Can you reuse a sim card? (Explained)

There are certain things that may make us want to use old sim card, maybe because we still have old contacts stores in the sim, or probably would love to have the number linked to the sim card.

So the question we have here is, can you reuse a sim card or probably not as it is very much impossible.

Let’s see if that will be possible or definitely not possible.

Can you reuse a sim card?

Generally, you cannot reuse a sim card though there are sim carrier which allow their subscribers to reuse their sim card.

In most cases sim cards cannot be reused especially when the sim card is deactivated by the carrier network.

In the real of sense of it, why would you want to reuse your sim card especially if you bought a new phone. Honestly I don’t see any reason to reuse an old sim card in this 2021 unless you have a very strong reason to do so.

So asking can you reuse a sim card depend on your sim carrier though most network providers doesn’t allow such, to reuse an old sim card. Instead they will ask you to go get a new sim card and forget about the sim card which you want to reuse.


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Can you reuse a deactivated sim card

Absolutely no. You cannot reuse a deactivated sim card, once a sim card is deactivated by the sim carrier, it is quite difficult to reactivate the sim card unless the network provider do reactivate a deactivated sim card.

In general, all you need to do is to get a new sim card for your mobile phone.

can you reuse a sim card

This is one of the major reasons not to let your sim card gets deactivated cause no network provider or sim carrier network will reactivate a deactivated sim card. I haven’t seen such and I know this is very impossible.

Once your sim card is deactivated, kindly go and get a new sim card or contact your network provider and inquire if they can reactivate the deactivated sim card.

However, there’s no need asking can you reuse a deactivated sim card because it is quite not possible unless you have a network carrier that can reactivate a deactivated sim card.

However, you can contact your sim carrier and inquire if it will be possible to reuse a deactivated sim card. They will give you an answer but as long as the sim card is already deactivated, that’s the end of it.

You cannot reuse a deactivated sim card.

Can verizon sim cards be reused?

Verizon sim card can be reused though only if the sim card isn’t retired and still active. Once a Verizon sim card is retired or deactivated, you can’t reuse the sim card.

In general you can reuse Verizon sim card but you can’t do such on AT&T and even on T-Mobile.

What you should care much is how long have you left your sim card inactive, if it is more than 12 months then there’s a likelihood that Verizon has retired the sim card and it won’t be possible to reuse the sim card.

Retiring a sim card simply means deactivating a sim card permanently, and with this, the sim card number will no longer exist.

Reuse old sim card

Honestly I don’t see the reason to reuse old sim card, if the sim card is still active and not retired, simply get a new sim card and do a Sim swap.

With sim swap you have transferred the information in your old sim card into your new sim card including the old sim card number.

Remember, when you swap your sim card, you will still maintain your old sim card number in the new sim card. Nothing will be lost except if you didn’t backup your contacts before doing the sim swap.

How to activate a SIM card that is deactivated

To activate a deactivated sim card, you have to contact the sim carrier network, request that your sim card is deactivated and you need to reactivate the sim card.

A deactivated sim card can be activated especially if the validity period hasn’t been exceeded.

For example, a sim carrier network may require that a deactivated sim card has a grace period of one year else the sim card cannot be reactivated.

Again there are sim carriers that cannot reactivate a deactivated sim card, once the sim card is deactivated that’s the end of it. The user will have to get a new sim card to use on it’s mobile phone.

If your sim card is deactivated, kindly contact your sim carrier network to reactivate the sim card for you. They are the only one to reactivate a deactivated sim card.

Can I use an old SIM card?

You can use an old sim card in your mobile phone as long as the old sim card is still active and working, also compatible with the phone.

can verizon sim cards be reused

If the new phone is of 5G network, while the old sim card doesn’t support the 5G network then I don’t see the reason to use an old sim card in a new phone.

But if the old sim card supports the 5G network, very active and not deactivated, then why asking can I use an old SIM card. Of course you can use an old sim card in a new phone as long as the old sim card is still active, working and compatible with the phone.

Can expired SIM card be reactivated?

The answer is no. You cannot reactivate an expired sim card, and thie is applied to all networks.

This is what I have been discussing on this post, can you reuse a sim card. This is usually the case of an expired sim card, and which you want to reuse on your new mobile phone.

Once the sim card has expired, the sim carrier network will immediately retire the sim card. With thie you can no longer use the sim card or let’s say to reuse the sim card in your new mobile phone.

This is all I have on this question of today, can you reuse a sim card. I do recommend to contact your sim network carrier for more information.


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This is where I come to the conclusion of this article, can you reuse a sim card. All in all it is better to get a new sim card and avoid the stress of trying to find out if you can reuse old sim card in your new mobile phone.

About Kennedy

I'm Amaechi Uchenna by name, a mobile tech enthusiast who love writing articles about tips and tutorials especially relating to gadgets.

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