How to install Anon eSIM on iPhone (60-second guide)

After your top-up clears, you'll land on the "My eSIM" page with two install options: a QR code and a big "Install on this iPhone" button. If you're already on the iPhone that will use the eSIM, the button is faster.

One-tap install

1. On the iPhone you'll use, open the confirmation email or navigate to /account with your recovery token loaded.
2. Tap Install on this iPhone. iOS will prompt: "This website is trying to add a cellular plan."
3. Tap Allow, then Continue, then Add Cellular Plan.
4. Label the plan (we suggest "Travel" or "Anon"). Choose which line to use for calls, iMessage, and default data.
5. Done. It's active immediately.

QR code install (from another device)

If you bought on a laptop and want to install on a separate phone:

1. Open Settings → Cellular → Add eSIM → Use QR Code.
2. Point the camera at the QR from /account.
3. Follow the same "Add Cellular Plan" flow as above.

Roaming toggle

Enable Data Roaming for the Anon line. Our eSIM connects through global roaming agreements - without that toggle on, iOS will assume you don't want to use the network. This is per-line, so your primary carrier's roaming settings are untouched.

If it doesn't activate immediately

Give it 60 seconds and check the signal indicator for your new line. If it stays on "Searching", toggle Airplane Mode off/on. If still stuck, the destination country may not support your carrier yet - check /esim/<country-code> for coverage details.

Which iPhones actually support this

Every iPhone from XS onward has an eSIM chip. Every iPhone from 13 onward supports at least two active eSIMs simultaneously (dual eSIM). US iPhone 14 and newer models are eSIM-only - there is no physical SIM tray, which makes anonymous eSIMs the only travel option that doesn't involve unlocking your phone and finding a paperclip. iOS 16 introduced eSIM Quick Transfer between iPhones over Bluetooth; iOS 17 refined it. iOS 18 added better dual-line data-selection UI, which is where you'll spend most of your time managing which SIM serves data at any given moment.

Setting the eSIM as your data line without breaking anything else

Two settings decide how a dual-SIM iPhone behaves. Under Settings → Cellular: Default Voice Line should stay on your primary (calls and iMessage anchor to it), and Cellular Data should switch to the Anon line while you travel. Leave Allow Cellular Data Switching off. With switching on, iOS silently uses your primary SIM for large downloads if it thinks the Anon line is slow - which is exactly the kind of "unexpected home-carrier roaming bill" the second line existed to prevent.

Common gotchas that look like install failures

• "Cellular Plan Cannot Be Added" red banner. Almost always a carrier-lock issue. Check Settings → General → About → Carrier Lock: it must read "No SIM restrictions". If it doesn't, your phone won't take any foreign profile - eSIM or physical.
• Signal bars but no data. Data Roaming is off for the Anon line, or Cellular Data is still pointed at your primary. Both are per-line toggles; check both.
• "Anon" line greys out after 30 seconds. Usually a transient network-selection issue on arrival. Airplane Mode off/on forces a re-scan. If it persists into hour two of being on the ground, drop us an email with your ICCID.
• iMessage stuck on activating. iMessage anchors to whichever line is set as Default Voice Line, and re-activates any time that changes. Leave the voice line alone at trip start and it stays put.

Uninstalling cleanly

Back home: Settings → Cellular → Anon line → Remove eSIM. The profile is deleted from the device but your balance is not deleted from your account - the recovery token you saved still points at the same balance, and you can re-install to the same or a different iPhone on the next trip.