How Do I Find the Serial Number on My Samsung Smartphone?

by Matt Schmitz
Using Samsung Galaxy smart phone

This is my Samsung smartphone. There are many like it, but this one is mine. Sure, but how do you know this one is yours? Well, by the serial number, of course. Beyond validating that your Samsung Galaxy is a “beautiful and unique snowflake,” as the fella from the movie says, knowing how to find your serial number will come in handy for several other reasons.

This May Also Interest You: How to Do a Home Inventory Before Disaster Strikes

“The serial number is a unique number assigned by the manufacturer (like Samsung) to help identify an individual device, like a phone, tablet, TV and so on,” the manufacture explains, likening the 11-digit combination of letters and numerals to a fingerprint. “For example, your phone's serial number will be different from every other phone Samsung has made. Serial numbers make it easier for the makers to organize and keep track of their products.”

If you send your device in to be serviced, you may be asked for the serial number; it can also be used to verify whether the warranty on your device is active. Moreover, the serial number helps ensure that your device isn't a counterfeit and can also help you find it if it's lost or stolen, according to Samsung.

3 Ways to Find Your Phone’s Serial Number

To help you in one of those situations or any other reason you might need it, here are three ways to find your Samsung Galaxy smartphone’s serial number:

1. On the Packaging

Your smartphone generally will come in a box with a sticker on it that includes your serial number, so if you saved the original packaging, that’s one easy way to find it. This will be particularly useful if your phone won’t power on and you can’t retrieve the serial number via Settings, as described next.

2. From Phone Settings

  • Step 1: Swipe down on your phone display from the home screen.
  • Step 2: Locate the cogwheel icon and tap it to go to “Settings.”
  • Step 3: Scroll down to “About phone” and click on it.
  • Step 4: Find “Serial number” among other vital information (such as your device’s model name and model number, your phone number, the hardware version and more), and there you have it.

3. Search for It

  • Step 1: Again, swipe down on your phone display from the home screen.
  • Step 2: Locate the cogwheel icon and tap it to go to “Settings.”
  • Step 3: Find the magnifying glass icon and tap it.
  • Step 4: Search for “serial number” and click on the search result when it appears.
  • Step 5: Scroll down to “Serial number” and there you’ll find yours.

More Related Articles:

Should You Share Your Serial Number?

Giving your serial number to Samsung Support when requesting a repair or replacement, or to a trusted third-party for a warranty-service claim, is generally safe. But you’ll want to avoid giving out this number willy-nilly, Guiding Tech says. If, for example, you post your serial number on social media and someone gets ahold of it, they could commandeer your warranty and fraudulently order replacement parts or repairs under your policy. This isn’t a common occurrence, but the last thing you want is to file a warranty claim only to find out someone has already ordered a replacement phone under your name.

What’s an IMEI or MEID?

If you buy a used Samsung phone, you may be asked about its IMEI number or MEID. IMEI stands for International Mobile Equipment Identity. Verizon explains that the 15-digit number a is bit different from your serial number in that an IMEI number is unique across all smartphones, while serial numbers are used by individual manufacturers. Before you purchase a used phone, you can check the IMEI number to find out if it has been stolen or locked. To find the IMEI number or MEID on your Samsung Galaxy, follow the same steps listed above. You may need to scroll down a bit to find it.

Related Articles