How to Block All Outgoing Calls on Android, and Turn Them Back On (2026)

Sometimes the goal is not one number. It is every number: a phone that should not be able to place a call at all, for an evening, for a work shift, or until you decide otherwise. Android can do this, but not from one obvious switch, and the five ways that exist behave very differently. Some stop incoming calls and mobile data too. Some need a password from your operator. Some can be undone in a second, which is a feature if you are managing a child's phone and a problem if the person you are trying to slow down is yourself. This guide walks through each method, what it leaves working, and exactly how to reverse it.

Steps are current as of September 2026. Menu names vary by phone maker and Android version. Carrier features depend on your mobile operator and plan.

1. The short answer

There are five ways to stop an Android phone from making outgoing calls. Which one is right depends on two questions: what else should keep working (incoming calls, mobile data, texts), and how easy should it be to undo.

• Carrier call barring, "All outgoing calls" — a network service. Blocks every outgoing call except emergency numbers. Incoming calls, texts, and data keep working. Undone instantly with a four-digit barring password.
• Fixed Dialing Numbers (FDN) — a SIM feature. The phone can only call numbers on an approved list. Leave the list empty, or keep only a couple of numbers on it, and effectively all calls are blocked. Undone instantly with PIN2.
• Airplane mode, or taking the SIM out — blunt. Blocks outgoing calls, but also incoming calls, texts, and mobile data. Undone in one tap.
• Device management — Android has a real "disallow outgoing calls" restriction, but only a device administrator (an employer's or school's management system) can set it. Not available on a personal phone.
• An app that blocks every outgoing call — runs on the phone through Android's call-handling role. Everything else keeps working. In NoDial, turning it off takes effect one hour later, which is the point if the person you are slowing down is yourself.

2. Method 1 — Carrier call barring: "All outgoing calls"

Call barring is a service your mobile operator runs on its network. The GSM standard defines several categories, and the one you want here is Barring of All Outgoing Calls, usually shown in the Phone app simply as "All outgoing calls". Once it is on, the network refuses every call the phone tries to place, before it rings. Incoming calls still arrive, texts still send, and mobile data is untouched. Emergency numbers are never barred.

How to turn it on in the Phone app:

• Samsung Galaxy — open Phone → the three-dot menu → Settings → Supplementary services → Call barring → Voice call (some models skip this step) → All outgoing calls → enter your barring password.
• Google Pixel and phones using the Google Phone app — open Phone → the three-dot menu → Settings → Calling accounts → your SIM → Call barring → All outgoing calls → enter the password. On the Pixel we checked, this entry only appears while the SIM's mobile data is switched on.

How to turn it on with a code: type *33*password# in the dialer and press call. To turn it off, dial #33*password#. To check whether it is active, dial *#33#. These are the same standard codes on every GSM network, though not every operator accepts them from the dialer.

The password is a four-digit barring password issued by your operator. Many operators ship it as 0000, some use 1234, and some make you request it. Some networks lock the service after a few wrong attempts, and then only your operator can reset it. Full detail on the codes, the password, and why barring sometimes refuses to switch is in our guide to call barring on Android.

3. Method 2 — Fixed Dialing Numbers with a short list

Fixed Dialing Numbers, or FDN, is stored on the SIM card. When it is on, the phone can only call numbers on the FDN list. Everything else is refused before it dials. FDN was designed as an allow-list for a child's phone or a company handset, but it doubles as an "almost everything" block: turn it on with an empty list, or with only one or two numbers you must be able to reach, and the phone cannot call anyone else.

FDN lives in the same area of the Phone app as call barring, usually under Settings → Calling accounts → your SIM → Fixed Dialing Numbers on a Pixel, or Settings → Supplementary services → Fixed dialing numbers on a Samsung. Turning it on and editing the list requires PIN2, a second SIM PIN issued by your operator, which is not the PIN you type at startup. Enter PIN2 wrong three times and it locks; unlocking it needs the PUK2 code from your operator. Incoming calls and mobile data keep working under FDN, and emergency numbers stay callable. Texts are a different story: recent Android versions apply the FDN check to outgoing texts as well, so a message to a number that is not on the list can fail to send.

The full walkthrough, PIN2 and PUK2, and the reasons FDN is awkward for everyday use are in our guide to Fixed Dialing Numbers on Android.

4. Method 3 — Airplane mode or removing the SIM

The crudest way to stop outgoing calls is to cut the phone off from the mobile network. Airplane mode does this in one tap from Quick Settings; taking the SIM out does it physically. Both work, but neither is really a "block": they also stop incoming calls, texts, and mobile data. In airplane mode you can turn Wi-Fi back on, so apps and messaging over Wi-Fi keep working, but a phone call over the mobile network cannot go out or come in.

There is one more catch. Airplane mode is undone by the same tap that turned it on, and there is no password. As a way to make a phone unusable for calls for a while, it is fine. As a way to stop yourself from calling, it lasts exactly as long as your resolve.

5. Method 4 — Device management (work and school phones)

Android does have a proper, system-level switch called "disallow outgoing calls". When it is set, the phone cannot place any call except emergency calls, and no app or setting on the phone can override it. The catch is who can set it: only a device administrator, the management system an employer or school installs on phones it owns or manages. It is one of a family of restrictions that also cover things like installing apps or using the camera.

If you are reading this for your own personal phone, this method is not available to you. It is worth knowing about for two reasons: it explains why some work phones cannot make calls at all, and it shows that Android itself treats "no outgoing calls" as a legitimate policy, just one it only exposes to administrators.

6. Method 5 — An app that blocks every call, with a delayed off switch

The last method runs on the phone itself. Android has a system role that lets one chosen app see every outgoing call at the moment it is placed and end it before it connects. This is the mechanism behind per-number outgoing call blockers, and it can be pointed at all calls just as easily as at a list. How the role works, and what to check when comparing apps, is covered in our guide to outgoing call blocker apps on Android.

NoDial started as a per-number blocker: you register the numbers you decided not to call, and calls to them end before they connect while everything else goes through. On the Premium Unlimited plan it also has a Block all outgoing calls switch on the home screen. Turn it on and every outgoing call is blocked, not just your list. It has three modes:

• Always — every outgoing call is blocked until you turn it off.
• Set hours — calls are blocked only inside a time window you choose, and go through normally outside it.
• Call limit — a set number of outgoing calls are allowed per period; after that, the rest are blocked until the count resets.

Three things separate this from the built-in methods. First, nothing else changes: incoming calls, texts, and data are untouched, and there is no password or PIN2 to get from your operator. Second, emergency calls are never blocked; the app will not intercept them in any mode. Third, and most important if the person you are slowing down is yourself: turning it off takes effect one hour later. Tapping "Turn off" shows a countdown, and the block stays in force for that hour. You can cancel the turn-off during the countdown, and your per-number list applies again once it ends. The hour is deliberate. It gives the moment of impulse time to pass, so a rule you set calmly is not undone in a second.

7. Side-by-side comparison

8. Which method fits your situation?

• You want to stop a line from running up call charges, or stop a phone you pay for from calling out — use carrier call barring. It works at the network level, there is nothing to install, and you hold the password.
• You manage someone else's phone and it should only reach a few numbers — use FDN with those numbers on the list. Keep PIN2 to yourself.
• You need the phone offline for a short stretch — airplane mode is enough. Just remember it takes incoming calls and data down with it.
• The phone is issued by an employer or school — this is set by their administrator, not by you.
• You want to stop yourself from calling, for an evening or a set of hours, without touching incoming calls or data — use an app with a delayed off switch such as NoDial. If the real problem is one or two numbers rather than every call, start with the per-number approach instead: how to block outgoing calls to a specific number.

9. Turning outgoing calls back on

Each method is undone where it was set:

• Call barring — go back to Call barring in the Phone app and switch off "All outgoing calls" with the barring password, or dial #33*password#. If the phone says the change failed, the usual causes are a wrong password, a locked password after too many tries, or an operator that does not allow the change from the phone; the fixes are in our call barring guide.
• FDN — open Fixed Dialing Numbers in the Phone app and turn it off with PIN2. If PIN2 is locked, you need PUK2 from your operator.
• Airplane mode — tap the airplane icon in Quick Settings. Put the SIM back if you removed it.
• Device management — ask the administrator. Nothing on the phone can lift it.
• NoDial — tap "Turn off" on the block screen. A one-hour countdown starts; calls are still blocked until it ends, and you can cancel the turn-off during that hour. Your per-number list applies again after that.

10. FAQ

Is there a setting on Android to block all outgoing calls?

Not a single switch on a personal phone. Carrier call barring ("All outgoing calls") and Fixed Dialing Numbers both do it from the Phone app, and both need a code from your operator. The system-level "disallow outgoing calls" restriction exists but can only be set by a device administrator.

What is the code to block all outgoing calls?

Dial *33*password# to turn on barring of all outgoing calls, #33*password# to turn it off, and *#33# to check its status. The password is the four-digit barring password from your operator, often 0000 by default.

Will blocking outgoing calls also stop incoming calls?

Not with call barring, FDN, device management, or NoDial: incoming calls keep arriving. Airplane mode and removing the SIM stop incoming calls too.

Can emergency calls still be made?

Yes with call barring, FDN, device management, and NoDial: all of them leave emergency numbers callable. In airplane mode it depends on the phone and network, so do not rely on it.

How do I block all outgoing calls only at certain hours?

The built-in methods are on or off with no schedule. NoDial's Block all outgoing calls has a set-hours mode that blocks every call inside a time window you choose and lets calls through outside it.

Why does turning off NoDial's block take an hour?

Because instant undo is the weak point of every other method when the person being blocked is you. The hour gives the moment of impulse time to pass. Turning the block on is instant; only turning it off waits.

11. Summary

• Call barring "All outgoing calls" stops every call at the network; incoming, texts, and data keep working. Codes: *33*password# on, #33*password# off.
• FDN with a short or empty list blocks everything except the list, using PIN2.
• Airplane mode blocks everything, including incoming calls and data, and is undone in one tap.
• "Disallow outgoing calls" is real but administrator-only.
• NoDial blocks every outgoing call from the phone, always, in set hours, or after a call limit, and turning it off takes effect one hour later. Emergency calls are never blocked.

NoDial — block the numbers you chose, or every call at onceOutgoing calls only. Emergency calls never blocked. Turning off takes an hour on purpose.

Sources

• ETSI, GSM 03.88 "Call Barring (CB) supplementary services – Stage 2" (defines Barring of All Outgoing Calls) etsi.org
• Samsung Support, "How to activate and use the call barring feature on my Samsung phone?" samsung.com
• Google Pixel Community, "Call barring" (path: Phone → Settings → Calling accounts → SIM → Call barring) support.google.com
• Wikipedia, "Fixed Dialing Number" en.wikipedia.org
• Android Developers, "UserManager: DISALLOW_OUTGOING_CALLS" (the device-management restriction; emergency calls remain permitted) developer.android.com
• Android Developers, "SmsManager: RESULT_ERROR_FDN_CHECK_FAILURE" (outgoing texts are also checked against the FDN list) developer.android.com
• Android Developers, "CallRedirectionService" (the system role an app uses to modify or cancel outgoing calls) developer.android.com
• Our own check on a Google Pixel 8a (Android, September 2026): the Call barring entry under Phone → Settings → Calling accounts appears only while the SIM's mobile data is on.

Operators change their defaults and phone makers rename menus. Check your operator's or phone maker's help pages if a step does not match what you see.