The Ultimate Tutorial On How To Unlock iPhone's

Today’s the day you finally fulfilled the contract on your iPhone and that baby is officially all yours. What this means is you’re able to use it while traveling overseas with a local SIM card and have the freedom to switch networks when you please, right? Don’t start booking your flight to New Zealand or running to Verizon quite yet because, unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple.

In order to stop somebody from shifting to a rival’s network before they’ve payed off their iPhone or fulfilled their contract, quite a few carriers place a lock (also known as a carrier lock) on their smart phones. This ultimately makes sure that you, or the person you sell your used iPhone to, are stuck with them for the long haul. If you’re thinking this sounds like a rather dysfunctional arrangement, we’d tend to agree with you. Thankfully, along with a little legwork and an account in good standing, you can be on the right track to a network-unlocked iPhone before you know it!

Before we go on, a quick note about the kind of unlocks that are available, and the one's you should stay clear of! There are apps to be found that provide the ability to unlock a cellphone yourself, however they require you to jailbreak your cell phone, and this is not a smart move, for a lot of reasons. You can do your own investigation into jail-breaking, but it's not a sensible choice, and to be avoided. The simplest way to unlock your iPhone is by speaking directly with your wireless provider. Your journey to a carrier-unlocked iPhone hinges largely on your network, with the procedure being either fairly quick and painless or painfully difficult. To get you a step closer to a life free of carrier-locked tyranny, we accumulated all the steps on how to obtain an iPhone unlock in this comprehensive guide. Please note that even though this was written with iPhone owners in mind, a lot of the advice can easily be carried over to other smartphones.

What Is IMEI Unlocking?

As mentioned earlier, when you purchase an iPhone or some other smartphone from your network carrier, that cellphone will only work on that network until you either request to have your carrier unlock it or maybe your carrier automatically unlocks it for you (more about that later). Often called a SIM unlock, factory unlock, or network unlock, carrier unlocking means removing a network’s restrictions on a device, so that you can use it with a different cellular provider.

Fortunately, not every iPhone have to be unlocked. For instance, should you buy your iPhone from Apple and pay for it in full, it should already be unlocked and able to use with a variety of carriers.

Please be aware, however, that not all phones bought outright from third-party retailers are automatically unlocked. For example, although sold as “unlocked”, smartphone's bought at Best Buy are in fact considered universal. So, if you insert a Sim initially, the phone will basically lock itself to the service provider linked to the SIM card. Subsequently, because certain carriers like T-Mobile may only unlock your iPhone if you bought it directly from them, you can end up with an eternally carrier-locked device. Basically, you find yourself paying factory-unlocked prices to get a network-locked mobile phone.

Why would I Unlock My iPhone?

Having a network-unlocked iPhone comes with a good number of benefits including the ability to use (virtually) any network in the Unites States and overseas as well as higher second-hand values.

1. SIM-unlocking allows you the ability to use your cellphone with the cellular provider of your choice, almost wherever and whenever you like (with several exceptions, as you’ll see in a while). For example, if you are currently using T-Mobile but are moving to a new part of the country with lousy T-Mobile coverage, you can swap to AT&T in a heartbeat




2. A IMEI-unlocked iPhone makes international travel a cinch. Unlocking also gives you the ability to use your cellphone overseas. Global roaming fees, pricey international plans, and mad dashes for WiFi become a distant memory with an unlocked iPhone. Merely put in a SIM card from a local network and you're golden.




3. SIM-unlocked iPhones have much higher resale values.

Even if you don’t intend on changing service providers or going overseas soon, unlocking your iPhone remains a smart idea. Should you ever plan on trading in your old iPhone when you upgrade, you’ll generally get more cash for it if the iPhone is already carrier unlocked due to higher interest in them on the resale market place.

Is it illegal to IMEI Unlock your cellphone?

Definitely not! Because of the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2014, all US-based cellular providers must allow people to unlock their phones. However, the circumstances under which a carrier will unlock a smartphone differ widely from provider to provider. As a rule, the vast majority of carriers require you to complete your contract, cover your financial obligations in full, or at a minimum have an account in good standing before they’ll will let you unlock your iPhone.

The best way to verify that your iPhone is Unlocked

Before starting the phone-unlocking process, you’ll first need to check if your iPhone has already been unlocked (no sense in suffering the hassle if you don’t actually need to). All you have to do is be sure that you’re connected to WiFi and insert a brand new SIM card from another cellular provider and your cellphone will do everything else automatically. This validation check typically takes under a minute to accomplish as soon as a SIM has been inserted.

During the verification process, you’ll note that your iPhone will boot to a white screen and attempt to check that it has been unlocked with your service provider. If Apple determine that your iPhone is SIM-unlocked, it will return to the home screen and signal bars should appear from the new carrier. However, if you see a white screen that says SIM Not Supported, your smartphone has not been unlocked.

How to Unlock iPhones from any Provider

Once you determine that your phone is definitely locked to your current cellular provider, next you'll need to start looking at your carrier’s unlocking eligibility conditions. If your iPhone meets their unlocking criteria, you can request that the device can be unlocked from their network. As suggested previously, both the eligibility requirements and the unlocking process vary from company to company. Each one has been outlined below for the major carriers including T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T and Sprint.

Please note that, provided you’ve met the unlock conditions and are completing the network-unlocking directly with your service provider, asking for your iPhone be unlocked can be completely free. Should you decide to use a 3rd party unlocking company, you will be charged, but using a third party service is going to be your only option if you are not the original owner of the phone. So, before you spend money unnecessarily, try using the directions outlined below beforehand.

Find Your iPhone’s IMEI Number

When officially-unlocking your iPhone, you'll have to supply your provider the device’s IMEI number. This unique, 15-digit identifier is essentially your phone’s VIN or social security number. To find your IMEI, on your phone, select Settings > General > About and scroll down to the bottom of the list where you'll see it listed next to IMEI.

You can also locate the IMEI number on the smartphone shell itself. For earlier iPhone's (1st-generation SE, 5s, 5c, 5, 6, 6 Plus), the IMEI number will also be branded on the back or the SIM tray.

When you’ve established the IMEI number, we strongly recommend that you keep it someplace for safekeeping.

Unlock an iPhone on AT&T

Unlocking an iPhone from AT&T is about as simple as a, b, c. Just pop on over to the AT&T unlock portal, answer a couple of questions, and you’re well on your way to network-unlocked freedom.

After you submit your request, use your IMEI and request reference numbers to check on your AT&T unlocking status. After you get your validation text or email, just open it up then click on the verification link. That's all there is to it! AT&T will unlock your iPhone within 2 working days.

For any iPhone to get unlocked from AT&T, it must meet the following requirements:

• Must not have a past-due balance
• Must not be active on a different AT&T account
• If it is a work phone, you must have your employer’s permission to unlock it
• If it is an AT&T PREPAID phone, it must be active for at least six months
• Must not be reported as lost, stolen, or blocked

If the iPhone is part of a term agreement or installment plan, it needs to also meet these requirements:

• The installment plan must be paid off
• The term agreement must be complete
• The device must be active on the AT&T network for at least 60 days

For in-depth eligibility requirements, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on Sprint

Dependent on when you purchased your phone and if it has SIM-unlock capabilities, you've got a couple of different unlock choices. In the event you obtained a new iPhone from Sprint after February 2015 (it will be SIM-unlock capable) and it's actively being used on their network, Sprint should unlock it automatically once it meets their eligibility requirements. So, you actually don’t have to do anything besides keep your account in good standing. Even so, if your iPhone hasn't been activated or was purchased before February 2015, you’ll have to speak to Sprint Customer Care directly to ask for an unlock (either dial *2 on your Sprint phone or dial 888-211-4727).

There have been reports from some Sprint users that the auto-unlock program does not always operate as it needs to, so it’s certainly a very good idea to check that your iPhone is unlocked before trying to swap to another service provider or advertising your iPhone as unlocked, if you plan to sell it to a buyback business or on craigslist or ebay.

In order for an iPhone to get unlocked from the Sprint network, it's got to meet the following conditions:

• Must be active on the Sprint network for at least 40 days
• Must be on an account in good standing
• Must not be reported as lost, stolen, or associated with fraud
• Must have SIM-unlock capabilities (if it doesn’t, it is MSL (Master Subsidy Lock) locked and you will need to call Sprint for the MSL code)

If your iPhone is part of a service agreement, lease agreement, or installment plan, it must also satisfy these conditions:

• If leased, the end-of-lease purchase option must be fully paid
• Any early-termination fees must be fully paid
• Any lease or installment payments must be fully paid

For in-depth eligibility conditions, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on T-Mobile

If your reading this and own an Android cellphone and your handset meets the eligibility requirements, consider yourself lucky: You can unlock it easily from the device itself. For those iPhone owners out there, you’ll have to speak to T-Mobile’s Team of Specialists directly (either dial 611 from a T-Mobile iPhone, call 877-746-0909.

To have an iPhone unlocked from T-Mobile, it must adhere to the following prerequisites:

• For prepaid accounts, it must have been active on the account for at least 12 months
• Must have been purchased directly from T-Mobile
• Must be paid for in full
• Must not have been reported as lost, stolen, or blocked

If the iPhone is part of a postpaid account, it needs to also adhere to these conditions:

• Must have been active on the account for at least 40 days
• The account must be in good standing

For detailed eligibility conditions, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on Verizon

Verizon is, by far, the top provider to work with for unlocking an iPhone. Why? Because Verizon will automatically unlock your phone 60 days after the purchase of the device. If you purchased your iPhone at a retail partner, it'll be unlocked automatically Sixty days after device activation.

There are no catches. You don’t have to pay off your phone, fulfill any special prerequisites, or even contact them to ask to unlock your phone from their network. Provided your iPhone hasn’t been reported stolen or lost, simply wait two months after purchase or activation and your phone will be ready to go.

Don’t believe us? Just click here.

Now I've Unlocked my iPhone — what do I do now?

Back many years ago, you’d need to hook your iPhone up to iTunes and perform a software restore to finish the unlock procedure. Luckily, it’s much easier nowadays. All you have to do is go through same steps you followed earlier to verify whether your phone had been unlocked to begin with.

If you don’t have access to a SIM card from an alternative carrier, you may still verify that a iPhone has been unlocked by performing iTunes software restore. Simply hook up your iPhone to a computer running iTunes and hit the “restore” option. After the restoration process has finished, you will see a message which says “Congratulations, your iPhone has been unlocked.”

Great job! You successfully IMEI-unlocked your iPhone! Meaning your able to use whichever network you would like to now, right? We hate be the bearer of bad news, but no. Because of the two different kinds of technologies employed in the Unites States, GSM and CDMA, your available cell phone providers will depend on the model of your iPhone and the original network it's locked to. Specifically, Verizon and Sprint are CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) networks, while AT&T, T-Mobile, and the majority of providers in other countries are GSM (Global System for Mobiles) networks.

As you’ve probably guessed, both these different network types don't talk to each other (because that would be too easy). Thankfully, as we move closer to global 5G access and as older networks are retired, it will hopefully cease to be a problem.

To discover which carriers you have access to depending on both of these factors, continue reading.

AT&T

GSM networks only (AT&T, T-Mobile, international GSM carriers): Original iPhone, iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Sprint

International networks only: iPhone 4s and iPhone 5

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

T-Mobile

GSM networks only (AT&T, T-Mobile, international GSM carriers): Original iPhone, iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Verizon

Compatible with any carrier in the world, but with limitations when using GSM networks: iPhone 4s, iPhone 5

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Is the Unlock permanent?

Yes! Once your phone has been carrier-unlocked, it is going to stay that way for the lifetime of the handset. You are able to restore your iPhone or update apps without having to worry about your unlock vanishing afterwards.