How to Forward Your Business Calls to an Answering Service (Every US Carrier, Step-by-Step)

To forward your business calls to an answering service, dial *72 followed by the answering service number on a landline or most cell phones, then press Call. On cloud VoIP systems like RingCentral or Zoom Phone, enable 'Always Forward' in your call settings. You keep your existing number — callers dial the same number as always, the answering service picks up.

This guide covers exact step-by-step instructions for every major US phone system: AT&T (landline and mobile), Verizon, T-Mobile, RingCentral, Zoom Phone, Google Voice, Microsoft Teams Phone, iPhone, and Android. All instructions verified for 2026.

How Does Business Call Forwarding Work?

Call forwarding routes incoming calls at the network level before your phone rings. When a customer dials your business number, the carrier intercepts the call and routes it to your answering service's number instead. The caller experiences a normal phone call — they dial your number, the answering service answers. They never see a redirect. They never know the call was forwarded.

AT&T Landline — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Pick up your AT&T landline handset and listen for a dial tone.
2. 2Dial *72.
3. 3When you hear a dial tone (or confirmation prompt), enter the answering service phone number (10 digits, no dashes).
4. 4Wait for two short confirmation tones — this means forwarding is active.
5. 5Hang up. All incoming calls to this number will now route to the answering service.
6. 6To cancel forwarding: pick up the handset, dial *73, wait for two tones, hang up.

Note: AT&T business landline call forwarding is typically included in your plan at no extra charge. If *72 does not work, call AT&T Business at 1-800-288-2747 — some legacy PBX lines require forwarding to be activated at the account level.

AT&T Mobile — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Open the Phone app on your AT&T mobile device.
2. 2Tap the keypad and dial **21* followed by the answering service number followed by # (example: **21*2403181578#).
3. 3Press the Call button.
4. 4You will hear a confirmation message when forwarding is active.
5. 5To cancel: dial ##21# and press Call.

Alternative method on AT&T mobile: Go to Settings → Phone → Call Forwarding → toggle ON → enter the forwarding number.

Verizon Business — How to Forward Calls

Verizon Landline

1. 1Pick up the handset and dial *72.
2. 2Enter the answering service number (10 digits).
3. 3Wait for two short beeps confirming forwarding is active.
4. 4To cancel: dial *73.

Verizon Mobile

1. 1Open the Phone app.
2. 2Dial *72 followed immediately by the answering service number (no spaces or dashes).
3. 3Press Call and wait for confirmation.
4. 4To cancel: dial *73 and press Call.

Verizon One Talk and Verizon Business Digital Voice users: log in to the My Verizon Business portal → Voice Features → Call Forwarding → Always Forward → enter the number and Save.

T-Mobile Business — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Open the Phone app on your T-Mobile device.
2. 2Dial **21* followed by the answering service number followed by # (example: **21*2403181578#).
3. 3Press Call.
4. 4You will see or hear a confirmation when forwarding is active.
5. 5To cancel all forwarding: dial ##002# and press Call.

T-Mobile DIGITS users: log in to digits.t-mobile.com → select your number → Settings → Call Forwarding → Always Forward → enter the forwarding number.

RingCentral — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Log in to your RingCentral account at app.ringcentral.com.
2. 2Click your name/avatar in the top right → Settings.
3. 3Go to Phone → Call Handling & Forwarding.
4. 4Under 'Forward Calls', select 'Forward immediately to an external number'.
5. 5Enter the answering service phone number.
6. 6Click Save.

For time-based forwarding (after-hours only): go to Call Handling → Business Hours → set your hours → add forwarding rule for 'After Hours' that routes to the answering service number. This lets you answer calls yourself during the day and have the AI handle evenings and weekends.

Zoom Phone — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Sign in to the Zoom web portal at zoom.us/signin.
2. 2Go to Phone → Settings.
3. 3Click 'Call Handling'.
4. 4Under 'Call Forwarding', click 'Add a Forwarding Rule'.
5. 5Select 'Always' for the forwarding type.
6. 6Enter the answering service number.
7. 7Click Save.

Zoom Phone also supports business-hours rules. Under Call Handling → Business Hours, you can set separate forwarding rules for business hours (ring your team first, then forward) vs. after hours (forward immediately to the answering service).

Google Voice — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Log in to voice.google.com.
2. 2Click the Settings gear icon in the top right.
3. 3Go to the 'Calls' tab.
4. 4Under 'Call Forwarding', click 'Add a forwarding number'.
5. 5Enter the answering service number and click 'Send code' to verify.
6. 6Enter the verification code sent to the answering service number (you will need to call it and listen to the code, or ask your provider for the verification PIN).
7. 7Once verified, uncheck your personal devices under forwarding so all calls route to the answering service.

Google Voice forwards to verified numbers only. Most AI answering service providers have a process for providing the verification code — contact your provider before starting this step.

iPhone (US Carriers) — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. 2Scroll down and tap 'Phone'.
3. 3Tap 'Call Forwarding'.
4. 4Toggle 'Call Forwarding' to ON.
5. 5Tap 'Forward To' and enter the answering service phone number.
6. 6Go back — forwarding is now active. The phone icon in your status bar will show a forwarding indicator.

Note: iPhone call forwarding requires a cellular connection (not just Wi-Fi). Forwarding remains active even when the phone is off or out of range — this is ideal for always-on answering service coverage.

Android — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Open the Phone app.
2. 2Tap the three-dot menu (top right) → Settings.
3. 3Tap 'Calls' or 'Call Settings' (varies by manufacturer).
4. 4Tap 'Call Forwarding'.
5. 5Tap 'Always Forward'.
6. 6Enter the answering service phone number.
7. 7Tap 'Enable' or 'Turn On'.

Android menu names vary by manufacturer (Samsung, Google Pixel, OnePlus, etc.). If you don't see 'Call Forwarding', look under Supplementary Services or Additional Settings within the Phone app settings.

Microsoft Teams Phone — How to Forward Calls

1. 1Open Microsoft Teams.
2. 2Click your profile picture → Settings.
3. 3Go to 'Calls'.
4. 4Under 'Call answering rules', select 'Forward my calls'.
5. 5In the dropdown, select 'External phone number'.
6. 6Enter the answering service number.
7. 7Click Save.

Teams Phone admins can also configure forwarding at the policy level for all users in the Microsoft Teams admin center under Voice → Calling policies.

What to Do After You Set Up Call Forwarding

• Test immediately: call your business number from a different phone and verify the answering service picks up correctly.
• Test after hours: call again outside business hours to confirm the after-hours experience works as expected.
• Do not change your public number: your website, Google Business Profile, business cards, and social profiles should continue showing your original number — call forwarding handles routing invisibly.
• Update your voicemail greeting: even with forwarding active, some edge cases (misconfigured forwarding, carrier issues) may occasionally reach voicemail. Set a greeting that directs callers to email you as a fallback.
• Confirm with your carrier: some enterprise or legacy PBX systems require a carrier call to enable call forwarding. If the dial codes above don't work, call your phone provider's business support line.

Call Forwarding vs. Number Porting — What's the Difference?

For an AI answering service, call forwarding is almost always the right choice. You keep your existing carrier, your existing number, and your existing setup — the answering service simply receives forwarded calls. Number porting is only relevant if you are switching your entire phone system to a new provider.