How do I make a particular number busy?

Making a phone number appear busy means generating a busy signal when someone tries to call that number. There are a few reasons why someone might want to make their number seem busy:

• To avoid unwanted calls from certain people
• To appear unavailable during certain times when you don’t want to be disturbed
• To give the impression that you are on another call and can’t answer
• To temporarily pause incoming calls when you are busy with another task

While making a number busy could be seen as unethical in some cases, there are legitimate reasons for doing so as well. This article will explore several methods for making a phone number appear busy.

Check Your Phone Service

To make a number busy, first check if your phone service allows call forwarding or simultaneous ringing. Most landline and mobile phone services include call forwarding as a standard feature, though some may charge an extra fee. According to Verizon, call forwarding is included at no extra charge for most of their wireless plans.

For a landline, contact your phone company to confirm if call forwarding is enabled on your account. Many providers like AT&T enable it by default. You can also try dialing *72 on your landline phone to see if it prompts you to enter a forwarding number – this indicates the call forwarding feature is active.

If your mobile device doesn’t natively support call forwarding, you may need to download a call forwarding or simultaneous ringing app from the app store. Popular options include SageTel, Line2, Talkroute and more. Evaluate reviews to choose a reliable app that works well with your mobile carrier.

Use Call Forwarding

One way to make your number appear busy is to set up call forwarding so that incoming calls are forwarded to a busy line or number. Most phone carriers offer call forwarding features that allow you to forward calls when your line is busy.

For example, with Verizon you can dial *71 followed by the number you want calls forwarded to in order to enable call forwarding when your line is busy (Verizon). AT&T customers can dial *72 and the number to forward calls to for the same effect.

By forwarding to a busy hotline, endless phone tree, or always-busy phone number, callers will hear a busy signal when they try to reach you. Just keep in mind you won’t get the caller’s voicemail this way. Also, call forwarding features must be enabled on your account.

Try Simultaneous Ringing

One way to make a phone number appear busy is to set up simultaneous ringing to a busy destination. Simultaneous ringing allows incoming calls to ring multiple phones or devices at the same time (
Source). By adding a busy signal as one of the simultaneous ring destinations, calls will hear a busy signal when they try to reach you.

To set up simultaneous ringing to a busy signal on most phone systems:

• Log into your phone system account online or through an app
• Go to settings and find the “Simultaneous Ring” or “Find Me Follow Me” feature
• Add your primary number as the first destination
• Add a busy signal or unavailable message as the second destination
• Enable simultaneous ringing

Now when someone calls your number, it will ring on your phone and play a busy signal or unavailable message at the same time. The caller will hear the busy/unavailable prompt thinking your line is tied up, while your phone rings as usual.

Just keep in mind you’ll want to disable simultaneous ringing when you are available to take calls. Otherwise callers may still get a busy signal even when you can pick up.

Use a Busy Signal Generator

One easy way to make a phone number seem busy is to use a busy signal generator app. There are free apps available for both iPhone and Android that can create an audible busy signal. For example:

• On Android, check out the Signal Generator app on Google Play. It lets you generate customized busy tones from 1 Hz to 22,000 Hz.
• For iPhone, try the Audio Signal Generator on the App Store. It includes a free sine wave generator to mimic a busy signal.

These apps let you route the artificial busy signal to your phone’s earpiece. So when someone calls, it will sound like the line is continuously busy. Just make sure to follow any terms of use and don’t use the apps to disrupt others.

Send Calls to Voicemail

One easy way to send calls directly to voicemail is to use your phone’s call forwarding or send to voicemail feature. Both iPhones and Android phones allow you to forward incoming calls to voicemail without rejecting the call.

On an iPhone, open the Phone app and tap on the Voicemail tab. Enable the “Send All Calls to Voicemail” setting to forward all incoming calls directly to voicemail. You can also swipe left on an individual contact and choose “Send to Voicemail” to forward only that contact’s calls (source).

On Android, open the Phone app and tap the three-dot menu icon. Select Settings > Calls and enable “Send incoming calls directly to voicemail” to send all calls to voicemail. You can also tap on a contact, edit their details, and enable “Send Incoming Calls Directly To Voicemail” (source).

Using your phone’s built-in settings makes it easy to send calls directly to voicemail temporarily or for specific contacts, without having to reject the calls.

Block Specific Numbers

One of the easiest ways to make a particular number busy on an iPhone is to block calls from that specific number. When you block a number, your iPhone will automatically reject any incoming calls or texts from that number.

To block a number on your iPhone:

1. Open the Phone app and tap Recents.
2. Find the phone number you want to block and tap the information icon next to it.
3. Scroll down and tap Block this Caller.
4. Confirm that you want to block the number.

Once you block a number, your iPhone will automatically send any calls from that number to voicemail. You’ll also have the option to block text messages in addition to calls.

Blocking numbers is easy to do right from the Phone app and ensures you won’t be disturbed by calls or texts from specific people. Just remember that blocking a number does not notify the caller, so they may continue attempting to contact you.[1]

Try Do Not Disturb

One option to make a number busy is to enable Do Not Disturb mode on your smartphone. When Do Not Disturb is turned on, your phone will silence incoming calls and send them directly to voicemail without ringing your phone. This essentially makes your number appear busy to callers.

On iPhones, enabling Do Not Disturb can be done quickly by swiping up to access Control Center and tapping the moon icon. On Android phones, you can find a Do Not Disturb or DND mode in the Settings app under Sounds or Notifications. You can usually schedule when you want Do Not Disturb to be enabled, like during certain times or events.

According to ONSIP, Do Not Disturb will send calls to whatever voicemail option you have set up with your phone service. So callers will hear your personal voicemail greeting before being able to leave a message.

The main benefit of using Do Not Disturb to appear busy is that you can easily toggle it on and off as needed. It gives you full control without requiring any other devices or services.

Get a Separate Busy Line

One way to make a number appear busy is to get a separate phone line just for that purpose. You can add a second phone number to your existing smartphone plan or get a standalone busy line.

Services like OpenPhone, 2ndLine, and Grasshopper allow you to add a second phone number to your existing cell phone. This gives you a dedicated busy line without needing a second device.

Port the number you want to appear busy to this new line. Set up call forwarding so all calls to this number go straight to voicemail or play a prerecorded busy signal. This will make the number sound continuously busy to anyone who calls it.

The advantage of a separate busy line is you don’t have to toggle your main number between busy and available. The busy line gives the appearance your desired number is continuously engaged while your primary number remains open.

Conclusion

There are a few different options for making your phone number appear busy when you want to avoid calls. The easiest options are using call forwarding or do not disturb modes, which will send all incoming calls directly to voicemail. For more selective blocking, you can set up call blocking on specific numbers. Using a busy signal generator is also an option, but requires third party hardware or apps.

In summary, think about whether you want to block all calls or be more selective in who you block. For full control, look into your phone system’s call forwarding and do not disturb settings. Consider apps or devices that generate busy signals if you want a more realistic effect. And don’t forget to check back in with callers you wanted to avoid later on when you have time.