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Last updated: 2026-06-12
Installing an eSIM on your Android phone takes a couple of minutes. The key thing to understand: you install the eSIM at home before your trip, but it only connects once you reach your destination. This guide covers both — with screenshots of every screen — plus the exact data, roaming and APN settings that make it work. Steps are shown on stock Android (Pixel); Samsung Galaxy wording is noted where it differs.
Install before you fly — over Wi-Fi.
Set up your eSIM before you leave home, while you have a stable Wi-Fi or internet connection. Downloading the eSIM profile needs internet, and you may have none the moment you land. Installing early does not start your plan — the validity countdown only begins when the eSIM connects to a network at your destination.
What you'll need
Install in 4 steps
Open the SIM settings
Go to Settings → Network & internet → SIMs, then tap Download a SIM instead? (or + Add SIM → Download a SIM).
Samsung Galaxy: Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM.
Scan your QR code
When prompted, tap Next and point your camera at the QR code from your email or profile page.
Only have one phone? Tap Need help? / Enter it manually and paste the activation code from your eSIM email.
Download the eSIM
Your phone reads the code and shows the plan. Tap Download and wait a few seconds while the profile installs.
This needs your Wi-Fi connection — don't close the screen until it finishes.
Confirm the profile installed
Go back to Settings → Network & internet → SIMs. Your eSIM-Now plan should now be listed alongside your primary SIM.
If you can see it, the eSIM installed correctly. Now set the data & roaming options below.
Now set it up correctly
This is the step most people miss — and the reason an eSIM seems "not to work" even when it installed fine. Open your eSIM-Now SIM (Settings → Network & internet → SIMs → eSIM-Now) and set:
Mobile data & Roaming both ON for eSIM-Now.
Roaming OFF so your phone stops using your home SIM for data.
No data after enabling roaming? Set the APN.
Most phones configure this automatically, but some Android models (and many Samsung Galaxy phones) need it entered by hand. Find your APN first: open your profile page — it lists your active eSIM plans. Tap the one you're setting up, and copy the APN shown under Plan details (each eSIM has its own). Then on your phone go to SIMs → eSIM-Now → Access Point Names → +, paste it into the APN field, Save, and make sure it's selected.
Setting the APN (only if needed)
First, find your APN. On your profile page, open the eSIM plan you're installing — your APN is listed under Plan details (next to the ICCID), with a copy button. Each eSIM has its own.
Then on your phone, open Access Point Names for your eSIM-Now line, tap +, paste it into the APN field, leave the rest blank, Save, and select it. Finally toggle Airplane Mode off/on to reconnect.
Before you arrive, "No service" or "Searching…" is completely normal.
Your eSIM connects to its local network at your destination — usually within a few minutes of landing and turning Airplane Mode off. Don't worry about no signal while you're still home, and never delete the eSIM to "retry" — most travel eSIMs can't be reinstalled once removed.
Your eSIM-Now plan is data-only.
It gives you fast mobile internet — but no phone number, so it can't make regular calls or receive SMS / one-time verification (OTP) codes. Keep your home SIM active for calls and texts, and use WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal or Google Meet to call and message over data.
Still no data after you arrive?
Work through these in order — they fix the large majority of cases:
- Toggle Airplane Mode on, wait 10 seconds, then off
- Restart your phone
- Re-check the settings above: Roaming ON for eSIM-Now, Mobile data set to eSIM-Now
- Add the APN from your profile page if you haven't (see above)
- Make sure you're in a covered area and give it a few minutes
- Still stuck? Your QR code and details are always on your profile page — or reach our team and we'll help
Samsung & other brands
The steps are the same; only the menu names differ. On Samsung Galaxy: Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM, then manage data and roaming under each SIM. On Xiaomi/Oppo: look under Settings → SIM cards & mobile networks. APN settings live under each SIM's Access Point Names.
Ready for your trip? Browse plans for 140+ countries, get your QR code instantly, and follow this guide to be online the moment you land.
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