While many of us think that our cell phone is a private number that can’t make its way into the hands of spammers and telemarketers, that’s unfortunately not the case.
People with mobile devices like iPhones are getting more unwanted spam calls than ever, and are always looking for ways to stop those calls.
While you might have previously explored ways to block numbers that included third-party apps, or even using the “Do Not Disturb” feature so that you only get calls from your contacts, that might not be the solution you are looking for.
One way that you can control some of that spam, at least as far as repeat calls from the same numbers are concerned, is to block a number that has called you.
Our tutorial below will walk you through the process of blocking phone numbers on your iPhone and adding them to a block list so that you won’t receive calls from that number again in the future.
How to Block Calls from the Phone App on an iPhone 13
- Tap Phone.
- Select Recents.
- Touch the i next to the number.
- Choose Block this Caller.
- Select Block Contact.
Our guide continues below with additional information on how to block phone numbers that have called you, including pictures of these steps. We also discuss blocking unknown senders and unknown callers on your device, as well as automatically silencing unidentified callers.
How to Block a Number on an iPhone (Guide with Pictures)
The steps in this article were performed on an iPhone 13 in iOS 15.4.1. By completing these steps you are going to be selecting a phone number from your list of recent calls and blocking all future phone calls, text messages, and FaceTime calls that you might receive from that number.
Step 1: Open the Phone app.
Step 2: Choose the Recents tab at the bottom of the screen, then tap the i button to the right of the phone number.
Step 3: Select the Block this Caller button.
Step 4: Tap Block Contact to confirm that you want to add them to your block list.
Our tutorial continues below with additional information on adding someone to your caller ID block or removing them from it
More Information on iPhone Call Blocking
While the steps above have focused on blocking phone numbers that have already called you, you may want to block unwanted calls from unknown callers, too.
Your iPhone has a setting that allows you to silence unknown callers. When you activate this option then you are going to start blocking calls (or, more accurately, silencing them and sending them to voicemail) that come from unknown numbers, or numbers that aren’t in your contact list. Your iPhone also won’t silence any numbers from your list of recent outgoing calls.
You can activate this setting by going to Settings > Phone > Silence Unknown Calls > then turning on the Silence Unknown Callers option.
To view the list of blocked contacts on your device you can go to Settings > phone > Blocked Contacts. There you will see a list of all of the random scam calls, sales calls, and other spam calls numbers that you have blocked, as well as any blocked numbers from your contacts list.
If you want to unblock a number then you can do so by opening the Blocked Contacts list, then tapping the Edit button at the top-right of the screen, then touching the red circle to the left of the number and tapping the Unblock button.
Most Android devices, such as Samsung phones, will also have a way for you to block callers, as well as report junk calls or report spam calls. On a Google Pixel Android device to set up spam call blocking, for example, you would open the Phone app, tap the three dots at the top-right of the screen, choose Settings, then select Spam and Call Screen then choose Call Screen and turn the settings on in there.
You can also block a specific number on an Android phone by tapping and holding on that number in your call list, then choosing the Block/Report spam button.
If you select Settings on your iPhone, choose Messages, then scroll through the list of options there you will see an option to Filter Unknown Senders. This adds a second tab to the top of the Messages app where you can sort messages from your contacts and from unknown senders into separate columns.
Matt Jacobs has been working as an IT consultant for small businesses since receiving his Master’s degree in 2003. While he still does some consulting work, his primary focus now is on creating technology support content for SupportYourTech.com.
His work can be found on many websites and focuses on topics such as Microsoft Office, Apple devices, Android devices, Photoshop, and more.