How to convert a physical SIM to eSIM (2026)

Yes, you can usually convert a physical SIM to an eSIM without a new contract or a new number: on an iPhone go to Settings > Cellular > Set Up Cellular or Add eSIM > Convert to eSIM, on a Samsung Galaxy Settings > Connections > SIM manager, on a Pixel Settings > Network & internet > SIMs. The catch is that the option only works if your carrier supports it. If it does not, the carrier's app, website or store does the same job.

We read Apple, Samsung and Google's support pages and the help pages of Verizon, AT&T, EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three on 27 October 2026. Below are the exact steps for each phone, the carrier routes and fees, and what to check first so you don't lose your banking codes halfway through. If you are still deciding whether to switch at all, read eSIM vs physical SIM: what actually changes first.

Can you convert your SIM to an eSIM? The short answer

Converting means your carrier moves the line that lives on your plastic SIM onto the eSIM chip inside the same phone. Same number, same plan, same carrier. Three things have to line up: the phone has an eSIM chip, the phone is not locked to another carrier, and your carrier allows the switch on that phone.

Not sure your model has an eSIM at all? Check our iPhone, Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel compatibility pages, or the full device list. For iPhones, our iPhone eSIM models guide covers the regional exceptions, such as China mainland, where Apple says only a few recent models support eSIM.

What to check before you convert

The conversion itself takes a few minutes. Most failures come from skipping one of these checks.

1. Your phone supports eSIM and is unlocked. A phone locked to another carrier will refuse that carrier's profile. Verizon, for example, requires "an eSIM compatible phone that's unlocked". Samsung warns that, depending on the country the phone was sold in, eSIM "may not be supported even if your device is listed".
2. You are the account holder. Verizon limits the in-app switch to the Account Owner or an Account Manager, and AT&T says "only the account owner or retail authorized user can activate a new SIM card". If the line is on a family or company account, ask the owner first.
3. Wi-Fi is on. Google lists a Wi-Fi connection as a requirement, and Apple asks for Wi-Fi or a working cellular connection. Your mobile data can drop during the switch, so do not rely on it.
4. Your software is current. Apple's troubleshooting page asks for the latest version of iOS your iPhone can run. Some carriers set their own minimum: Free in France asks for iOS 18.5, Vodafone Spain and Telcel for iOS 17.4.
5. Plan for the text-message gap. AT&T warns that "your service may also become temporarily unavailable" while the SIM is converted, and carriers often send a security code by SMS during the process. Don't start just before you need a banking or two-factor code. Where you can, switch two-factor logins to an authenticator app first.
6. Your number is not mid-transfer. If you have just ported your number from another carrier, wait until the port is complete. Orange France says this outright.
7. Note your SIM PIN and account password. Apple advises having your phone number, carrier account password or PIN and your IMEI or EID ready if you end up calling the carrier. Our guide to finding the EID shows where it is.

How to convert to eSIM on iPhone (iOS 26 and iOS 27)

Apple's iPhone User Guide gives the same steps for iOS 26 and iOS 27. You need an iPhone XS, XS Max, XR or later, according to Apple's eSIM page.

1. Connect to Wi-Fi and open the Settings app.
2. Tap Cellular, then Set Up Cellular or Add eSIM. On UK iPhones, EE, Vodafone and Three describe this menu as Mobile Service.
3. Choose the phone number that uses the physical SIM.
4. Tap Convert to eSIM and follow the on-screen instructions. Three's and AT&T's guides add the steps you will see: a confirmation box (tap Convert to eSIM again), then "double-click on the side button to confirm your eSIM conversion".
5. Wait for activation. To check, go to Settings > Cellular and make sure the line is listed under eSIMs and turned on.
6. Remove the physical SIM and restart the iPhone, as Apple and Three recommend.

If you don't see Convert to eSIM, your carrier does not offer conversion on the iPhone, or not on your plan. Apple lists the other routes: the carrier's app, a QR code (Settings > Cellular > Add eSIM > Use QR Code, sometimes under Other Options), or a carrier store, where Apple notes that some countries require "an in-person ID check". Our iPhone eSIM activation guide walks through each of those.

Moving to a new iPhone at the same time? Then you don't need to convert first: eSIM Quick Transfer moves the number from the old iPhone, physical SIM or not, if your carrier supports it.

How to convert to eSIM on a Samsung Galaxy

Samsung's support page gives this path. It does not name a One UI version, and says the feature's availability "will depend on your mobile provider".

1. Open Settings > Connections > SIM manager.
2. Tap the SIM card you want to convert.
3. Tap Convert to eSIM.
4. In the pop-up, tap Convert eSIM.
5. Samsung's page ends with "Your eSIM is now active". Make a test call and send a text before removing the card.

Samsung's US page describes the same thing in one line: tap SIM manager, select the SIM card, then Convert to eSIM, and "your information will be transferred from the physical SIM (pSIM) to the phone's eSIM".

Which Galaxy models? Samsung lists the Galaxy S20 to S26 series, the Z Fold and Z Flip range up to the Z Fold8, Z Fold8 Ultra and Z Flip8, the Z TriFold, and several A-series phones with regional limits: the A36 and A35 only in Europe, North America and Korea, the A27, A26, A17 5G and A16 5G only in North America. Our Samsung Galaxy page has the full list.

Which carriers? Samsung publishes no list for conversion specifically. Its closest list, carriers that "may allow eSIM Instant Transfer", includes AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Cricket, Mint Mobile and Xfinity Mobile in the US, and EE, O2 and Spusu in the UK. Vodafone UK and Three appear only in Samsung's general eSIM list. If Convert to eSIM is missing, use your carrier's app or store instead. For the general Android set-up steps, see our Android eSIM activation guide.

How to convert to eSIM on a Google Pixel

Google's Pixel Help page sets three conditions: a Pixel 7 or later (Fold included), a carrier that offers eSIM for Pixel in your country, and a Wi-Fi connection. Another Pixel Help page on fixing connectivity says Pixel 8 or later for the same feature, so on a Pixel 7 the button may or may not appear.

1. Connect to Wi-Fi and open Settings.
2. Tap Network & internet > SIMs.
3. Select the SIM you want to convert.
4. Scroll down the SIM settings and tap Convert to eSIM.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions.

Google's carrier list names the carriers that support "eSIM Transfer", which, it says, also lets you "convert your physical SIM to an eSIM". On 27 October 2026 that list included, in the US, AT&T, FirstNet, Spectrum Mobile, T-Mobile, UScellular, Verizon Wireless and Xfinity Mobile; in the UK, only EE and O2. With Vodafone UK or Three, expect to use the carrier's own route instead.

One US exception: Google says the US Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL "don't use physical SIMs, and are eSIM-only", so there is nothing to convert on those. You transfer the line from your old phone instead.

Converting through your carrier: US and UK routes and fees

If the phone's button is missing, or you prefer to do it from your account, every major carrier has its own route. This is what each carrier's help pages said on 27 October 2026.

Two details worth knowing. AT&T's myAT&T option to "get a new eSIM" does not appear if you don't have an eSIM yet, so for a first conversion use the phone's own option or a store. O2 asks you to make account changes during the day, because activation can take up to 24 hours. When a carrier sends you a QR code instead, scan it from the phone's eSIM settings (on iPhone: Settings > Cellular > Add eSIM > Use QR Code).

Travelling and only need data abroad? You don't have to convert your home SIM: a travel eSIM can sit next to your physical SIM. Our guide on keeping your number while travelling explains how.

What happens to your old SIM and your number

Your number and plan stay the same. Conversion is not a new line or a port. EE puts it simply: downloading the eSIM "will keep your mobile number".

The plastic SIM is switched off. Apple: "After you convert a physical SIM to an eSIM, your physical SIM no longer works." Google: the physical SIM "will no longer work". AT&T says the physical SIM is deactivated once the eSIM is activated and should be "kept for at least 14 days before being discarded".

When to throw it away. Google advises discarding it only after you have checked that the new eSIM works. Make a call, send and receive a text (ideally a two-factor code), and check mobile data. Then cut the card up before binning it.

Going back is a new request. Google says that if you need a physical SIM again after converting, "you must contact your carrier to re-issue one". Expect the carrier's usual replacement SIM process and fee.

Your eSIM is now tied to the phone. If you later delete it by mistake, you can't pop it back in: see what happens when you delete an eSIM. If the phone is lost or broken, you will need the carrier to issue a new eSIM. Our guide to moving an eSIM without the old phone covers that case.

If the conversion fails or the option is missing

Convert to eSIM does not appear

• Your carrier does not support conversion on this phone or plan (prepaid lines are often excluded). Use the carrier app or store.
• The phone is locked to another carrier, or it is a regional model without eSIM. Check our device pages.
• Your software is out of date. Update iOS or Android, restart, and look again.

Our guide to the missing eSIM option goes through each cause in detail.

The conversion starts, then nothing works

1. Wait a few minutes on Wi-Fi. O2 says activation can take up to 24 hours.
2. On iPhone, follow Apple's steps: turn Airplane Mode on and off; in Settings > Cellular, turn the line off and on; restart; then check for a carrier settings update in Settings > General > About, where tapping the Carrier version offers any update.
3. On Android, restart and check that the eSIM is switched on in SIM manager (Samsung) or SIMs (Pixel), and that it is set for calls, texts and mobile data.
4. If the phone shows No Service or SOS, see our eSIM no service fixes and stuck on activating fixes.

When to call the carrier

If the physical SIM is already dead and the eSIM never activated, you have no service, so call from another phone or use the carrier's chat over Wi-Fi. Apple suggests noting the exact error message and having your number, account password or PIN, and your IMEI or EID ready. The carrier can push a new eSIM profile or send a QR code. If they refuse eSIM altogether, here is why that happens.

How we checked

On 27 October 2026 we read Apple's iPhone User Guide ("Set up cellular service", iOS 26 and iOS 27), Apple's "Set up eSIM on iPhone" and "If you can't set up an eSIM" pages, Samsung's "Galaxy eSIM and supported network carriers" (UK) and US SIM card pages, and Google's Pixel Help pages on converting to eSIM, eSIM carriers and connectivity issues. For carriers we read the help pages of Verizon, AT&T, EE, Vodafone UK, O2 and Three linked above.

What we could not verify: T-Mobile's support pages returned an error on that date, so we give no T-Mobile steps or fees. No US or UK carrier page we read gave a fee for the swap, except Verizon's "no charge" in the app. Menu labels can differ slightly by software version and carrier. If your phone shows something different, tell us and we will check again.

Next step: once your eSIM works, check your phone's eSIM page for dual-SIM options, or read when to install a travel eSIM before your next trip.