What does it mean when phone goes straight to voicemail

So, you’ve been waiting for an important call all day, but your phone just won’t ring. When you check it, you realize the call went directly to your voicemail.

Your phone automatically sending every incoming call to your voicemail isn’t only annoying; it can be a serious issue in an emergency. Fortunately, tweaking your settings usually fixes the problem. Let’s check out some tricks you can try before contacting your provider.

Reasons Calls Go Straight to Voicemail on an iPhone

Are your friends complaining that they can’t get through to you? Calls going straight to voicemail can have many causes. Here’s what to check on your iPhone.

Turn Off Airplane Mode

It might sound straightforward, but the first thing you should check is that your phone has reception. Accidentally turning Airplane Mode on could prevent your phone from connecting to a network. Swipe down on your screen to open your iPhone’s Control Center and ensure Airplane Mode is off. If you can’t see the airplane icon in your Control Center, find it in your Settings app.

Disable Do Not Disturb

Another minor mishap that could be preventing incoming calls from coming through is having turned on your iPhone’s Do Not Disturb (DND) mode.

iPhones have several Focus Modes you can activate when you don’t want your phone to distract you. This feature was implemented in iOS 15.

Unlike putting your iPhone on Silent, these modes might block calls entirely, depending on their settings. You can enable and disable DND manually, but it’s also possible to schedule it, so it’s easy to forget whether it’s active. Here’s how to disable DND to ensure you can be reached.

1. Pull up your iPhone’s Control Center and look for a crescent moon tile.
   
   
2. If the button is white with a violet moon, DND is on. Tap it to turn it off.
   
   

You can also find DND in your Settings:

1. Go to your iPhone’s Settings.
   
   
2. Find “Focus.”
   
   
3. Tap “Do Not Disturb” or any Focus Mode you use.
   
   
4. Toggle the switch to turn it off or customize the settings to allow calls from select people.
   
   

Don’t Silence Unknown Callers

Another iPhone setting that redirects incoming calls to your voicemail is silencing unknown callers. This feature, introduced in iOS 13, can be useful when you don’t want people that are not on your contacts list reaching you. Many users decide to turn this feature on to screen scam calls. The downside is that you never know when one of your contacts changes their number.

Accidentally turning this feature on can also be an issue. Here’s how to turn it off.

1. Open your Settings and find the “Phone” option.
   
   
2. Tap “Silence Unknown Callers.”
   
   
3. Toggle the switch off.
   
   

Edit Your Notification Settings

Innocuous notification settings can also cause issues with receiving calls sometimes. Take a look at your iPhone’s notification settings in the following way.

1. Open your Settings app and go to “Notifications.”
   
   
2. Select “Phone” and make sure notifications are enabled.
   
   
3. Ensure “Badges” is on.
   
   

Test if this resolved your issue.

Update Your Carrier Settings

Before contacting your carrier for assistance, you can try one last method. Updating your carrier settings can often resolve issues when calls go straight to voicemail. Follow these steps on your iPhone.

1. Open Settings and go to “General.”
   
   
2. Select “About” and wait a few seconds. If there’s an update available, it will pop up automatically.
   
   
3. If you get a popup, tap “Update.” If nothing happens, your settings are already up to date, and this isn’t what’s causing your voicemail issue.

Reasons Calls Go Straight to Voicemail on an Android Device

Are incoming calls going straight to your voicemail on your Android device? Let’s see what you can do about it.

Disable Airplane Mode

First, ensure that your phone has service. If you see an X sign next to the network icon in your Android phone’s status bar, you may be in a place with no signal, resulting in calls going straight to your voicemail. Unless you’re in the middle of the wilderness, though, the problem is on your end.

If you see an airplane icon in your status bar, pull down your Quick Settings and disable Airplane Mode. Your phone will connect to a network, and you’ll be able to receive calls again.

Turn Off Do Not Disturb

The next Android function that can interfere with incoming calls is Do Not Disturb (DND). This feature is handy when you don’t want your phone distracting you. However, you’ll need to turn it off to receive calls.

1. Open your Settings.
   
   
2. Find “Sound and vibration.”
   
   
3. Tap “Do Not Disturb” and ensure it’s off.
   
   

You can also customize your DND settings here, including scheduling this mode and allowing calls selectively.

Unblock Numbers

If certain calls go straight to your voicemail, you might have blocked those contacts. Check your block list in the following way.

1. Open your Android Phone app.
   
   
2. Tap the three vertical dots in the top right corner and choose “Settings.”
   
   
3. Tap “Block numbers.”
   
   
4. You’ll see your block list here. Remove any contacts to receive calls from them.
   
   

Allow Unknown Numbers

If your friends’ calls come through, but you’re having issues receiving calls from unknown numbers, you might have another blocking feature enabled. Follow the steps below to check for unknown number blocking.

1. Go to your Phone app and tap the three dots in the top right corner.
   
   
2. Select “Block numbers.” Tap the “Settings” option if you aren’t taken directly to the settings.
   
   
3. Toggle “Block unknown/private numbers” off.
   
   

Disable Call Forwarding

Some Android phones allow call forwarding, which is another factor that can potentially interfere with your incoming calls. Disabling call forwarding might resolve your issue.

1. Open your Phone app and tap the three vertical dots in the corner.
   
   
2. Select “Settings.”
   
   
3. Tap “Call forwarding” if it’s available. Disable all call forwarding options.
   
   

Replace Your SIM Card

If your SIM card is old or you remove it frequently, it’s also possible that it got damaged over time, which might make it act oddly. If none of the above solutions fixed your issue with calls going straight to your voicemail, contacting your provider and explaining the situation is the way to go. Requesting a new SIM card is often free, and it might end the problem.

Stay in Contact

Not being able to receive calls can be a serious hindrance in your everyday life. Try to troubleshoot the issue with the methods above. If none works out, the issue is likely with your SIM card or provider.

Don’t hesitate to request assistance if the problem persists. A cell phone is as good as useless if you can’t use it for its primary purpose.

Which of the solutions mentioned above did the trick for you? Or have you found an alternative way to fix your voicemail issue? Let us know in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: Some pages on this site may include an affiliate link. This does not effect our editorial in any way.

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