Refreshing the phone’s system by turning it off and on again can potentially fix the device that keeps showing “No SIM card detected” error. For more troubleshooting guide information designed to resolve this kind of issue on a Samsung Galaxy S10, read further.
The error message “No SIM card detected” can be a sign that the SIM card is damaged or there’s just a minor problem with the phone. Contrary to what some of our readers suggested that it could be an issue with the signal or area, I think the problem here is not about whether your phone has a good signal or not because the error you may be getting if that’s the case is “No Service” and not “No SIM card detected.”
Before we move on to our tutorial, if you happen to find this post while looking for a solution to a different problem, then visit our Galaxy S10 Help Guides page for we have already addressed some of the most common issues with this device. We may have already published articles that could help you fix your problem. Find issues that are similar with yours and feel free to use our solutions.
Troubleshooting Galaxy S10 with “No SIM card detected” Error
As I said earlier, you don’t need to do some complicated troubleshooting procedures to fix this problem. Just the basic and practical ones and you may be able to make your phone work perfectly again.
First solution: Force restart your Galaxy S10.
If your phone was working fine and you can send text or make calls prior to the error, then it’s possible that it’s just a result of a minor firmware issue or glitch. There’s no need to panic even after rebooting the phone a few times to no avail. The Forced Restart is actually more effective than the normal reboot as it refreshes your phone’s memory as well as reload all its applications and services. To do this on your Galaxy S10, follow these steps:
- Press and hold the volume down button and don’t release it.
- While holding the volume button, press and hold the power key as well.
- Keep both keys held down together for 15 seconds or until the Galaxy S10 logo shows on the screen.
Once the phone has successfully rebooted, you can see immediately if the “No SIM card detected” error still shows up. If it does, then move on to the next procedures.
ALSO READ: What to do if your Samsung Galaxy S10 is not recognized by PC
Second solution: Re-seat the SIM card on your Galaxy S10.
While the nano SIM card fits perfectly on its tray and inside the slot, there are times when it gets loose inside and the contacts may have difficulty connecting with each other. As a result, you may sporadically encounter this problem. But if you recently unmounted the SIM card and then this problem happened, it might just need re-seating. Here’s what you need to do:
- Remove any case you put on your phone.
- Using the SIM ejector tool, remove the SIM card tray from the top of your device.
- Gently pull the tray out of your phone.
- Clean the SIM card contacts with a clean, dry cloth.
- After making sure the contacts are clean, place it on the tray and make sure it fits perfectly.
- Then, push the tray back into the slot and make sure it snaps into place.
Now, turn your phone back on and see if the No SIM card detected error still shows up. If it still does, try the next procedures.
Third solution: Check if the SIM card is still working.
Here’s the good thing about this procedure, you will know if the problem is with the SIM card or with your phone. To do this, insert the SIM card into another device and see if it gets detected. If it works with other devices, the problem could be with your phone and if the device was given to you through a plan and you used a different SIM card, you may need to contact your service provider as it’s often account-related if that’s the case.
However, if the SIM card is also not detected by other devices, then there’s no doubt that it’s already damaged. I’m not sure if you’ll be able to recover the phone number that comes with it but pretty sure that the contacts saved in it won’t be recovered.
ALSO READ: What to do if Twitter keeps crashing on your Samsung Galaxy S10
Fourth solution: Factory reset your phone.
You only have to do this if the SIM works with other devices but not with your Galaxy S10 and if the card actually came with the device. There’s a possibility that it’s a firmware issue that can only be addressed by a factory reset. But before you reset your phone, make sure to create a backup of your important files and data as they will be deleted. Then, remove your Google and Samsung accounts so that you won’t be locked out of your device after the reset. Once everything is set, follow these steps to reset your phone:
- Turn off the device.
- Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Bixby key, then press and hold the Power key.
- When the Galaxy S10 logo shows on the screen, release all keys.
- Press the Volume down to highlight ‘wipe data / factory reset’.
- Press Power button to select.
- Press the Volume down key to highlight ‘Yes’.
- Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
- When the master reset is complete, ‘Reboot system now’ is highlighted.
- Press the Power key to restart the device.
I hope that we’ve been able to help you fix the No SIM card detected error on your Samsung Galaxy S10. We would appreciate it if you helped us spread the word so please share this post if you found it helpful.
Connect With Us
We are committed to helping our readers fix the problems with their phones as well as learn how to properly use their devices. If you have other issues, you may visit our Help Guide page so you can check by yourself the articles we’ve already published that contain solutions to common problems. Also, we do create videos to demonstrate how things are done on your phone. Visit our YouTube Channel and please subscribe to it. Thanks.
