How to Forward Missed Calls to Another Number (iPhone, Android, and Business Lines)

DialSwarm team · October 17, 2026 · 4 min read

Forward all calls, or only missed ones?

There are two kinds of call forwarding, and the difference matters.

Unconditional forwarding sends every call to another number. Your phone does not ring at all. Useful when you are on vacation or want someone else to take every call.

Conditional forwarding sends calls to another number only in certain situations: when you do not answer, when your line is busy, or when your phone is off or out of service. This is what most small business owners want. Your phone rings first, and if you cannot pick up, the call goes somewhere useful instead of voicemail.

Most phones make unconditional forwarding easy to find in settings. Conditional forwarding is often handled by your carrier and can take a little more digging.

Menus and steps change with software updates and differ by carrier, so treat the steps below as a general guide and check your carrier's help pages for exact instructions.

Forwarding on an iPhone

On many iPhones, you can turn on unconditional forwarding in Settings, under the Phone section, in a Call Forwarding option, then enter the number to forward to. Availability depends on your carrier. Some carriers do not show this option and handle forwarding through their own settings, app, or codes instead.

The iPhone's built-in option generally forwards all calls. For forwarding only when you do not answer, you will usually need your carrier's conditional forwarding, covered below.

Forwarding on Android

On many Android phones, call forwarding lives in the Phone app's settings, often under a section for calls, supplementary services, or call forwarding. Some phones offer separate options for "always forward," "when busy," "when unanswered," and "when unreachable," which gives you conditional forwarding directly from the phone.

Menu names vary by manufacturer and Android version. If you do not see the options, check your carrier's instructions.

Conditional forwarding through your carrier

Most mobile carriers support conditional forwarding, but they set it up differently. Common methods include:

• Carrier app or online account, where you can set a forwarding number for unanswered calls.
• Dial codes, short sequences you dial from your phone to turn forwarding on or off. These differ between carriers and network types, so get the exact codes from your carrier rather than a random website.
• Customer support, who can set it up for you.

When you set it up, check: - How many rings before an unanswered call forwards. Some carriers let you adjust this. - Whether forwarded calls are billed differently on your plan. - Whether voicemail still works as a fallback, or is replaced.

Business phone systems

If your business uses a VoIP or office phone system, forwarding is usually set in the admin portal. Look for:

• Ring groups or hunt groups, which ring several phones in order.
• No-answer rules, which send calls to another number after a set time.
• Time-of-day rules, which send calls somewhere different after hours.

Time-of-day routing is especially useful: ring the office during business hours, forward unanswered calls to an answering service, and send all calls there after hours.

Test before you trust it

Forwarding that silently fails is worse than no forwarding, because you think calls are covered when they are not. After setup:

1. Call your number from another phone and let it ring without answering. Confirm it forwards.
2. Call while you are on another call to test busy forwarding.
3. Turn your phone off or enable airplane mode and call to test unreachable forwarding.
4. Check the caller ID the forwarded number sees, so the answering side knows who is calling.
5. Test again after phone software updates or plan changes, which can reset settings.

Forwarding to an AI receptionist

A common reason to forward missed calls is to send them to an answering service or AI receptionist, so callers reach something better than voicemail.

DialSwarm's AI reception can answer your line after hours or when you miss a call, and you can forward missed calls from your cell to it. It says it's an AI if a caller asks, learns your business from your website, takes a clear message, and flags urgent ones. You keep your existing number, the one on your website, truck, and business cards.

A typical setup for an owner whose business line is their cell:

• Conditional forwarding on no answer, busy, and unreachable, pointed at DialSwarm.
• Phone rings for a few rings first, so you can still pick up.
• Messages arrive sorted, with urgent ones flagged.

DialSwarm bills connected calls only, so unanswered dials don't count. You get 10 free calls with no card, and current plans are on the pricing page. Published prices for other options, checked Oct 17, 2026, include Smith.ai's AI Receptionist with a free 25-call tier and Pro from $150 per month (Smith.ai pricing) and Ruby's human receptionists from $250 per month for 50 minutes (Ruby pricing).

Common forwarding problems

• Calls go to voicemail instead of forwarding. Your carrier's voicemail may take priority. Ask the carrier to adjust no-answer forwarding.
• Forwarding works on Wi-Fi calling but not on cellular, or the reverse. Test both.
• The forwarded number shows your number, not the caller's. Check caller ID passthrough settings with your carrier or phone system.
• Forwarding stopped after a plan change. Re-test after any account changes.
• Rings too short. If the call forwards before you can answer, increase the ring time if your carrier allows.

Turning forwarding off

Know how to undo it. If you go back to answering every call yourself, or switch services, turn off forwarding in the same place you turned it on, then test again by calling from another phone. Leftover forwarding to an old service is a common reason calls go missing.

Questions