WiFi Calling: How to Enable on iPhone and Android
Do you have any dead zones in your house or office building that cause crackly audio or dropped calls? Or do you find yourself having to go outside or to another room to keep a good connection when making phone calls? For these common issues, the following type of calls is the perfect solution by using WiFi calling.
What Is WiFi Calling?
WiFi calling works by allowing your mobile phone to connect to your WiFi network instead of cell service to make and receive calls. As long as you have a decent network signal strength, a call will be crisp and free of connection problems. Additionally, this type of calling saves you battery life because your phone doesn't have to work so hard to get the cell tower signal.
All major cell phone carriers (Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile) now offer WiFi calling. In this article, we'll walk through how to enable and disable this on iPhone and Android phones if your carrier supports it.
WiFi Calling For iPhone
To enable WiFi calling on iPhones, you must have an iPhone 5c or later (and it also must be supported by your carrier). Here's how to turn this on for the iPhone:
- Settings > Phone > WiFi Calling
- Turn on the WiFi Calling on This iPhone switch
Once this has been enabled on your iPhone, a WiFi icon shows up next to your carrier's name at the top of your screen.
If you ever want to turn this off on your iPhone, simply toggle the switch off in the same settings location.
WiFi Calling For Android
To enable this on Android devices, the steps differ from manufacturer to manufacturer (Google Pixel, Samsung, LG, Motorola, etc.), so we won't list all of the steps separately. But you can easily find the option by searching your settings menu for "WiFi calling" in your Android phone. From here, you should find an option to toggle it either on or off.
A Note On WiFi Calling
As we've said, there are many benefits to this type of placing calls. It provides for clearer audio, fewer dropped calls, and less drain on your battery. However, if you do not have unlimited minutes with your phone plan, this type of call still typically counts as part of your minute allowance. This isn't necessarily a downside, as phones with minute plans would count a regular call in the same way, but it's something to be aware of.
If you're looking for free calls, you could use a VoIP alternative such as Google Duo, WhatsApp, or FaceTime. VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, meaning it uses your IP address and a solid WiFi signal in order to place calls and texts on mobile devices. It relies on session initiation protocol to connect one endpoint to another. Your calling options are essentially the same as they would be with a standard, traditional phone line, except you don't need the connection to cell service like you typically would. Apps like Telegram or WhatsApp send text messages, pictures, and calls all using VoIP technology from the same phone number that you use in traditional calls.
Visit your manufacturer and mobile carrier's websites for more specific information about this on your phone. See below: