You will find countless threads about How to Unlock Straight Talk Phone on the Apple Community, Reddit, Quora, and similar forums. After finishing my research, I found out that there are three main categories of people that want to Unlock their iPhone:
- Those who bought the iPhone directly from Straight Talk (in most cases it’s an iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, or iPhone SE)
- Those who bought a used iPhone online
- And to my great surprise, many who bought a Walmart Straight Talk iPhone, which was supposed to be unlocked
In this post we will answer all the following questions related to Straight Talk iPhone Unlocking:
- Is it difficult to Unlock a Straight Talk iPhone?
- Are Straight Talk iPhones factory unlocked?
- How can I Unlock my Straight Talk iPhone?
- Is there an IMEI Straight Talk Unlocking method available?
- Can I Unlock my iPhone via Straight Talk carrier?
- Is there an app/software that can Unlock Straight Talk iPhones?
- Are there any hardware unlocking methods for Straight Talk?
- Can I use a Straight Talk Unlock Code on an iPhone?
If you want an expert to analyze your Straight Talk iPhone and locate the best service for unlocking it, then an iPhone IMEI Unlock Check service is what you need:
The problem is that you can only use it with Straight Talk in the United States. What you and everybody really want is to use it with any SIM Card whenever you want and no matter where you are.
Is it difficult to unlock a Straight Talk iPhone?
Based on our research, it seems that a lot of people are struggling to unlock their Straight Talk iPhone.
It is not clear which method is appropriate to use, because each method has its pros and cons. Also, specific methods have very strict restrictions and requirements, and you need to do very thorough research to find them.
The good news is that you do not have to be an expert and have over 10 years of experience in iPhone Unlocking (like us), you simply need to follow a simple methodology and know what to pay attention to.
If you have a full iPhone IMEI Check report of your iPhone and know how to read it, it is very easy to identify what the problem is and pick the right unlocking method.
It is even easier and quicker if you let an iPhone expert do the hard job for you with an iPhone IMEI Unlock Check.
Are Straight Talk phones unlocked?
Straight Talk’s policy is to provide new iPhones to its customers for free. Usually, they offer older models such as the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, or iPhone SE.
However, these iPhones are sold as locked iPhones, so you will not be able to use them with other carriers. They will remain locked for at least a year from their activation date and then you “might” be able to ask for an unlock (they have a great number of restrictions to their unlock policy).
The main reason people believe that Straight Talk iPhones are sold unlocked, is due to false advertising for used Straight Talk iPhones by “shady” sellers and a few official retailers, such as Walmart (always according to the complaints we’ve read so far).
So, to answer the question, Straight Talk iPhones are never sold as unlocked. We have not encountered an out-of-the-box unlocked Straight Talk iPhone case yet.
5 Methods on How to Unlock a Straight Talk iPhone
In general, there are five ways to network unlock an iPhone, see below:
- Use an IMEI service (Recommended)
- Request a Straight Talk iPhone unlock through your carrier
- Straight Talk unlock with a hardware hack like RSIM
- With iPhone unlock software/app
- With an unlock code for Straight Talk iPhones
1. Unlock Straight Talk iPhone with an IMEI Unlock service (Recommended)
An IMEI Unlock service is the only tested and guaranteed method that can Unlock a Straight Talk iPhone
How it works
It looks fairly easy if it is your first time to search for an IMEI Unlock Service. You can Google for the service and go with one of the suggested suppliers.
As soon as you find a service, they will only ask for the IMEI number of your iPhone and an upfront payment.
Once you have submitted your IMEI and paid the service, the provider will submit your IMEI to a server that has access to Mobile Networks and Apple databases. The server will then change the SIM Lock status from locked to unlocked.
This won’t happen instantly and you will have to wait for a few days until your order is processed.
Sounds easy and promising. What can go wrong?
Unfortunately, many things can go wrong if you are not familiar with how IMEI services work and what it takes to guarantee success.
The Requirements
- Need to know which network is locking your iPhone
Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all service that support all networks. Each of them needs its own IMEI service. - Is your iPhone compatible?
You need to know before ordering an IMEI service if your iPhone is compatible with the available IMEI Unlock services - What is your iPhone model?
Although it usually only affects the IMEI Unlock price (it’s more expensive for the latest iPhone models) in some cases there are iPhone model limitations - Is your iPhone Blacklisted?
Although you can remove the lock from a blacklisted Straight Talk iPhone it requires a different service usually called Premium IMEI service. Ordering a normal Unlock for a blacklisted iPhone will end up failing, without being able to request a refund. - What is your iPhone’s Financial & Contract Status?
In the case of any outstanding financial balance (such as unpaid contract bills or a pending device installment plan) or when the iPhone is still under an active contract, you will need a special service, usually called the Semi-Premium IMEI Unlock. The normal Straight Talk Unlock service will not work. - What is the Apple Warranty Status?
It’s not an actual requirement but an active Apple Warranty or AppleCare+ can relock your device after a successful IMEI Unlock. - Is your iPhone’s IMEI Replaced?
Every service must be applied to the original IMEI. In many cases, networks or Apple might change it (for example due to a hardware replacement or an insurance claim). Trying to unlock an iPhone using its replacement IMEI, will not work. - When was your iPhone Activated?
Sometimes you will need a different service depending on when the iPhone was activated with the network services.
If you are not 100% accurate about the status of your iPhone you will not know which service suits you or if your device meets the conditions of the right Straight Talk Unlock service.
Straight Talk Unlock IMEI services are not always available
And when they do get online, the service only works for a limited time and only a limited number of IMEIs can be submitted.
The results are permanent. The question is IF the Straight Talk IMEI Unlock service is currently online or not.
Success Rate
Although all suppliers claim that the IMEI unlock methods never fail, the truth is very different.
It always starts with a 100% success rate. Unfortunately, this percentage gradually drops, and when it is zero the service is shut down.
This is essentially the reason for the limited IMEI submission and as a result of service availability.
Of course, sooner or later, it will reappear following the same pattern, over and over again.
Price
An IMEI unlock usually costs between $50 and $200. The final price will depend on the status of your device, and the availability of an unlock service.
Of course, each company charges differently and it is quite likely that for the same service you will find huge fluctuations in prices between providers.
The big problem is that if you approach any unlocking company right now you will see that everyone offers Straight Talk IMEI Unlock services, usually starting at $20 or $30.
Unfortunately, this is not a real service but a pre-order.
- If the service is immediately available, they will ask you for an extra payment to unlock it.
- If it’s not, they will notify you that once the service is activated you will have to pay whatever they ask for to continue.
Guaranteed Results
There are solid IMEI Unlock suppliers that offer superb services. However, they will not refund you if you have purchased the wrong service or your iPhone doesn’t meet ALL the conditions of the right one.
The same goes for pre-orders.
Although most of the time it is written somewhere in very fine print, it is very difficult to locate and understand the Terms & Conditions. Also, the final price of the actual unlock service will not be visible to you throughout the whole ordering process, only after you proceed with your first payment (the pre-order).
Unfortunately, pre-orders are not refundable.
Here I should add that although they only ask for your IMEI, they do not know the status of your device and which Straight Talk Unlock service you will eventually need.
Fortunately, it is possible to find out the exact status of your iPhone and which service can unlock your Straight Talk iPhone permanently in just a few seconds.
With an iPhone Unlock Check service, not only you will get a full report of your iPhone within a few seconds, but an iPhone expert will suggest all the available Straight Talk IMEI Unlock solutions specifically for your device.
2. Request an Unlock Straight Talk iPhone through a carrier
Straight Talk, like many other carriers, gives you a chance to unlock your iPhone online by visiting their website.
Who can use it: Everyone. It doesn’t matter if you aren’t their customer
The Requirements: Your iPhone must meet all the conditions of the Straight Talk Unlock Policy.
Price: 0$ – Small Fee. Usually, $10 if you aren’t or have never been their customer
Success Rate: 1% – Based on our 10-year experience, we have helped around 2,000 visitors make an unlock request to Straight Talk and only 22 iPhones were unlocked. Straight Talk’s unlock policies are extremely strict and usually reject almost all requests.
Straight Talk’s Strict iPhone Unlock Policy
Usually, the first suggestion is to try unlocking the iPhone through their website. I will show you how to do it but the main issue is their SIM Unlock policy.
In general, all network providers have specific and unique SIM unlocking policies.
- The iPhone must have been locked by Straight Talk
- They will unlock phones of current and former Straight Talk customers free of charge. If you are not a customer, you may need to pay.
- The iPhone should not be blacklisted
- There must be no outstanding financial balances
- It must have been activated in their service for at least one year
- Military personnel must provide additional paperwork
The process
The steps are very simple:
Go to their website to request an unlock
Straight Talk Unlock through carrier
- Scroll down to the Serial Number field and fill in the IMEI number of your iPhone
- Tick the “I’m not a robot” captcha
- Click “Verify Eligibility”
After you have filled in the IMEI number, they will inform you if your device is eligible to be unlocked.
- If your iPhone is good to go, they will ask for your email and phone number to finalize the unlock process.
- If your Unlock Straight Talk iPhone Online Request is rejected, they will not disclose the reason for the rejection. Instead, they will show you a page about their unlocking policies.
Unlock Straight Talk Rejection message
While you made your unlock request on their website, their message is actually showing TracFone’s policy.
But why is it showing TracFone’s Policy?
You see, Straight Talk was bought by TracFone Wireless.
TracFone also bought NeT10 Wireless, Total Wireless, Telcel, SIMPLE Mobile, and SafeLink Wireless Connection.
All of these networks now share TracFone’s SIM unlocking policies.
3. Unlock Straight Talk with the hardware method
There are countless hardware unlock products out there known as card stickers. See below how these hardware unlock hacks performed to our tests:
Who can use it: The description in any of them says, everyone but…
The Requirements: Each one of them works on a specific iPhone model and iOS version and of course, mobile network.
Price: $10 – $40
Success Rate: 0%
To date, there are seven Unlock Hacks for iPhone:
RSIM, GPP SIM, Turbo SIM, Heicard, XSIM, Gevey, and UnlockMySIM.
All of them have received a lot of negative criticism for many different reasons. To mention just a few:
- The Hardware Unlock SIM card does not work in all iOS and iPhone models
- It’s not a permanent iPhone Unlock solution
- The iOS cannot be updated
- Some of the Hardware Unlock SIM Cards are defective
- Voids Apple Warranty
- Damages or even destroys the iPhone
- Sudden call drops
- Weak service signal
We have decided to get these products and tried to unlock a Straight Talk iPhone 6.
Unfortunately, the bad reviews are true. Two of them were defective while none of them managed to achieve the desired result which was to unlock the iPhone.
The process
These unlock Straight Talk phone hacks almost look like any normal SIM card and this is why many people refer to them as SIM Interposers.
What you have to do is squeeze the SIM Interposer with the SIM card you want to use inside the iPhone’s SIM slot. Then, you have to go on the iPhone settings and change them according to the instructions included with the box you purchased.
4. With iPhone Unlock software/app
To begin with, this method is no longer available. Any kind of unlocking software is a scam, not just for Straight Talk but for any network.
You are skating on pretty thin ice if you choose to download any online Unlock Straight Talk iPhone software. The ones that cost a few dollars aren’t going to work. The free ones usually have the ultimate goal of stealing your personal data and mainly target your credit or debit card.
The only reason some people still try this method is that it can still unlock old iPhone models (up to iPhone 4s with iOS 6.1.6 version). Nowadays, no iPhone has that old iOS version, which means that the software unlock method (Ultrasn0w & Cydia) does not work.
Be extremely wary of sites that still suggest this method and stay away from any kind of iPhone unlock software.
5. Unlock Straight Talk iPhone with unlock code
Another common suggestion is to use an unlock code.
In fact, many, if not all networks, use this method to provide SIM Unlock (for free or for a few dollars) as long as the phone meets all the requirements of the unlock policy (again)!
Straight Talk is one of them.
On the other hand, there are third-party services that somehow gained access to these codes or found a way to generate them for themselves by imitating the algorithm used by each network.
The Unlock Code method is ONLY available for ANDROID phones.
However, let’s say you’re looking for a Straight Talk iPhone 6 unlock code. The problem is that you will find many companies providing them with prices ranging between $10 and $60.
Although there is no way they will work on iPhones, no company is going to give you your money back.
Please stay away from any kind of iPhone Unlock code solutions.
Which method should I use to Unlock my Straight Talk iPhone?
We started with 5 different Straight Talk Unlock options but ended up with two options that may actually work.
- First, go to the Straight Talk website and request a SIM unlock. They will probably refuse but you have nothing to lose.
- An IMEI Unlock is the only real alternative with a high success rate, but first, you need to check if your Straight Talk iPhone is eligible for an IMEI Unlock
Before choosing an IMEI Straight Talk iPhone Unlock online supplier, make sure that it is eligible by verifying:
- The exact IMEI status of a device
- If the iPhone is supported by the IMEI Network Unlock service you need
- If the service is currently available
- That you are getting the right service at the right price and not a pre-order
- Make sure you will get your money back if anything goes wrong
You can easily achieve all of the above with an iPhone IMEI Unlock Check. After all, this is what all IMEI Unlock suppliers actually do before submitting your IMEI number to a server.
Our recommendation for Straight Talk Eligibility IMEI Unlock Check: iPhoneUnlock.Zone
After providing you with an instant and accurate IMEI Check report, iPhone Unlock experts will study your case in detail and offer all the available and guaranteed unlock solutions.
Of course, they are always available 24/7 to answer any questions about the report and the services offered.
You will also have access to the lowest available prices at any time. The team checks each day for the best and cheapest services from more than 1,500 suppliers worldwide.
If they offer a service then, you are good to go. No matter what, your Straight Talk iPhone will be unlocked or you will get the unlock service money back.
Exactly the same goes for any iPhone, regardless of which network has locked it and whatever additional issues it may have.
NO STRESS, NO RISK OF LOSING YOUR HARD-EARNED MONEY, FULL SUPPORT AT EVERY STEP FROM NOW ON.
Find out how to Unlock Straight Talk iPhone
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