No 'Add eSIM' option on Android? Why and what to do

If your Android phone shows no "Add eSIM" option, first check that you are in the right menu: Samsung puts it under Settings > Connections > SIM manager, Google Pixel under Settings > Network & internet > SIMs > Add SIM, Xiaomi hides it behind a "Use eSIM" switch, and Motorola calls it "Download new SIM". If it is missing from the right menu, the most common causes are a model or regional variant without an eSIM chip, a carrier-locked phone, or a work or school management policy. Software is rarely the culprit, and no update can add a missing chip.

This guide gives the exact path per brand, checked on 27 October 2026 against Samsung, Google, Xiaomi and carrier help pages, then a five-minute diagnosis, and a clear list of what you can fix yourself and what you cannot. It covers Android only: if you have an iPhone, read our guide to the "eSIM not supported" message on iPhone.

Where the Add eSIM option is on each brand (October 2026)

Most "missing option" reports are a menu problem: each brand names the screen differently, and some older help pages still show labels that have since changed. These are the current paths, each from the maker's own help page or from a carrier guide written for a named model and Android version.

Three details trip people up. On Samsung, older pages, including Samsung UK's own "how to use an eSIM" page, still say "SIM card manager" and "Add mobile plan": on current Galaxy software the screen is "SIM manager" and the button "Add eSIM". On Xiaomi, the "Manage eSIM" entry only appears after you switch on "Use eSIM", and Xiaomi warns that doing so disables SIM 2. On a Pixel, the eSIM choice sits one tap deeper, inside "Add SIM".

The quickest shortcut on any brand is the search bar at the top of Settings: type eSIM. If nothing related comes up, move on to the diagnosis below. For the full activation walk-through once you have found the button, see our step-by-step Android activation guide.

Five-minute diagnosis: find out why the option is missing

Work through these steps in order. Each one rules out a cause, and you will know whether you can fix it before you call anyone.

1. Search Settings for "eSIM". If a result appears, open it: the option exists, it was just in another menu.
2. Look for the EID. Open Settings > About phone. On Samsung, tap Status information; on Pixel, SIM status; on Motorola, Device details. A 32-digit number labelled EID means the phone has an eSIM chip. You can also dial *#06# in the Phone app: the eSIM provider Mobal says this shows the EID on "the vast majority of handsets", but no phone maker documents it.
3. Check the exact model and where it was sold. Settings > About phone shows the model number. Compare it with our model lists for Samsung, Pixel, Xiaomi, Motorola and OnePlus, paying attention to the regional notes.
4. Check for a carrier lock. If you bought the phone from a carrier or on a plan, ask that carrier whether it is locked. A locked phone can hide or refuse eSIMs from other networks.
5. Check whether it is a work phone. If your employer or school issued the phone, or you enrolled it in a device-management app, company policies can block eSIM downloads.
6. Check which user you are. If the phone has several users, switch to the owner (admin) account. Other users cannot change mobile network settings.
7. Update the software. Type "update" in the Settings search bar, install any pending system update, restart and look again.

If step 2 finds an EID and steps 4 to 7 are clear, the missing option is unusual: contact the phone maker's support, not your carrier. If no EID appears anywhere and your model is a regional variant, the chip is almost certainly absent.

Does your phone have eSIM hardware at all?

An eSIM is a chip, the eUICC, soldered to the phone's board. Google puts it plainly on its Pixel help page about phone ID numbers: to use an eSIM, a phone also needs an EID. That number belongs to the chip, so finding it is the most reliable test you can do without installing anything.

Where the EID is shown

• Samsung Galaxy: Settings > About phone > Status information > EID, as given on Samsung Hong Kong's eSIM page, which adds that you can also find it on the box the phone came in.
• Google Pixel: Settings > About phone > SIM status > EID (Pixel Help).
• Motorola: Settings > About phone > Device details > EID, according to Vodafone UK's guide for the Edge 60 Pro on Android 15.
• Xiaomi and OnePlus: we found no official EID path. Type "EID" in Settings search, or dial *#06#.

Our EID guide has the full table per brand and Android version, and our article on checking eSIM support without installing anything covers the other quick tests.

How to read the result

• EID shown, no Add eSIM option: the hardware is there. Look at the carrier lock, work policy, user account and software causes below.
• No EID in Settings, nothing on *#06#: most likely a model or variant built without the chip. Confirm with the model number and the maker's specification page for your country.
• EID shown but greyed-out or failing downloads: that is an activation problem rather than a missing option. See why a carrier won't activate a compatible phone.

Cause 1: a model or regional variant without the chip

The same phone name can hide several hardware versions. Makers publish this, if you know where to look, and it is the cause you can do least about.

On Samsung, the Hong Kong list shows how few models qualify in some markets, and our Samsung page notes the same for Taiwan; on OnePlus and some Redmi models the exceptions are India or Japan. Our Xiaomi list flags, for example, Redmi Note 14 Pro+ 5G "not Indian models". A grey-import phone bought online may be any of these variants, whatever the listing says.

Why makers do it is covered in our article on regional variants that lack eSIM hardware. What matters here: if your model number is a variant without the chip, no setting, firmware or carrier can add it.

Cause 2: a carrier lock or carrier software

Android's own documentation explains the mechanism. The eSIM manager app, called the LPA, reads the phone's carrier lock status so that it can "allow eSIM download or transfer only for the allowed carrier", according to the Android Open Source Project eSIM page. A phone locked to one network may therefore refuse, or not offer, an eSIM from another one.

The same page notes that the LPA "should be included in the Android build image" and that Android itself ships no LPA: each maker, and sometimes the carrier's software build, supplies it. That is why a phone bought from a carrier can behave differently from the same model bought unlocked. Samsung's Hong Kong page puts it this way: "Models, sequences or settings will vary depending on location and/or where the product had been purchased." Samsung also requires the new phone to be unlocked for its eSIM transfer feature (Samsung UK).

Samsung enthusiasts often blame the CSC, the region and carrier code set in Galaxy firmware. We found no Samsung page that documents how CSC affects eSIM, so we do not recommend changing it or flashing another region's firmware to make eSIM appear.

What to do: ask the carrier that sold the phone to unlock it. In the US that means AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon; in the UK, EE, O2, Vodafone or Three. Our guide on unlocked phones and travel eSIMs explains what to ask. After unlocking, restart the phone and check SIM manager again.

Cause 3: settings and software that hide the option

When the chip is present and the phone is unlocked, the option is usually hidden by a setting rather than missing.

Two physical SIMs on Xiaomi

Xiaomi's support article shows eSIM sharing a slot with the second SIM: you must turn on "Use eSIM" under SIM card and mobile networks before "Manage eSIM" appears, and "activating the eSIM will disable the Sim 2 option". If you use two physical SIM cards, the eSIM entry stays off until you accept giving up SIM 2.

Outdated software

Android has had standard eSIM functions since Android 9, according to the Android eSIM documentation, and Google notes that some Pixel dual-SIM steps work "only on Android 11 and up" (Pixel Help). On a phone that is several years behind on updates, install everything offered under Software update, restart, and check again.

Older labels on older software

Samsung UK's older help page still uses "SIM card manager" and "Add mobile plan". If your Galaxy has not been updated for a while and shows those labels, they lead to the same place.

Foldables and tablets

Galaxy Z Fold and Flip phones use the same SIM manager path, but tablets differ by model and only cellular versions can have eSIM. Our Galaxy Fold, Flip and Tab guide lists which ones do.

Cause 4: work phones, management policies and secondary users

Android gives organisations explicit switches to block eSIMs. Both are documented in the Android UserManager reference:

• DISALLOW_SIM_GLOBALLY (Android 15 and later) "blocks the download of embedded SIMs". It can be set by the device owner or by the profile owner of a company-owned work profile, and applies to the whole phone.
• DISALLOW_CONFIG_MOBILE_NETWORKS stops a user "from configuring mobile networks" at all, which removes SIM settings from reach.

If your phone was issued by an employer or school, or you enrolled it in a management app, the missing option may be deliberate. Only the IT administrator can lift it: contact your company's IT help desk, not your carrier.

The same reference also states that non-admin users "cannot configure mobile networks". If the phone has several user accounts, or you are in a guest session, switch to the owner account before looking for Add eSIM.

What you can fix, and what you cannot

Be clear-eyed about the "No" row: eSIM is not a software feature that can be switched on. If the eUICC chip was not fitted at the factory, no app, firmware or repair shop can add one to your phone. Apps that claim to "enable eSIM" on any phone cannot change the hardware.

Alternatives when your phone has no eSIM

A physical SIM card

The simplest option. Travellers can buy a local prepaid SIM on arrival, or a physical travel SIM before leaving. Your phone must be unlocked for a foreign SIM to work. For country guides, see our pages on buying a prepaid SIM in Spain or a SIM card in France.

A removable eSIM card (eSIM.me)

Removable eSIM cards are SIM cards that contain an eUICC: you insert them in the SIM tray and download eSIM profiles to the card with an app. We checked one, eSIM.me, on 27 October 2026:

• What it is: the eSIM.me Card 2, which goes in the normal SIM slot and stores up to 15 eSIM profiles (depending on the plan).
• What it needs: an Android phone that passes the compatibility check in the free eSIM.me app; eSIM.me asks you to run that check before ordering. The app is Android only: an iPhone can use a profile already activated on Android, but cannot download or manage profiles.
• Price: the single licence starts at €24.95 plus tax and shipping, covers one device of one brand, holds up to 5 profiles, and costs €10 to move to a new device.
• Risks: eSIM.me's own known-issues list says disabling the SIM slot that holds the card can make the active profile unreachable on some versions, sometimes needing a factory reset (older v1 cards), and warns dual-SIM users not to disable the card from the phone's SIM manager. It occupies a SIM slot, so on a single-SIM phone it replaces your usual SIM card rather than adding a line.

We could not verify other removable eSIM cards sold under different brands on 27 October 2026, so we do not describe them here. If you buy any such card, look for a published compatibility check and a refund policy.

Changing phone

If you plan to use eSIMs regularly, the lasting fix is a model with the chip in your region's version. Our lists of eSIM-compatible devices and our guide to other Android brands help you check before buying.

How we checked

We read every source on 27 October 2026: Samsung's eSIM pages for the UK, Hong Kong, France, Germany, Spain and Mexico; Google's Pixel Help pages on dual SIM and phone ID numbers in four languages; Xiaomi's global support article on eSIM; OnePlus's Indian, global and US specification pages; Vodafone UK's device guides for the Galaxy S26 and A57 5G on Android 16, the Pixel 10 on Android 16, the Pixel 11 on Android 17, and the Motorola Edge 60 Pro and razr 60 ultra on Android 15; the Android Open Source Project's eSIM documentation and the Android UserManager reference; and eSIM.me's product, pricing and FAQ pages.

We found no official OnePlus or Motorola page giving the eSIM menu path, so the Motorola path comes from carrier guides and we give no path for OnePlus. Menu names change with software updates; if your screen differs, the Settings search for "eSIM" is the reliable fallback. If you spot a change, tell us and we will update this page.

Next step: once you have found the option, follow our Android activation guide.