📱 Smartphone

Unlike laptops, smartphones do not generally need to be removed from your bag at security checkpoints — they can stay in your carry-on and pass through the X-ray without issue. If an officer cannot identify what they are seeing on the screen, your bag may be pulled for a manual check, but this is uncommon for phones in their original form. Keeping your phone in an accessible spot is still useful in case an officer asks you to power it on.

Smartphones are permitted in carry-on and checked baggage across all 14 regions we cover, with no significant regional differences in the basic screening rules. The rule to keep your device charged so you can power it on if asked is a recommendation applied informally in various countries including the US and UK. There are no regions that ban smartphones from carry-on.

Border and customs officers in some countries, including the US, have the authority to ask you to unlock and hand over your phone for inspection during entry screening — this is separate from airport security. Aviation security screeners at the departure checkpoint are focused on physical safety threats, not device content, so they typically only ask you to power the phone on to confirm it is a working device. If asked to unlock by a border officer, that is a different situation governed by entry laws.

Yes, keeping your phone charged is recommended because officers at various checkpoints may ask you to power it on to prove it is a functioning device rather than a hollowed-out prop. A dead phone can lead to additional screening or, in rare cases, detention of the device. Charge your phone fully overnight and carry a power bank in your carry-on to top it up during long travel days.