Call Forwarding on iPhone: How to Turn It On and Off

Short answer: iPhone call forwarding lives at Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding. Turn the toggle on, tap Call Forwards To, and enter the number that should receive your calls. On older iOS versions, Phone sits directly in the Settings list instead of under Apps.

Call forwarding is a carrier service that the iPhone only switches on and off, which is why the menu looks slightly different from one line to the next — and why it is missing entirely on some plans. Below: the exact steps, the dial codes behind them, what conditional forwarding is and why the Settings toggle does not set it, the path on an older iPhone such as an iPhone 6 or iPhone 4s, how to switch forwarding off again, and what to do when the setting is not there.

What call forwarding does on iPhone

Forwarding sends incoming calls to a different number before your iPhone rings, or after it has rung without an answer. The carrier does the redirect on its own network, so it works even when the iPhone is switched off or out of coverage.

There are two shapes to it, and they behave very differently:

Type	What happens	Typical use
Always forward (unconditional)	Every call goes to the other number. Your iPhone may not ring at all.	Moving your line to another handset for a day
Conditional forward	Only calls that are unanswered, busy, or unreachable get redirected. Everything else rings normally.	Sending missed calls somewhere useful instead of voicemail

The Call Forwarding toggle in iPhone Settings sets the always-forward kind. Conditional forwarding is usually set from the Phone keypad with a carrier code, or by your carrier's own app — the iPhone does not expose a menu for it.

How to turn on call forwarding on iPhone

Two routes reach the same network setting: the menu in Settings, and a code you dial on the keypad. Start with the menu — it is the one that shows you what is already set.

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Apps, then Phone. On iOS 17 and earlier there is no Apps level — Phone sits directly in the Settings list. If you cannot find Apps, you are on the older layout, and that is normal.
3. Tap Call Forwarding. If the row is not there at all, skip to the missing-menu section — it is a carrier limitation, not something you can fix in Settings.
4. On a dual-SIM or eSIM iPhone, pick the line at the top of the screen first. Each line keeps its own forwarding setting, and setting one does nothing for calls to the other. An iPhone 6 or older is single-SIM, so there is no line to pick.
5. Switch the toggle on. Tap the destination field beneath it — labelled Call Forwards To on current iOS, and simply Forward To on some older versions — and type the number that should receive the calls.
6. Type the destination in full international format first (+1…, +91…). If the carrier rejects it, try plain national format. Carriers genuinely disagree about which one they accept, and neither is wrong to try.
7. Leave the screen and come back. This is the step most guides skip. If the toggle has flipped itself off, the carrier refused the request — the iPhone did not fail. Go to the dial codes next.
8. Call your own number from another phone and check that the call lands where you meant it to. A test call is the only proof; the toggle is a request, not a receipt.

While forwarding is active, a small forwarding indicator — a handset with an arrow curling away from it — sits near the top of the screen, or in the Dynamic Island on the models that have one. It is the quickest way to spot that forwarding is still on days later, and worth a glance if your iPhone has gone oddly quiet.

Careful with the always-forward toggle: the switch in Settings sets the unconditional kind, so once it is on your iPhone may not ring at all — every call goes straight to the other number. If what you actually want is for your missed calls to land somewhere useful while your iPhone still rings first, that is conditional forwarding, and the toggle is the wrong control for it.

iPhone call forwarding codes

Underneath the toggle is a carrier code, and you can dial it yourself when the menu is unavailable or when you want the conditional kind. Open Phone, type the code on the keypad, and tap the green call button. The network replies with a short confirmation.

Carrier group	Forward	Cancel
GSM networks — AT&T, T-Mobile, Cricket, Airtel, Vi, BSNL, and most carriers in India, Canada and Europe	**004*<destination number># — forwards unanswered, busy and unreachable calls in one go	##004#
Verizon and Spectrum Mobile	*71<destination number> — national format, no country code, no # — forwards calls you do not answer	*73

These are the same codes OsmO's own setup flow uses on an iPhone, checked against each carrier's support pages in July 2026. A code that is not listed here may still be right for your line: carriers differ, and a code copied from a forum for a different network usually returns an error rather than doing damage. On Jio the standard code does not reliably take — set forwarding from the MyJio app or ask Jio customer care on 199. On a Verizon or Spectrum line specifically, see our Verizon call forwarding guide for the full walkthrough and how to confirm it worked.

To check what is currently set, most GSM carriers answer *#004# with all three conditional destinations at once, *#61# with the unanswered-call setting on its own, and *#21# with the separate always-forward setting. Those are questions, not changes — dialling them alters nothing. Verizon and Jio lines tend to return an unreadable reply, so treat a test call as the real proof.

Conditional call forwarding on iPhone

This is the part the iPhone menu hides, and it is behind a lot of confusion: the Call Forwarding toggle in Settings only sets the always-forward kind. Conditional forwarding is a separate setting on the same line, and the iPhone gives it no menu at all.

Conditional means the network redirects a call only when one of three things is true:

• No reply — your iPhone rings, you do not pick up, and after a few rings the call moves on.
• Busy — the call arrives while you are already on another call.
• Not reachable — the call arrives while the iPhone is off, in Airplane Mode, or out of coverage.

Calls that meet none of those are untouched: the iPhone rings and you answer as normal. That is why most people want the conditional kind rather than the toggle — you keep using your phone, and only the calls you miss go somewhere else.

On a GSM carrier you set it from the Phone keypad. Type the code, tap the green call button, and read the short reply the network sends back before dismissing it.

Which calls	Set it	Cancel it	Check it
All three conditions at once	**004*<number>#	##004#	*#004#
Calls you do not answer	**61*<number>#	##61#	*#61#
Calls arriving while you are busy	**67*<number>#	##67#	*#67#
Calls arriving while unreachable	**62*<number>#	##62#	*#62#
Every call — the unconditional kind the toggle sets	**21*<number>#	##21#	*#21#

A cancel code takes nothing after it — no number, no spaces. And the last row is a genuinely separate setting: ##004# will not clear an always-forward rule, and ##21# will not clear a conditional one. Both can be live on the same line at the same time, which is exactly how a line ends up forwarding calls with the Settings toggle reading off.

On Verizon and Spectrum Mobile the GSM codes generally return an error. There, *71 followed by the destination number in national format sets the unanswered-call redirect and *73 cancels it.

Before you cancel one: on most networks the rule that sends an unanswered call to voicemail is a conditional forwarding rule, pointing at the voicemail box. Dial *#004# and read the destination first. If it is your carrier's voicemail number, cancelling it means missed calls ring out into nothing. Full detail, including what the “Conditional Call Forwarding Active” notice on your screen means: conditional call forwarding active, explained.

Older iPhones: iPhone 6, iPhone 5s and iPhone 4s

Call forwarding is a carrier service, so it does not get better on a newer iPhone or worse on an old one. Two things change on an older handset: where the setting sits, because Settings has been reorganised since, and on the oldest models whether the line has service at all.

iOS version	Where Call Forwarding sits
iOS 18 and later	Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding
iOS 17 and earlier	Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding — no Apps level

An iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus stop at iOS 12, and an iPhone 5s does too. An iPhone 4s stops at iOS 9. All of them use the shorter path, and all of them dial the same carrier codes as a brand-new iPhone — the codes are the network's, not Apple's.

How to call forward on an iPhone 6, including on US Cellular

1. Open Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding. There is no Apps level on iOS 12, which is as new as an iPhone 6 goes.
2. Switch the toggle on and type the destination number in the field beneath it. The iPhone 6 is single-SIM, so there is no line to choose first and no eSIM to confuse matters.
3. Leave the screen, come back, and check the toggle held. Then make a test call.
4. If the row is missing, or the toggle will not stay on, the setting has to come from a dial code — and which code works is a carrier question, not an iPhone 6 question. An iPhone 6 on AT&T or T-Mobile uses the GSM codes in the table above. On a Verizon or Spectrum line it is *71 and *73.
5. On US Cellular, try the star-code family first: *72 followed by the destination number to forward, and *73 to cancel. US networks that grew out of CDMA use star codes rather than the GSM **004* form, and US Cellular is one of them. We have not checked those two against US Cellular's own support pages, so treat them as the pair to try rather than the confirmed answer — if the network replies with an error, dial **004*<number># instead, and ##004# to cancel that.
6. If neither code takes, ring your carrier and ask them to set the forwarding on the line, or to read out what is currently set. On most US networks 611 from the handset reaches support. This is a routine request and it is faster than guessing at codes.

One iPhone 6 quirk worth knowing: the handset is old enough that a carrier settings update can quietly reset forwarding after a network change. If a rule you set weeks ago has stopped working, re-check it with *#004# rather than assuming the phone is failing.

Call forwarding on iPhone 4s

The setting is there. On iOS 9, which is as far as an iPhone 4s goes, it is Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding — the same toggle, the same destination field, the same status-bar indicator while it is active.

The harder problem on a 4s is usually not the menu. It is service:

• No VoLTE. The iPhone 4s carries voice calls over 2G and 3G only. Many carriers have retired those networks, and on one that has, the line gets no voice service at all — so there is nothing to forward and nothing to change.
• Greyed out means no network, not a broken phone. The iPhone has to reach the carrier to change a forwarding setting. On a 4s showing no bars, the toggle will simply refuse. Check the signal before anything else.
• The dial codes still work wherever the line does. A 4s dials **004*<number># and ##004# exactly like any other handset, because the code is handled by the network.
• No Wi-Fi Calling to fall back on. On newer iPhones a weak signal can still be enough over Wi-Fi. On a 4s it cannot.

If the plan is to forward an old 4s line to a phone you actually carry, that works fine as long as the 4s line still has service. Set it once from the 4s with the code above, then put the handset away — the redirect happens on the carrier's network, so the 4s does not need to stay switched on.

How to turn off call forwarding on iPhone

1. Go back to Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding — Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding on iOS 17 and earlier — and switch the toggle off. Check each line on a dual-SIM iPhone: turning one off leaves the other running.
2. If there is no menu, dial the cancel code for your carrier from the table above: ##004# on GSM networks, *73 on Verizon and Spectrum.
3. Call your number from another phone. If it rings on the iPhone, forwarding is off.

One thing that catches people out: the Settings toggle and a code you dialled control different things on many carriers. If the toggle already reads off but calls are still being redirected, dial ##004# as well — that clears the conditional forwarding the toggle never touched. And if *#21# still names a destination after the toggle is off, ##21# clears that one. Avoid ##002#, which erases every forwarding rule on the line including the voicemail routing.

When Call Forwarding is missing, greyed out, or not working

• The menu is not there at all. Apple says the option depends on your cellular carrier. Some plans — a number of prepaid and business plans in particular — simply do not offer it. Your carrier can confirm whether the line supports it.
• It is greyed out. The iPhone needs to reach the network to change a forwarding setting. Wait for signal, turn Airplane Mode off, and try again.
• The wrong line is selected. On a dual-SIM iPhone, forwarding you set on one line does nothing for calls to the other.
• The number was rejected. Try the destination in full international format (+1… or +91…), and try it in plain national format too — carriers disagree about which they accept.
• The setting keeps resetting. Some carriers drop forwarding when the line changes network or after a plan change. Re-dial the code and test again.
• A work profile owns the line. Managed business lines can have the feature switched off centrally.

Setting up an Android phone as well? The menus sit inside the Phone app rather than in Settings there — see call forwarding for Android for the stock Android and Samsung paths, or the combined call forwarding guide for iPhone and Android.

Forward to an assistant instead of voicemail

Most people looking up call forwarding on iPhone want the same thing: the calls they miss should end up somewhere better than a voicemail box nobody listens to.

That is what OsmO uses forwarding for. You point your unanswered calls at OsmO with the code for your carrier, keep your existing number, and calls you do not pick up reach an AI phone assistant instead of voicemail. It answers in a natural voice, asks who is calling and what they want, takes the message, and texts you a transcript. Spam and robocalls hang up on it rather than on you.

Why an iPhone especially: iPhone has a built-in call screening setting that asks an unknown caller to say who they are, but it does not hold the conversation for you. See our guide to turning on iPhone call screening if you want that set up too. Forwarding is how an iPhone gets a caller actually answered and a written record of what was said. The OsmO app walks through the exact Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding steps and the code for your specific carrier during setup, so you are not guessing which option to pick. It will not catch every spam call, and it is a separate app rather than an iPhone setting.

Frequently asked questions

Where is call forwarding on iPhone?

Settings > Apps > Phone > Call Forwarding on current iPhone software; on older iOS versions, Phone sits directly in the Settings list. Apple notes the option depends on your cellular carrier, so some lines and plans do not show it at all.

How do I turn off call forwarding on my iPhone?

Switch the Call Forwarding toggle off in Phone settings, choosing the right line on a dual-SIM iPhone. With no menu available, dial ##004# on a GSM carrier or *73 on Verizon and Spectrum, then make a test call.

What is *73 on iPhone?

It is a carrier code rather than an iPhone feature. On Verizon and Spectrum Mobile lines it cancels forwarding that was set with *71 or *72. GSM carriers use ##004# for the same job. Which one applies depends on your carrier, not on your iPhone model.

Does *72 forward calls on iPhone?

On some US carriers, *72 followed by a number forwards all calls and *73 cancels it. The iPhone is only dialling it, so it works where the carrier supports it and errors where it does not. On Verizon and Spectrum, *71 forwards the calls you do not answer; most other networks use **004*<number>#.

What is conditional call forwarding on iPhone?

It redirects only the calls that meet a condition — unanswered, busy, or unreachable — and lets your iPhone ring first for everything else. The Call Forwarding toggle in Settings does not set it; that toggle sets the always-forward kind. On a GSM carrier, **004*<number># sets all three conditions and ##004# cancels them. See the section above for the per-condition codes.

How do I set up call forwarding on an iPhone 6?

Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding — an iPhone 6 runs iOS 12 at the newest, so there is no Apps level. Switch the toggle on, type the destination number in the field beneath it, and make a test call. It is single-SIM, so there is no line to pick first.

How do I set up call forwarding on an iPhone 6 on US Cellular?

Start with Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding. If it is missing or the toggle will not hold, you need a dial code, and the code is a US Cellular question rather than an iPhone 6 one: try *72 plus the number to forward and *73 to cancel, since US networks with CDMA roots use star codes. We have not verified those against US Cellular's own pages, so if the network errors, try **004*<number># and ##004# — then confirm with a test call, or ask US Cellular support to set it for you.

Does call forwarding work on an iPhone 4s?

Yes, where the line still has service. The setting is at Settings > Phone > Call Forwarding on iOS 9, and the keypad codes work as normal because the network handles them. The catch is that a 4s has no VoLTE and depends on 2G and 3G networks many carriers have retired — and a line with no service cannot change a forwarding setting, which is why the toggle often appears greyed out on one.

What happens to my calls when forwarding is on?

The network redirects them to the destination number before your iPhone rings, or after it rings unanswered, depending on the type you set. Because the redirect happens on the carrier's side, it still works when the iPhone is off or has no signal.

Does call forwarding forward text messages too?

No. It is a voice service — texts keep arriving on your iPhone as usual.

Does call forwarding cost extra?

That depends on your carrier and plan. Some include it; some bill the forwarded leg as an outgoing call. Check your carrier's current terms before leaving it switched on.

Official sources

Checked August 2026. Menu paths and carrier features change.

• Apple: Set up call forwarding on iPhone
• Verizon: Call forwarding FAQs
• AT&T: Call forwarding
• T-Mobile: Call forwarding

Related: AT&T call forwarding · Verizon call forwarding · Conditional call forwarding active · Call forwarding for Android · Call forwarding on iPhone & Android · Call divert in the UK · Call screening on iPhone · Stop spam calls on iPhone · What is an AI phone assistant? · Best spam-call blockers for iPhone