IMEIProof

Checking a used phone before you buy

Dial *#06# on the phone itself and compare that IMEI to the one in Settings and on the box — all three should match. Look the IMEI up to confirm the make and model are what the seller claims. Then check the things a lookup cannot see: that the device is signed out of its owner's account, and that it powers on and holds a charge.

Before you travel — what you can do remotely

Ask the seller for the IMEI and look it up. Two things come back: whether the number is well-formed, and which make and model it belongs to.

If the model does not match the listing, stop there. If the number fails its checksum, ask them to re-send it — usually a typo, occasionally not.

A seller refusing to share the IMEI at all is a signal in itself. It is not sensitive information in a sale; a legitimate seller has no reason to withhold it.

With the phone in your hands

  1. Dial *#06# on the device. This is the step that matters most, and the one people skip. It proves the IMEI you were given belongs to this phone rather than some other one.
  2. Cross-check three places. The dial code, Settings, and the box label should all agree. A box that disagrees with the phone means the box is not this phone's box.
  3. Confirm it is signed out. Factory-reset it in front of the seller and watch it set up. If it asks for a previous owner's Apple or Google credentials, the device is locked to them and is worth nothing to you. No lookup can detect this — only the reset can.
  4. Check the hardware. Charge port, both cameras, every speaker and microphone, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and the battery-health figure in Settings.
  5. Put your own SIM in and make a call. Catches carrier lock and a dead modem in one step.

What none of this covers

Even done perfectly, the above does not tell you whether the device is reported stolen or blacklisted. That data sits with operators and police and is not publicly queryable — see what an IMEI check cannot tell you.

Practical mitigations for that specific risk: pay in a way that leaves a record, meet somewhere with cameras, keep the seller's details and the IMEI, and be wary of a price well below market. A blacklisted handset can stop working weeks after you buy it, and you will have no recourse.

Keep the number

Once the phone is yours, write the IMEI down somewhere that is not the phone. If it is later lost or stolen, it is the first thing your carrier and the police will ask for — and by then you cannot look it up on the device.

Related

Check an IMEI free — brand, model and checksum, no account needed — or browse by brand.