How do I unlock my phone?

Find out if your phone is locked

Sophie avatar
Written by Sophie
Updated over a week ago

The easiest way to test this is to put a SIM card in your phone, from another network (one of your mates could probably let you use theirs for this). If it works, your phone is unlocked already – happy days. If not you’ll need to unlock it.

You may also see a prompt asking you to enter SIM Network Unlock PIN. You can get this PIN from your previous network provider.

If you've got a Three phone, it automatically works with Superdrug Mobile. Winning!


It’s definitely locked – what shall I do?

Well, it’s good to have a choice and you’ve got two:

  1. We recommend contacting your previous network provider and asking them to unlock your phone (sometimes there’s a charge for this service – the provider will be able to tell you). If you don’t ask, you don’t get!

  2. You could take your handset to an independent high street phone shop, who usually charge £15 to unlock a phone.

How long does it take to unlock a phone?

It varies! Some networks are instant, and others take a little longer…some take up to 30 days.

I thought unlocking a phone was illegal?

It’s good to check! Unlocking your handset is totally legal. Something to consider (before you go ahead and unlock your phone) is that it may invalidate any warranty you have. You can check with your handset provider if you’re not sure.

Here are some handy links to contact other providers:


Need more help?

You can contact us via web chat – we love to chat! Web chat is available 8am-8pm, 7 days a week (excluding Bank Holidays).

If you need help outside of these times, you can still submit your question via web chat and leave your email address or mobile number. We’ll reply as soon as possible.

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