Device compatibility
Does the Galaxy S23 Ultra support eSIM?
The Galaxy S23 Ultra is what decides whether a travel eSIM installs, not the Samsung name on the box. Storage, radio and market variant all change from one model to the next, so every figure below was checked on this model.
5
Profiles stored
2
Active at the same time
2023
Released
40
Seconds to install, median
What the Galaxy S23 Ultra does with a travel eSIM
The Galaxy S23 Ultra is a phone, so the travel profile is a data line and your existing line stays the voice line. Calls and texts to your usual number keep arriving while Orbislo carries the browsing.
Installing writes the profile. Nothing is spent until it attaches to a network at the destination, so an install three weeks early costs exactly the same as one at the gate. Do it at home, on wifi, while you still have a connection to fix anything.
Storage and active lines
The Galaxy S23 Ultra holds 5 profiles, which is at the low end of everything we have checked. Delete the dead profiles from old trips before you install, or the sheet will simply refuse.
Active is how many lines run at the same time, and on the Galaxy S23 Ultra that is 2. Storage is how many profiles sit on the device waiting, and that is the number that runs out without warning.
Each destination's line installs in one tap from the Orbislo app, and while it is valid every refill lands on that same line. Most of Europe runs on a single line, so a trip through several neighbouring countries takes one slot rather than one per country.
- Home line: calls and texts, so bank codes still arrive on your usual number.
- Orbislo line: mobile data, with roaming switched on.
- Automatic data switching: off, or the phone borrows the expensive line in a tunnel.
5G on the Galaxy S23 Ultra, and where it will not appear
The Galaxy S23 Ultra has a 5G radio and the travel profile uses it. Where a partner network runs 5G, you get 5G, on the same profile and at no extra cost.
88 of our 197 destinations are 4G only on the networks we buy from. On those the icon reads LTE whatever the handset can do, and no setting changes it.
Speed belongs to the network rather than to the profile.
What goes wrong on the Galaxy S23 Ultra, and the fix
Data roaming has to be switched on for this line. Your profile is issued outside the country you are standing in, so the device treats every attachment as roaming. Leave it off and the Galaxy S23 Ultra finds a network and then refuses to use it.
If the profile will not download at all, the order refunds automatically inside 60 seconds, with no ticket. Install again from the same order, because the profile is reissued to your account rather than lost.
On this device the sequence is Settings, Network and internet, SIMs, the Orbislo line, Roaming on. Then set Orbislo as the SIM for mobile data and turn off automatic data switching.
- No service on the Orbislo line: roaming is off on that line.
- Connected but nothing loads: mobile data still points at the home line.
- Works, then stops after an hour: automatic data switching moved you back.
- Still searching: airplane mode on for 20 seconds, off, then restart.
Your SIM tray, and tethering
Your physical SIM stays exactly where it is. Adding an eSIM does not touch the tray, does not wipe the card and does not need it taken out. Remove it and you lose your own number, which is the opposite of the point.
Tethering is included on every Orbislo plan at no extra charge. The Galaxy S23 Ultra can share the travel data with a laptop, a tablet or a watch, and nothing behind the hotspot needs a profile of its own.
What an Orbislo plan does once it is installed
Data never expires. A gigabyte you do not use in Lisbon is still there in Bangkok next year, metered plans have no throttle, and every customer gets 100 MB of free rescue data once a month on the line in use when the balance runs out. Unlimited runs full speed to 2 GB a day and then 1 Mbps.
One balance pays in all 197 destinations, and most of Europe runs on a single line, so a rail trip through three neighbouring countries is one install and one balance rather than three of each. Refills arrive on the line you already have, with no new plan or expiry date. Where a destination has more than one partner network, the line can move between them without you touching a setting.
How to install a travel eSIM on the Galaxy S23 Ultra
- Open the Orbislo app and tap Install
- Confirm the eSIM download prompt
- Settings, Network and internet, SIMs, select Orbislo
- Turn on Roaming and set Orbislo as the SIM for mobile data
Data roaming sounds like it will cost you money. On the Orbislo line it cannot, because it is how that line reaches partner networks abroad and there is no charge beyond the data you already bought.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra at a glance
| Specification | Galaxy S23 Ultra |
|---|---|
| Takes an eSIM | Yes |
| Profiles stored | 5 |
| Active at the same time | 2 |
| 5G on partner networks | Yes, where the network runs it |
| Physical SIM tray | Yes, and it keeps working |
| Voice on the travel line | Data only |
| Tethering | Included, no extra charge |
Stored is how many profiles the device keeps. Active is how many run at the same time. Checked on this model rather than assumed from the brand.
Galaxy S23 Ultra eSIM questions
Does the Galaxy S23 Ultra support eSIM?
How many eSIMs can the Galaxy S23 Ultra hold?
Will I lose my own number?
Do I have to turn roaming on?
Can I install before I fly?
Does tethering work on the Galaxy S23 Ultra?
Pick the destination, then install its line in one tap
Take the metered wallet for maps and messaging, because the balance never expires. Take unlimited if you tether a laptop or stream, and read the 2 GB a day figure before you do.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra by market
- United Arab Emirates and the Gulf (SM-S918B): Samsung Gulf's Galaxy S23 Ultra, model SM-S918B, is Dual-SIM with a nano-SIM tray and an embedded SIM. Its slot type is SIM 1 plus SIM 2 or embedded SIM, so a travel eSIM can pair with one physical home SIM.
- Australia (SM-S918B): The Australian Galaxy S23 Ultra is also an SM-S918B, listed with a nano-SIM and an embedded SIM. It covers 5G bands n1, n3, n7, n8, n20, n28, n77 and n78, all sub-6 GHz, and can hold a travel eSIM.
- New Zealand (SM-S918B): Samsung New Zealand lists the Galaxy S23 Ultra SM-S918B with Nano-SIM and e-SIM, and a slot type of SIM 1 plus SIM 2 or e-SIM. A travel eSIM can be installed while the home SIM card stays in the tray.
- Taiwan (SM-S9180): The Galaxy S23 Ultra sold in Taiwan is model SM-S9180, and Samsung Taiwan lists it with two nano-SIM slots and no eSIM. A travel eSIM cannot be used on it, so a local physical SIM is the only option abroad.
- United States (SM-S918U, SM-S918U1): The Galaxy S23 Ultra model codes SM-S918U and SM-S918U1 belong to the United States version, which is the only one listed with mmWave 5G, on bands n258, n260 and n261.
Networks on the Galaxy S23 Ultra
- Samsung Gulf lists the Galaxy S23 Ultra with 5G on n1, n2, n3, n5, n7, n8, n12, n20, n25, n28 and n66, and on n38, n40, n41, n77 and n78, all sub-6 GHz. LTE covers bands 1, 3, 7, 8, 20 and 28 among others.
- The Taiwanese Galaxy S23 Ultra SM-S9180 lists 5G only on n1, n3, n5, n7, n8, n28, n38, n40, n41, n78 and n79. It has no n20 or n77, and it adds LTE band 34 while dropping LTE band 17.
- The US Galaxy S23 Ultra supports mmWave 5G on n258, n260 and n261, plus sub-6 GHz 5G on n1, n7, n28, n41, n66, n71 and n78. On trips abroad, only its sub-6 GHz bands matter.
- The Galaxy S23 series supports two physical SIM cards on select models, eSIM, and a mixed mode of one physical SIM with one eSIM, and it can store several eSIM profiles. The carrier must support eSIM and the phone must be unlocked or approved for eSIM.
- To activate an eSIM on a Galaxy S23 Ultra, open Settings, go to Connections, then Mobile Networks, then SIM Card Manager, select Add eSIM, and scan the QR code from the provider.
- Samsung advises that on the Galaxy S23 series, dual SIM cards sit in the tray with the gold contacts facing outward on both sides, and that using a nano-SIM and an eSIM together can reduce data speeds in some areas.
- Through KDDI in Japan, Galaxy S22 and later flagships, including the Galaxy S23 Ultra, have supported satellite texts, satellite data and earthquake and tsunami warnings since 2025. KDDI provides this to its own subscribers only.
Worth knowing about the Galaxy S23 Ultra
- The Galaxy S23 Ultra launched on Android 13 with One UI 5.1, and Samsung pledged four generations of Android OS upgrades and five years of security updates for the whole S23 series.
- Samsung's One UI 8 rollout list includes the Galaxy S23 series, so the Galaxy S23 Ultra receives One UI 8.
- The Galaxy S23 Ultra is still on Samsung's list for monthly security updates, alongside the Galaxy S24 and S25 series. Some carriers only deliver those updates every quarter.
- Samsung Canada lists the Galaxy S23 Ultra among eSIM-capable phones, but warns that eSIM may not be supported depending on the phone's country of origin, even when the model is listed.
- eSIM Instant Transfer can move a number from an older Galaxy or Android phone onto a Galaxy S23 Ultra without calling the carrier, provided the S23 Ultra is unlocked and the carrier supports the transfer.
- In the United States, Samsung lists the Galaxy S23 series as a Hybrid eSIM device, so dual SIM on a US S23 Ultra means one physical SIM plus one eSIM. A physical SIM can also be switched to eSIM with Convert to eSIM.
- To check that a particular Galaxy S23 Ultra supports eSIM, Samsung suggests looking under SIM size in its specifications for Embedded-SIM.
What the Galaxy S23 Ultra holds
- eSIM profiles it can store
- 5
- Active at the same time
- 2
- Released
- 2023
- Form factor
- Phone
- Network generation
- 5G capable where the network carries it
- Physical SIM tray
- Has a tray as well as eSIM
How the Galaxy S23 Ultra compares with other Samsung models
- Galaxy S25
- Galaxy S25, 2025, stores 5, 2 active
- Galaxy S24 Ultra
- Galaxy S24 Ultra, 2024, stores 5, 2 active
- Galaxy S24
- Galaxy S24, 2024, stores 5, 2 active
- Galaxy S23
- Galaxy S23, 2023, stores 5, 2 active
- Galaxy S22
- Galaxy S22, 2022, stores 5, 2 active
- Galaxy S21
- Galaxy S21, 2021, stores 5, 2 active