Damien Wilde / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Android phones could soon be able to back up and restore SIMs —likely eSIMs — through Google One device backups.
- Backing up and restoring eSIM data through the cloud would simplify switching devices or recovering from a broken phone.
Most Android flagships these days support eSIMs, which are pretty convenient compared to physical SIMs. However, if you use an eSIM and somehow end up with a broken phone, you’d be quite stuck getting back network access without the help of your carrier. Unlike a physical SIM, there is no easy option to move an eSIM from an old, broken phone onto a new one. Thankfully, it seems Google is working on a solution for Android phones, as Google One device backups could soon include SIMs.
An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
Google Play Services v25.16.33 beta includes code suggesting Android users can soon back up and restore SIMs. This likely refers to eSIMs, as physical SIMs remain unaffected by data wipes, although some carriers require users to set some optimal settings that aren’t automatically set.
Code
<string name="backup_settings_devicedata_data_type_sims">SIMs</string>As part of the redesign of the Device Backup screen, Google also added mentions of SIM cards as part of the device data backup. In the older design, SIMs are neither mentioned nor included in the device backup.
AssembleDebug / Android Authority
The ability to back up and restore eSIMs on Android devices would make it much more convenient to switch devices, especially in instances where you may not have both your old and new devices in hand simultaneously (or in working condition) to perform a data transfer. This may be of limited utility during simpler factory reset operations, since Android does give you an option to not wipe eSIM data. However, if you wipe eSIM data when factory resetting, you will have to restart your eSIM setup process through your carrier.
Currently, SIMs are not part of the device backup. We don’t know if and when Google will release this feature, but given its utility, we hope to see it rolled out soon.
