How to find your IMEI number on iPhone and Android

EVERY smartphone has a unique number that you need to know about.

Your gadget's International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) code can be useful if it is stolen or needs repairing.

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1) What is an IMEI number?

An IMEI is a unique number used to identify phones on a network.

Every smartphone, be they an iPhone or Android device, is assigned one when they are built.

Think of it as your phone's fingerprint — it's a 15-digit number unique to each device.

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If your phone is lost or stolen you can blacklist the IMEI number so that other people can't use it.

A phone with a blacklisted IMEI won't work even with a new SIM card.

Luckily it's quite easy to find out what your number is.

You can note it down somewhere safe and hope you never need to use it.

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2) How to find IMEI number on iPhone

Newer iPhones have the IMEI number in the SIM tray but you'll probably need a magnifying glass to see it.

Alternatively, you can plug your iPhone into your computer and view its summary on iTunes or on the Mac Finder section.

It's far easier, however, to follow the steps below.

1. Open Settings
2. Tap General and then About
3. Scroll down to view your IMEI number

3) How to find IMEI number on Android

Android phones differ slightly in how you can check their IMEI numbers.

Most of them, however, stick it somewhere in the Settings menu.

1. Go to Settings
2. Tap on "About phone", "About device", "Status" or similar
3. Scroll down to view your IMEI number

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