Do you want to know how to take your phone off private number? We have the answers here in this guide!
You may have turned on your Caller ID on your phone and forgotten the process of how to unblock it.
Now, you’re experiencing issues where your calls are getting rejected all the time, and you just want to unhide your number.
To take your phone off private number, you will need to stop using your carrier’s caller ID blocking features. Don’t use the ID blocking feature like *67. Instead, just dial the number straight. You also want to check your phone’s caller ID features and set it to Show number.
Before you unhide your phone number, you want to make sure that you’re aware of what you’re doing.
Remember, you turned on private number for a reason, so you must revisit that.
What to Consider When Unhiding Your Phone Number
There are a few things to consider before you decide to unhide your phone number. As long as you’re aware of these factors, you can start revealing your number to the people you’re calling.
You can always activate it again if you’re just going to do this temporarily.
Here are some of the things you want to consider before unhiding your phone number:
1. Rejected Or Ignored Calls
Hiding your number can mean more rejected or ignored calls. People are not inclined to answer if they do not know who’s calling. If this is your experience, consider unhiding your number for people to pick up more.
2. Privacy And Security
Taking your phone off caller ID blocking means you will compromise privacy and security. If it’s not a permanent setup for you, calling your family or friends should not be a problem.
3. Responding To Potential Scams
If you’re responding to telemarketers or potential scammers, it’s better to hide your phone number from them.
4. Phone Company Records
Whether your phone number is hidden or not, your calls will still be visible to the phone company. Make sure not to use it for suspicious activities.
If you have decided that you still want to take your phone off the safety of caller ID blocking, we can now proceed to the steps on how you can do it.
How to Take Your Phone Number Off Private – Best Solutions!
Now that you have a good grasp of what will happen if you take your phone number off private let’s get to the steps.
Before unhiding your number, you want to check whether your phone setting for caller ID blocking is activated.
Make a call to a number you have access to and see if it shows ‘Private Number’ or not.
If it does show you as a private caller, here are the next steps you need to take:
Solution #1: How to Take Your Phone Off Private Number iPhone
Your phone comes with a caller ID blocking feature that can hide or unhide your number from the person you are calling.
If you have an iPhone, you’ll be able to change this setting to show your number.
It usually depends on your carrier, but most will allow you to change this setting on your phone.
Here’s how to unhide your phone number on your iPhone:
- Go to your phone’s Home screen.
- Tap on the Settings app.
- Navigate to Phone.
- Toggle the switch on Show My Caller ID to ON.
Note: Setting it to the OFF position will hide your number. Make sure that this is in the OFF position to turn it back ON.
Solution #2: How to Take Your Phone Off Private Number Android
Android devices also give you the capability to hide or unhide your phone number. You can set it similar to that of iPhones.
However, the steps are different since Android is a separate system.
Since the software on Android phones is not the same, there are a couple of places to find the setting, and we’ll describe them for you.
Here’s how to unhide your number on Android devices:
Option 1:
- Open your Phone app.
- Click on the three-dot menu found in the top right corner.
- Select Settings.
- Tap on Call Settings, then Additional Settings.
- Select Caller ID and choose Show number.
Option 2:
- Open your Phone app, then click the ‘More Settings’ dots.
- Scroll down and select More Settings.
- Tap on Show my caller ID.
- Select Show number.
Tip: You can always set it back to hide after making the call where you want to display your number.
Solution #3: Unhide Your Phone Number via Your Carrier
Not all carriers can use your phone’s caller ID features. There are some that will require you to change the settings on their servers rather than on your phone.
If you’re from one of those carriers and have activated the private number feature in the past, you will need to turn it off.
Here’s how you can unhide your phone number using your carrier’s settings:
Unhide Number on Verizon:
- Open the Verizon app.
- Go to Plans & Devices.
- Find the device you want to unblock.
- Select View details, then Block specific services.
- Look for Caller ID Blocking and toggle the switch OFF.
Tip: On your phone dialer, you can enter *82 + the number you want to contact, then Call. This will unblock the caller ID for this particular call.
Unhide Number on Sprint:
- Go to your My Sprint account.
- Select the device you want to unhide.
- Click on Change my service.
- Look for the Setup your phone option.
- Select Block Caller ID to turn it off.
Pro Tip: You can also call *2 to contact Sprint’s customer support team and ask them to unhide your caller ID.
Unhide Number on AT&T and T-Mobile:
For AT&T and T-Mobile, you can use your phone’s Caller ID features to unhide your number
Solution #4: Unhide Your Number on Google Voice
If you’re using Google Voice as your primary option for calls, it also comes with a feature that allows you to hide your number.
However, if you want to unhide it so you can connect to others, there’s a way to do just that.
Here’s how to unhide your number on Google Voice:
- Open Google Voice.
- Tap on the menu icon on the top left.
- Select Settings, then select Call.
- Change the Anonymous caller ID option to OFF.
Note: If you have a US Google Voice number, you can also deactivate the private number feature by dialing *82 and the number you want to call.
Solution #5: Use your Primary Number, if You Have Multiple SIM Cards
Using a burner is one of the best ways to use a different number without relying on your phone or carrier’s caller ID blocking.
Most modern phones can come with multiple SIM card slots, so you can easily slide in a couple, so you have two different phone numbers.
It will not show up as ‘Private Number’ or ‘Private Caller,’ but as long as you don’t reveal it, it will still be anonymous.
You can always use your primary number to call friends and family, effectively unhiding yourself.
Here’s how to use your main number for phones that have two SIM card slots:
For iPhone users:
- Go to the dialer function on your Phone app.
- Enter the number you want to call.
- Tap on the Secondary button at the top.
- Select Use Primary Line.
- Tap Call.
For Android users:
- Go to your phone’s Settings.
- Select Network & Internet.
- Tap on SIM cards.
- Go to the Preferred SIM section, then select Allow Calls.
- Select your primary SIM
That’s it! You’re now able to call with your number shown on the recipient’s caller ID.
If you’re experiencing issues here, you can contact your carrier and check if your settings are properly set.
Read Next: How to Know If Someone Deleted Your Number on iPhone?
Bottom Line
Now that you know how to take your phone off private number, you can select recipients you want to show your number to.
It’s not that you wish to keep your number hidden all the time. There are instances, like calling emergency services, where you want to number to show up.
Finn Wheatley holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from UCL, London. He helped small data science consultancy firms, helping large corporations to grow their data capabilities, deploy advanced machine learning-based analytics and troubleshoot tech-related issues. Check out more about him here.