Apple ID Without a Phone Number and Where Apple Asks for It
Apple’s own sign up steps print a phone number step on three of its six paths: the App Store on your device, a Mac, and the web at account.apple.com. The other three paths print no phone number step: setting up a new iPhone, iPad or Apple Vision Pro, the Apple Music app or Apple TV app on a Windows PC, and another device such as an Apple TV or an Android device.
If you want an Apple ID without a phone number, those three lists are the ones to read first, and the device setup path adds that you might be asked for a number as you use the device. Apple’s account page says: “Apple ID is now Apple Account. You can still sign in with the same email address or phone number and password.”
Every step below is quoted from Apple’s account page, each under the Apple heading it came from.
Which path gives you an Apple ID without a phone number step?
Apple’s account page prints a “Choose your device” menu and prints no comparison across its sign up sections. The table is this article’s; the words inside quotation marks in its cells are Apple’s.
| Path, by Apple’s heading | Phone number step in Apple’s list | Apple’s words on the phone number |
|---|---|---|
| “Create your Apple Account when you set up your device” (iPhone, iPad or Apple Vision Pro) | No. The five steps do not print one. | After the list: “As you use your new device, you might be asked to enter your phone number, or a payment method and billing information.” |
| “Create your Apple Account using the App Store on your device” | Yes. Step 5 of 6. | Step 5 opens: “Confirm your phone number.” |
| “Create your Apple Account on Mac” | Yes. Step 5 of 6. | Step 5 opens: “Confirm your phone number.” |
| “Create your Apple Account on a Windows PC” | No. The seven steps do not print one. | None in the list. The China mainland note sits under it. |
| “Create your Apple Account on another device” (Apple TV, Android device, smart TV or streaming device) | No. Apple’s one paragraph lists no phone number. | “enter your full name, birthday, provide an email address, and a payment method” |
| “Create your Apple Account on the web” | Yes. Step 3 of 6, and the phone number is named again at step 6. | “Enter your birthday and a phone number that you can always access.” |
| Verdict | Three paths print a phone number step: the App Store, Mac and the web. Three print none: device setup, Windows PC and another device. | Device setup adds: “Your phone number can help to verify your identity and recover your account if needed.” |
Neither Apple page cited below prints a prompt for a person with no phone number, a None choice beside the phone number step, or a blank phone number field. The word None sits on Apple’s account page only in its payment steps: “You can also choose None.”
Related on this site: creating an iCloud account without a phone number.
How do you create an Apple Account when you set up an iPhone, iPad or Apple Vision Pro?
Apple’s account page puts this list under the heading “Create your Apple Account on iPhone, iPad, or Apple Vision Pro” and the subheading “Create your Apple Account when you set up your device”. The five steps, in Apple’s words:
- Tap “Forgot password or don’t have an account?”
- “Tap Create a Free Apple Account.”
- “Select your birthday and enter your name. Tap Continue.”
- “Provide your email address. This primary email address will be what you use to sign in to your Apple Account. If you don’t have an email address, tap” “Don’t have an email address?” “to get a free iCloud email address.”
- “Follow the onscreen steps to verify your email address, create a strong password, set your country or region, and set up two-factor authentication. If you choose to skip this step, you’ll be prompted to do this later in Settings.”
No step in that list asks for a phone number. The phone number sentence for this path comes after the list, quoted below under what the number is used for.
Under the same subheading, after the list, the page says: “After you verify your email address, you can sign in to your new Apple Account to use iCloud, the App Store, and other Apple services.” It adds: “In certain states, countries, or regions, you might be asked to” “confirm that you’re an adult”.
The page repeats that sign in paragraph under the App Store, Mac and web headings.
How do you create an Apple Account in the App Store on your device?
Under the heading “Create your Apple Account using the App Store on your device”, the six steps in Apple’s words:
- “Open the App Store and tap” “the My Account button” and the page shows the button’s icon at that spot.
- “Tap Create New Apple Account. If you don’t see this option, make sure that you’re signed out of iCloud.”
- “Follow the onscreen steps to provide an email address, create a strong password, and set your country or region. The email address that you provide will be used to sign in to your new Apple Account.*”
- “Enter your payment method and billing information, then tap Next. You can also choose None. You won’t be charged until you make a purchase.”
- “Confirm your phone number. This can help to verify your identity and recover your account if needed. Tap Next.”
- “Check your email for a verification email from Apple and verify your email address.”
Step 5 is the phone number step, and the None in step 4 sits beside the payment method.
The asterisk in step 3 is tied to a note under this list: “* In China mainland, you might be required to provide a +86 phone number for your Apple Account. You can change the number later. This number is only required in China mainland for verification purposes.”
Related on this site: whether your Apple ID has to be an email address.
How do you create an Apple Account on a Mac?
Under the heading “Create your Apple Account on Mac”, the six steps in Apple’s words:
- “Choose Apple menu” “then click System Settings.” The Apple logo symbol is printed between those two parts.
- “In the sidebar, click Sign in.”
- Click “Don’t Have an Account?”, then “follow the onscreen steps to enter your birthday, provide an email address, create a strong password, and set your country or region. This primary email address will be what you use to sign in to your Apple Account.*”
- “Enter your payment method and billing information, then click Continue. You can also choose None. You won’t be charged until you make a purchase.”
- “Confirm your phone number. This can help to verify your identity and recover your account if needed. Click Next.”
- “Check your email for a verification email from Apple and verify your email address.”
Step 5 is the phone number step. The same China mainland note sits under this list, tied to the asterisk in step 3.
How do you create an Apple Account on a Windows PC?
Under the heading “Create your Apple Account on a Windows PC”, Apple’s page says: “On your Windows PC, you can create an Apple Account in the Apple Music app or the Apple TV app.” The seven steps in Apple’s words:
- “Open the Apple Music app or Apple TV app.”
- “Click Sign In at the bottom of the sidebar.”
- “Click Sign In.”
- “Click Create New Apple Account.”
- “Follow the onscreen steps to provide an email address, create a strong password, and set your device region. This primary email address will be what you use to sign in to your Apple Account.*”
- “Enter your payment method and billing information, then click Continue. You can also choose None. You won’t be charged until you make a purchase.”
- “Check your email for a verification email from Apple and verify your email address.”
No step in that list asks for a phone number. The only phone number sentence under this heading is the same China mainland note, tied to the asterisk in step 5.
After the list the page says: “After you verify your email address, you can sign in to your new Apple Account to use Apple services.”
How do you create an Apple Account on the web or another device?
Under “Create your Apple Account on another device”
One paragraph sits under this heading, and it opens: “To create your Apple Account on an Apple TV 4K or Apple TV HD, Android device, smart TV, or streaming device, you can usually follow the steps provided onscreen and enter your full name, birthday, provide an email address, and a payment method.”
Its middle sentence carries two links out, and it closes: “You can also use the steps below to create your Apple Account on the web.”
Under “Create your Apple Account on the web”
The six steps in Apple’s words:
- “Go to account.apple.com and click Create Your Apple Account.”
- “Follow the onscreen steps to provide an email address, create a strong password, and set your device region. This primary email address will be what you use to sign in to your Apple Account.*”
- “Enter your birthday and a phone number that you can always access.”
- “Check the boxes to subscribe to Apple Updates if you’d like. This keeps you up to date on the latest news, software, products, and services from Apple.”
- “Click Continue.”
- “Follow the onscreen steps to verify your email address and phone number.”
Step 3 is the phone number step, and step 6 names the phone number again. The same China mainland note sits under this list, tied to the asterisk in step 2.
What does Apple say the phone number is used for after sign up?
Apple’s account page, under “Create your Apple Account when you set up your device” and after the five steps, says: “As you use your new device, you might be asked to enter your phone number, or a payment method and billing information. Your phone number can help to verify your identity and recover your account if needed. If you enter a payment method, you won’t be charged until you make a purchase.”
Apple’s two factor page, under “What is two-factor authentication?”, says: “When you sign in to your Apple Account for the first time on a new device or on the web, you need:” and its two items read “Your Apple Account password” and “The six-digit verification code that’s automatically displayed on your trusted devices or sent to your trusted phone number.”
The same section says: “Two-factor authentication is the default security method for most accounts.” Under “Turn on two-factor authentication for your Apple Account”, the page’s note says: “If your Apple Account was created using two-factor authentication, this extra protection can’t be removed. If you recently enabled two-factor authentication, you have the option to lower your account security within two weeks of enrollment.”
The two factor page’s link “Learn about trusted devices and trusted phone numbers” opens another Apple page outside the two cited here.
Related on this site: two factor authentication on Apple devices.
If you can’t create an Apple Account
Apple’s account page ends under the heading “If you can’t create an Apple Account” with four items, and the link text at the end of each opens another Apple page outside the two cited here:
- “If you see” “your account cannot be created at this time” “or you’re having trouble creating multiple accounts,” “get suggestions on different ways to create an Apple Account”
- “In certain states, countries, or regions, you might be asked to” “confirm that you’re an adult” or to “join a Family Sharing group”
- “If you see” “the maximum number of free accounts have been activated”, “learn what it means”
- “After you create an Apple Account,” “learn how to sign in”
Below that list the page adds: “Store availability and features might vary by country or region.”
Related on this site: what to do when an Apple ID verification code does not arrive.
Questions readers ask
Can you skip the phone number when you create an Apple ID?
On Apple’s account page, the App Store, Mac and web lists print a phone number step, and the device setup, Windows PC and another device lists print none.
Neither Apple page cited below prints a skip for the phone number step. The only skip printed on either Apple page sits in device setup step 5: “If you choose to skip this step, you’ll be prompted to do this later in Settings.”
Can you create an Apple Account with an email address only?
Neither Apple page cited below prints an email only sign up. Apple’s account page prints “Provide your email address” in device setup step 4 and “provide an email address” in the App Store, Mac, Windows PC and web lists and in the another device paragraph.
Device setup step 4 on Apple’s account page says: “If you don’t have an email address, tap” “Don’t have an email address?” “to get a free iCloud email address.” The device setup, Windows PC and another device lists print no phone number step; the App Store, Mac and web lists do.
Related on this site: how to change your Apple ID email address.
Does two factor authentication need a phone number?
Apple’s two factor page says the code is “automatically displayed on your trusted devices or sent to your trusted phone number.” Neither Apple page cited below says whether a trusted phone number is required. The same page says: “If your Apple Account was created using two-factor authentication, this extra protection can’t be removed.”
What about China mainland or other countries and regions?
Apple’s account page prints one regional phone number rule, as a note under the App Store, Mac, Windows PC and web sections: “In China mainland, you might be required to provide a +86 phone number for your Apple Account.” Neither Apple page cited below names another country or region for the phone number. The account page closes with: “Store availability and features might vary by country or region.”
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