iPhone 15 Models Sold Outside U.S. Still Have Physical SIM Card Tray

Apple's new iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max models all remain equipped with a physical SIM card tray outside of the United States, as a rumored eSIM-only expansion with the devices failed to materialize.

iPhone 15 SIM Tray
Tech specs on Apple's website confirm that all four iPhone 15 models remain compatible with nano-SIM cards in countries such as the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, China, Singapore, Turkey, and everywhere else they are sold. In most countries, the devices also continue to support eSIM as well, allowing for dual-SIM functionality with cellular networks.

Apple removed the SIM card tray from all iPhone 14 models in the U.S. last year, forcing customers to use an eSIM, a digital SIM that allows users to activate a cellular plan without having to use a physical nano-SIM card. Apple has a support document with a list of carriers that support eSIM technology around the world.

When the iPhone 14 series launched in the U.S., Apple promoted eSIMs as being more secure than a physical SIM since they cannot be removed from an iPhone that is lost or stolen. Apple added that up to eight eSIMs can be managed in the iPhone's Settings app, eliminating the need to obtain, carry, and swap physical SIM cards while traveling. iPhone 13 and newer models can have two eSIMs active at the same time.

With eSIM availability expanding, the SIM card tray might eventually be removed from iPhones sold outside of the U.S., but for now it lives another year.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
ios 26 1 slide to stop

iOS 26.1 Brings Back 2007 Feature in New Way

Friday October 31, 2025 1:40 pm PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a small but helpful change for iPhones, and it could prevent you from running late to something important. Specifically, when an alarm goes off in the Clock app, there is a new "slide to stop" control on the screen for turning off the alarm. On previous iOS 26 versions, there is simply a large "stop" button, which could be accidentally tapped. The new ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
M5 MacBook Pro

Waiting for New Macs? Apple Just Shared Bad News

Friday October 31, 2025 7:32 am PDT by
Apple has just given a strong indication that it will not be releasing any additional new Macs for the remainder of the year. Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh dropped the hint during the company's earnings call on Thursday:On Mac, keep in mind, we expect to face a very difficult compare against the M4 MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac launches in the year-ago quarter.Parekh essentially gave a heads up ...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
maxresdefault

Apple TV 4K Could Still Launch Before 2025 Ends: All the Rumored Features

Monday October 27, 2025 4:51 pm PDT by
Apple is designing an updated version of the Apple TV 4K, and rumors suggest that it could come out sometime in the next couple of months. We're not expecting a major overhaul with design changes, but even a simple chip upgrade will bring major improvements to Apple's set-top box. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up all the latest Apple TV rumors. ...
ipad mini 7 feature blue

OLED iPad Mini: Release Date, Pricing, and What to Expect

Wednesday October 29, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
Rumors are stoking excitement for the next-generation iPad mini that Apple is reportedly close to launching. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released over a year ago? Read on to find out. Processor and Performance Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to...
Coffee Burgundy and Purple iPhone 18 Pro Mock 1

Leaker Outlines Potential New Colors for iPhone 18 Pro

Friday October 31, 2025 8:28 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro models could be available in new rich and warm color option, according to a known leaker. The Weibo user known as "Instant Digital" today suggested that next-year's iPhone 18 Pro models will be available in at least one of the following color options: Coffee, purple, and burgundy. The iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 14, and iPhone 14 Pro were all available in ...
apple tv hd

Apple Launched Its Big New Vision for TV 10 Years Ago Today

Thursday October 30, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple launched the Apple TV HD, the Siri Remote, tvOS, and their accompanying App Store a decade ago today, marking a major overhaul of the device. The new vision for the Apple TV was unveiled on September 9, 2015 during Apple's "Hey Siri" event in San Francisco, where CEO Tim Cook introduced the device with the statement, "The future of TV is apps." The announcement represented a major...

Top Rated Comments

TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
28 months ago
eSim is cool and handy but I prefer Physical Sim Card Tray iPhones. Especially for those who travel internationally. Makes it so much easier.
Score: 40 Votes (Like | Disagree)
doboy Avatar
28 months ago
Pretty stupid to have 2x SKU's just for the SIM tray. Just make it all with the SIM tray.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
canadianspeculator Avatar
28 months ago
ESim is great in theory, but I travel abroad frequently for work and on more than one occasion I've bought an Airalo or Ubigi SIM that simply doesn't work, and then I can't even get my money back. It's a bad system for those who actually need to do frequent SIM changes. I'm actually in Japan right now, and I bought an Ubigi - it wouldn't activate for three days straight, leaving me no choice but to pay for expensive roaming.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nozuka Avatar
28 months ago

eSim is cool and handy but I prefer Sim Card Tray iPhones for those who travel internationally. Makes it so much easier.
Getting an e-Sim for traveling from an App seems easier to me, than buying one in a store and putting in the phone.
You can even do it before you get there and have one less thing to worry about when you arrive.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
canadianspeculator Avatar
28 months ago

I'm in Japan and getting an Ubigi sim card was extremely simple; activated right away for me. And similar issues can (and have) happened with physical sim cards as well.
I'm glad you had that experience, but this is literally my 8th time having an ESim fail out on me. It's happened a ton, particularly in Asia and Africa. It's simply not a reliable experience- or maybe my 14 is the issue (doubtful)
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
HobeSoundDarryl Avatar
28 months ago
Is it just me or does eSIM in the U.S. only seem to be getting uptake with the full-price majors while most- but not all- of the relatively cheap MVNOs don't seem to be going there (or at least not very quickly)? It doesn't SEEM like a technology that would require MVNOs to spend a lot of money to support it (in fact, it seems like it could save them money for not having to make & mail SIM cards and provide support on installing them)... so I wonder why the uptake seems slow or even "no" after all this time?

Meanwhile, they all still support SIM cards. So if me, I'd want this kind of iPhone too... so I don't find myself having to choose between only a few players that mostly demand maximum profit plans in the U.S. Once I could see many value-minded MVNOs offering eSIM, this opinion would change. But before then, I'd want to keep my options as open as possible until many of them are on board.

Apparently the SIM-capable phone can do everything the SIM-less one can do and I don't read that it costs more either... so I see it as a phone with a money-saving bonus feature that can use eSIM or SIM vs. those only able to use one of them. So far eSIM in America feels like a "big 3" service provider cash grab to me.

Do I prefer an eSIM world? Yes, but let's get the value service players on board fast... instead of forcing the option that mostly the more expensive service providers can actually fulfill (in America). Since we can't do that with words posted in a bulletin board online, the action a consumer could take is to go to the trouble of getting a new phone that also has the SIM option too.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)