How to block your number or Caller ID when making calls

It’s not great when your phone number falls into the wrong hands. So, when making work-related calls, contacting someone on Craigslist, or calling a company you’re not sure about, it’s smart to block your number or conceal your caller ID to protect your privacy.

In this article, we’ll show you how to block your phone number or caller ID when making calls on an iPhone or Android device. Remember though, that many people automatically decline calls from private numbers, so they may not answer the phone if they don’t recognize you.

How Can I Block My Number or Caller ID When Making Private Calls?

Not every person you contact should have your phone number, only the people you want to have it. Here are several methods for blocking your number or caller ID and preventing your phone number from appearing on the other end of a call.

Before dialing the number you want to call, enter *67

On a per-call basis, *67 is unbeatable at blocking your phone number and hiding your caller ID. This method works on both smartphones and landlines. Open your phone’s keypad and dial *67, then the number you want to call.

The free service blocks your phone number, which will appear on the other end as “Private” or “Blocked” when reading caller ID. Note that you have to dial *67 each time you want your phone number blocked.

Change Your Phone’s Caller ID Settings

By changing the settings on your device, you can also block your phone number and hide your caller ID for every call you make. Both Android and iOS devices allow you to hide your caller ID, making you appear to everyone you call as No Caller ID, Private, or Blocked.

After making these changes, dial *82 before calling the desired number if you want to temporarily unblock your number. This overrides your settings and displays your caller ID once more. Since you can’t easily call private numbers, this is a good idea if you want the person to be able to call you back.

How to Block Your Number or Caller ID on iPhones

To block your number or hide caller ID on an iPhone, follow these steps:

● Navigate to the Settings app and scroll down to click the Phone option.

● To hide your number, select the toggle next to Show My Caller ID and turn it off.

How to Block your Number or Caller ID on an Android Device

These steps may change depending on the brand of Android you use as well as its dialer app configuration. However,  the following locations are the most popular on Android for blocking your number or caller ID:

● Open the Phone app and select the Menu option in the upper-right corner.

● Navigate to Settings, then to Supplementary Services. Depending on your device, you may need to navigate to Calls > Additional Settings.

● Select Hide number from the popup menu after tappingShow my caller ID.

If the above steps don’t work, below are other settings to try:

● Relaunch the Phone app, then navigate to Menu > Settings.

● Choose Calling accounts, then under Settings, tap your carrier name.

● Select Additional options.

● Click on Caller ID and select Hide number to hide your number every time you make a call.

Directly Block Your Caller ID With Your Cell Carrier

If your phone’s settings don’t give you a way to block your number or hide your caller ID, you’ll have to contact your cell carrier directly.

Most carriers that don’t provide an option to block your phone number through the device settings allow you to do it through their dedicated app. Otherwise, you’ll have to contact your carrier and request that your number be blocked.

Blocking your number in this manner, like the previous method, hides your caller ID for every call you make. If you’d like to nullify this and show your phone number for any specific call, put *82 in front of the number.

Use burner apps

If you’d rather not mess with your phone’s or carrier’s settings, try using a burner app. Such apps make calls using your internet data, effectively giving your phone a second phone number.

On iOS and Android, there are a large number of burner apps. 

One of the most downloaded apps for iOS and Android devices is called Burner. Instead of hiding your secondary number, you can use the app to direct calls to it. After seven free days, the app charges $5 per line every month. 

You can also create a new phone number with Google Voice and use it to send free texts, audio messages, and voice calls. 

You’d only need an active Google account for this option because unlike the other alternatives, Google Voice doesn’t charge a monthly subscription. It uses the minutes and data you already have on your phone, but the number that appears is your Google Voice number.

In conclusion, try the methods above to block caller ID or hide phone numbers when placing private calls; we hope you’ll find them useful.