How to set up a Tunisia eSIM at home and get online as soon as you land

Part of our Tunisia eSIM guide: all articles and key facts →

To install a Tunisia eSIM, you scan a QR code on Wi-Fi before you travel, then switch the line on and allow data roaming when you land. The job takes a few minutes. This guide gives the exact iPhone, Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy menus, the settings that decide whether the eSIM connects in Tunisia, the codes of the three Tunisian networks, and what to do when nothing happens on arrival.

What do you need before you install a Tunisia eSIM?

You need three things, and a QR code is only one of them.

• A phone with eSIM hardware. On iPhone that means an iPhone XS, XS Max, XR or any later model, according to Apple. On Android it depends on the model and sometimes on the country where the phone was sold. Our list of eSIM-compatible phones covers the brands one by one, and the check without an app tells you for certain.
• A phone that is not locked to your operator. On iPhone, open Settings › General › About and look for "No SIM restrictions" next to Carrier Lock. If a restriction is listed, the phone will refuse a Tunisian profile with the message "Cellular Plans From This Carrier Cannot be Added". Our guide to unlocked phones and travel eSIMs explains how to get the lock lifted.
• A stable internet connection while you install. Apple states that the iPhone must be on Wi-Fi or a hotspot to download the profile. That is why the installation belongs at home, not in the arrivals hall at Tunis-Carthage or Djerba-Zarzis.

Space is rarely the problem. Apple says an iPhone can manage up to eight or more eSIMs, and Airalo's help pages put the figure at 5 to 10 depending on storage. If you collect travel eSIMs, delete old, expired ones at home rather than on the day you fly.

When should you install it?

Install it one or two days before departure. The Tunisia plans we checked start counting their days at the first connection to a network, or give you a long window before they must be activated:

Details were checked on the providers' own pages on 25 September 2026. eSIM Tunisie counts consecutive calendar days from that first connection and recommends installing the eSIM at home before departure. Airalo adds a caveat for its catalogue as a whole: in some rare cases, validity may begin at installation, so read the package details before you scan.

What if you stop in Tunis before your final destination?

Keep the Tunisia eSIM line switched off until your stay actually starts. A plan that starts at the first connection to a Tunisian network cannot tell a stopover at Tunis-Carthage from an arrival. If the line is on during the stopover, the plan starts then. On a 1-day or 3-day plan, those hours count.

On iPhone, go to Settings › Cellular, tap the Tunisia line and switch off "Turn On This Line". On a Pixel, open Settings › Network & internet › Mobile network, choose the eSIM and switch off "Use this SIM". Switch it back on when you reach your final destination.

The same applies if you land in Tunis but spend the first night there before a transfer to the coast: the clock starts in Tunis. That is not a problem on a 7-day or longer plan, but it is worth knowing if you bought exactly the number of days of your stay.

How to install a Tunisia eSIM on iPhone

Apple's menu is called Cellular in the United States and Mobile Service in the United Kingdom. The steps are the same, but the labels change, so here is the translation, taken from Apple's US page and its UK version:

With the QR code

1. Open the Camera app and point it at the QR code sent by the provider.
2. Tap the "Cellular Plan Detected" notification. On iOS 17.4 or later, you can also touch and hold a QR code received in Mail and choose "Add eSIM".
3. Tap Continue at the bottom of the screen, then "Add Cellular Plan".
4. Give the new line a label such as "Tunisia" when iOS asks. It makes the next settings much easier to read.

If the QR code arrives on the iPhone itself, the touch-and-hold method in Mail avoids the need for a second screen. eSIM Tunisie shows the QR code on its order confirmation page and sends it by email within seconds; it also has a free page to resend it. Apple's iPhone guide describes one more path, Settings › Cellular › Add eSIM › Use QR Code, where you may need to tap Other Options first.

Without the QR code

Go to Settings › Cellular › Add eSIM (tap Other Options if needed) and choose "Enter Details Manually". Type the SM-DP+ address and the activation code from the provider's email. eSIM Tunisie gives an SM-DP+ address of the form rsp-3104.idemia.io as an example of what to expect. Our manual activation guide shows where to find both strings.

Some providers send a link instead of a code. On iOS 17.4 or later, tapping it shows an "Activate New eSIM" notification: tap Allow, then Continue.

The iOS 26 travel prompt

On iOS 26 and later, Apple has added a "Turn On Travel eSIM" notification that appears when you arrive. It offers "Travel eSIM Only" or "Travel eSIM and Current eSIM". If you keep both, the travel eSIM carries the data. Apple warns that you might still incur roaming fees from your home line, so the settings below still matter.

According to Apple's travel page, iOS 26 may also ask, when you install an eSIM bought before departure, whether it is for home or for travel. After the arrival prompt, it offers to turn on Low Data Mode or "Not Now". Low Data Mode is worth accepting on a plan with a 1 GB daily cap. When you come home, iOS 26 can switch the travel eSIM off and your home line back on automatically, depending on the country.

How to install a Tunisia eSIM on Android

Google Pixel

Open Settings › Network & internet › SIMs › Add SIM › Set up an eSIM, then scan the QR code, as described in Google's Pixel help. If you are setting up a new Pixel, the same step appears as Download SIM › Set up. Some Pixel steps require Android 11 or later.

Every Pixel from the Pixel 4 onwards supports eSIM; on the Pixel 3a and 3, support depends on the country and carrier of purchase, and the Pixel 2 supports eSIM only with Google Fi. From the Pixel 3a, a physical SIM and an eSIM can work side by side, and from the Pixel 7, two eSIMs can be active at once if the operator allows it. US Pixel 10 models are eSIM-only; our Pixel 10 page lists the current models.

Samsung Galaxy

Open Settings › Connections › SIM manager › Add eSIM › Scan QR code. To type the details instead, choose "Enter activation code" on the same screen. Samsung says to restart the phone after adding the eSIM so the profile applies. The Galaxy S25 and Galaxy A pages list which Samsung models take one.

In the same SIM manager, the Primary SIM settings decide which line handles calls, messages and mobile data by default. That is where you will point mobile data at the Tunisia eSIM on arrival.

Other brands put the option in similar places; our step-by-step Android activation guide covers the variants.

Which settings make it connect when you land in Tunisia?

Three settings decide it: the eSIM line on, data roaming on for that line, and that line chosen for mobile data. A travel eSIM is technically a foreign line visiting a Tunisian network. Airalo's Tunisia plan lists data roaming as an activation requirement on both iOS and Android, and Nomad's help centre writes that "data roaming must be enabled" for its eSIMs in every country.

• iPhone: Settings › Cellular › Cellular Data › choose the Tunisia line. Then Settings › Cellular › tap the Tunisia line › Cellular Data Options › Data Roaming on. Do the opposite on the home line. Leave "Allow Cellular Data Switching" off: Airalo recommends it, because otherwise the phone may fall back on your home line and roam on it.
• Pixel: Settings › Network & internet › SIMs, choose the Tunisia eSIM for Mobile data, then switch Roaming on in that SIM's settings. Each SIM has its own tab at the top of the screen.
• Samsung: in Settings › Connections › SIM manager, set the Tunisia eSIM as the primary SIM for mobile data, then switch on Settings › Connections › Mobile Networks › Data Roaming.

On Pixel 8a and later models, an "Automatic data switching" option can also move data between SIMs. Google does not address travel, but for the same reason as on iPhone, it makes sense to leave it off so that the home line never carries data abroad.

If Data Roaming is greyed out on a Samsung, Samsung's roaming help page says to switch on mobile data first, under Settings › Connections › Data usage › Mobile data. If data still does not flow, it suggests checking that the plan allows roaming, updating the software and restarting.

Switching data roaming on for the eSIM does not create a roaming bill: the provider has already priced the Tunisian network into the plan. The bill comes from the home line if its roaming stays on, and Tunisia is outside the EU roaming zone. Movistar in Spain, for example, charges €12.10 per megabyte of data there.

Can you keep your own number working at the same time?

Yes, as long as your home line stays switched on with data roaming off. Calls and SMS then keep reaching your usual number, which matters for bank codes, while the Tunisia eSIM carries the data. Apple notes that FaceTime and iMessage keep using your home number even when another line handles data. eSIM Tunisie, like most travel eSIMs, is data-only and gives no Tunisian number, so your physical SIM remains your phone number.

There are two side effects on iPhone, both documented in Apple's dual SIM page. If data roaming is on for the line that carries data, the voice-only line loses Visual Voicemail and MMS. And "Allow Cellular Data Switching" does not work while you are using data roaming, which is one more reason to leave it off.

Calls received on your home number can still cost money. Movistar bills calls received in Tunisia at €1.82 a minute plus €1.21 to set up the call, the same as calls made. Check your operator's rate before you answer a long call, or ask callers to use WhatsApp. Our guide to running two eSIMs at the same time covers the combinations.

Which Tunisian network will your phone show?

One of three: Orange Tunisie, Tunisie Telecom or Ooredoo, depending on your plan. Each network has a code made of the mobile country code 605 for Tunisia and a network code. According to MCC-MNC listings such as mcc-mnc.org, the codes are:

We could not cross-check these codes against an official list from the Tunisian regulator, the INTT, so treat them as a third-party reference. They agree with what eSIM Tunisie shows for its own network: TUNOR, code 605 01. The exact name each phone displays in its network list may differ from the operator's brand, which is why the code is the safer identifier.

Your plan decides which operator you can use. If your plan names one operator and the phone sits on "No Service", select that operator by hand: switch off automatic network selection on the eSIM line and choose it from the list. On iPhone, Airalo places this under the line's Network Selection menu; on Pixel it is the Network setting of the SIM.

The choice of network also affects speed and coverage. Opensignal named Ooredoo the best network for April to June 2026, while Orange Tunisie scored lowest on coverage. Our Djerba guide sets out the national measurements.

Do you need to enter an APN?

Usually not: Airalo's Tunisia plan sets the APN, the setting that tells the phone how to reach the data network, automatically. Its plan data give "internet" as the value. You only need to type an APN when the line shows signal bars but no internet, and the provider's installation email is then the reference, because the value differs between providers.

• Airalo: APN set automatically; the value in its Tunisia plan data is "internet".
• Holafly: its general setup guide gives "Global" as the APN, without a Tunisia-specific value.
• eSIM Tunisie and Nomad: no Tunisia APN published on the pages we read.

Where to type it: on iPhone, Settings › Cellular › the eSIM line › Cellular Data Network, according to Airalo and Holafly; fill in the APN and leave the other fields empty. On a Pixel, the SIM's settings have an "Access point names" entry. On a Samsung, Holafly gives Settings › Connections › Mobile networks › Access Point Names.

What to do if the Tunisia eSIM does not connect

Work down this table in order. Each line is a symptom documented by Apple, Google, Samsung or the eSIM providers.

The "Unable to Activate eSIM" case deserves a second look. Airalo notes that the eSIM may already be installed despite the error, sometimes under a default name such as Personal, Travel or Secondary. Check the list of lines before you ask for a new code.

On a Pixel, the reset is under System › Reset options › Reset Mobile Network Settings, according to Google's network settings page. On iOS 18 and later, Apple also suggests the Apple Support app, which can run diagnostics.

Two rules save most trips. First, do not delete the eSIM to "start again". Apple writes: "Don't erase an eSIM as a troubleshooting step unless directed to by your carrier", and Airalo notes that most eSIMs can only be installed once. Our recovery guide covers the case where it is already too late.

Second, if nothing works after these steps, write to the provider's support with the error message and the phone's EID, found under General › About on iPhone. The wider list of ten fixes for a travel eSIM abroad covers rarer cases.

Which Tunisia eSIM is easiest to install?

They all install the same way, with the same QR code and the same phone menus. The differences are the network, the price per day, top-ups and the support you can reach when something goes wrong. Airalo, Yesim, Ubigi, aloSIM and Roamless let you add data to the same eSIM. eSIM Tunisie does not: to extend a stay, you buy a new plan and install a new QR code.

eSIM Tunisie specialises in Tunisia, runs on Orange Tunisie and answers by email seven days a week; we saw no phone, chat or WhatsApp support. On 25 September 2026 it was cheaper than Holafly at every length, from €6.50 for 1 day against €6.90. For a 3-day stay it cost €18, against €18.50 at Airalo and €18.90 at Holafly. It is one of only four brands with a 1-day unlimited plan.

It is not the cheapest from a week upwards. For 7 days it charged €37, against €24.50 at Yesim, €32 at Airalo (1 October 2026) and $33.50 (about €29.38) at Jetpac on promotion, and its full-speed allowance of 1 GB a day, then 512 kbps, is the lowest published among the brands we compared. Our comparison of the best eSIMs for Tunisia sets out who wins at which trip length, and the guide to every way to get internet in Tunisia covers local SIMs and roaming.

Before any of it, confirm that your phone has the eSIM chip. The free eSIM Check app on Android reads your device's real hardware capabilities in a few seconds.