Invalid Phone Number for Apple Account on iPhone 18 Pro

Some people have run into a problem when trying to create an Apple Account or trying to use Apple Pay. They get an error saying, “Invalid Phone Number. This phone number is invalid. Please enter a new number and try again.”

There are a few situations where someone may see this error message or a similar one:

• When trying to create an Apple Account
• When trying to use Apple Pay
• After entering a verification code for two-factor authentication

How to Fix “Invalid Phone Number”

Try the following until your problem has been resolved.

Check the phone number on your iPhone 18 Pro

• Double-check the number you are entering:
  1. Open Settings on your iPhone 18 Pro.
  2. Tap Apps, then tap Phone.
  3. Your phone number is listed next to My Number.

Check the phone number for your Apple Account

1. Open Settings on your iPhone.
2. Tap on your Apple Account name at the top.

   

3. Tap on Sign-In & Security. Check that the number is correct there.

For Apple Pay issues, check the default phone

1. Open Settings and tap on Wallet & Apple Pay.
2. Tap Apple Pay Defaults, then tap Phone.
3. If you have a phone number listed there, make sure it matches exactly, including the ‘+’ and country code.

When entering your number

• Make sure not to have spaces.
• Don’t use the first zero for the country code. Check that the country code is there and is correct.

Update your iPhone 18 Pro

Go to Settings and tap on General. Then, tap on Software Update and install any available updates.

Restart your iPhone 18 Pro

1. Press and hold the Side button and one of the volume buttons until the power off slider appears.

   

2. Slide the slider, then wait for your iPhone to completely power off.
3. Hold the Side button until the Apple logo appears.

Update your carrier settings

1. Make sure you are connected to a Wi-Fi network.
2. Open Settings, then select General.
3. Tap About. If a popup appears with a carrier update, tap on Update. If there is no popup, there are no updates available.

If you receive “Invalid Phone Number” after entering 2FA code

Try getting the verification code sent to another device.

If the phone number is new

Wait and try again

• If you just got the phone number, you might wait a day or two if possible.
• Have someone call you to make sure the number is active.

Request a different number from the carrier

It is possible that someone had your phone number before. They may have created Apple Accounts with the number or gotten put on some kind of spam list. These things could cause your phone number to be considered invalid.

• Someone may have had the number previously and created an Apple Account with it, and then the carrier recycled the number.
• You can get a new phone number from the carrier. If your phone number is new, it shouldn’t make too much difference to you if you have to change it.

If the phone number is not new

• Have you created other Apple Accounts with the number?

Manage your Apple Account online

Go to account.apple.com to manage your Apple Account.

If you still get the “Invalid Phone Number” error

There are two places that may be able to help you: Your carrier or Apple Support.

Contact your carrier (for a new number)

If you haven’t yet, you should contact your carrier to see if there is anything they can do to check your phone number or give you a new one (if yours is new).

Contact Apple Support

If you have double-checked your phone number, tried again a couple of days later and can’t get any help from your carrier, it is probably time to contact Apple Support.

• If you already have an Apple Account, you may need to request an account recovery. The process can take a few days.