WiFi Calling (VoWiFi): what it is and how to tell whether your phone supports it

It is the feature that makes your usual number ring inside the house when the phone has not one bar of signal. It is not an app, it costs nothing extra, and almost nobody knows they are carrying it in their pocket. Here it is, explained in full, with nothing to sell.

What a WiFi call actually is

When you call or are called, the voice has to travel somewhere. Normally it travels over the mobile network, the one with the masts in the street. With WiFi Calling — VoWiFi, in operator jargon — the voice goes into your home router and out to your operator's network from there. Everything else is identical: your number, your SIM, your contacts, the phone app you always use.

That is why it is nothing like WhatsApp or a video call. Whoever calls you dials your normal number from their normal phone and notices nothing. And that is why it works with people who don't have your WhatsApp: the bank, the doctor, the accountant, your mother.

How to switch it on

The setting is already on your phone; the only thing to do is find it. The path varies quite a bit from one make to another, and that is precisely why so many people don't have it turned on.

On an iPhone

Settings › Phone › Wi-Fi Calling. On some models it sits under Settings › Mobile Data, and if you have two lines you have to pick the line first.

On an Android

On Samsung it is usually under Settings › Connections › Wi-Fi Calling, and also in the quick-settings panel you pull down from the top. On other makes it lives inside the Phone app itself: More › Settings › Calls › Wi-Fi Calling. On Huawei it is usually Networks › Mobile networks › Wi-Fi Calling.

If you look and the option is nowhere to be found, there are two possible explanations: your handset doesn't have it, or your operator hasn't enabled it on your line. You tell them apart by asking the operator, and it costs nothing.

What your operator says

Every operator has its own conditions, its own list of supported handsets and its own way of enabling it. Rather than copy them here and let them go stale, here is the link to each one's official page.

If your plan is with a virtual operator (a brand that runs on someone else's network), ask your own company directly: not every brand offers this feature even when the network it runs on does.

How to tell whether it is actually working

When it is active, almost all phones show it at the top, in the status bar, next to the operator name: you see “Wi-Fi” or something like “Movistar Wi-Fi”. The definitive test is simpler: stand in the spot in your house where the phone has not one bar, check you are connected to the WiFi, and ask someone to ring you. If it rings, it works.

The four places where this runs out

If WiFi Calling works for you, you do not need us at all, and we are glad: it is free, your own operator provides it, and it takes two minutes to switch on. But it is worth knowing where it stops being enough, because that is not rare. One: it needs WiFi worth the name, and not every house in the Vega Baja has fibre. Two: your operator has to have it enabled on your line and your handset has to support it — many phones a few years old, and quite a few virtual-operator lines, do not. Three: it ends at the edge of the WiFi: on the terrace, at the gate, in the car on your own drive, the call drops. Four: it fixes your phone, not your house. Anyone who visits — your son, the plumber, a grandchild — still has no signal in your living room.

That is where our part begins, and it is a different thing: instead of dodging the lack of signal over WiFi, we bring the operator's own coverage inside the house with an outdoor antenna and a booster. The phone then shows real bars, depending on no WiFi network at all, and it works for everyone who walks through the door. That installation needs your operator's prior authorisation, we request it, and if it is not granted nothing is installed. Try the free route first: it is right above.

Common questions

Do WiFi calls use up my data allowance?

They do not use mobile data, because they do not travel over the mobile network: they go over your home connection. The minutes are counted against your plan just like a normal call, depending on what you have contracted. Check your operator's page.

Do I have to install an app?

No. This is not WhatsApp or Skype: it is your usual number, your usual SIM and the phone app already on your handset. Whoever calls you notices nothing and has to do nothing.

What if my phone is old?

It may not support it. Very old handsets, unlocked phones bought outside Spain and some imported models don't always carry the option, even when the operator offers it. It takes two minutes to check in the phone's settings.

Does it work for calling 112?

We don't promise it, and be wary of anyone who does. Whether an emergency call goes out over WiFi, and whether it arrives with your correct address, depends on your operator, your handset and the details registered with them. Always keep another way available.