How to Call From an Unknown Number (and Actually Get Answered)

You want to call someone without handing over your number. Maybe it's a Marketplace seller, a landlord you haven't signed with yet, or a business you'd rather not have ringing you back for the next six months. There are two ways to do it. They don't behave alike.

The short answer: you can hide your number, so the other person sees "No Caller ID" or "Private", or you can call from a number that isn't yours, so they see a normal phone number they don't recognise. In 2026 the hidden call is the one more likely to be stopped before it rings. Android, US landlines and UK landlines all have settings that reject withheld numbers specifically, and a call that shows a real number gets past every one of them.

That's the whole idea of this guide: not how to hide your number (our guide to blocking your number covers every code and setting), but what happens to an unknown-number call on the other end, and which kind actually gets answered.

Two ways to call from an unknown number

People use "unknown number" for two different things. Separate them first.

Hiding is free. It takes a second. On a US phone, dial *67 before the number. On many mobile networks, in North America and elsewhere, it's #31# before the number: Bell's support page gives exactly that code for its customers in Canada, for example. In the UK, landlines use 141. The catch is the third row of that table.

What the other phone does with a "No Caller ID" call

Here's what the big platforms and phone companies actually do with a withheld number, taken from their own help pages in October 2026.

Look at what the first three have in common. They all go after the withheld number and nothing else. Google's setting lets unsaved numbers ring. AT&T's rejection accepts calls that show as "Unknown" or "Out of Area", and BT's only stops callers who chose to withhold their number, so a call that shows a real number never even meets the filter. Not one of them checks whether the number is familiar.

iPhone is the exception, and it's an honest one: it doesn't care whether you hid your number or just aren't in their contacts. With Ask Reason for Calling turned on, Apple says unknown callers "will be asked for more information before iPhone rings", and with Silence they're sent to voicemail. Neither method beats that. You can only plan for it.

Then there's the person holding the phone, who may have spent the last few years learning, from scam texts and fake bank calls and a stream of warnings on the evening news, that a call with nothing on the screen is a call to ignore, and who now lets every one of them ring out without a second thought. The FCC's own consumer advice on spoofing says it plainly: "Don't answer calls from unknown numbers." When a federal regulator's tip card tells everyone to let unknown calls ring out, a call that doesn't even show a number starts at a disadvantage.

How to show a number that isn't yours

If the goal is to keep your personal number private and still get answered, showing a different number is usually the better choice. Three options.

• A second SIM or eSIM. A prepaid line gives you a separate number that can call and receive. You'll pay for the plan, and you need a phone that takes a second SIM.
• A second-number app. These give you an extra number on the phone you already have. Check what it shows abroad before you rely on it for international calls.
• Calling from your browser. With CallTuv, you call from Chrome, Safari or the iPhone and Android apps, and by default the person you call sees a real number from CallTuv's shared pool, not yours. You don't install anything on a computer, and there's no contract.

Three details decide whether that suits you. The shared number is picked to suit the country you're calling: a call to the UK usually shows a UK number, calls to most of the EU show a Netherlands number, and most other places see a US one. The number can change from one call to the next. And it's outgoing only, so if they call it back they won't reach you, which is often exactly the point. Our help center explains what recipients see in full.

Calls to the US and Canada cost $0.03 a minute, and UK calls cost $0.04 a minute to landlines and $0.07 to mobiles. You top up from $5, the credit doesn't expire, and calling needs no subscription.

If you want the same number to show every time, for example because you're calling several US landlords this month and want them to recognise you on the second call, you can rent a US number for $5.95 a month. It's also outgoing only.

One thing CallTuv does not do is hide your number completely. Every call shows a real number, and for the reasons above, that is usually the call that gets answered.

How to get through call screening

Whichever method you use, an iPhone with screening turned on will meet you with a question before it rings. Be ready for it.

1. Answer the screening prompt properly. If an iPhone asks why you're calling, give your name and the reason in one sentence: "It's Dana, calling about the bike you listed." Apple says the iPhone then rings and shares the caller's response, so they read your reason before deciding. A specific one gives them something to say yes to.
2. Leave a short voicemail. Silenced calls go to voicemail, so a clear one gives you a second chance. Say who you are and why, and don't leave a callback number unless you want one used.
3. Send a message first when you can. If you're replying to a listing, a quick "I'll call in five minutes from a number you won't recognise" through the app you're already chatting on turns a stranger's call into an expected one.
4. Call at a sensible time. Late at night, a blank screen looks like trouble.

Apple also lists one quirk worth knowing: when the person you're calling is roaming, their iPhone doesn't screen calls at all, whatever their settings say.

What an unknown number doesn't hide

Hiding your number, or showing a different one, only changes what appears on the other person's screen. The phone company carrying your call still knows it was you. And in the US, faking caller ID to deceive someone is illegal: under the Truth in Caller ID Act, the FCC says sending "misleading or inaccurate caller ID information with the intent to defraud, cause harm or wrongly obtain anything of value" can mean penalties of up to $10,000 per violation.

The FCC also says some uses are legitimate, giving a doctor who calls from a personal mobile but shows the office number as an example. Keeping your own number away from a stranger you're buying a sofa from is in the same spirit. Using an unknown number to call someone who doesn't want to hear from you isn't, and nothing in this guide makes that harder to trace.

Frequently asked questions

How do I call someone from an unknown number?
Either hide your number, by dialling *67 before the number in the US or #31# on many mobile networks, or call from a different number, such as a second SIM or a browser calling service like CallTuv that shows its own number instead of yours. The first shows "No Caller ID", the second shows a number they don't recognise.

Will they know it's me if I hide my number?
Their phone won't show your number. Your phone company still has a record of the call, though, so it isn't anonymous in any legal sense.

Why won't my call go through when I hide my number?
The person you're calling probably blocks withheld numbers. Android's Unknown setting, AT&T's Anonymous Call Rejection and BT's Anonymous Call Reject all do that. You'll usually hear a message asking you to call again without hiding your number. A call that shows a real number isn't affected by these settings.

Is "No Caller ID" the same as "Unknown"?
Not quite. "No Caller ID", "Private" and "Withheld" mean the caller chose to hide the number. "Unknown" or "Unavailable" usually means the network couldn't pass a number along, which is why AT&T's and BT's anonymous-call blocking both let those calls through.

Can I hide my number when calling another country?
*67 works on US phones and won't help on most international calls. #31# works on many mobile networks. Calling through CallTuv also keeps your own number private on international calls, because the other person sees a number from CallTuv's shared pool.

Does CallTuv let me hide my number completely?
No. Every CallTuv call shows a real number, either from the shared pool, a number you verified, or a US number you rent. Your personal number stays private unless you choose to show it.

Is it legal to call from an unknown number?
Hiding your number is a standard phone feature, offered by carriers such as AT&T and BT. Faking caller ID to defraud someone, cause harm or get something of value is illegal in the US under the Truth in Caller ID Act.