What Is Unconditional Call Forwarding? How It Works, Benefits, and How to Turn It On or Off

What if you could make sure every call to your number reaches someone else without your phone ringing first?

That’s exactly what unconditional call forwarding does.

Instead of waiting for you to answer, the phone network automatically sends every incoming call to another number you choose. That could be your second phone, a colleague’s number, a receptionist, or another business line.

This can be useful when you’re travelling, working from another location, using a temporary number, or simply don’t want to handle calls on your primary phone.

But unconditional call forwarding isn’t the same as conditional call forwarding. With conditional forwarding, a call is redirected only when something happens, such as your line being busy or you not answering.

With unconditional call forwarding, every incoming call is forwarded immediately.

In this guide, you’ll learn how unconditional call forwarding works, when it makes sense to use it, how to turn it on or off, and how businesses can use it to manage calls more effectively.

What Is Unconditional Call Forwarding?

Unconditional call forwarding is a phone feature that automatically redirects all incoming calls from one phone number to another number.

There is no waiting period and no condition that needs to be met.

For example:

Customer calls your number → Network forwards the call → Your other number rings

Your original phone doesn’t need to ring first.

The destination can be another mobile number, landline, office number, or supported business phone system.

A Simple Example that will make you Understand Unconditional Call Forwarding more Better

Imagine you’re going on vacation but don’t want to miss important calls.

Instead of asking everyone to remember a new number, you can forward your existing number to someone who is handling your calls.

When someone calls your usual number, the call automatically goes to the new destination.

The caller doesn’t need to do anything differently.

That’s the main advantage of unconditional call forwarding: one number remains public while another person or device handles the calls.

How Does Unconditional Call Forwarding Work?

The process is fairly simple.

When someone calls your number:

1. The caller dials your usual phone number.
2. The network checks whether unconditional forwarding is active.
3. If it is active, the network redirects the call immediately.
4. The destination number receives the call.
5. The original phone doesn’t normally ring.

The forwarding happens at the network level, so you don’t necessarily need a second physical phone attached to the original number.

However, the exact setup and charges depend on your mobile carrier, landline provider, or business phone system.

Unconditional vs. Conditional Call Forwarding

The easiest way to understand the difference is to ask:

Does the call get forwarded every time, or only when something happens?

Unconditional Call Forwarding	Conditional Call Forwarding
Every incoming call is forwarded	Calls are forwarded only when a condition is met
Your original phone normally doesn’t ring	Your phone usually gets the first chance to answer
Useful when you want someone else to handle all calls	Useful when you need a backup when unavailable
No-answer or busy status isn’t required	Conditions can include busy, unanswered, or unreachable

For Example:

Suppose you’re going to a meeting.

If you want every call to go to your assistant, use unconditional forwarding.

If you still want to answer calls yourself but want unanswered calls to reach your assistant, conditional forwarding is more suitable.

When Should You Use Unconditional Call Forwarding?

Unconditional forwarding isn’t something everyone needs all the time. It is most useful when you already know that you don’t want to answer calls on the original number.

1. When You’re Travelling

Going somewhere where you won’t be using your usual phone?

Forwarding your calls means people can continue using the number they already know.

2. When Someone Else Is Handling Your Calls

If a colleague, receptionist, or family member needs to handle your calls temporarily, you can send all incoming calls directly to them.

3. When You’re Changing Phones or Numbers

During a temporary transition, forwarding can help you keep receiving calls through another number without immediately changing the number you’ve shared everywhere.

4. When You’re Working From Another Location

Businesses can forward an office number to another location or employee, allowing calls to continue reaching the right person.

5. When You Don’t Want Your Phone to Ring

Sometimes the simplest reason is the best one.

If you don’t want to receive calls directly but still want someone else to handle them, unconditional forwarding sends the calls somewhere else automatically.

Benefits of Unconditional Call Forwarding

The feature is simple, but it can solve several everyday communication problems.

1. Keep One Number Public

You don’t need to tell everyone about a new number.

People can continue calling the number they already have, while the calls are redirected to the destination you choose.

2. Stay Reachable

Calls can continue reaching you or your team even when you’re not using your primary phone.

3. Easy to Set Up

In many cases, forwarding can be enabled through your phone settings or carrier’s network controls.

4. Useful for Temporary Changes

You can use forwarding when travelling, changing work locations, handling temporary responsibilities, or moving between phone numbers.

5. Support Business Continuity

If the person normally responsible for calls isn’t available, calls can be redirected to someone else so communication doesn’t stop.

6. Reduce the Need to Share Multiple Numbers

Instead of publishing several contact numbers, you can keep one primary number and change where the calls are delivered.

How to Turn On Unconditional Call Forwarding

The exact steps depend on your phone, carrier, and type of service.

Before enabling it, make sure you know the number where you want calls to be forwarded and check whether your carrier charges for forwarded calls.

1. On Android

The exact menu can differ between Android phones, but the general process is:

1. Open the Phone app.
2. Tap the three-dot menu.
3. Open Settings.
4. Look for Calls, Calling Accounts.
5. Select Call Forwarding.
6. Choose the SIM or phone number you want to manage.
7. Select Always Forward.
8. Enter the destination phone number.
9. Tap Turn On or Enable.

Make a test call from another phone after enabling the feature.

If you don’t see the option, your carrier may control call forwarding through network settings instead.

2. On iPhone

On supported carriers, unconditional call forwarding can generally be managed through the iPhone’s phone settings.

Depending on your iOS version, look for:

Settings → Apps → Phone → Call Forwarding

Turn on Call Forwarding and enter the number where you want incoming calls to go.

If the option isn’t available, your carrier may not support configuring forwarding directly through the iPhone settings. In that case, check your carrier’s instructions.

3. Using Carrier Codes

Some mobile carriers allow unconditional call forwarding to be activated or deactivated using network codes.

However, these codes aren’t universal.

They can vary by:

• Carrier
• Country
• Mobile plan
• Network

So don’t assume that a code found online will work on your number. Use the code provided by your carrier.

How to Turn Off Unconditional Call Forwarding

If you want calls to start ringing on your original number again, you need to disable unconditional forwarding.

1. On Android

Go back to:

Phone → Settings → Call Forwarding

Select Always Forward and choose Disable or Turn Off.

Then make a test call to confirm that the original number rings normally.

2. On iPhone

If forwarding was enabled through your iPhone settings, go to:

Settings → Apps → Phone → Call Forwarding

Turn off Call Forwarding.

If your carrier manages the forwarding, you’ll need to use the carrier’s deactivation method instead.

3. Using Carrier Settings or Codes

If you activated forwarding using a carrier-specific code, use the corresponding deactivation method provided by the same carrier.

If you’re unsure whether forwarding is still active, contact your network provider.

How Businesses Use Unconditional Call Forwarding

Unconditional forwarding can be useful beyond personal calls.

Businesses can use it when they need to redirect an entire stream of calls to another person, team, or location.

1. Redirect Office Calls

A business can forward its office number to another number when employees are working remotely or from another location.

2. Route Calls During Holidays

During holidays or office closures, calls can be redirected to an employee or support team that is still available.

3. Support Remote Employees

A business can keep its existing customer-facing number while sending calls to employees working from home or another location.

4. Handle Temporary Staff Changes

If an employee responsible for incoming calls is unavailable for an extended period, the number can be forwarded to another team member.

5. Maintain Customer Access

Customers don’t have to learn a new number every time the business changes where calls are handled.

Unconditional Call Forwarding Alternatives

Unconditional forwarding is useful when you want every call redirected, but it isn’t always the best solution.

1. Conditional Call Forwarding

Use conditional call forwarding when you still want to answer calls yourself but need a backup when you’re busy, unavailable, or don’t answer.

2. Call Routing

Businesses with multiple employees may benefit from call routing, which can send calls to different people or departments based on predefined rules.

3. IVR

An IVR lets callers choose where they want to go.

For example:

Press 1 for Sales
Press 2 for Support
Press 3 for Billing

This is more suitable for businesses with multiple departments.

4. Virtual Business Numbers

A virtual number can give your business a dedicated phone number managed through a cloud-based phone system.

Depending on the provider, you may also get features such as IVR, call recording, analytics, call routing, and CRM integrations.

Troubleshooting Unconditional Call Forwarding

Sometimes forwarding doesn’t work as expected. Here are a few things to check.

1. Calls Still Reach Your Original Phone

Check whether unconditional forwarding is actually active and whether you entered the correct destination number.

2. Calls Aren’t Reaching the Destination

Make sure the destination number is active and can receive calls.

If everything looks correct, check whether your carrier supports unconditional forwarding on your plan.

3. The Forwarding Option Isn’t Available

Some carriers manage forwarding at the network level rather than through your phone’s settings.

In that situation, you’ll need to follow the carrier’s activation process.

4. You’re Being Charged Unexpectedly

Depending on your carrier and plan, forwarded calls may incur charges.

Check your carrier’s pricing before using the feature regularly, especially for business calls or forwarding to another network.

Conclusion

Unconditional call forwarding is one of the simplest ways to redirect calls without changing the number people already use to contact you.

Every incoming call is sent directly to another number, without waiting for your original phone to ring or become unavailable.

That makes it useful when you’re travelling, working remotely, temporarily handing calls to someone else, or managing business calls from another location.

If you only need a simple way to redirect all calls, your mobile or landline provider’s forwarding feature may be enough.

But if you’re managing a business with multiple employees, departments, or high call volumes, you may need more than basic forwarding. Features such as IVR, call routing, call queues, call recording, analytics, and CRM integration can give you much greater control over how calls are handled.

The right solution ultimately depends on how you want your calls to flow and who needs to answer them.