How to block spam calls on Android

Your phone's own dialer already has the strongest free tool: a spam filter that keeps flagged calls from ringing at all. The menus differ a little between a Pixel, a Samsung Galaxy and everything else, so here are the current steps for each, what every setting takes care of, and what it leaves behind.

How do you block spam calls on Android?

Open the Phone app, tap More options, tap Settings, tap Caller ID and spam, then turn on both See caller ID & spam and Filter spam calls. Filtered calls stop ringing and stop notifying you.

Steps verified on Phone by Google, Android 16, September 2026.

1. Open the Phone app — This is the dialer you use to make calls. On most phones it is Phone by Google; on a Samsung Galaxy see the next section, where the menu names differ.
2. Tap More options, then Settings — More options is the three dots in the corner of the screen.
3. Tap Caller ID and spam — Some versions of the app label this row Caller ID & spam. It is the same screen.
4. Turn on See caller ID & spam — This lets your phone check incoming numbers against Google's data and warn you about likely spam callers before you answer.
5. Turn on Filter spam calls — This is the setting that actually quiets your phone. Google's own description: you don't get missed call or voicemail notifications, but filtered calls are in your call history, and you can still check your voicemail.

What this takes care of

• Calls from numbers already reported as spam stop ringing and stop notifying you
• Incoming numbers get labeled, so you see a warning before you decide to answer
• Nothing is deleted — filtered calls stay in your call history and voicemail still works

What it leaves behind

• Because you get no notification, a filtered call is silent until you go looking for it — worth knowing before you turn it on
• A list can only know about numbers somebody has already reported, so a scammer's brand-new number arrives looking clean
• It labels and filters; it does not find out what the caller wants

Source: Google Phone app Help, "Use caller ID & spam protection" (support.google.com/phoneapp/answer/3459196).

How do you block spam calls on a Samsung Galaxy?

Open the Phone app, tap More options, tap Settings, tap Caller ID and spam protection, and turn on the switch at the top. Then use Block spam and scam calls to choose how aggressive the blocking is.

Steps verified on Samsung One UI, Samsung support documentation, September 2026.

1. Open the Phone app
2. Tap More options, then Settings — More options is the three vertical dots.
3. Tap Caller ID and spam protection
4. Turn on the switch at the top of the screen — You will be asked to review and agree to the terms of service and privacy policy before it turns on.
5. Set Block spam and scam calls — There are two choices: Block all spam and scam calls, which blocks everything identified regardless of risk level, or Only block high-risk scam calls, which blocks the most dangerous ones and lets milder spam through.
6. Report a caller during or after a call — Tap Block/Report number at the bottom of the call screen, then Block number to add it to your blocked list, or Report Number to flag it and pick a category.

What this takes care of

• Identified spam and scam calls are blocked at the dialer, before your phone rings
• You choose between blocking everything flagged or only the high-risk callers
• Reporting a number feeds the shared spam data that everyone's filters draw on

What it leaves behind

• It works from a database of known numbers, so an unreported number is not flagged
• Blocking all flagged spam can catch an aggressive-but-legitimate business you actually wanted to hear from
• It decides whether a call rings, not what the caller is after

Samsung calls this feature Smart Call; the spam data behind it comes from Hiya. Source: Samsung support, "Block spam calls with Smart Call on your Galaxy phone" (samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS10003438).

What is Android call screening, and how do you turn it on?

Call Screen is a Google feature in the Phone app that answers an unknown call for you, asks who's calling and why, and shows you a live transcript. On Pixel 7 and newer it can also screen automatically and hang up on a robocall without involving you.

Steps verified on Phone by Google Call Screen settings, September 2026.

1. Open the Phone app, tap More options, then Settings
2. Tap Spam and Call Screen — On some versions the row is simply Call Screen.
3. On Pixel 7 and newer, turn on Automatically screen calls — Then pick a level: Maximum protection, Medium protection, or Basic protection. Maximum screens the most callers; Basic screens the fewest.
4. Choose which callers get screened — The categories are Spam, Possibly faked numbers, and First-time callers.
5. On Pixel 6 and earlier, open Unknown call settings instead — There you pick the caller types you want screened. Screening still works, it just is not automatic in the same way.
6. If your phone is not a Pixel, look for the row anyway — Open the Phone app's Settings and see whether a Call Screen row is there. Availability depends on your phone and your version of the Phone app.

What this takes care of

• An unknown caller is answered and asked who they are before your phone rings
• You get a transcript of what the caller said, live, and can pick up mid-screen
• Automatic screening can hang up on a call it identifies as spam without you touching the phone

What it leaves behind

• Automatic screening runs on Pixel phones, and Google lists it for the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland and Australia — most other Android phones do not have it
• It screens at the start of the call; once you are connected, the screening is finished
• It reports what the caller says rather than weighing up whether it is true

Source: Google Phone app Help, "Screen your calls before you answer them" (support.google.com/phoneapp/answer/9118387).

How do you block one specific number on Android?

Open the Phone app, find the call in your recent calls, tap it, then tap Block or report spam and confirm Block.

Steps verified on Phone by Google and Samsung One UI, September 2026.

1. Open the Phone app and find the call in your recent calls
2. Tap the call, then tap Block or report spam
3. Confirm Block — You can usually report it as spam at the same time, which is worth doing — reports are what put a number on the lists other people's filters use.
4. On a Samsung Galaxy, manage the list under Block numbers — Phone app › More options › Settings › Block numbers, then Add phone number to block one by hand or review what you have already blocked.

What this takes care of

• That exact number can no longer get through to you
• Good against one persistent caller who keeps using the same number

What it leaves behind

• One number at a time, and operations that rotate through fresh numbers move faster than you can block them
• Blocking alone is private to your phone — report the number as well if you want it to count for anyone else

To report an unwanted call to the government, use the short form at DoNotCall.gov, or ReportFraud.ftc.gov if money was lost.

How do you add your carrier's free spam filter?

Install your carrier's own app — T-Mobile Scam Shield, Verizon Call Filter, or AT&T ActiveArmor. All three have free tiers, and they use different data from your Phone app, so running both is not redundant.

Steps verified on Carrier free tiers checked September 2026.

1. Find your carrier's app in the Play Store — Search for Scam Shield on T-Mobile, Call Filter on Verizon, or ActiveArmor on AT&T. On many phones one of them is already installed.
2. Sign in with your carrier account and turn on spam blocking — The free tier covers spam labeling and blocking of known spam numbers. The paid tier mostly adds extra caller ID features.
3. Leave your Phone app's spam filtering on as well — Carrier filtering happens on the network, before the call reaches your phone. Your dialer's filtering happens on the phone. They catch overlapping but different sets of calls.
4. If you use a smaller carrier, check what it offers — Many smaller carriers run on one of the big three networks and pass through the same labeling. Our carrier guides list which network each one uses.

What this takes care of

• Known spam numbers get stopped or labeled at the network level
• Free on all three major carriers

What it leaves behind

• Still a list of numbers other people have reported — a fresh number is not on it
• Coverage and labeling accuracy vary by carrier and by month

Where Gini fits in

Gini answers the unknown calls on your behalf, on any Android phone and on any of the major carriers. Your calls are forwarded to Gini using the call forwarding your carrier already supports, so Gini picks up before your phone rings, works out what the caller wants, and passes through the ones that matter.

It answers instead of labeling

Your dialer's filter decides whether a call rings. Gini takes the call: automated dialers and obvious scams are handled before your phone makes a sound, and a real caller gets through.

It keeps listening after you answer

Some scammers are real people who sound legitimate and talk their way past any screen. When a connected call turns risky — a request for a verification code, pressure to act right now — Gini raises a warning while you are still on the line.

Texts and email get watched too

Gini scans your texts and your Gmail and flags the ones that look like scams. It warns you and leaves the decision with you — it does not write or send anything on your behalf.

Screened calls show up in your phone's own call log, and setup uses standard carrier call forwarding, so there is no new number and no switching carriers. What people tend to describe afterwards is a quieter phone: far fewer strangers getting through, and a voicemail box that stops filling up with junk. There is a 7-day free trial, and current plans are listed on the pricing page.

Is there a free spam call blocker for Android?

Yes, and most of it is already on your phone. Filter spam calls in the Phone app is free, your carrier's app has a free tier, and blocking and reporting cost nothing.

A paid blocking app mostly buys a bigger database of reported numbers. That is worth something, but it is more of the same kind of protection rather than a different kind.

• Filter spam calls in the Phone app — free, built in, and the single biggest change you can make in a minute.
• Caller ID and spam protection on a Samsung Galaxy — free, with a choice between blocking all flagged spam or only high-risk scam calls.
• Call Screen on a Pixel — free, and the only built-in option that actually answers the call for you.
• T-Mobile Scam Shield, Verizon Call Filter, AT&T ActiveArmor — free tiers, network-level filtering.

What do these Android settings still miss?

They sort callers by whether a number has already been reported — not by what the caller wants. The call that gets through is the one from a number no list has seen yet.

That is the gap that matters for the calls that cost people money. Impostor scams were the largest fraud category the FTC tracked in 2025: people reported losing $3.5 billion to them, and nearly one in three fraud reports was an impostor scam. Among older adults who reported losing $10,000 or more to a business or government impostor in 2024, 41% said a phone call was the first contact.

A brand-new number placing its first call is invisible to a blocklist, and a spam filter treats it like any other unknown number. Somebody has to pick up and find out which kind of caller it is.

Sources: FTC press release on 2025 imposter scam losses, June 2026; FTC Data Spotlight, August 2025.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens to a call once Filter spam calls is on?

It does not ring and it does not notify you. Google's description is direct: you don't get missed call or voicemail notifications, but filtered calls are in your call history, and you can check your voicemail. So nothing disappears — it just stops interrupting you, and you look for it if you want to.

Where is the spam setting in my Phone app? I can't find it.

In Phone by Google: open the Phone app, tap More options — the three dots — then Settings, then Caller ID and spam. Some versions label it Caller ID & spam. On a Samsung Galaxy the row is called Caller ID and spam protection instead, on the same Settings screen.

Do I need Call Screen, or is spam filtering enough?

They do different jobs. Spam filtering checks the number against a list. Call Screen actually answers the call and asks who is calling, which is the only way to learn something about a number nobody has reported yet. If your phone offers both, use both — automatic Call Screen is a Pixel feature, and Google lists it for the US, UK, Canada, Ireland and Australia.

Does Android call screening work on a Samsung Galaxy?

Google's automatic Call Screen is a Pixel feature, so on a Galaxy the built-in equivalent is Caller ID and spam protection — Samsung's Smart Call — which labels and blocks known spam rather than answering the call. Open your Phone app's Settings and look for a Call Screen row to see what your particular phone and app version offer.

Why am I still getting spam calls after turning everything on?

Because every built-in filter works from a list of numbers people have already reported, and scammers buy new numbers constantly. A first call from a fresh number is not on any list, so it arrives looking ordinary. That is the specific gap screening addresses — by answering the call instead of checking it against a list.

Will blocking a number stop the calls for good?

It stops that number. Against a persistent caller who keeps using one line, that is a real fix. Against an operation rotating through numbers, the next call comes from a number your phone has never seen. Block it anyway, and report it while you are there — reports are what keep the shared lists current.

Does Gini work on my Android phone and my carrier?

Gini works on Android and uses standard carrier call forwarding, which AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon and the smaller carriers running on their networks all support. There is no new number and no switching carriers. Our carrier pages list the forwarding setup for each one.

Does Gini block spam texts on Android too?

Gini flags them rather than blocking them. It scans your texts, warns you when one looks like a scam, and leaves the decision to you — it deliberately does not silently filter your messages or send anything on your behalf. Email works the same way: Gini scans your Gmail and flags what looks like a scam.

Keep going

The rest of the guide, and how screening compares with what your phone already does.

• How to stop spam calls — the full guide — All four layers, from free settings to the Do Not Call Registry to screening.
• How AI call screening works — What happens to an unknown caller when something answers on your behalf.
• The National Do Not Call Registry — How to register free at donotcall.gov, and why some calls keep coming anyway.
• Call forwarding by carrier — How forwarding works on AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon and their MVNOs.
• Blocking spam calls on iPhone — The same steps for the other kind of phone, in case you set one up for family.

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