How to Turn On Wi-Fi Calling on Samsung Galaxy Phones
Settings, Connections, Wi-Fi Calling. It only works if your network supports it for your phone and plan. MTN, Airtel and Glo in Nigeria say nothing.
Samsung’s US support page, Turn on Wi-Fi Calling on Galaxy phones, puts the switch under Settings.
- Connect to a Wi-Fi network.
- Open Settings and tap Connections.
- Tap Wi-Fi Calling and turn the switch on.
- If a box asks for your emergency contact information, fill it in and tap Save.
Its pages for the UK, India and Africa reach the same switch through the Phone app.
- Open the Phone app.
- Tap More options, the three dots.
- Tap Settings.
- Turn on the Wi-Fi Calling switch. Samsung’s page for the Gulf adds a step for phones with more than one SIM: choose the SIM or eSIM you want it on.
There is a third way on some phones. Swipe down from the top of the screen with two fingers to open the Quick settings panel and tap the Wi-Fi Calling icon.
The emergency address is where the network sends help if you call the emergency number over Wi-Fi. Verizon, for one, makes you confirm a US address for 911 calls before the feature will activate. You can change the address later under Wi-Fi Calling, Emergency Address.
Whether the switch does anything is up to your mobile network. Samsung says the feature may not be available on every network or device, and it tells anyone who cannot see the option to ask their network. In Nigeria that is the whole story for now: MTN, Airtel and Glo each have a web page for calls over 4G, and none of the three mentions Wi-Fi calling.
Wi-Fi or mobile first
Once the switch is on, tap Wi-Fi Calling itself to choose which connection the phone tries first. Samsung’s UK page names the two choices Mobile network preferred and Wi-Fi preferred, and its US page calls the setting Calling Preference. Whichever you pick, the phone falls back to the other when the first is not available. Some networks add a separate choice for when you are abroad, labelled Roaming network preference or When Roaming.
What Wi-Fi Calling is
It lets the phone make and receive ordinary calls, and send texts, over a Wi-Fi connection when the mobile signal is weak or missing. You use the normal Phone app and your own number, with no extra app: EE, AT&T and Airtel in India all say none is needed, and Verizon calls it a built-in feature of the phone. Networks also call it VoWiFi or Voice over Wi-Fi.
It is a service your network runs. EE’s help page puts it plainly: the Wi-Fi only carries the call as far as EE’s network, and EE still connects it. That is why the calls come out of your usual minutes or airtime, and why a phone cannot use the feature on a network that does not run the service. Samsung’s pages list what the phone itself needs: a Wi-Fi connection, and active service on a SIM card or eSIM from a network that supports the feature.
What each network says about it
| Country | Network | What its own website says about Wi-Fi calling |
|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | MTN | Nothing. It has a page for VoLTE, on selected devices, and its site search returns no results for Wi-Fi calling or VoWiFi |
| Nigeria | Airtel | Nothing. Its VoLTE page and its FAQ do not mention it |
| Nigeria | Glo | Nothing. It has a VoLTE page with a list of supported phones, and its site search brings up only unrelated pages |
| United States | Verizon | Built into most of its current smartphones. The phone needs HD Voice active and a US address for 911. No charge for calls to US numbers on plans with unlimited talk and text |
| United States | AT&T | Needs a compatible smartphone, a voice plan and an account set up for HD Voice. No extra cost for the feature |
| United Kingdom | EE | Open to anyone on EE with a compatible device, on Wi-Fi in the UK. Calls and texts cost what they usually do |
| United Kingdom | O2 | All its 4G and 5G devices support it, on Pay Monthly and Pay As You Go. Not supported outside the UK |
| India | Jio | No additional charge. Needs an existing voice plan and a phone that supports HD voice |
| India | Airtel | All circles except Jammu and Kashmir, on any broadband provider. Needs a capable handset and a 4G SIM, with VoLTE switched on first. No additional charge |
The networks that offer Wi-Fi Calling describe it as included, not as a paid extra, and the catch is eligibility: the phone model and the plan. VoLTE also keeps turning up as a condition. Samsung’s US page says an AT&T phone must have VoLTE on before Wi-Fi Calling will activate, and Airtel in India puts the VoLTE switch ahead of the Wi-Fi Calling one in its instructions.
Does MTN Nigeria have Wi-Fi calling?
MTN Nigeria’s website does not say so. VoLTE is the feature the three Nigerian networks do publish. It carries calls over the 4G network, so it still needs a mobile signal. MTN says its VoLTE is for selected devices on a 4G SIM in 4G coverage. Glo lists the supported phones on its page, many Galaxy models among them. None of that is Wi-Fi calling.
With nothing published by MTN, Airtel or Glo, we have no basis for telling you the switch will appear or work on their SIMs. Some blogs describe an MTN Wi-Fi calling service. Nothing on mtn.ng backs that up, so treat it as unconfirmed and ask MTN before you count on it.
Calling through an app such as WhatsApp is a different thing. WhatsApp’s Help Center says its voice calls use the phone’s internet connection, not the minutes on your plan, and that they cannot reach emergency numbers. That asks nothing of your network. The limit is that the person at the other end needs the same app.
When the switch is missing
Look in both places: Settings, Connections on some phones, and the Phone app’s own settings on others. Try the Quick settings panel too.
Connect to Wi-Fi first. Samsung’s US page says the phone must be on a Wi-Fi network, with active service on its SIM or eSIM, before the feature can be enabled.
Update the software, under Settings, Software update, Download and install. Samsung’s page for Africa puts this ahead of everything else.
If the option is still not there, Samsung’s UK and Indian pages say to contact your network and check two things: that Wi-Fi Calling is available on the network, and that it is activated for your device. Samsung’s Indian page adds that the feature is offered on selected devices only. If you are choosing a Galaxy now, our comparison of this year’s Galaxy A phones covers the five models. Whether any of them gets Wi-Fi Calling on your SIM is still the network’s decision.
Older guides, including ones written for the Galaxy S9, send you to Settings, Connections, Advanced calling. Samsung’s support pages on this do not use that path. Verizon’s FAQ still mentions it for older Android phones, where it says HD Voice sits under Advanced Calling.
When it is on but calls do not use Wi-Fi
You know it is working when the phone shows it. Samsung says a notification tells you the call is going over Wi-Fi, and EE and O2 both describe a Wi-Fi calling indicator at the top of the screen. If you never see one, Samsung’s US troubleshooting page works through these steps in order.
- Check the Wi-Fi itself: Settings, Connections, Wi-Fi. The connection has to be strong and steady.
- Restart the phone. Swipe down twice from the top right corner, tap the Power icon, then Restart.
- Update the software.
- Reset the network settings: Settings, General management, Reset, then Reset mobile network settings or Reset Wi-Fi and Bluetooth settings. This wipes saved networks and Bluetooth pairings and keeps your apps and files, and Samsung warns you may need to get the APN settings from your network again. It is not a factory reset, and the difference is set out under resetting a Samsung phone.
- Uninstall any app you added just before the trouble began.
- Contact your network, to confirm Wi-Fi Calling is supported on your account. If the network finds nothing wrong, Samsung says the phone may need a service centre.
