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A HelloRoam eSIM has no phone number, so calls use your home line

Short answer

Your HelloRoam eSIM carries data only, so it has no phone number and cannot make normal calls or send texts. Keep your home line switched on for calls, texts, and codes sent by SMS. Your home carrier may still charge roaming for that line. For calls while traveling, use apps like WhatsApp or FaceTime over your eSIM's data connection.

Two lines, two jobs

Your home line
  • Calls
  • Texts
  • SMS codes
Your HelloRoam line
  • Mobile data
  • WhatsApp and FaceTime calls

The line that handles calls, texts and data

What you seeWhat to do
Calls and texts stop arriving, and your home line is switched off.Switch the home line back on. Your number lives there, not on the HelloRoam line.
A text you are waiting for, such as an SMS code, never reaches the HelloRoam line.It goes to your home line. Keep that line switched on and watch it there.
Your phone asks which line to use as the default for calls and messages.Choose your home number. Pick the HelloRoam line for mobile data instead.
One calling app will not connect, while websites open normally.Your data is working. Update that app, restart it, then check any VPN or filter.
Nothing loads at all on the HelloRoam line.That is a data problem, not an app problem. Get data working on that line first.

Set the default line for calls and texts

iPhoneSamsungPixelOther Android

iPhone

Your iPhone asks which line does what while you install the eSIM. Later, you can change the call and data lines in Settings > Cellular.

  1. At the default line question, or at Default Voice Line, choose your home number.

    Clip

  2. At the iMessage and FaceTime question, choose your home number again.

  3. For Cellular Data, pick the HelloRoam line instead.

    Clip

  4. Then turn off Allow Cellular Data Switching, so your data stays on the HelloRoam line.

Recorded on iPhone · 0:10

Recorded on iPhone in UK English, where Cellular is called Mobile Service. Already installed? Set Default Voice Line to your home line, called Primary here.
Step 1 of 4
Good to know

Calls and texts use your home number, because the HelloRoam line has none.

Names such as Primary and Secondary are labels only, so check which line is which.

If the lines look alike, match the ICCID in settings with the HelloRoam app.

How to find your ICCID

Samsung

Galaxy phones set the line for calls, texts and mobile data under Primary SIM, in SIM manager. Keep calls and texts on your home line, and mobile data on the HelloRoam line.

  1. Open Settings > Connections > SIM manager to see both lines.

  2. Under Primary SIM, set calls to your home line.

  3. Leave your mobile data on the HelloRoam line.

Illustration

Illustration. Menu names can differ by model and software version.
Step 1 of 3
Good to know

Line names are labels only, so check which line is which before you choose.

If the lines look alike, match the ICCID in settings with the HelloRoam app.

How to find your ICCID

Pixel

Pixel lists Calls and Texts on the SIMs screen. Check that both show your home line.

  1. Open Settings > Network & internet > SIMs to see both lines.

  2. Tap Calls and choose your home line.

  3. Leave your mobile data on the HelloRoam line.

Illustration

Illustration. Menu names can differ by model and software version.
Step 1 of 3
Good to know

Line names are labels only, so check which line is which before you choose.

If the lines look alike, match the ICCID in settings with the HelloRoam app.

How to find your ICCID

Other Android

Menu names change by brand and Android version, so look for the closest match.

  1. Open Settings > Network & internet > SIMs, or Mobile network on older phones.

  2. Tap Calls or Calls preference, and choose your home line.

  3. Leave your mobile data on the HelloRoam line.

Illustration

Illustration. Menu names can differ by model and software version.
Step 1 of 3
Good to know

Line names are labels only, so check which line is which before you choose.

If the lines look alike, match the ICCID in settings with the HelloRoam app.

How to find your ICCID

When WhatsApp or FaceTime calls fail on eSIM data

  1. 1

    Turn Wi-Fi off, then open a normal website. If it loads, your data connection is working.

  2. 2

    Check whether your other apps work. One app failing is not the same as the eSIM failing.

  3. 3

    Update the calling app that failed, then close it and open it again.

  4. 4

    Check any VPN, private relay or content filter, and switch it off to see what changes.

    Clip: finding the VPN switch
  5. 5

    If nothing loads at all, the problem is the data connection, not the app.

  6. 6

    In that case, get data working on the HelloRoam line first, then place the call again.

Recorded on iPhone · 0:10

Recorded on iPhone: search Settings for VPN, then check that it shows Not Connected.

Don't delete the eSIM because it cannot make a normal call. It is a data plan, and deleting fixes nothing.

Send these details about both lines

Email help@helloroam.com and tell us which line the trouble is on. These details let us read your setup instead of guessing.

  • Your order number.
  • Your phone brand and model.
  • The country and city you are in now.
  • What you tried to do and on which line: a call, a text, or an app.
  • Whether normal websites open on the HelloRoam data.
  • Whether your other apps work, and whether the app that failed is up to date.
  • Whether a VPN, private relay or content filter was on.
  • The exact words of any error message.

Crop any QR code out of a screenshot before you send it.

help@helloroam.com

Calls, texts and number questions

Can I use WhatsApp and FaceTime on a data-only eSIM?

Yes. You can use WhatsApp, FaceTime, Telegram, WeChat and Messenger for calls and messages over your HelloRoam data. The FaceTime app comes only on Apple devices, so on Android, use one of the others. Normal calls and texts to your number still go to your home line, because the HelloRoam line has no number. Keep your home line switched on if you want those too.

Does HelloRoam sell an eSIM plan with calls and texts?

No. Every HelloRoam e-sim plan is data only, with no phone number and no normal calls or texts. Your home line keeps handling those while it stays switched on, though your home carrier may charge roaming. To talk over the internet instead, you can use calling apps such as WhatsApp or FaceTime on your HelloRoam data.

Can you have two phone numbers on one iPhone for travel?

Yes, an iPhone can run two lines at once, but a HelloRoam plan does not add a second number. The HelloRoam e SIM carries data only, so your home number stays the one people call and text. If your home line is a physical SIM, leave it in. It keeps handling calls and texts while the eSIM handles the internet.

My eSIM's data works but I can't make or receive calls. Is it broken?

No. Your HelloRoam eSIM has no phone number, so it cannot make or receive normal calls. Normal calls and texts use your home line, so keep it switched on. Don't delete the eSIM over this. Apple's help adds that while one line is on a call, the other line shows No Service. If the HelloRoam line shows No Service at other times, follow the No Service steps.

Will I still get calls and texts on my old number while using a travel eSIM?

Yes, on your home line, which keeps your number. Leave that line switched on and it goes on handling calls and texts while you travel. A text sent to your number goes there, not to the HelloRoam line, so keep the home line on if you are waiting for a code by SMS. Your carrier may charge roaming for what you use on that line.

Sources for this guide

The steps and menu names for your phone's settings follow these pages. Each entry shows the date we read it.

  1. Using Dual SIM with an eSIM, Apple. Retrieved
  2. If Dual SIM with eSIM isn't working on your iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
  3. Use Dual SIM on iPhone, Apple. Retrieved
  4. Use cellular data on your iPhone or iPad, Apple. Retrieved
  5. Connect iPhone to the internet, Apple. Retrieved
  6. SIM cards for your Galaxy phone or tablet, Samsung. Retrieved
  7. Samsung Galaxy S25, S25+, S25 Edge and S25 Ultra User Guide, Samsung. Retrieved
  8. Connection options for your Galaxy phone or tablet, Samsung. Retrieved
  9. How to use dual SIMs on your Google Pixel phone, Google. Retrieved
  10. Connect to mobile networks on a Pixel phone, Google. Retrieved
  11. Control airplane mode, private DNS & other network settings, Google. Retrieved
  12. Android Settings app strings, res/values/strings.xml (android16-release), Android Open Source Project. Retrieved

About this guide

Covers
This guide covers calls, texts and your number while HelloRoam carries your data, and nothing else. Steps cover iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel and other Android phones. Wi-Fi calling is in our iOS install guide.
Written by
HelloRoam Editorial Team

The HelloRoam team that writes every help guide, working from the HelloRoam app and the phone makers' own help pages.

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The clips
From the HelloRoam app's own tutorials, recorded on iPhone
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