How to Block Voicemails On iPhone

Do you want to prevent people from leaving voicemails on your iPhone? If you blocked someone on your iPhone but they are still leaving voicemails, here are a few ways to deal with it and prevent them from leaving you additional voicemails.

Can You Block Voicemails on an iPhone?

While you can block numbers on your iPhone, this doesn’t automatically block them from leaving voicemails. When you block them on your phone, your iPhone will prevent calls from ringing. However, they can still leave voicemails, since voicemails are handled by your carrier.

To prevent them from leaving voicemails, you need to block them not only on your phone but from your carrier’s end.

However, another option is filtering calls from unknown senders, which will send their voicemails to a special folder so you don’t see them anymore.

Read on to learn more about both options.

How to Block Someone From Leaving a Voicemail

The only surefire way to block a specific number from leaving a voicemail on your phone is to block them from your carrier’s side.

You may have to call your carrier and ask them to block the number. However, many major carriers offer simpler methods.

For example, if you use Verizon, you can block someone by using the call filter feature in the My Verizon app. Follow the instructions here (pay extra attention to step 7, where you can terminate blocked calls instead of allowing them to go to voicemail).

If you use T-Mobile, you can either block callers entirely or automatically send them to voicemail in the T-Life app by following these steps.

Other carriers may have different apps or may require you to contact them directly to block a number. Contact your carrier for more information.

Using Silence Unknown Callers on iPhone

Another option is using the Unknown Callers filter on your iPhone. This won’t actually block them from leaving voicemails, but it will filter out their voicemails and send them to a separate folder so you don’t see them in your voicemail list.

To do that, follow these steps:

Go to Settings > Apps > Phone.
Scroll down to Call Filtering and turn on Unknown Callers.
Make sure the number is not saved as a contact so it is filtered to the Unknown Callers folder.

If you want to see missed calls or voicemails from Unknown Callers, open the Phone app, tap the Filter tab, and click on Unknown Callers.

Turn Off Voicemail Entirely

If you want to turn off voicemails on your iPhone entirely, go to Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding and turn it off (if you have two SIMs, select which SIM you want to turn it off for).

Alternatively, you can disable it from your carrier’s side, usually by dialing a shortcode.

The easiest way to do this is to dial a shortcode from your phone’s dialer. Typically, dialing ##002# will turn off call forwarding, which also disables missed calls from being forwarded to voicemail.

Some carriers may have specific shortcodes. Verizon has *73, AT&T has *73#, and T-Mobile has ##21#.

If those codes and ##002# don’t work, contact your carrier for help.

How to Manage Voicemail Settings on iPhone

If you want to instead customize your voicemail settings, here’s a quick mini-guide.

To change your voicemail greeting, go to Phone > Calls > Edit > Edit Voicemail Greeting or Phone > Voicemail > Greeting (depending on your layout version). Click on Custom and then Record and then record your greeting. A custom greeting needs to be supported by your carrier for this to work.

To change your voicemail password, go to Settings > Apps > Phone > Change Voicemail Password and enter the new password.

Finally, to change your voicemail alert notification, go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > New Voicemail and select a sound or tone.

How to Stop Spam, Robocalls, and Telemarketing Voicemails

If you are receiving robocalls and telemarketing voicemails, there are a few things you can do to stop them. Here are my top tips for iPhone users:

Silence and filter Unknown Callers. Go to Settings > Apps > Phone. Then:
- Under Screen Unknown Callers, select Silence.
- Under Call Filtering, turn on Unknown Callers.
Download a third-party app like Truecaller or Robokiller. Then, go to Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Blocking & Identification and turn on your call identification app to enable blocking. Also make sure to enable call blocking settings within the third-party app.
Register your phone number with the National Do Not Call Registry.

Best Apps for Blocking Spam Calls and Voicemails

If you are receiving spam calls, I recommend using Robokiller to block spam calls and voicemails. While Truecaller doesn’t offer a feature to block voicemails, Robokiller does. This is because it uses Conditional Call Forwarding (if supported by your carrier) to screen voicemails. It can analyze and block spam voicemails. If your carrier doesn’t support Conditional Call Forwarding, it offers hosted voicemail as an alternative.

Another option is YouMail, which offers a voicemail inbox that it helps keep free of spam.

However, if your carrier offers an app that allows you to block voicemail on the carrier level, that would be the best option.

What Happens When You Block Someone on an iPhone?

When you block someone on your iPhone, your phone will not ring when they call, nor will you get a missed call notification. Their messages will also not be delivered to your phone. They can leave voicemails, but you won’t get a notification that they have left a voicemail. They also will not be able to call you on FaceTime. However, they won’t be notified that they were blocked.

Conclusion

I hope this iPhone voicemail management guide was helpful! You can block unwanted calls on your iPhone, but reducing voicemail spam is a little less straightforward. That’s because blocked callers can still leave voicemails. However, your carrier can help you block voicemails, or you can use an app like Robokiller. Alternatively, you can filter spam voicemails to a separate folder so they don’t clog up your inbox.