Rogers and Fido Launch eSIM for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max [u]

Last month, Rogers added eSIM support for Apple’s iPhone XS, XS Max and iPhone XR, but for business customers only. Many wondered when the company’s flanker brand Fido would support eSIM, and that day has finally come.

Rogers and Fido announced today they now support eSIM for consumer plans on an iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR, as of April 24, 2019, at “select Fido and Rogers retail locations”.

According to the company, “To activate eSIM on these devices it must be done in participating Fido stores. Our customer contact centre will not be able to activate eSIM so please head over to your local Fido store in order to get it done.”

Fido says eSIM is “only available on no-term activations at this time,” or in other words, those on BYOD plans. Rogers and eSIM for business customers is similarly only available on BYOD plans.



With eSIM on the latest iPhones, you can add a second line to your device without the need for a SIM card, as eSIM is digital. This means you could have your Fido line on eSIM, while your physical SIM card slot could be a local SIM card while travelling, allowing you to use a cheaper mobile plan, for example. Other use cases include having both your work and personal lines on one iPhone.

Many have been wondering when Rogers and Fido would support eSIM, ever since Apple’s website indicated both carriers would support the digital SIM card, back in December 2018.

Update: iPhone in Canada reader John was able to successfully switch from a regular SIM to eSIM with his existing BYOD line. He also said Fido says not all stores support eSIM activations yet. The following stores do support eSIM activations, he was told:

Chinook Centre	6455 Macleod Trail Sw, 146	Calgary	AB	T2H0K9
Metropolis at Metrotown	4700 Kingsway, 1163	Burnaby	BC	V5H4M1
Richmond Centre	6551 No. 3 Rd., Unit 1110	Richmond	BC	V6Y2B6
Guildford Town Centre	10355 – 152nd street, 2542	Surrey	BC	V3R7C1
Polo Park	1485 Portage Ave., Z009	Winnipeg	MB	R3G0W4
Bramalea City Centre	25 Peel Centre Dr, 113	Brampton	ON	L6T3R5
Square One	100 City Center Dr., 1-857	Mississauga	ON	L5B1M7
Rideau Centre	50 Rideau St, Unit 327G	Ottawa	ON	K1N9J7
Fairview Mall	1800 Sheppard Ave. E, Unit 1032	Toronto	ON	M2J5A7
Toronto Eaton Centre	218 Yonge St., H014	Toronto	ON	M5B2H1
Carrefour Laval	3035, Boul. Carrefour, R044	Laval	QC	H7T1C8
Montreal Flagship	1004, rue Sainte-Catherine O, Unit 22	Montréal	QC	H3B5L2

Also, a Fido spokesperson confirmed with iPhone in Canada eSIM is available for new and existing BYOD customers.

Update 2: Rogers has similarly announced eSIM, which looks to have expanded to consumers on BYOD plans:

As of today April 24th! Rogers is happy to introduce the launch of Dual SIM/eSIM via 30 of our Flagship Rogers Retail locations (see chart below) where we will be assist you with set up and answer any eSIM/Dual SIM questions you may have.

The following Rogers locations can activate eSIM:

Thanks John