eSIM stuck on Activating or Pending: what is really going on

First, find out how far the setup got

Open Settings, then Cellular (Mobile Data in some regions) on an iPhone, or Settings, Network and internet, SIMs on a Pixel. If the new line is listed there, the profile reached the phone and what is still pending is the connection to a network. If it is not listed at all, the download never finished, which is a different problem: our installation guide shows how to start it properly.

This difference decides everything that follows. A listed line that is waiting can be nudged with switches and restarts. A line that never appeared cannot be fixed from the phone's menus, and its QR code may already count as used, as explained in this code is no longer valid. Take a screenshot either way; it saves time if you end up writing to the provider.

Cause one: the phone was offline during setup

The QR code does not contain the plan itself. It tells the phone where to download the profile from, and that download needs internet. Apple's setup article starts with exactly that: connect the iPhone to a Wi-Fi network or a hotspot. It adds that in some countries and regions, eSIM-only iPhone models can activate without Wi-Fi. Google, for its part, lists a Wi-Fi connection among the requirements for turning a SIM card into an eSIM on a Pixel.

The usual trap is a network that looks connected but is not online: hotel or airport Wi-Fi still waiting for you to accept a login page, or a weak signal that drops halfway through. Connect to a network you know works, open a web page to confirm it, then go through Apple's steps further down. Do not start a second installation from the same code.

Cause two: you are not in the destination yet

A travel eSIM for one country only connects in that country, so at home it has no network it is allowed to join. Installed a few days before the trip, the line can show No Service or stay waiting until you land, and that is how it should behave, not a failed setup. A Snoozim country pack works only in its country, the Europe pack in its 33 countries, and the plan starts counting at the first connection in the destination.

So if you installed at home and the line looks stuck, leave it alone. When you arrive, two settings decide whether it connects: Data Roaming has to be on for the travel line, and that line has to be the one selected for mobile data. Both are covered in do you need data roaming on for a travel eSIM.

Cause three: the provider has not finished

A line only works if there is an active plan behind it. Apple's checklist for Dual SIM problems asks you to confirm that both plans are set up and ready to use and that there is no billing block on the account. Its article on No Service goes further: ask the carrier whether the account is active and in good standing, and whether there is an outage where you are.

None of that can be sped up from the phone. What you can do is give the provider what it needs to look. Apple recommends noting the exact error message and having the IMEI or EID to hand, both in Settings, General, About. Our guide to EID, ICCID and IMEI explains which number is which and why the EID is the one an eSIM provider asks for.

Apple's steps, in Apple's order

• Turn on Airplane Mode for at least 15 seconds, then turn it off.
• Open Settings, Cellular and tap the new line. If it is off, turn it on; if it is on, turn it off and on again.
• Restart the iPhone.
• Go to Settings, General, About, find the eSIM section and tap the version next to Carrier. Install an update if one is offered.
• On iOS 18 or later, the Apple Support app can run extra diagnostics.

After each step, Apple suggests opening Control Center to see whether the carrier name now shows in the status bar. If it does, stop there. If none of the steps works, Apple's last one is to contact the carrier. The carrier settings prompt itself is explained in our guide to that update.

On Android, and the one thing not to do

Google's connectivity checklist for Pixel phones starts in Settings, Network and internet, SIMs: tap the line, make sure Use SIM is on, and check that Mobile data is on. Google then suggests powering the phone off, waiting 30 seconds and turning it back on, instead of choosing restart. For an error message about the SIM, Google's advice is to contact the carrier. On a Samsung Galaxy, each line has its own switch in Settings, Connections, SIM manager.

What not to do on either system is delete the eSIM and scan the code again. Apple warns against erasing an eSIM as a troubleshooting step unless the carrier tells you to, and a QR code is normally good for one installation. A deleted Snoozim eSIM cannot be reinstalled, as what happens if you delete an eSIM explains. Write to the seller instead.