIM switch was profitable. Now, the eSIM you have been simply utilizing on an Android telephone is connecting your iPhone to a mobile community,
Switching to an Android telephone simply bought a lot simpler
There are little issues that make switching between platforms difficult, and eSIM was certainly one of them. When Apple and Google each began promoting eSIM-only telephones within the U.S. with out the infrastructure wanted to change telephone strains between them, they have been equally responsible for the fallout. Now, switching between platforms is seamless. If this was one of many causes you did not need to transfer from iOS to Android, you now have one much less cause to take the leap.
The starter Android
In the event you’re contemplating placing your iPhone’s eSIM into a brand new Android telephone, the Google Pixel 10 is perhaps your greatest guess. It has the polish and premium really feel that Apple customers love with the pliability and Google options that Android customers count on.
