Embedded SIM (eSIM) Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends and Forecast (2026 - 2031)

Global Embedded SIM (eSIM) Market Trends and Insights

Rapid 5G Roll-Outs Accelerating eSIM Demand

Standalone 5G networks remove latency and throughput constraints that previously limited cellular IoT, enabling devices to switch network slices and roaming partners without physical intervention. China surpassed 1 billion 5G connections in 2024, and carriers there finalized nationwide eSIM enablement by October 2025. Japan achieved 98.4% population coverage in 2024 and targets 99% by 2030, giving enterprises a contiguous national footprint for remote provisioning. In Europe, household coverage reached 94.3% in 2024, creating a launchpad for smart-home and industrial sensors that rely on soldered SIMs.^{[1]European Commission, “5G Observatory Quarterly Report,” ec.europa.eu} Vodafone’s 5G standalone roaming proof-of-concept with A1 and Ericsson in April 2025 showcased frictionless cross-border profile switching.^{[2]Vodafone Group, “Standalone 5G Roaming Trial Press Release,” vodafone.com} As operators commercialize network slicing, enterprises can guarantee quality of service while dynamically selecting carriers, catalyzing shipment growth across industrial gateways and connected vehicles.

Mandates for eCall and UN-R155 Driving Automotive Adoption

The United Nations UN-R155 regulation, compulsory for new vehicle types from July 2024, demands cyber-threat monitoring and secure over-the-air updates, both of which favor tamper-resistant embedded SIM designs. Europe’s eCall directive has already hard-wired cellular emergency connectivity into passenger cars, and new models increasingly adopt soldered eSIMs to meet anti-removal requirements. Continental launched UN-R155-aligned cybersecurity solutions in November 2024 integrating eSIM modules to push security certificates remotely. Thales and Cubic followed in February 2025 with an SGP.32-compliant automotive platform that allows fleet managers to change mobile network operators over the air, lowering roaming charges for cross-border operations thalesgroup.com. As other regions copy the European framework, vehicle production volumes translate directly into multi-year demand for robust eSIM form factors.

Apple-Led Smartphone OEM Shift to eSIM-Only Flagships

Apple removed the SIM tray from iPhone 14-16 U.S. variants, forcing operators to industrialize eSIM activation workflows and signaling to rival brands that premium design now equates to slotless hardware apple.com. Samsung responded by integrating dual-eSIM support in its Galaxy S24 family, while Qualcomm embedded iSIM in Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 to eliminate the discrete secure element qualcomm.com. KPN’s May 2025 one-click eSIM transfer pilot cut iPhone activation steps to a single tap, addressing friction identified by GSMA Intelligence, which found global consumer awareness at only 50% in 2025 kpn.com. The cascading effect is a shorter replacement cycle for legacy SIM cards and accelerated infrastructure upgrades across operator footprints.

Limited Consumer Awareness Outside Premium Handsets

Despite strong traction in affluent regions, GSMA Intelligence reported in March 2025 that only 50 % of global mobile users recognize eSIM terminology, with awareness dropping below 30 % in price-sensitive markets.^{[3]“Consumer Awareness of eSIM 2025,” gsmaintelligence.com} Retail channel incentives still favor plastic SIM card sales, slowing operator marketing in Africa and parts of Asia. Latin America illustrates the gap: 30 carriers launched eSIM by mid-2024, yet only 5 % of smartphone connections used the technology at end-2023. Promotion campaigns such as TIM Brazil’s free trial in late 2023 skewed toward travelers and early adopters, confirming the education challenge. Until low-cost Android devices offer seamless activation and carriers simplify onboarding, mainstream uptake will lag premium tiers.

Fragmented M2M Entitlement Specifications

Enterprises managing long-life industrial assets must juggle legacy SGP.02 provisioning stacks alongside newer SGP.32 workflows, inflating integration budgets and expanding the attack surface. Giesecke and Devrient’s April 2025 attainment of full SGP.32 certification required major server re-architecture and cross-vendor test cycles, illustrating the technical lift.^{[4]SGP.32 Certification Announcement,” gi-de.com} Utilities, logistics, and transportation verticals with 15-year device lifecycles are unwilling to abandon installed SGP.02 fleets, forcing dual-stack operations through at least 2035. The resulting complexity dampens near-term shipment growth for SGP.32 modules and partially offsets the embedded SIM (eSIM) market’s otherwise steep expansion curve.

Segment Analysis

By Network Type: 5G Standalone Cores Reshape Provisioning

4G/LTE retained 52.11% embedded SIM (eSIM) market share in 2025 as a sizable installed base of smartphones and IoT sensors remained anchored to established networks. The 5G segment is, however, projected to scale at a 26.89% CAGR, reflecting operator migration to standalone cores that permit network slicing, ultra-reliable low-latency communication, and carrier aggregation. China’s three national carriers concluded nationwide eSIM rollouts in October 2025, leveraging 5G architecture to deliver dynamic profile switching for autonomous trucking corridors. In Japan and the European Union, combined 5G population coverage above 94% enables real-time over-the-air provisioning for connected factories and smart-city grids.

As millimeter-wave densification advances, urban private networks will adopt embedded SIM (eSIM) market size modules that can toggle between public and dedicated slices without downtime. Operators in rural markets continue to deploy NB-IoT and LTE-M for low-bandwidth sensors, creating a dual-network strategy that favors multi-mode eSIM chipsets. Over the forecast horizon, 4G will migrate into maintenance mode, while 5G’s contribution to embedded SIM (eSIM) market revenues surges, propelled by industrial automation, remote health care, and immersive media applications that demand deterministic latency guarantees.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Device Type: Wearables Outpace Smartphones in Growth Velocity

Smartphones accounted for 60.29% of 2025 unit shipments, yet the category’s mid-single-digit growth contrasts with the 26.76% CAGR expected for wearables through 2031. Continuous-glucose monitors, cardiac implants, and fall-detection pendants from Medtronic and Abbott rely on always-on cellular links to cloud dashboards, removing the need for handset tethering. Embedded SIM solutions eliminate ingress points for moisture, dust, and tampering, critical to medical and fitness devices worn 24 hours a day. Laptops and tablets exploit instant-connect financing models that bundle data plans at point of sale, while M2M modules enable asset-tracking beacons and smart-meter retrofits.

Wearables also benefit from wafer-level chip-scale packaging that halves energy draw, extending battery life for thin form factors. Samsung’s eSIM v3.0 specification introduces multiple enabled profiles, supporting personal and corporate lines on a single watch, while Qualcomm-Thales iSIM platforms place the secure element inside the system-on-chip. As health insurers reimburse remote monitoring and enterprises embrace field-force digitization, embedded SIM (eSIM) market size shipments for wearables are set to eclipse tablets by mid-forecast, solidifying the segment as the second-largest contributor after smartphones.

By End-User Industry: Automotive Electrification Drives Connectivity Mandates

Consumer electronics dominated with 44.84% embedded SIM (eSIM) market size share in 2025. Regulatory tailwinds now position automotive and transportation to grow at 27.11% CAGR, fueled by UN-R155 cybersecurity compliance, eCall requirements, and the rise of electric drivetrains that necessitate constant software updates. GSMA SGP.32-compliant platforms from Thales enable fleet managers to switch carriers remotely, optimizing roaming expenses for cross-border logistics. Industrial and manufacturing verticals adopt eSIM to underpin predictive-maintenance sensors and robotic control cells where downtime costs can exceed USD 100,000 per hour.

Logistics and asset tracking lean on ultra-low-power eSIM modules that combine GPS and cellular radios, offering unified visibility across multimodal supply chains. Utilities and energy providers embed secure elements in smart meters to safeguard revenue collection and comply with cyber-resilience legislation. Healthcare deployments span remote diagnostics and medication adherence devices, benefiting from hardware-anchored encryption that meets HIPAA and GDPR mandates. By 2031, automotive is poised to overtake consumer electronics in absolute shipment volumes, making the sector a major force within the embedded SIM (eSIM) market.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Form Factor: Wafer-Level Integration Compresses Bill of Materials

MFF2 packages secured 71.07% of 2025 volume because their vibration tolerance and extended temperature range suit automotive and industrial use cases. Wafer-level chip-scale packages, however, are forecast to expand at a 29.38% CAGR as smartphones and wearables chase thinner profiles and longer battery life. Infineon’s OPTIGA Connect OC1230 delivers 50% lower power draw through 28 nm CSP construction

Plug-in accessories target retrofit scenarios; Digi International’s December 2025 SGP.32 dongle offers firmware-based upgrades for legacy field devices, side-stepping complete hardware replacement. iSIM architectures, validated by Qualcomm-Thales on Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, further condense components, freeing board space and reducing per-unit cost by USD 1-2 in mass-market smartphones. Over the forecast window, wafer-level and iSIM formats will capture incremental share in consumer electronics, while MFF2 remains entrenched in safety-critical transport and industrial control installations.

By Provisioning Specification: SGP.32 Resolves IoT Fragmentation

SGP.02 (M2M) held 67.22% of 2025 shipments because installed industrial fleets rely on legacy provisioning servers. SGP.32 (IoT) is projected to grow at a 28.12% CAGR as enterprises seek a unified, multi-operator workflow. IDEMIA’s August 2025 certification spurred more than 40 pilots across utilities and logistics idemia.com. AT&T and Thales launched commercial SGP.32 services in October 2025, allowing zero-touch profile swaps that keep smart-city assets online

SGP.02 persists in legacy industrial fleets due to multi-year certification cycles, but its lack of multi-operator interoperability drives higher OPEX. T-Mobile’s joint solution with Thales and SIMPL converges SGP.22 and SGP.32 under one platform, simplifying mixed-device estates. As procurement cycles align with depreciated capex schedules, SGP.32-capable shipments will overtake SGP.02 by volume before 2029, anchoring the embedded SIM (eSIM) market to a unified provisioning framework.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

Geography Analysis

North America held 39.39% of 2025 unit volumes on the back of Apple’s eSIM-only iPhone lineup and enterprise IoT rollouts in healthcare and logistics. Operators leverage matured 5G standalone cores to monetize premium data plans and remotely provision industrial gateways across oilfields and rail networks. Consumer adoption benefits from widespread carrier marketing that bundles travel eSIM packages into unlimited plans.

Asia Pacific is set to become the fastest-expanding region at a 27.36% CAGR to 2031. China’s October 2025 nationwide rollout covers more than 1 billion 5G connections, enabling low-cost Android makers to eliminate SIM trays and free board space for larger batteries. India followed with Tata Communications and BSNL launching pan-India eSIM in October 2025, targeting both smartphone users and smart-meter deployments in rural electrification programs. Japan and South Korea, already near-saturated in 5G coverage, deploy eSIM in connected cars, wearable payment devices, and smart factories.

Europe enjoys regulatory pull, with 94.3% household 5G coverage and mandates such as eCall and UN-R155 that embed connectivity into vehicle homologation. The Radio Equipment Directive coming into force in August 2025 raises cybersecurity bars, nudging device makers toward soldered eSIM designs. Middle East adoption accelerates, with stc’s national platform in Saudi Arabia cutting SIM logistics and MENA connections forecast to reach 135 million by 2028. Africa remains at a nascent stage except for pilot programs in South Africa and Nigeria, where urban operators test eSIM to serve expatriates and enterprise fleets.

South America shows rising momentum as 30 operators in 14 nations offer eSIM services. Penetration jumps from 5% in 2023 to an expected 75% of smartphone connections by 2030, aided by roaming-friendly tourist markets in Mexico, Brazil, and Chile. Consumer awareness campaigns, combined with lower-cost eSIM-ready handsets, are expected to unlock latent demand across prepaid segments.