How to Unlock Your AT&T Phone

Before you can relax into the easy-breezy unlocked lifestyle, your phone has to be eligible. Just make sure it meets AT&T’s eligibility requirements before you take the next steps.

1. Your contract is up (if you had one).
2. You’ve paid off your phone (if it was leased or on a payment plan).
3. You’ve had your AT&T account for at least 60 days.
4. Your phone isn’t tied to any other AT&T accounts.
5. Your phone hasn’t been reported as lost or stolen.

The rules are a little bit different if you have a prepaid plan. For example, your account has to have been active for at least six months.

If your phone meets all the unlock criteria, then you’re good to go. And by go, we mean to submit an online form to have AT&T unlock your phone.

To fill out the form, just go to AT&T’s unlock page and follow the instructions. Once you’re done, you’ll get an email with a link you have to click to complete the request.

After that, it’s just a waiting game. You’ll get another email from AT&T within a couple of days that will give you instructions on how to officially unlock your phone.

The instructions are a little different depending on the kind of phone you have. But you’ll probably need the SIM card from your new phone carrier to finish the process.

Yes. But you should know that not every phone carrier uses the same technology and your AT&T phone might not do everything you want it to if you choose an incompatible carrier.

Cell phones use either CDMA or GSM technology. AT&T uses GSM and so does T-Mobile. But if you’re hoping to switch to a provider like Verizon, Verizon uses CDMA technology, so you’ll have to check if your device will work with those networks first.

Most carriers have an option on their website where you can enter your phone’s IMEI or MEID number to see if it’s compatible. You can usually find that number listed somewhere on the back of your phone.

Check your phone’s compatibility

• T-Mobile
• Verizon

It’s tough to know which carrier will cost the least money and won’t leave you stranded on a road trip with no phone service or no access to Google Maps.

But don’t worry; we have a roundup of our favorite cell phone plans and gathered the best unlimited phone plans around. You can also check out our reviews of major phone carriers like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile, to help you pick the best one.