How to Activate eSIM on Samsung: Step-by-Step Guide

Activating an eSIM on a Samsung Galaxy takes about two minutes, and there’s no fiddly plastic card anywhere in the process. Here’s the short version: head to Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM, scan your provider’s QR code (or type the activation code in by hand), and set the new line as your data line. Done. That covers most people — but there are a few other routes worth knowing, like converting a physical SIM, moving an eSIM over from an old phone, or letting a carrier app handle it, plus one step travelers forget every single time. So here’s the complete guide.

Before You Start: Compatibility & Requirements

A minute of prep saves most of the headaches people run into. Run down this list first:

Check your Samsung supports eSIM. Open Settings → Connections → SIM manager and look for Add eSIM (or Add mobile plan). If it’s there, you’re set — and there’s a full device list further down.
Get on stable Wi-Fi. Installation downloads the profile, so a flaky connection is the enemy here.
Charge the phone (30% or more) so it doesn’t die mid-install.
Have your QR code or activation code from your provider to hand.
Make sure the phone’s carrier-unlocked if you’re using a travel or third-party eSIM.

If a carrier asks for your EID (the eSIM’s unique ID), you’ll find it under Settings → About phone → Status information → EID.

How to Activate an eSIM on Samsung

There are three ways in, depending on how your provider hands you the plan — but they all start in the same place: Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM.

Scan a QR code — the usual route. Tap Scan QR code, point the phone at the code your provider emailed you, and follow the prompts. Saved the code as a screenshot? Most Galaxy phones let you upload it straight from your gallery instead of scanning off a second screen. The profile installs in a few seconds — no reboot required.
Enter an activation code by hand. No QR code to scan? On the same screen, pick Enter activation code and type in the details your provider gave you — if the code starts with “LPA:”, include the whole string — then tap Add.
Let a carrier app or auto-install do it. Some carriers skip the code entirely: they either push the plan to your phone or set it up inside their own app. Open the app, sign in, and look for Activate eSIM. And if a plan’s been pre-assigned to your device, it can download on its own once you tap Add mobile plan.

However it installs, your Galaxy then runs a quick setup wizard. Give the line a name you’ll recognize later — “Travel,” or your provider’s name — and choose which line handles calls, texts, and mobile data.

Enable Data and Data Roaming

This is the step nearly everyone skips — and it’s the single most common reason an eSIM installs perfectly and then refuses to load a thing abroad. Once it’s activated:

Make the eSIM your data line: SIM manager → Preferred SIM → Mobile data → pick your eSIM.
Turn on data roaming for that line: Settings → Connections → Mobile networks → Data roaming → on.

Here’s the logic that trips people up: a travel eSIM runs on a foreign network, so your phone files it under roaming even though you bought it on purpose. Leave that toggle off and you’ll be standing in arrivals staring at “no service.”

Convert a Physical SIM to eSIM

If your carrier allows it, you can turn a physical SIM you already have into an eSIM — handy when you want to free up the tray for a travel eSIM:

Go to Settings → Connections → SIM manager, tap the physical SIM, and choose Convert to eSIM → Add.
You may be asked to sign in to your carrier account and follow a couple of prompts; once it’s done, that physical SIM becomes an eSIM.

Transfer an eSIM to a New Samsung

Upgrading phones? You can carry an eSIM across without chasing down a new QR code:

On your new Galaxy: Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM → Transfer SIM from another device.
Follow the prompts on both handsets (you’ll confirm with a code shown on the new phone), then remove the eSIM from the old one so it doesn’t stay double-activated.

How to Remove an eSIM

To clear out a finished plan or just tidy up:

Open Settings → Connections → SIM manager.
Select the eSIM you want gone.
Toggle it off, then tap Remove.

Which Samsung Devices Support eSIM

eSIM is standard now across recent Samsung flagships and plenty of mid-range models. Support can shift by region and carrier, so the Add eSIM check above is always the final word — but here’s the broad picture:

Galaxy S series: the S20, S21, S22, S23, S24, and S25 lines.
Galaxy Z foldables: Z Fold2 / Z Flip and onward, right through the newest Z Fold7 / Z Flip7.
Galaxy Note: Note20 and Note20 Ultra.
Galaxy A series (region-dependent): A36 5G, A56 5G, A55 5G, and the rugged XCover7.

Travel-Ready with Airhub

With your Galaxy eSIM-ready, a Travel eSIM from Airhub is the painless way to stay online once you’re abroad: coverage across 190+ destinations, delivered by QR code, live in minutes. Pick a country or global plan in the app, scan the code (the exact steps above), and you walk out of the airport already connected — no physical SIM, no roaming bill, no kiosk queue. Browse esim data plans when you’re ready — and don’t forget to flip data roaming on for the eSIM once you land.

FAQs

1. How do I activate an eSIM on my Samsung?

Go to Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM, then scan your provider’s QR code (or choose Enter activation code to type it in). Set the new line as your mobile data line, and switch on data roaming if it’s a travel eSIM.

2. Why does my Samsung eSIM have no internet after activating?

Nearly always because data roaming is off, or the eSIM isn’t set as your data line. In SIM manager, set the eSIM for mobile data, then turn on Data roaming for it under Mobile networks.

3. Can I convert my physical SIM to an eSIM on Samsung?

If your carrier supports it, yes — SIM manager → tap the physical SIM → Convert to eSIM → Add. Availability comes down to your carrier.

4. Can I move my eSIM to a new Samsung phone?

Often, yes — on the new phone, SIM manager → Add eSIM → Transfer SIM from another device, then follow the prompts on both. It depends on your carrier and model.

5. Which Samsung phones support eSIM?

Most recent ones — the Galaxy S20 through S25 lines, the Z Fold and Z Flip foldables, the Note20 series, and select A-series models (A36/A56/A55/XCover7). Confirm via Settings → Connections → SIM manager → Add eSIM.

6. How do I remove an eSIM from my Samsung?

SIM manager → select the eSIM → toggle it off → Remove. For a travel eSIM, switch it off rather than removing it if you might reuse it, since removal can be permanent.