Before you start

An unlocked handset, or an eSIM-capable one
A US address for postpaid, but not for prepaid
A payment method — prepaid accepts foreign cards, postpaid usually does not

Step-by-step

1
Activate an eSIM before flying, or buy prepaid on arrival
A US eSIM activates before you land, so you have a working number immediately for rides, deliveries and bank verification codes. No identity registration is required at any point in the United States.
OnlineWho: YouDay 1
2
Check your handset is unlocked and band-compatible
Phones bought on contract abroad are frequently locked, and US band combinations trip up some regional models. With 3G shut down there is no fallback network to land on if the bands do not match.
OnlineWho: You
3
Start prepaid rather than fighting a credit check
Postpaid runs a credit check. With no US file you will be declined or asked for a deposit. Prepaid has no check and is usually cheaper for the same data allowance.
OnlineWho: You
4
Turn on Wireless Emergency Alerts and add a radar app
Tornado warnings, severe thunderstorm warnings and flash flood warnings all arrive on the handset through the federal alert system, and central Iowa gets all three. Check the alert settings are enabled — some categories are on by default and some are not — and add a radar app that pushes warnings for Polk County specifically.
Mobile appWho: YouWeek 1
5
Learn what a derecho is, because the alerting is different
A derecho is a long-lived, fast-moving thunderstorm complex producing straight-line winds at hurricane force over hundreds of miles. The one that crossed Iowa on 10 August 2020 was among the costliest thunderstorm events in US history. It arrives as a severe thunderstorm warning, not a tornado warning, and people who only take tornado warnings seriously are the ones caught outside.
In personWho: You
6
Find your shelter and learn the siren schedule
In a house that means the lowest floor, an interior room away from windows; in a flat it may mean an interior corridor or a ground-floor neighbour, so ask the building manager on day one. Polk County tests outdoor warning sirens on a published schedule — know when the test is so you can tell it apart from the real thing.
In personWho: You
7
Check broadband by address, not by estate
Use the FCC's National Broadband Map for the specific street address before signing a lease. Central Iowa's data-centre build-out brought real fibre into parts of the metro, but 'fibre-ready' in a development brochure frequently means conduit rather than service, and the difference matters for anyone working from home.
OnlineWho: You
8
Port rather than cancel if you switch later
Number portability is a legal right and works between carriers and MVNOs. Request the port from the new carrier — never cancel the old service first, or you lose the number permanently.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport for postpaid; nothing at all for prepaid
US address for postpaid
A payment card — prepaid usually accepts foreign cards, postpaid rarely does

Things most newcomers don’t know

The derecho is the weather nobody tells newcomers about.

Everyone arrives braced for tornadoes. The 2020 derecho did more damage across Iowa than most tornadoes ever have, moved at highway speed, and came under a severe thunderstorm warning rather than a tornado warning. Treat a severe thunderstorm warning here with the seriousness you would give a tornado warning elsewhere.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center

The United States has no SIM registration at all.

Most countries in this app require passport registration to activate a SIM. The US requires nothing whatsoever for prepaid — you can buy one in a supermarket and be online in minutes. It is one of the few pieces of American bureaucracy that is genuinely simpler than everywhere else.

Source: FCC — consumer guides

Fibre availability in the western suburbs is patchier than the marketing suggests.

The metro's growth is westward into Waukee, Grimes and West Des Moines, and the hyperscale data centres nearby create an impression of universal fibre that the residential streets do not always match. The FCC's map is address-level and free; the leasing office's claim is neither.

Source: FCC — National Broadband Map

Ground blizzards happen under a clear sky.

Wind lifting old snow off open farmland reduces visibility on I-35 and I-80 to nothing on days with no snow falling. Weather alerts cover it, drivers who only look out of the window do not, and it is the single most dangerous ordinary driving condition in central Iowa.

Source: National Weather Service — Des Moines

Common mistakes to avoid

Silencing weather alerts after one loud test, in an active severe-weather corridor.
Treating a severe thunderstorm warning as minor when a derecho is possible.
Applying for postpaid with no credit file and facing a large deposit.
Bringing a carrier-locked handset from abroad and discovering it on arrival.
Assuming fibre is available at a new-build address because the estate advertises it.
Cancelling the old carrier before requesting the port, and losing the number.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.