Should I install a travel eSIM before or after landing?

Should I install my travel eSIM before or after landing?

Before. Installing at home is safer, and with eSIMwithCrypto it costs no days of validity.

• Wi-Fi: Apple requires a Wi-Fi network or a hotspot to set up an eSIM on iPhone. At home, you have one.
• Time to fix a problem: you can check that the eSIM appears in Settings, and write to support before you fly.
• Validity: the validity starts when the eSIM first connects to a network in your destination. Installing early does not start the clock.
• China and Turkey: foreign-profile installation is restricted on supported China-bought iPhones while located in mainland China, and buying or installing in Turkey may fail (below).
• One QR code, one try: the QR code works once, on one phone, and a deleted eSIM cannot be installed again. Install it calmly, not in an arrival queue.

When you land, you only switch the line on and allow data roaming.

For which countries should I install the eSIM before arrival?

For two of our destinations: supported China-bought iPhones in mainland China, where Apple restricts foreign-profile installation, and Turkey, where eSIM sellers' sites and apps may be blocked.

• China: Apple’s guidance for supported iPhones bought in mainland China restricts installing foreign-carrier eSIMs while the phone is in mainland China. (support article 123879, September 2026). Install the eSIM before you enter mainland China. Our exit country for China is not published yet, so we do not promise access to Google or WhatsApp. Local laws apply. Details: China eSIM.
• Turkey: buy and install before arrival. Turkey's regulator, BTK, blocked the websites and apps of at least 35 eSIM sellers in decisions of 10 and 17 July 2025. Buying or installing from inside Turkey may fail. Details: Turkey eSIM.

We have not tested whether our own website can be reached from mainland China or Turkey. Buy before you go.

What if I install the eSIM after landing?

It works if you have Wi-Fi and a way to read the code, subject to device-specific restrictions, including Apple’s rules for supported China-bought iPhones in mainland China. In Turkey, it may fail, because eSIM sellers' sites and apps may be blocked there.

• iPhone: open My eSIMs on the iPhone itself and use a one-tap install button on iPhone with iOS 17.4 or later. No second screen is needed.
• Android: copy the full activation code from My eSIMs and paste it in Enter code manually, or Enter activation code on Samsung.
• Without a second screen or the iPhone button: type the SM-DP+ address and the activation code by hand.

Use airport or hotel Wi-Fi to download the eSIM, then switch the line on and allow data roaming.

Why should I never delete the travel eSIM?

Because a deleted eSIM cannot come back: the QR code works once, on one phone, and a deleted eSIM cannot be installed again. QR codes are usually single-use at other sellers too, and deleting a profile can force a new purchase while the validity keeps running (eSIMCard, Yesim).

To stop using the eSIM, turn the line off in Settings instead of deleting it. Keep it installed until the trip is over and the validity or the data has ended.

Which settings should I check when I land?

Four settings decide whether your data goes through the travel eSIM:

• Travel line: on.
• Mobile data: the travel eSIM.
• Data roaming: on for the travel eSIM; off on your usual line if you want to avoid roaming data charges.
• Allow Cellular Data Switching (iPhone): off, if you want all data to go through the travel eSIM.

Your phone may show the name of a local network: that is normal, because a travel eSIM works in roaming. If you see No service, check that the phone is unlocked, then turn airplane mode on and off. Still nothing? Write to support with your order reference, the country and the time (UTC).