Switching your eSIM from iPhone to Android may get way easier soon

Abstract

Transferring your eSIM between an iPhone and Android system may quickly change into a lot simpler.
Strains of string had been noticed within the newest Android 16 beta that implies a brand new function to switch eSIMs between iPhones operating iOS 19 and Android units operating Android 16 is coming quickly.
Transferring an eSIM between an iPhone and Android at present requires contacting your cell provider. This may increasingly now not be the case quickly.

Over the previous couple of years, bodily SIM playing cards have been regularly disappearing, with eSIMs (digital SIM playing cards) taking their place. In 2022, Apple took a daring step ahead in embracing eSIM by fully eliminating the bodily SIM card tray from its iPhones, beginning with the iPhone 14 lineup within the US. The iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 sequence adopted swimsuit.

Whereas eSIMs are a fast and handy method to hook up with your mobile carrier, one disadvantage is that switching between iPhone and Android is sadly not as handy because it was previously, when you may merely take away your SIM card and insert it into your new iPhone or Android system with out a lot trouble.

Nonetheless, transferring an eSIM from an iPhone to an Android system (or vice versa) usually requires you to contact your cell provider for a brand new QR code or activation code in your eSIM, which could be a trouble. Fortuitously, with Android 16 and Apple’s upcoming iOS replace (iOS 19 or iOS 26?), the method may quickly change into a lot easier.

Model: Apple
SoC: A18 (3nm)
Show: 6.1-inch 2556 x 1179 pixel decision Tremendous Retina XDR, 2000 nits, 60Hz
RAM: 8GB
Storage: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB
Ports: USB-C

This 12 months’s iPhone 16 line blurs the road between the “Professional” and the base-level iPhone by providing a brand new digital camera button and the Motion Button, alongside the A18 chip.

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Android 16 and iOS 19 may make transferring eSIMs seamless

New strains of string within the current Android 16 beta level to a brand new eSIM switch function

Google not too long ago launched its newest Android 16 QPR1 Beta, only a few weeks forward of the anticipated launch of Android 16 in June. In some new strains of string (a line of code used to carry textual content) in Google’s eSIM supervisor app, Android Authority noticed language that implies the app may quickly assist transferring eSIMs from Android to iPhone and vice versa.

Presently, the Google eSIM supervisor permits Android customers to switch their eSIM between totally different Android units, to not iPhones. And Apple’s eSIM switch performance solely works between iPhones.

The brand new line of string states, “Be sure your different system is operating iOS 19 or later variations,” seemingly suggesting that assist for wirelessly transferring an eSIM between Android and iOS is certainly being labored on for the newest variations of every OS.

If this new line of string is correct, and a brand new eSIM switch function really will get applied, this may be an enormous win for customers…

Primarily based on the road of string, it is believed that with iOS 19, a brand new “Switch to Android” web page will change into out there beneath the iPhone’s switch settings, which will be discovered beneath Settings > Common > Switch or Reset iPhone. It isn’t clear how the method will work, but it surely may contain scanning a QR code together with your Android that will get generated in your iPhone or by utilizing a session ID and passcode.

With Android 16 anticipated in June and iOS 19 anticipated to launch this fall, it is seemingly that this new eSIM switch function between the 2 working techniques will not be launched till the iPhone 17 sequence launches alongside iOS 19.

If this new line of string is correct, and a brand new eSIM switch function really will get applied, this may be an enormous win for customers, as it will make switching between Android units and iPhones a a lot simpler course of. Gone would be the days of getting to contact your cell provider for a brand new eSIM activation code or QR code.

This function ought to’ve been applied years in the past, but it surely’s higher late than by no means, I suppose.

Cellular carriers will seemingly be joyful about this, because it means much less work on their finish. And for tech lovers and tech journalists, it can make their life lots simpler once they’re testing new smartphones and have to switch an eSIM between iOS and Android on the fly. This function ought to’ve been applied years in the past, but it surely’s higher late than by no means, I suppose.

Apple will unveil iOS 19 at its annual Worldwide Builders Convention ( WWDC) occasion on June 9, 2025. In accordance with Bloomberg, Apple might announce at WWDC that it’s abandoning its present naming conference for iOS, presumably renaming iOS 19 to iOS 26 to align with its main 12 months of operation, which is technically 2026. Whatever the naming determination, I hope Apple will announce this eSIM switch function at WWDC.