You may need your iPhone’s serial number or IMEI when sending it in for service, asking a carrier to unlock it, or reporting it lost. On a working iPhone, you can find these details in one place, and there are a few other ways to look them up if the iPhone will not turn on.
The serial number identifies the iPhone itself, while the IMEI identifies it on cellular networks. iPhones with eSIM also have an EID (Embedded Identity Document), a unique identifier for the device’s built-in eSIM, which appears alongside the serial number and IMEI.
Settings, General, About Lists the Serial Number, IMEI, and EID on a Working iPhone
- Open the Settings app and tap General.
- Tap About.
- Find the Serial Number near the top, then scroll down for the IMEI, plus the EID and ICCID if your iPhone uses eSIM.
- Touch and hold a number to copy it, then paste it into an Apple registration or support form.
An iPhone with two lines lists a second IMEI as IMEI2. You can also open the Phone app and dial *#06# to bring up the IMEI on screen.
Apple started using randomized serial numbers with the purple iPhone 12.
An eSIM-Only iPhone Has No SIM Tray to Check, So Settings and Your Apple Account Are the Places to Look
The US iPhone 18 Pro Max is eSIM-only, as are the versions sold in Canada, Japan, and Mexico, and it differs from other regional versions in other ways too. With no tray to pull out, those iPhones show the IMEI in Settings, General, About, and in the options below when the screen is dead.
A Dead or Lost iPhone Still Gives Up Its Serial Number Through Four Other Routes
- Apple Account: go to account.apple.com in a web browser, sign in with the Apple Account you use on the iPhone, open Devices, and select the iPhone to see its serial number, EID, and IMEI.
- A computer: connect the iPhone to a Mac and open Finder, or use the Apple Devices app on a Windows PC, then select the iPhone. Clicking the phone number or model under its name switches the display to the EID, IMEI, and ICCID.
- The original box: the barcode label on the packaging shows the serial number, EID, and IMEI.
- The SIM tray: on the iPhone 6s through the iPhone 13 series, including the iPhone SE (2nd generation) and iPhone SE (3rd generation), the IMEI is printed on the tray itself.
The tray method helps most when you need support and cannot open Settings. Some carrier forms ask for the MEID instead of the IMEI, and the MEID is the first 14 digits of the IMEI.
