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How to Easily Unlock an AT&T iPhone 5
Those who recently bought or are going to buy an AT&T iPhone 5 off-contract will be happy to know that there is an extremely easy way to unlock the AT&T iPhone 5 to use with a carrier like T-Mobile.
Typically, the process of unlocking an AT&T iPhone is a lengthy one. Users have to fill out a form online, send AT&T a fax, and then wait around for a few days while everything processes. That is not the case with the AT&T iPhone 5 says TechCrunch.
Instead of a lengthy process, AT&T iPhone 5 owners who bought their phone off-contract only need to plug their device in and restore it through iTunes.
Read: Verizon iPhone 5 Hidden Feature Won’t Be Taken Away.
Doing this is simple.
1. First, plug in your iPhone.
2. Next, open up iTunes. You’ll need to be on the latest version which is version 10.7.
3. Then, click your AT&T iPhone 5 when it appears on the left-hand side. You’ll be taken to a screen that has the option you see below.
4. Hit the Restore button and afterwards, you should be greeted with a message that says: “Congratulations, your iPhone has been unlocked.” If you got that message, then you know your AT&T iPhone 5 is unlocked and ready for another carrier if you so desire.
Once complete, owners are free to slim down a Micro SIM card to fit inside the iPhone 5’s Nano SIM card slot. Owners can also wait until October to pick up a Nano SIM from T-Mobile itself.
Read: T-Mobile iPhone 5 Possible with Nano SIM in October.
The iPhone 5 will run on T-Mobile’s EDGE network in areas where it doesn’t have its new HSPA+ network set up and unfortunately, at this point, virtually everywhere is without it. However, the carrier is going to be making big strides in the future which should make an unlocked iPhone 5 more attractive.
Verizon’s iPhone 5 is a little different from AT&T’s in that it comes unlocked right off the bat, ready for T-Mobile or AT&T.

Dandy Goose
09/26/2012 at 5:46 pm
Nice try, but fact checking failed. T-Mobile and AT&T use GSM hardware, while Verizon and Sprint use different hardware(CDMA I think). An unlocked Verizon phone will never work on AT&T for this reason. I’m not sure what unlocking a Verizon phone would even do. I don’t think Sprint would let you use it on their network.
Dandy Goose
09/26/2012 at 5:55 pm
Doh, I guess the Verizon iPhone actually has GSM hardware, too. Now I’m curious how this would work if you had CDMA service and inserted an active GSM SIM. Probably just shuts off the CDMA.
pawel
03/28/2013 at 9:24 am
Well, many people are not customer of ATT but have a ATT phone some how, for these people, just go search ATT iphone unlocking in google, you will have tons of “pros” doing it, I think I picked the first one and payed 30 dollars, after about 3 hours, my 5 is unlocked.
florian
04/24/2013 at 8:08 am
Well, I have used applenberry for unlocking my 4s, but it took them more than 5 weeks to do it, such a waste of time.
mieachel
05/01/2013 at 7:37 am
and there are 5 dollar sites out there which are just scams, which will not reply anymore once you paid
Eric
05/17/2013 at 6:06 am
Found a good site, attiphoneunlocking, already unlock 2 of my phones
Isaac Ruiz
07/08/2013 at 2:42 am
How much did i cost you?
Matt
09/26/2012 at 6:18 pm
Actually your wrong. The iphone 5 is a GSM/CDMA world phone. It has both types of radios in it. So all you do to a verizon one is put an att sim in it and it will switch to GSM. The only thing that it won’t do is att LTE
Noah
11/02/2012 at 1:42 pm
Lol. Dandy is stupid.
almegalli
11/13/2012 at 6:49 pm
I have an iPhone 5 ( Verizon ), It is actually unlocked, And you can use it for GSM or CDMA . I am using mine with a T-Mobile Sim card.
haswell1150
11/15/2012 at 6:00 pm
Did you buy your Verizon iPhone 5 at a Verizon store or at an Apple retail store?
Justin Pye
09/27/2012 at 2:41 am
only works for iphone bought from apple store not the one bought from att store or att online store, i bought full price from att online store and it does not work for me
Allan
10/09/2012 at 2:21 pm
Hey Justin, were you able to unlock the iPhone you bought from ATT online store?
Sam
09/28/2012 at 12:12 am
I bought a iPhone 5 at the subsidized price so it was locked. I want to use it abroad without paying crazy fees so I needed it unlocked. I got it factory unlocked through Apple’s servers in about 3 hours at https://www.iphonefort-mobile.com. I dealt with Tom.
watchbiggboss
09/28/2012 at 7:59 pm
can you believe you can unlock iphone 5 in just $20 within hours? yes i got it unlocked at https://www.unlockiphones.info so many sites offering same service but they’re ripping everyone with high price .
who will now buy full price iphone?
Joseph
10/01/2012 at 8:23 am
My iphone is still not unlocked, i’ve been waiting for weeks!! Give me back my money, please.
adel
10/03/2012 at 5:02 pm
SCAM ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
watchbiggboss
11/14/2012 at 8:51 pm
https://www.unlockiphones.info is very nice website i already got few iPhones unlocked by them..
apple unlock
01/11/2013 at 5:18 pm
i can unlock any iPhone…within seconds. call my bluff
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Babak
10/04/2012 at 4:06 am
Even if your iPhone 5 is under contract and you don’t meet AT&T’s requirements, it can still be done with UnlockStreak activations for iTunes, which basically turns iTunes into iPhone unlock software. That type of unlock is permanent like the one from AT&T.
Vahid
10/09/2012 at 12:03 pm
how babak? would u explain it to me?
Steve
10/06/2012 at 12:53 pm
Didn’t even have to restore it, I plugged it in for the first time and got the “Congratulations, your iPhone has been unlocked.”
Marx
10/07/2012 at 6:22 am
Really sir?i hope it can be done too in my itunes…here in qatar.
Roe'e
10/08/2012 at 11:07 pm
Do you need to have an activated at&t sim in the phone while doing that? I have bought the phone without sim from Best-buy…
Chris T.
10/13/2012 at 3:43 am
Just recently found out a new way to unlock your AT&T iPhones (4,4S and 5) even though it’s still in contract. I needed to use it internationally but I didn’t want to pay AT&T’s obnoxious roaming fees so I went ahead to unlock it with one of my friend’s services. Holy crap, was it cheap. For only $40, which is one of the cheapest out there, you get the assurance that your iPhone will never get relocked. Check it out here: https://theiphoneunlocker.us/
Hope it helped someone :)
jason
10/15/2012 at 1:20 am
Don’t believe these software unlock method, it is just a wast of money. I used the R-SIM to unlock my iphone 4S, glad to hear they are releasing the R-SIM 6 for unlocking iphone 5, https://www.eachsupplier.com/buy-wholesale-r-sim-6-samsim-for-unlocking-iphone-5-ios-6.html https://www.yoyobase.com/buy-wholesale-r-sim-6-samsim-for-unlocking-iphone-5-ios-6.html
Albert
10/15/2012 at 3:26 am
Hi, ive used a service from http://www.attiphoneunocking.com and im totally satisfied, they have unlocked my iphone in less than and hour. It’s a permanent unlock, not like a software once where you have to unlock every time you update the firmware so its much better.
bob smith
10/18/2012 at 2:22 pm
i found an i phone 5 a few weeks ago. anyone know how i can unlock it and use it ? it was laying in the bushes when i tied up my dog. i saw it. battery was is dead. in perfect shape tho. thanks
CJ47
10/21/2012 at 1:58 pm
It worked it worked… thanks soooooooooo much
Hadi
10/22/2012 at 1:42 pm
Guys wich way is easier to unlock iphone 5. Do you suggest me to buy it from Apple store or from onther place like At&t?
Note: I need to use it in Middle East after a period of time.
Thanks,
Matt
10/22/2012 at 2:07 pm
I got mine from verizon it’s fully unlocked after about a month if your a good customer verizon will let u use it on a foreign network this is for any iphone but to answer you question verizon I think is the best to do that.
Buggy Mac
10/23/2012 at 3:23 am
If you want to unlock Sprint iPhone 5, simply search “Sprint iPhone 5 unlock SenseiPhone” on Google!
CooLover
10/24/2012 at 1:16 am
ATT-Unlock.com really did a factory unlocked on my iPhone 5 with just the IMEI number in less than 8 hrs. Now I am using it with T-Mobile.
check it out http://www.ATT-Unlock.com
vu do
10/24/2012 at 3:34 pm
hi every one do not go to this web https://www.easyunlockingsolutions.com/ I paided 20 dollars to unlock my iphone4 .then after i order i sign in to unlock for my phone but not things work for my phone
they are just cheating only here my order #U4750468001 and my paid
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Thank you for your purchase of:
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Should you have any questions please contact us at:
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Reply
nhan
10/26/2013 at 4:08 pm
now i got unlock yet?
asdasdffasd
10/28/2012 at 8:13 am
**NOTE: This does not work for iphone 5s purchased through AT&T directly. I had to go through the standard process of filling out the form on AT&Ts website, faxing in my receipt, and THEN restoring in itunes once instructed to do so by AT&T (they got back to me within 24 hours though).
unlockfactoryIMEI
10/31/2012 at 3:44 am
Unlock easy and safe all cell phones: iphone 2G 3G 3GS 4 4S 5; Samsung, motorola, LG, Nokia and more!!
https://unlockfactoryimei.ciki.me/
Best regards.
UnlockBoot DevHelp
11/05/2012 at 3:49 pm
The best way to unlock iPhone 5
Peter
11/07/2012 at 1:57 pm
To clear this up: Verizon and Sprint are CDMA networks. Every iPhone is equipped with both. Only CDMA iPhones have the GSM part blocked by the carrier ( Verizon or sprint block the GSM part) You CAN Unlock Verizon and Sprint iPhones, and enable the GSM part: BUT it will still not work with USA GSM carries. It only makes sense to unlock a Verizon or Sprint iPhone if you plan to use the iPhone on Foreign ( non US) GSM networks. source: http://www.unlockaniphone.org
watchbiggboss
11/14/2012 at 8:49 pm
i have ordered 4 iphones 1 at&t, 1 Sprint, 1 Verizon, 1 softbank japan
All 3 got unlocked today by https://www.unlockiphones.info
its really a nice website
cheers..
Don’t buy in contract iphone while you can unlock for cheap.
Tony
11/15/2012 at 7:48 am
Got my iphone unlocked by Service called techelev ATT iphone unlock,
Nice service for 10 bucks my iphone is completely unlocked for ever,
if you like have a look https://techelev.com/att-iphone-unlock-service-now-unlock-any-iphone-3-3g-3gs-4-4s-5/
One
02/14/2013 at 1:53 pm
I found an iPhone 5 in a hotel room and I checked with authorities but the couldn’t find owner and there was no SIM card so I got to keep it. Now I want to unlock but I don’t know the country of origin but I checked imei and its still in contract until 2014. What do I do?
Unlock 04.12.01 (@Unlock041201)
03/01/2013 at 6:18 am
AT&T apparently lacks the ability to make a simple tool that checks that all the preconditions are filled. to unlock your iphone good site is https://www.imeiunlockpro.com/ . I hope help you. thanks
Nicky
04/17/2013 at 12:07 pm
You can unlock your iPhone ONLY OFFICIALY AT https://www.unlockiphone3g4g5g.com up to iOS 6.1.3, it works and its cheap
Emily Payton
05/04/2013 at 3:26 pm
I Unlocked my AT&T iPhone 5 using this excellent website – Unlock AT&T iPhone 5 permanently by imei.
Ca94
06/29/2013 at 10:43 am
I used Solar Mecano to unlock my iphone and I am very happy in less than 2 days my phone was unlocked.
Sam Chise
07/13/2013 at 12:03 am
Nice article
Riste Kocev
09/05/2013 at 9:56 am
Thanks for all info, but I like to tell that unlock mu iPhone on https://www.factoryunlockimei.com/ This service is very fast and unlock my iPhone 5 locked on at&t only for 16h.
Luis
12/27/2013 at 2:49 am
Wow how many ad comment ) Loocks Now i unlock my iPhone 5S locked AT&T carrier here https://letsunlockiphone5.com/att-unlock-express-premium-service/ – now ATT has many problems with unlock but this service unlock my iPhone 5S
Let's Unlock iPhone (@letunlockiphone)
02/15/2014 at 3:43 am
That’s right but when you go to https://att.imei.org/ the prices are very cheap so AT&T unlocking is no more expensive
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