How to Dial a Phone Number on iPhone

When the number you need is on a flyer, a receipt or a business card rather than in your contacts, you type it in yourself. Open the Phone app, tap Keypad, enter the digits and tap the green Call button. The same keypad also handles redialing, pasting a copied number, extensions and international calls, which are covered below for current versions of iOS.

Ways to place a call

Typing digits is only one way to start a call. Pick the route that matches where the number is right now:

Where the number is	Fastest way to call
Written down or read out to you	Phone > Keypad, type it, tap Call
Copied from an email, a note or a website	Phone > Keypad, tap the number field above the keys, tap Paste
The last number you dialed	Phone > Keypad, tap Call with the keypad empty, then tap Call again
In your call history	Recents (Classic layout) or Calls (Unified layout)
Saved as a contact or favorite	Contacts or Favorites in the Phone app
Your hands are busy	Ask Siri to call the number or contact
Shown as a link in Messages, Mail or Safari	Tap the number and confirm the call

Dial a number on the keypad

You need cellular service or Wi-Fi Calling turned on, and an active plan with your carrier.

1. Open the Phone app. Its green icon with a white handset is usually in the Dock at the bottom of the Home Screen.
   

   

2. Tap Keypad. Current versions of iOS offer two Phone app layouts. In the Classic layout, Keypad is a tab along the bottom next to Favorites, Recents, Contacts and Voicemail. In the Unified layout, the tabs are arranged differently, so look for the Keypad button instead.
   

   

3. Type the number. If you hit a wrong digit, tap the delete key next to the Call button to remove the last digit.
4. If your iPhone has two lines (Dual SIM), check the line shown at the top of the keypad and tap it to switch if needed.
5. Tap the green Call button below the keys. Tap the red button to hang up when you are done.
   

   

If someone asks for your number while you are on the phone, it is easy to look up; see how to find your own phone number on iPhone.

Redial, paste or type letters

Redial the last number: open the keypad and tap Call without typing anything. The last number you dialed fills in; tap Call again to place the call.

Paste a copied number: copy the number in the other app first. In the Phone app, tap the number field just above the keypad, then tap Paste. Check that the pasted text contains only the number and not extra words before you call.

Dial a number written with letters: numbers such as 1-800-FLOWERS use the letters printed on each key. Tap the key that shows the letter you need: F is on 3, L on 5, O on 6, W on 9, E on 3, R on 7 and S on 7, so 1-800-FLOWERS becomes 1-800-356-9377.

Add a pause for extensions and menus

Many office lines answer with a recording and then ask for an extension. You can type the extension along with the main number so the iPhone sends it for you:

1. Type the main number on the keypad.
2. Touch and hold the star (*) key until a comma appears. Apple calls this a soft pause: the iPhone waits about two seconds, then sends the digits that follow.
3. Type the extension, then tap Call.

For example, a number entered as 555-0100,,214 waits about four seconds after the call connects, then dials extension 214. Add more commas if the recording is long.

If you do not know how long the recording runs, use a hard pause instead: touch and hold the pound (#) key until a semicolon appears. The call stops at that point and waits until you tap a button on screen to send the rest of the digits. This works well for conference lines that ask for a meeting ID and then a PIN.

You can type the same comma or semicolon into a phone number saved in Contacts so the extension is stored with it. When you edit the number, the keypad’s symbols key (+*#) is the usual place to find pause options, though the exact labels can differ between versions.

Dial an international number

1. On the keypad, touch and hold 0 until a plus sign (+) appears.
2. Type the country code, then the full number without the leading 0 that many countries use for domestic calls.
3. Tap Call.

A UK number written locally as 020 7946 0000 becomes +44 20 7946 0000 from abroad. Check with your carrier about international rates before you call. If calls to foreign numbers get the wrong prefix added while you travel, the cause is often Dial Assist; see turning off Dial Assist on iPhone.

Call from Contacts, Favorites or Recents

• Contacts: in the Phone app, tap Contacts, tap the person, then tap the number you want to call.
• Favorites: in the Classic layout, tap the Favorites tab. In the Unified layout, tap Calls, tap Edit, then tap Add Favorite to pin someone for one-tap calling.
• Recents: in the Classic layout, tap the Recents tab and tap an entry. In the Unified layout, tap Calls, tap the info button next to a name or number, then tap the number.

In the Unified layout, tapping an entry in Calls may open its details instead of calling. To make a tap call the number straight away, turn on Settings > Apps > Phone > Tap Recents to Call. The setting may be listed only while the Unified layout is in use. On older iOS versions, the Phone app is listed directly in Settings.

Call with Siri or by tapping a number

Say “Call” or “Dial” followed by the number, such as “Call 555 0100,” or by the name of a saved contact. Apple recommends speaking the digits separately rather than as large numbers. Siri needs to be set up first; see how to enable Siri on iPhone. If you have the older voice dialing feature and it keeps placing calls you did not mean to make, you can turn off voice dial.

Phone numbers in Messages, Mail, Safari and many other apps usually appear underlined or in color. Tap one and iPhone offers to call it; confirm and the Phone app opens with the call in progress.

If the call will not go through

• No service or SOS in the status bar: move to an area with better coverage, or connect to Wi-Fi and use Wi-Fi Calling if your carrier supports it.
• Call fails right away: check that you included the full area code, and for international numbers the + and country code.
• Wrong line used: on Dual SIM models, select the other line at the top of the keypad before calling.
• Airplane Mode is on: turn it off in Control Center.

Dialing questions

Why does my Phone app look different from someone else’s?

Current versions of iOS include both the Unified and Classic layouts, so two iPhones can show the keypad and call history in different places. To switch, open the Phone app, go to the Calls tab (Recents in the Classic layout), tap the Filter button in the top-right corner, then tap Classic or Unified at the top of the menu (Apple: Use Unified layout in the Phone app).

Can I put someone on hold after I dial?

Yes, once the call connects. See putting a call on hold on iPhone for the in-call controls.

Does dialing a number add it to my contacts?

No. It appears in your call history, where you can open its info screen and create a new contact.

Apple’s Make a call on iPhone page lists the current keypad options. If a number you dialed once turns into a nuisance caller, learn how to block a caller on iPhone.