If you recently received an old iPhone from someone, or found a spare iPhone at home, you may be wondering a very common question: Can I use an iPhone without a SIM card?
The answer is yes - and you may be surprised that you could even perform calling and texting without having a SIM card from a carrier! In this article, we will show you how to use an iPhone without SIM card, in a variety of ways.
Why would someone use an iPhone without a SIM card?
There are many situations where you may need to use an iPhone without a SIM card.
Reason 1: SIM card reader is not working
For example, the SIM card reader in your iPhone may have broken down or got damaged. Replacing the SIM card reader is an expensive affair - and may not be a wise choice especially if you are thinking of getting a new one! Even if you have AppleCare warranty active, you could be charged up to $400 for replacement of the SIM card reader.
Reason 2: It's just a spare phone or extra device
In other situations, you may have an extra iPhone or an old iPhone that was handed to you by someone. Having an extra mobile device can certainly be handy, especially if your current one breaks down.
However, while it continues to be a second phone, there is no way you are going to get a phone plan for a SIM card just to use this phone. Can a phone work without a SIM card?
3 Ways to use an iPhone without SIM card
Thankfully, without a SIM card, can still be used as a functioning mobile device with most features still available.
Your iPhone is still a powerful mobile device capable of playing games, videos, and using apps downloaded from the App Store.
Here are 3 ways you can use your iPhone without a SIM card and get the most of out of it:
Method 1: You can use an old iPhone as an iPod
Without a SIM card, your iPhone essentially becomes an iPod touch.
Did you notice that an iPod touch looks a lot like an actual iPhone? That is indeed true, because an iPod touch is an iPhone without a SIM card slot - just with slightly different hardware.
For music playback, an old iPhone works exactly the same as how you would listen to music on an iPod. You could transfer songs into the Music app or just use a music streaming service. Plus, you get around 64GB of space for your music which should be already more than what you need.
Method 2: You can text and call even without a SIM card
Texting and calling is still possible without a SIM card thanks to phone number apps. These apps have seen increasing adoption due to the ability to get more than one phone number on your iPhone, which is useful for separating work and life.
For example, Phoner - Second Phone Number app offers real phone numbers from over 30+ countries and in all 50 states in the US. You could get multiple phone numbers for texting and calling on just one device, without a SIM card.
Calling and texting using phone number apps will require use of an Internet connection, so as long as you are connected to a WiFi network, you are good to go to call and text anyone.
Another alternative is to get a E-SIM, but feature is not quite supported by Apple and other phone manufacturers just yet.
Method 3: You can use apps and browse the Internet using WiFi
Can you use WiFi without a SIM card? Yes, as long as your iPhone can be connected to a WiFi network, your iPhone can work without a SIM card for all Internet access.
Browsing the Internet, downloading and using apps, playing games would work without issues without a SIM card.
There is no distinction between mobile data and data over a home WiFi network. In fact, your home WiFi network should run much faster to give you a better Internet experience.
Conclusion: Yes, without a SIM card, you can still use your iPhone with almost all features available
We hope this article helped to answer the question on whether or not you can use an iPhone without a SIM card.
However, if you are resetting the device or doing a 'restore to factory settings', you may need to insert a dummy SIM card or any SIM card you can find to activate the phone fo the first time. Once that is done, you will never need a SIM card again.
If you have not tried a second phone number app, it may be interesting to try out Phoner - Second Phone Number app and see how you can get a second phone number for calling and texting. You could use it for work, or a separate line for dating, or even to give someone a prank call.