Cricket runs on AT&T's network, and a Cricket-locked iPhone is an AT&T-locked iPhone with a different name on the bill. That single fact explains most of the confusion: AT&T's unlock portal will not help, Cricket's support will only help the account holder, and the device still shows "SIM Not Supported" for every other network.
The activation policy for a Cricket IMEI is held on AT&T's side, because Cricket is an AT&T brand. There is no unlock code and nothing to type — the record has to be changed. Cricket's published rule is that the device must have been active on Cricket for six months of paid service, be paid in full, and not be reported lost or stolen.
The six-month clock is the trap in resale: a phone sold at month two is locked for another four months and the seller rarely mentions it. Worse, the clock only advances while the line stays active and paid, so a device that was suspended mid-way can sit locked for a year.
Cricket publishes its requirements on cricketwireless.com. In summary: six months of active, paid service on the device, the device paid in full, the account in good standing, and the IMEI not reported lost or stolen. The request can only be made by the account holder, and Cricket applies it to the IMEI — no code is issued for an iPhone.
Because the network is AT&T's, the release lands in the same activation service. That is also why a Cricket device can sometimes be released through an AT&T-side tier and why an AT&T portal lookup returns "not an AT&T device" — the brand, not the network, owns the record.
Policies change without notice. The current wording is always on the carrier’s own page: Cricket device unlock policy.
Most Cricket devices that reach a reseller are inside the six-month window, on a closed account, or reported. The tiers below are priced by model generation and cover the clean-but-locked case; the eligibility check tells you in advance whether the request has a chance, and a refused request is refunded.
| Service | Price | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Cricket Unlock Eligiblity Days on Cricket Check | $0.40 | Days on Cricket and eligibility, $0.40 — run this before any unlock tier. |
| Cricket Unlock Require Active 180+ Days - iPhone & Generic | $2.50 | Entry-level Cricket unlock for iPhone, Motorola and generic devices. |
| Cricket Clean Semi Premium Unlock- iPhone 4-15 Series | $135 | Clean semi-premium tier for iPhone X through 12-series devices on Cricket. |
| Cricket Clean Semi Premium Unlock- iPhone 17 Series | $165 | Current-generation tier for iPhone 17-series devices on Cricket. |
| Cricket Clean Semi Premium Unlock- iPhone 18 Series | $205 | Newest tier — iPhone 18-series on Cricket. |
Six months of active, paid service at the time of writing. Check Cricket's page for the current rule before you plan around it.
Not through Cricket — the request is restricted to the account holder. The paid route works from the IMEI alone.
Yes, once applied to the IMEI. It survives restores and iOS updates.
Because Cricket owns the record even though AT&T owns the network. Use a Cricket-side tier.
No unlock restores service. Run the blacklist check first — it costs cents and saves the full price of a tier that cannot work.
Last checked 2026-10-28. Carrier rules are quoted from the operators’ own policy pages; if a rule has changed since, the carrier’s page wins.