Live Voicemail shows a real-time transcript while someone is leaving a voicemail. If the message turns out to matter, you can answer before the caller finishes, similar to screening an old answering machine.
Live Voicemail requires iOS 17 or later and is not available in every country, region, language, or carrier setup.
Does This Affect You?
Use this if you want to know whether a missed call is spam, routine, or worth picking up while the caller is still speaking.
Turn On Live Voicemail
- Open Settings.
- On iOS 18, tap Apps, then Phone. On iOS 17, tap Phone directly.
- Turn on Live Voicemail.
Use Live Voicemail During a Call
- Let an incoming call go to voicemail.
- Watch the Live Voicemail screen appear with a transcript as the caller speaks.
- Tap Accept if you decide to answer mid-message.
- Do nothing if you want the voicemail to save normally in the Phone app.
Live Voicemail Notes
Works Well with Silence Unknown Callers
If Silence Unknown Callers is enabled, unknown calls can go straight to Live Voicemail so you can read what they want without the phone ringing.
Turn It Off
Return to Phone settings and switch off Live Voicemail if you prefer the standard missed-call and voicemail flow.
Missing Toggle
If Live Voicemail is not listed, your region, language, iOS version, or carrier Visual Voicemail support may not meet the requirement.
Privacy
Apple says Live Voicemail transcription is processed on the iPhone rather than sent to Apple for transcript generation.
Sources
- Apple Support: Set up voicemail on iPhone
- Apple Community: Enable Live Voicemail in iOS 17
- Apple Support: Screen phone calls on iPhone