How to delete an eSIM safely, and what happens to your data plan

Should you delete the eSIM? The short answer

Whether to delete an eSIM depends on what it is and what is left on it:

If you are not sure, switching the line off is always the safe choice. It stops the eSIM from connecting and costs nothing, and you can still delete it later.

What happens when you delete an eSIM

An eSIM is a profile that your provider loads onto your phone. Deleting it removes that profile, with these consequences:

• Remaining data and days are usually lost. The plan belongs to the eSIM. Without the eSIM, there is nothing for the data to run on.
• You usually cannot reinstall it. Many travel eSIM providers state that a QR code can be installed only once. Scanning it again after deleting typically fails.
• A subscription is not cancelled. Some travel eSIMs renew every month. Deleting the eSIM does not stop the payments; you have to cancel in the provider's app or account.
• A phone number goes with it. If the eSIM came with a number, that number stops working on your phone.
• The provider may be able to help. Some providers can issue a new eSIM for the same plan, sometimes for a fee. Ask support before you rely on it.

Deleting an eSIM does not affect your other lines. Your home SIM or your other eSIMs stay as they are.

Three settings are often confused with deleting, and all three can be undone:

• Switching the line off keeps the eSIM on the phone but stops it from connecting at all.
• Switching data roaming off on a line stops mobile data abroad, while calls and SMS on that line still work.
• Choosing another line for mobile data moves your data to a different SIM or eSIM without changing anything else.

Only deleting removes the eSIM itself, and that step usually cannot be reversed.

Five checks before you delete

A minute of checking avoids most problems:

1. Check what is left. Look up the remaining data and validity in the provider's app or account. If there is a lot left, keep the eSIM and switch it off instead.
2. Cancel any subscription or auto top-up. If the plan renews automatically, cancel it in your account first. Our comparison marks subscription plans, but the setting is in the provider's account.
3. Ask for a refund first, if you want one. If you bought a plan you never used, contact support before deleting. Providers usually check whether the eSIM was installed or used, and a deleted eSIM makes that harder to show.
4. Note the details. Write down the provider, the order number and the ICCID shown in your phone's settings for that line. Support needs them if anything goes wrong.
5. Make sure it is the right line. With several eSIMs on one phone, the labels can look alike. Check the provider name or the number before you tap delete.

How to delete an eSIM on iPhone

1. Open Settings → Cellular (Mobile Data on some models and in some languages).
2. Under the list of plans, tap the eSIM you want to remove. Check the label and, if needed, the number or carrier shown on the next screen.
3. Scroll down and tap Delete eSIM (on older iOS versions: Remove Cellular Plan), then confirm.
4. Back in the Cellular settings, check that mobile data is set to the line you want to keep.

If you are resetting the iPhone to sell it or give it away (Settings → General → Transfer or Reset iPhone → Erase All Content and Settings), the iPhone asks what to do with your eSIMs. Choose to erase them unless you are keeping the phone in the family and want the lines to stay.

To tell your lines apart in future, you can rename them: tap the line in the Cellular settings and change its label, for example to the destination and the month of the trip.

How to delete an eSIM on Android

The menus depend on the brand and the Android version. These are the usual paths:

Android asks for confirmation and sometimes for your screen lock. After deleting, check in the same menu which line is used for mobile data, calls and SMS.

When you reset an Android phone to sell it, the reset screen usually offers to erase downloaded eSIMs as well. Tick that option, or delete the eSIMs one by one before the reset.

Switch it off instead: keeping a travel eSIM for next time

A travel eSIM that you no longer need right now can simply be switched off. It stays on the phone, does not connect to any network and costs nothing:

• On an iPhone: Settings → Cellular → tap the eSIM → switch off Turn On This Line.
• On Android: in the SIM settings, tap the eSIM and switch off Use SIM or the equivalent toggle.

Keeping it is worth it if the provider lets you top up the same eSIM: before your next trip, you buy more data in the provider's app and switch the line back on, without scanning a new QR code. Whether top-ups work for a plan, and whether they are available for your next destination, is shown on each provider page in our comparison.

A top-up is not always the cheapest option, though. A new plan from another provider can cost less for the next destination. Here are the cheapest current plans of at least seven days for Europe as an example:

Phones can only store a limited number of eSIMs, so it makes sense to delete old travel eSIMs that you will not top up again. All plans for a destination are on its page, for example Europe, and our promo codes page lists current discounts.

Deleted an eSIM by mistake? What you can still do

1. Do not scan the old QR code again and again. If the provider allows only one installation, repeated attempts will not bring it back and can make support's job harder.
2. Contact the provider's support. Give them the order number, the email address of the order and, if you noted it, the ICCID. Ask whether they can issue a new eSIM for the same plan and whether the remaining data moves with it.
3. For your home carrier's eSIM, contact the carrier. It can usually send a new eSIM to the same number, sometimes only after checking your identity, and some carriers charge for it.
4. If you are abroad and need data now, a new short plan is often the quickest fix. Installing it needs an internet connection, so use Wi-Fi. Our guide How to install an eSIM on iPhone walks you through it.

If the eSIM stopped working rather than disappearing, deleting it is rarely the solution. Try the steps in eSIM not working abroad first.