Moving from an iPhone to Android has traditionally been less a clean break than a small administrative project. Photos usually came across. Contacts mostly behaved. Then the new phone asked for passwords, messaging history and mobile service, and the “easy switch” suddenly acquired several extra chapters.

Google is now reducing that friction with a native migration experience built into Android 17. Announced on 22 July alongside Samsung’s latest Galaxy Z foldables, the upgraded process can wirelessly move more information from an iPhone without requiring Apple users to install a separate migration app. The additions include a Google Account, supported passwords and passkeys, Wi-Fi login details and, most importantly for connectivity, an eSIM.

The feature has started reaching selected Pixel phones and is available on Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Flip8 and Galaxy Z Fold8 series, with more Android devices promised later.

What the upgraded Android transfer actually does

The new flow begins during Android setup. The user selects an iPhone or iPad as the old device, scans a QR code displayed on the new Android phone and chooses which information to copy. Both devices need current software, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and they must remain close together while the transfer is completed.

In practical terms, the process is:

• Start setting up the Android phone and select iPhone or iPad.
• Scan the Android phone’s QR code with the iPhone camera.
• Choose the available data categories and let the phones transfer them.
• When prompted, select an eligible eSIM and confirm the move on the iPhone.

Once the eSIM transfer is authorised, the number stops working on the old iPhone and becomes active on the Android device. Google also allows the eSIM step to be started later through the Android phone’s network settings, provided the device and operator support it.

READ MORE: iOS to Android eSIM Transfers Finally Get Easier

WhatsApp remains slightly apart from this neat new corridor. Google’s documentation says chat history is handled through a separate prompt, while Pixel guidance notes that some WhatsApp transfers still require a cable. In other words, the cable drawer has not yet become entirely decorative.

The eSIM is the most useful addition

The headline improvement is not another way to copy holiday photos. It is the attempt to move the user’s active mobile line as part of the same onboarding journey.

That matters because eSIM has often made changing phones easier within one ecosystem but awkward across ecosystems. A user moving from iPhone to Android could still be pushed toward a carrier app, a fresh activation QR code, customer support or a shop visit. The profile was digital; the process occasionally felt impressively analogue.

The new Android 17 experience makes eSIM transfer part of the device handover rather than a separate telecom task. Apple had already added built-in support for transferring data and eSIMs to compatible Android devices in iOS 26.3. Google’s announcement therefore represents the Android-side integration and wider presentation of that capability, not the invention of cross-platform eSIM transfer from nothing.

Samsung is also placing the feature inside Smart Switch on its new foldables. Its current support material describes direct iPhone-to-Galaxy eSIM transfer through a QR code, alongside additional migration categories such as passwords, passkeys, call history and accessibility settings.

Carrier support still decides whether it works

The important footnote is that “transfer your eSIM” does not mean “transfer every eSIM.”

Support depends on the Android manufacturer, handset, software version and mobile operator. Apple’s current iPhone-to-Android support page names participating operators in a limited group of markets, including AT&T, FirstNet, T-Mobile and Verizon in the United States, KDDI in Japan, Deutsche Telekom in Germany, SFR in France and EE in the United Kingdom. Samsung publishes its own compatibility list, which includes additional operators in some countries.

For Pixel users, Google says the upgraded process is available on Pixel 8 and newer devices running Android 17, although the precise experience can depend on rollout status. If the transfer option does not appear, users may still need to download a new eSIM from their operator or contact the operator directly.

READ MORE: Your eSIM UX Is Only as Good as Your Worst Edge Case

Travellers should be particularly careful with data-only travel eSIMs. The existence of a phone-to-phone transfer button does not override the issuer’s activation and reuse rules. Some travel profiles are designed for a single installation or are not eligible for carrier-style instant transfer. Anyone keeping an unused plan, regional package or secondary travel line should check the provider’s policy before deleting it from the iPhone.

There is similar nuance around passwords. Google says the upgraded flow supports passwords and passkeys, but Pixel documentation warns that credentials stored in Apple’s Passwords system may still require export, import or fresh sign-ins. “More transferable” is accurate; “everything follows automatically” is not.

Conclusion: A better switch, with telecom conditions attached

Google has made the iPhone-to-Android move meaningfully more complete. For users with a compatible Android 17 phone and a participating operator, the new setup can carry not only personal data but the mobile connection that makes the new device useful in the first place.

The real test will be expansion. More Android manufacturers need to adopt the native flow, more operators need to support cross-platform eSIM movement, and travel eSIM providers will need clearer transfer policies as users increasingly expect digital profiles to be portable.

For now, this is a welcome reduction in switching friction rather than a universal escape from carrier procedures. The phones can finally handle more of the handover themselves. The network still gets a vote.