How to block phone numbers on Android

Hexamob | Emma Rossinyol 10/12/2014

There are many ways to block phone numbers on Android. All manufacturers and models have their own method to identify numbers that we don’t want to receive calls from. These methods vary a bit depending on the manufacturer and the Android version we are using, but there are some guidelines that can help us to manage these numbers.

Basically, we have two ways to identify unwanted calls. On one hand, we can use the native Android features, which will differ slightly depending on the OS version and the manufacturer of our device.

On the other hand, there are apps on the market focused on helping us in this task. Let’s see these two methods in more detail.

How to block numbers using native features

It is very simple if our manufacturer allows it. For example, if we have a Samsung Galaxy S5, we can block an incoming call from the “Call” menu, choosing “My Device” and find the option “Blocking Mode”, where we can disable incoming calls or block only certain numbers.

However, many models don’t have this option, and we need to use other applications to configure the list of blocked numbers. To check if our device has the option to block numbers or not, we can check the XDA developers forum, where we can find all the information available for each Android model.

Apps to block phone numbers


Mr. Number


MrNumber-1-en

This is a very simple and efficient application that allows you to block individual phone numbers or block area codes. Thus, we can block all types of spam, either from telemarketers or from any other source. It also works for messages, so we can stop receiving unwanted SMS definitely.

The application also identifies incoming calls. Once installed, we will get a bonus of 20 identifications from free, but if we want to investigate more phone numbers, we will have to pay a small fee of 99 cents for the next 20 numbers.

You can download Mr. Number for free from the Play Store.

Call Control

CallControl-1-en

Call Control is very similar to the previous application, which also allows you to create blacklists, block phone numbers or identify individual calls and messages as spam.

The main difference is that it has a global user database, so if we use the blacklist created by the community, we will use the information gathered from thousands of users, achieving a much greater input filter that based solely on our own experience.

You can download Call Control for free from the Play Store, but it includes some in-app purchases.