If you have an iPhone with a SIM lock, you cannot use the device with a SIM card from another provider. However, it is possible to make your iPhone unlocked. We show you how.
Please contact the provider
To make your iPhone SIM-free, you need to contact the provider of your SIM card. If you want to do it legally, only the provider can unlock your iPhone. For this you may have to meet certain requirements of the provider, but you will hear that automatically. Once you’ve asked to unlock your iPhone, the process can take up to seven days. You will then receive a confirmation that the unlocking has been successful.
If you have a SIM card from a different provider than your current provider, change the SIM card and perform the configuration on the screen of your iPhone. If you don’t have another SIM card, you don’t have to. You do need to make a backup of your iPhone and then erase the device. If the iPhone is completely empty, restart the iPhone and follow the steps. You can then restore the backup. This step was necessary to prepare the iPhone for the new provider.
What to do in case of problems
If you are still having problems, you may see the message below in iTunes:
The SIM card in this iPhone is apparently not supported. You may only use SIM cards from a supported carrier to activate iPhone. Insert the SIM card that came with your iPhone into the device or go to a supported retailer. ‘
You can now do two things: restore the iPhone or contact the carrier again. Perhaps unlocking the iPhone has not been applied in the provider’s system and that has yet to be done.
Unlock via jailbreak
Another option to unlock your iPhone is to jailbreak the device. Then you can unlock the iPhone, so that any SIM card in your device works. This is a detour and there are risks involved. In our manual you can read how a jailbreak works, but please note: the warranty of the device expires, so if there are problems with your iPhone, you can no longer go to Apple or your provider. Often, resetting your iPhone can solve problems with the device, but there is always the chance that your iPhone will be ‘bricked’. That means that some or all parts of your iPhone no longer work.
By jailbreaking, you download an app that is not supported by Apple. Your device gets more options than Apple’s closed iOS system offers you. It also allows you to unlock your iPhone without having to contact Apple or the phone provider.
There are several ways to unlock your iPhone after jailbreak. One of which is Unlock Jailbreak, which supports all released versions of iPhones, even with iOS 7.1.1.
→ Looking for more? Check out our overview with iPhone tips!