Smartphones can do just about anything these days — did you know they can even make phone calls? You’ve probably gotten your fair share of spam calls in the last few years, and many carriers are actively working to prevent spam and “robocalls” from happening, but some people don’t want to receive calls at all. Whether you use VoIP services, carry a work phone that only needs access to data, or you prefer texting over calling, here’s how you can quickly disable all incoming calls from ringing your phone.
Phone used in this guide
- The best camera: Google Pixel 4 ($628 at Amazon)
Get familiar with Do Not Disturb mode
Do Not Disturb has been available since the release of Android Marshmallow way back in 2015. This feature makes it so you can either temporarily (or permanently) disable notifications from coming through. With Do Not Disturb enabled, you can set various rules and schedules for your phone to follow, muting notifications for certain contacts, time periods, and more.
The settings for DND have been fleshed out to the point that you can even make exceptions for different apps and different scenarios. It’s the best way to get some peace and quiet whenever you need it, while still allowing some more important notifications to make it through to you.
How to disable all calls with Do Not Disturb
Disabling all incoming calls is easier than you might think. There’s no need to fuss with questionable third-party apps or sit on hold with your carrier to ask for manual call barring. In most cases, it’s as simple as tapping through a few menu screens.
Open the Settings app on your phone.
Tap Sound.
Select Do Not Disturb.
Tap Calls.
Tap Allow Calls.
Select Don’t allow any calls from the pop-up menu.
Toggle Allow repeat callers to the Off position.
Now that the Do Not Disturb settings have been set to block any phone calls, you’ll need to turn DND mode on. You can do this one of two ways. If you are still in the Do Not Disturb settings screen, tap the Turn on now button at the bottom of the screen. You can also simply swipe down to reveal the notification shade, swipe further to reveal the Quick Settings panel, and then tap Do Not Disturb.
What happened to the old “Call Barring” method?
The previous method involved a feature known as “Call Barring” and may still appear on some phones. It seems that this is related to the Sim Tools app, which is on just about every Android phone but is usually hidden from use. Whether it appears on your device or not is entirely up to your carrier. For those who want to try for the Call Barring method, here are the necessary steps:
Open the Phone app.
Tap the menu overflow button (three dots) in the upper righthand corner.
Tap Settings.
Tap Calls.
Within Call Settings, tap Call Barring.
Tap All Incoming (which should initially say “Disabled”).
Enter the call barring password. In most cases, this will be either 0000 or 1234.
Tap Turn On.
The best camera
Google Pixel 4
$628 at Amazon
The best camera you can get on a smartphone
Google’s Pixel 4 offers stock Android, a sleek design, and the questionable camera bump is home to some of the best cameras on an Android phone.
