A SIM card is the piece of technology that provides your iPhone with a cellular signal so you can make calls, send SMS, and connect to cellular data when you’re out and about. Without a SIM, your iPhone will still work, but only when there’s a Wi-Fi signal available.
Sometimes you may get a message that says, “No SIM Available” or “SIM Failure.” Other times, you may not get an error message, but you might have no phone signal while others do.
Follow this troubleshooting guide to figure out why your SIM won’t work in iPhone devices and what you can do about it.
SIM Won’t Work in New iPhone: Basic Checks
Before starting troubleshooting, there are a few basic checks you should do:
Check with your cell phone operator that the SIM is active.
Some operators send a physical SIM but then set up what’s called an eSIM, rendering the physical SIM useless. You can check whether your iPhone is using an eSIM by contacting your carrier. Don’t delete an eSIM as a troubleshooting step unless your carrier recommends it. Don’t press this, but this is a clear indicator that your phone already has a virtual SIM and inserting a physical SIM will not work.
Make sure the SIM is inserted correctly. It should be in the SIM tray, with the angled corner of the SIM card lined up with the same shape in the tray. When you insert the SIM tray back into the iPhone, make sure you hear a click, as this ensures it’s properly inserted.
SIM Won’t Work in iPhone: Troubleshooting Steps
Step 1. Take the SIM out, wait for a minute, then reinsert it. If you don’t get a signal after a minute or two, try heading to Settings > Mobile Service and check that “Turn On This Line” is green. You can also try restarting your iPhone.
Step 2. Check if your iPhone is restricted to one particular network. Go to Settings > General > About and look for Network Provider Lock or Carrier Lock. Ideally, you want to see “No SIM restrictions” here. If there are restrictions, contact the relevant cellular provider to discuss getting your iPhone unlocked. You’ll need the IMEI of the device, found on the same settings page.
Step 3. Test another SIM card in your iPhone. If the other SIM works, contact your carrier to let them know that your SIM is faulty and you need a new one. But if the other SIM doesn’t work, it could indicate that there’s a physical fault with the iPhone itself. Follow the usual warranty process or contact the retailer for more advice.
As an avid gamer, I’ve run into my fair share of error codes and weird faults that have forced me to find fixes to problems I never anticipated. That gave me a passion for sharing those fixes with others so we can all game without feeling like our hardware is rebelling against us.
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