Short answer. Install the eSIM at home, on Wi-Fi, before you leave. Activate it when you land in Tunisia, with four settings: switch the eSIM line on, choose it for mobile data, turn data roaming on for that line, and keep it off on your usual line. On our plans the days only start at your first connection to the network in Tunisia: installing early costs you no days.
Install, then activate: two moments
Installing downloads the eSIM profile to the phone when you scan the QR code from your email. It needs an internet connection: home Wi-Fi is the safest. Our supplier says activation after the scan can take up to 10 minutes. The full method is in how to install a Tunisia eSIM, step by step.
Activating is the first connection to the Tunisian network. Our supplier puts it this way: the plan starts automatically as soon as the eSIM connects to a supported network with data roaming enabled. For our plans, that network is Orange Tunisie.
With iOS 26, Apple separates the two clearly: the iPhone may ask whether the eSIM is for home or for travel, and on arrival it offers to "Turn On Travel eSIM". On older versions, an eSIM installed outside Tunisia can show "Activating" for a long time: that is not an error.
Before you leave
- Check the phone is compatible and unlocked: is my phone eSIM compatible?
- Install the eSIM a day or two ahead, on Wi-Fi, and give the line a name such as "Tunisia".
- Keep your usual line for calls and texts.
- Leave the eSIM line off, or simply not chosen for data, until you land.
- Keep the order email: it also holds the manual installation details.
When you land, on iPhone
- Open Settings, then Mobile Service (Mobile Data or Cellular on some versions).
- Tap the eSIM line and switch on "Turn On This Line".
- Go back, tap "Mobile Data" and choose the eSIM line.
- In the eSIM line, turn on "Data Roaming". In your usual line, leave it off.
- Turn off "Allow Mobile Data Switching", so the iPhone does not fall back to your usual line.
If the iPhone shows "Turn On Travel eSIM", you can follow that screen: Apple then lets you use the travel eSIM alone, or alongside your usual line with the eSIM used for data.
When you land, on Samsung and Pixel
- Samsung: Settings, Connections, SIM manager. Switch the eSIM on and choose it under "Mobile data". Leave calls and messages on your usual SIM.
- Pixel: Settings, Network and internet, SIMs. Switch the eSIM on and choose it for "Mobile data".
- Roaming: in the eSIM line's settings (Mobile networks on Samsung), turn on "Data roaming". Our supplier is clear: without it, the eSIM does not work.
How to tell the eSIM is working
- A 4G or LTE indicator appears next to the signal. On iPhone, open Control Centre: the eSIM line's network name shows.
- Turn Wi-Fi off and open a web page: it loads.
- In the settings, the eSIM line's data usage starts to rise.
A misleading case: our supplier reports an iOS 26 bug that can hide the signal bars on data eSIMs. If "4G" or "LTE" shows, there is service, even with no bars.
If nothing happens after two minutes
- Turn Airplane Mode on for ten seconds, then off.
- Check the four settings above, data roaming on the eSIM line above all.
- Restart the phone.
No network at all: eSIM shows No Service or SOS. Signal but no internet: eSIM has signal but no internet.
Installing once you are in Tunisia
It works, on hotel or airport Wi-Fi. One iPhone detail: our supplier says an iPhone can use a little mobile data during installation when Wi-Fi is weak, because of the "Wi-Fi Assist" setting, which can start the plan early. If you install on the spot, turn off "Wi-Fi Assist", at the bottom of the Mobile Service screen, while you install.
Our eSIM runs on the Orange Tunisie network: 1 GB a day at full 4G speed, then 512 kbps until the next day, hotspot included, QR code by email, plan starting at your first connection in Tunisia. See the plans.
Bought from us and nothing works? Email contact@esimtunisie.com, 7 days a week, 9 am to 8 pm GMT, with your order number, your phone model and a screenshot of the setting in question. We can check your eSIM's status with our supplier. Lost the QR code? Get it sent again here.
Sources
Apple Support: Set up eSIM on iPhone, Use eSIM while travelling internationally, If you can't set up eSIM on your iPhone, Unlock your iPhone. Google Help: Use dual SIMs on your Google Pixel phone. Our eSIM supplier's documentation, read on 16 October 2026. Menu names vary a little with the phone model and system version.
Not installed yet and already in Tunisia? Buy and install an eSIM without Wi-Fi, even with one phone.