Call Twice to Bypass Do Not Disturb

February 2025 — Tip of the Month

"Do Not Disturb" (DND) is a helpful feature to maintain focus or enjoy uninterrupted moments during the day. It also keeps your phone from waking you up during your nightly sleep. But what if someone needs to reach you urgently? Conversely, what if you need to contact someone in an emergency and their phone is set to Do Not Disturb?

It's simple: Just call twice.

Both iOS and Android phones have Do Not Disturb modes. And both operating systems allow repeated calls to go through by default. In iOS, the setting is called Allow Repeated Calls, and in Android, it's called Repeat callers. Your second call will go through as long as the recipient has the setting enabled.

How to Bypass Do Not Disturb

When you call someone whose phone is set to Do Not Disturb, you'll hear a message saying the person is unavailable, and you can leave a voicemail. If you need to reach the person immediately, just hang up and call again. The "repeat call" timeframe varies between phones and carriers, but as long as you call back within a minute, the second call should go through.

▶ In most cases, texting someone repeatedly will not bypass DND. If you send several texts in a row, the recipient will get them, but they won't be notified. That's why we often wake up with 20 notifications on our phone in the morning. 😜

You should only use the two-call method if you need to contact someone urgently. Generally, if someone has Do Not Disturb turned on, they don't want to be disturbed.

Important: Because it's possible to bypass DND, it's good to make sure your phone is silenced at a movie, meeting, etc., since calls can still go through. If you want to be extra safe, use a silent mode backup.

- Per Christensson