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can I buy iPhone 12 or later model abroad and use it in US

Can I buy iPhone 12 or later models abroad and use it in US because they have different model numbers?

iPhone 12 Pro

Posted on Nov 26, 2022 7:18 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Nov 28, 2022 4:04 PM

Hi dhaniw,


Thanks for coming to Apple Support Communities for help today.

What you are describing shouldn't be an issue as long as the iPhone isn't locked to a carrier when purchasing it.


We'd always advise contacting the potential carrier you will be using to verify it will work on their network as well.


You can see models, countries and supported networks at this page: iPhone - Supported 5G and LTE networks.


Have a fantastic day!



2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Nov 28, 2022 4:04 PM in response to dhaniw

Hi dhaniw,


Thanks for coming to Apple Support Communities for help today.

What you are describing shouldn't be an issue as long as the iPhone isn't locked to a carrier when purchasing it.


We'd always advise contacting the potential carrier you will be using to verify it will work on their network as well.


You can see models, countries and supported networks at this page: iPhone - Supported 5G and LTE networks.


Have a fantastic day!



Dec 3, 2022 4:59 PM in response to MichaelB2019

Thanks Michael for answering my post. The key word is "check with your carrier in the US". My carrier is Comcast and their system is setup to use 5G or LTE if the phone is capable - for iPhone 12 it's 5G/LTE, for iPhone 11 it's 4G or less. My problem is my business related APP don't work on 5G/LTE so when I return to the US those APPs stop working. This forces me to buy a new iPhone 11 which is not available here and tough to find abroad. What Apple did to produce different models for different parts of the world without downward compatibility creates a mess for users. I found this out after posting the question and after spending countless hours with friends abroad. My problem arose when I replaced SE 1st version with 14 Pro. Anyway, Thanks!

can I buy iPhone 12 or later model abroad and use it in US

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