How to stop spam calls

Android

How to stop spam calls on Android

The short answer

In the Google Phone app, tap More (⋮) > Settings. Make sure Caller ID and spam is on, then open Spam and Call Screen and pick a protection level so suspicious and unknown calls are screened before your phone rings. On phones without automatic Call Screen, turn on Filter spam calls instead. Samsung phones use their own Phone app: see the Samsung guide.

Checked on the Google Phone app on Android 17 (Pixel), October 2026 · Updated October 18, 2026

Google Phone app > Settings (simplified; labels vary a little by app version)
Time
3 minutes
Cost
Free
Works on
Pixel, Google Phone app
Best defense
Call Screen

Turn on Call Screen

Pixel phones (automatic screening)

Call Screen answers suspicious and unknown calls for you and asks who’s calling and why. Spam is hung up on; real callers ring through with their answer shown. Saved contacts are never screened.

  1. Open the Phone app, tap More (⋮), then Settings.

    1. Phone
    2. More (⋮)
    3. Settings

  2. Tap Spam and Call Screen (on some versions, Call Screen).

    1. Settings
    2. Spam and Call Screen

  3. Under Protection level, choose Basic, Medium or Maximum protection. On Pixel 6 and older, choose which kinds of callers to screen under Unknown call settings.

    1. Call Screen
    2. Protection level

  4. On any incoming call you can also tap Screen call yourself.

Call Screen protection levels on Pixel 7 and newer (simplified)

From the makers of this guide

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Turn on caller ID and the spam filter

Google Phone app on any Android phone

Caller ID and spam warns you about suspected spam. Filter spam calls goes further: suspected spam doesn’t ring at all.

  1. In Phone > More (⋮) > Settings, tap Caller ID and spam.

    1. Phone
    2. Settings
    3. Caller ID and spam

  2. Make sure See caller ID & spam is on (it is by default).

  3. Turn on Filter spam calls if you see it. Filtered calls skip the ring and the notification but stay in your call history.

Block a number, or every hidden number

Block numbers that keep calling, and calls that hide their caller ID.

  1. In Phone, open your call history, tap the call, then Block or Report spam.

    1. Phone
    2. Call history
    3. Block / report spam

  2. To block every call with hidden caller ID: Settings > Blocked numbers > turn on Unknown.

    1. Phone
    2. Settings
    3. Blocked numbers
    4. Unknown

Turn on Scam Detection

Pixel 6 and later in the U.S.

Warns you during a call when the conversation matches common scam patterns. Off by default.

  1. In Phone > Settings, tap Scam Detection and turn it on.

    1. Phone
    2. Settings
    3. Scam Detection

Beyond this setting

What else helps

Samsung Galaxy?

Galaxy phones use Samsung’s Phone app, with its own spam protection, call screening and block list.

Samsung steps →

Your carrier’s free filter

Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile block or label spam on their network for free. Turn it on too.

Carrier steps →

Spam texts

In Google Messages: profile picture > Messages settings > Protection & Safety > Spam protection (on by default).

Stop spam texts →

Report to the FTC

Report unwanted calls at donotcall.gov, or at reportfraud.ftc.gov if you lost money. Reported numbers go to carriers every business day.

Report a call →

Got a specific number?

Check who’s been reporting it

See how often people reported a number to the FTC, what the calls were about, and what to do, at isthisnumberascam.com.

Questions

What people ask

How do I stop spam calls on Android for free?

In the Google Phone app, turn on Call Screen (Pixel) or Filter spam calls (other phones) under More > Settings, block repeat numbers, and turn on your carrier’s free spam filter. All are free.

Is Pixel Call Screen only in the U.S.?

No. Automatic screening works on Pixel phones in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Ireland and Australia, and manual screening in a few more countries. One older Google page still says U.S. only.

Does Call Screen work on non-Pixel phones?

Automatic Call Screen is a Pixel feature. Some other Android phones using the Google Phone app in the U.S. and Canada have the manual Screen call button.

Can I block all calls from numbers not in my contacts on Android?

The Google Phone app’s Unknown switch blocks only hidden numbers. To deal with every unknown number, use Call Screen at Maximum protection, which screens them instead of blocking them.

Sources

Checked against

Every step is checked against the official instructions. Menus change with updates; tell us if one has moved.

  1. Google: See caller ID and spam protection
  2. Google: Check who’s calling with Call Screen
  3. Google: Block or unblock phone numbers
  4. Google: Scam Detection
  5. Google Messages: Spam protection
  6. FTC: How to block unwanted calls